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Automated fiber placement with course trajectory compensation

  • US 9,545,759 B2
  • Filed: 01/30/2015
  • Issued: 01/17/2017
  • Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2015
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A system for determining course trajectories for the application of tows of composite material to a curved surface using an automated fiber placement machine, the system comprising:

  • a non-transitory storage that stores data related to the shape and dimensions of the surface and that stores an indication of a steering limitation; and

    a computing system comprising one or more computing devices, the computing system in communication with the non-transitory storage and programmed to;

    access, from the non-transitory storage, the data related to the shape and dimensions of the surface and the indication of the steering limitation;

    produce, based on the data, a plurality of course trajectories for the application of tows over the surface, the trajectories being generally parallel to each other;

    determine, for each course trajectory, whether any of the tows would violate the steering limitation;

    adjust each course trajectory having a tow that violates the steering limitation, the adjustment comprising determining a course trajectory that;

    avoids the violation of the steering limitation; and

    intentionally diverges from an adjacent course trajectory, thereby creating a gap between the adjusted course trajectory and the adjacent course trajectory, the gap having a flared shape that comprises a lateral width that is greater than the lateral width of a single one of the tows; and

    produce at least one additional course trajectory located in the gap.

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