Digital placement system of a lateral tensioning rod during the formation of flexible-oriented three-dimensional composite preforms

Abstract

The placement of a lateral tensioning rod is the main event during the formation of a flexible-oriented three-dimensional composite preform. Inaccurate placement can result in defective fiber weaving, degrading the overall quality of the preform. Furthermore, the manual execution of this task is time-consuming and ineffective. In this study, an automatic and digital placement method and mechanism are proposed to address these problems for the first time. In particular, an image processing method is proposed to recognize the placement region, where the geometric features are irregular and the feature differences are neglectable compared to the background. The placement position is then detected using a single industrial endoscope and the similar decision theorem of triangles. Furthermore, the proposed method and mechanism are applied to a digital placement system. The lateral tensioning rod can be accurately placed, as the relative error between the actual and ideal placement positions is within 0.5 %. The proposed method, therefore, automatizes the manual task and is essential in the development of preform formation toward digital manufacturing.