Patent ID: 8721830
Filing Date: 2014-05-13
Classification: B29C,B29K,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A method for manufacturing a structural part including at least two wings extending in intersecting planes, the part being made of a thermoplastic fiber-reinforced composite material including a stack of at least two plies of continuous fibers, the fibers extending from one wing to another, the method comprising: cutting the at least two plies in a fabric and/or a tape of fibers pre-impregnated with a thermoplastic resin; assembling the plies to create a preform; compacting the preform to a final shape of the part by subjecting the preform to a defined cycle of temperature and pressure; wherein: in the cutting, each ply is cut along in a contour determined by fiber orientation and a position of the ply in the stack and a position of forming generatrices, so to compensate for interlaminar offsets at edges of the plies resulting from bending the preform, each forming generatrix corresponding to a fold line of a flat preform to obtain the part; in the assembling, the superposed plies are locked against each other by welds realized along the at least one forming generatrix of the preform; the compacting is carried out in a toolset comprising a rigid punch and die that define a sealed chamber between the punch and the die, whose clearance between their respective surfaces defines the shape of the part.