Ultra-fast Consolidator Machine Development – Individualized Mass Production of Thermoplastic Tailored Blanks based on Laser-assisted Tape Placement with in-situ Consolidation

Abstract

The new UItra-Fast Consolidator Machine development offers both high flexibility and mass production of tailored thermoplastic laminates with reduced scrap. The machine system can be configurated to achieve fully consolidated multi-layer laminates with different fiber directions and minimized scrap (thermoplastic tailored blanks) produced in cycle times below 5 seconds. This individualized mass production is accomplished by a combination of laser-assisted tape placement with in-situ consolidation and a piece-flow principle, which is state of the art in the printing industry but has not been used in such a way within composite production. The achievable productivity is enhanced to more than 500 kg/hour by this piece-flow principle with carriers moved through multiple application stations which are equipped with multiple tape placement applicators. The new machine is scalable: multiple application stations can be added, e.g. for each layer one station for mass production or for each fiber direction one station with a carrier-conveyor carousel: here the carriers are moved multiple times through the application stations.

This innovative machine system is a result of an 18-months AZL Joint Partner Project, conducted in 2017-2018 by the research partners AZL Aachen and Fraunhofer IPT Aachen, in cooperation with 12 industrial partner companies including Conbility, Covestro, Engel, Evonik, Fagor Arrasate, Faurecia SE, Laserline, Mitsui Chemicals, Mubea Carbo Tech, Philips Photonics, SSDT and Toyota (in alphabetical order). The system won the international JEC Innovation AWARD 2019 in the category “Industry & Equipment”.