Patent abstracts

Citation

(2006), "Patent abstracts", Industrial Robot, Vol. 33 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/ir.2006.04933bad.004

Patent abstracts

Method of manufacturing roofing products

Keywords: Composite materials, Robotics, PatentsApplicant: Jolitz Randal J (US);Carlson Dennis D (US); Ziulkowski Charles D (US)Patent number: US2005217199Publication date: 6 October 2005

Methods of making roofing products. One such method includes:

1. 1.

   creating a mixture having a filler and a polymer;

2. 2.

   forming a sheet from the mixture;

3. 3.

   cooling the sheet;

4. 4.

   embossing the sheet;

5. 5.

   forming multiple roofing products from the sheet; and

6. 6.

   bundling at least some of the roofing products.

Steps (1)-(6) are performed using an automated procedure. Another of the methods involves:

• •

  creating composite roofing products using mold cavities;

• •

  using a robot to transfer some of the roofing products from some of the mold cavities to a conveying system; and

• •

  stacking together at least two of the roofing products that have different colors or different surface configurations.

Precision feed end-effector composite fabric tape-laying apparatus and method

Keywords: Composite materials, Robotics, PatentsApplicant: Groppe David (US)Patent number: US2005209735Publication date: 22 September 2005

A fabric and tape laying machine operable with:

1. 1.

   a robot including programmable control means;

2. 2.

   a supply roll containing a continuous strip of composite tape or fabric; and

3. 3.

   a mould of predetermined surface shape relative to x, y and z coordinates, including:

   • •

     chassis mountable to and movable by the robot;

   • •

     a contact roller module mounted on the chassis and spaced apart and downstream from the supply roll and adapted to receive tape from the supply roll, the contact roller module being moved along the programmed path by the chassis;

   • •

     a tape cutting unit carried by the chassis and situated between the supply roll and the contact roller module, and

   • •

     a suspension system for dynamically energizing the contact roller module to have its rollers apply a predetermined level of force downward on the tape during the lay-up process.

Apparatus for the fabrication by draping of multilayered structures of composite material

Keywords: Composite materials, Robotics, PatentsApplicant: Snecma (FR)Patent number: EP0577505Publication date: 5 January 1994

In order to produce multilayer structures made of composite materials, by draping pre-cut elementary layers over a forming die, an installation is proposed comprising, in addition to the forming die, a gripping tool capable of being mounted, for example, on the articulated arm of a robot. The forming die comprises a flexible membrane, equipped with suction suckers which grip the pre-cut elementary layers. A vacuum circuit enables the membrane to be pressed up against a counter-shape placed behind the latter, in order to shape the elementary layer picked up. When the tool is brought onto the die, a pressure source acts on the membrane in order to compact the elementary layer on the die. A suction system keeps this layer on the die, after releasing the suction via the suckers.

Methods for freeform fabrication of structures

Keywords: Composite materials, Robotics, PatentsApplicant: Sandia Corp (US)Patent number: US6080343Publication date: 27 June 2000

Rapid prototyping methods and apparatuses that produce structures made of continuous-fiber polymer-matrix composites without the use of molds. Instead of using molds, the composite structure is fabricated patch by patch in layers or wraps, using a two-or three-axis stage connected to a rapidly-reconfigurable forming surface, and a robot arm to position the evolving composite structure, which are both programmable devices. Because programmable devices are included, i.e. a robot and a two- or three-axis stage connected to the reconfigurable forming surface, the control program needed to produce a desired shape can be easily modified to automatically generate the desired shape from an electronic model (e.g. using a CAD/ CAM system) of the desired (predetermined) shape.