NSERC/Bell Helicopter Textron Industrial Research Chair in Automated Composites Manufacturing

为了保持竞争力，加拿大航空航天工业需要降低其制造成本，同时增加其产品的耐用性和能效。在这方面，该行业近年来特别重视碳纤维复合材料。这些材料虽然满足了所有结构上的考虑，从而提高了耐用性并减轻了重量，但在制造成本方面传统上并不具有竞争力。最近，自动化纤维贴装(AFP)等新的自动化制造工艺在降低复合材料制造成本方面显示出巨大的前景，人们开展了大量研究，使其广泛应用于波音787梦幻客机等最近的主要平台。尽管热固性基质材料的AFP加工显著降低了制造成本，但如果将该工艺扩展到热塑性基质材料，仍有更多的收益需要实现。在这里，可以将材料直接固化到工具表面上，而不需要高压灭菌器后处理，这与其他专业热塑性加工，如热冲压和热成形相结合，有望显著降低成本。因此，工业研究教席(IRC)的总体目标是开发与主要航空航天结构的ACM相关的新的科学和技术诀窍，特别是热塑性基质材料。自动化是基于机器人系统的，有利于飞机工业和“未来工厂”复合材料初级结构制造中新兴的网络物理系统的发展。该项目雇用的研究生将在康科迪亚和贝尔直升机德事隆加拿大有限公司的设施中获得非凡的经验，这样他们就可以带着所需的技能进入劳动力大军，利用开发的技术和衍生工具来加强加拿大航空航天工业在全球市场的地位。

In order to remain competitive, there is a need for the Canadian aerospace industry to reduce its manufacturingcosts, whilst adding durability and energy efficiency to its products. In this regard the industry has in recentyears placed particular emphasis on carbon fiber composites. These materials whilst satisfying all structuralconsiderations resulting in enhanced durability and reduced weight have traditionally however not competedwell in terms of manufacturing costs. Recently new automated manufacturing processes such as AutomatedFiber Placement (AFP) have shown significant promise in composite manufacturing cost reduction and muchresearch has been carried out resulting in extensive application to recent major platforms such as the Boeing787 Dreamliner. Though AFP processing of thermoset matrix materials has provided significant manufacturingcost reduction, there remain further gains to be achieved should the processing be extended to thermoplasticmatrix materials. Here it is possible to consolidate material directly on to the tool face with no requirement forautoclave post processing and this combined with other specialist thermoplastic processing such asthermo-stamping and thermo-forming promises significant further cost reductions.The overall objective of thisIndustrial Research Chair (IRC) is therefore to develop novel scientific and technical know-how relating to theACM of primary aerospace structures with a special focus on thermoplastic matrix materials. The automationis based on robotic systems conducive with the emerging cyber physical system developments in the aircraftindustry and "Factory of the Future" composite primary structure manufacture. Graduate students employed inthis program will be provided with an exceptional level of experience at the facilities of both Concordia andBell Helicopter Textron Canada Ltd., so that they may enter the workforce with the skills required to exploitthe developed technologies and derived tools to strengthen the position of the Canadian aerospace industry inthe global market place.