Abstract
Precision sensing in the characterization of complex additive manufacturing processes such as the Automated Fibre Placement (AFP) technique is important since the process involves a significant level of uncertainty in terms of quality and integrity of the manufactured product. These uncertainties can be monitored by embedding optical fibre Bragg grating (FBGs) sensors which provide accurate and simultaneous measurement of strain and temperature during the AFP process. The embedded sensors have been shown to remain resilient in continuous health monitoring after manufacturing. The thermal history obtained from the FBG sensors demonstrates a reduction of temperature on the bottom ply by up to 25% when the plies are laid one above the other. A numerical tool is developed to identify the physical parameters which may be responsible for the rise/fall of the temperature during ply layup. The numerical findings agree well with the sensor data and is extended to capture a breadth of parametric studies through the layup simulation. The model provides a comprehensive insight to the characteristics of the laid and the laying ply from a thermo-mechanics perspective.
Highlights
The advent of smart, intelligent and adaptive materials and structures began in the mid-1980s with an attempt to integrate electroactive/optically active functional materials into large-scale structures in the form of in situ sensors and actuators
We focus on the monitoring and prediction of thermoplastic composites during their automated layup process using fibre Bragg grating sensors (FBGs) sensors
In the experimental set up, ten plies were laid one above the other and up to four plies were simulated to investigate the thermo-mechanics during the layup process
Summary
The advent of smart, intelligent and adaptive materials and structures began in the mid-1980s with an attempt to integrate electroactive/optically active functional materials into large-scale structures in the form of in situ sensors and actuators. Composite materials which provide excellent light weight and stiffness characteristics in comparison to metals are often used to manufacture large structures. Such structures have gained impetus in the aerospace, renewable, marine and other manufacturing industries. The journey of composite structures began a while ago with manual hand-layup techniques which eventually slowed the rapid advancement in manufacturing This is because of uncontrollable product integrity and a wealth of uncertainties. The level of errors in the manual layup has been substantially overcome, yet the automated manufactured parts are still not free from defects This requires efficient structural health monitoring (or in-situ product monitoring) during the AFP process to assess the quality of manufactured part. Monitoring of the quality in terms of their strain and temperature characteristics require precision sensors, suitable to capture information at Sensors 2019, 19, 1310; doi:10.3390/s19061310 www.mdpi.com/journal/sensors
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