| Sol No.: |
Navy SBIR FY2008.1 |
| Topic No.: |
N08-026 |
| Topic Title: |
Innovative Approaches to the Fabrication of Composite Rotary Wing Main Rotor Blade Spars |
| Proposal No.: |
N081-026-0969 |
| Firm: |
ADC Acquisition Co. dba Automated Dynamics
407 Front Street
Schenectady, New York 12305 |
| Contact: |
Anne Roberts |
| Phone: |
(518) 377-6471 |
| Web Site: |
www.automateddynamics.com |
| Abstract: |
Commonly, composite rotor blade spars are fabricated by hand layups or other non-optimized, not fully automated procedures. These methods are labor intensive and require many de-bulking steps, making them expensive. The results are often inconsistent due to the nature of work done by hand. In our process, continuous graphite fiber reinforced thermoset prepreg tape will be used in conjunction with our automated fiber placement technology to produce high performance composite main rotor blade spars. Since our process is automated, it provides repeatable and accurate results with less labor involvement. The use of continuous fiber reinforced prepreg tape allows us to tailor the lay-up to suit the design criteria at hand. Our automated process provides low cost effective manufacturing methods for the production of high quality composite structures. |
| Benefits: |
The fundamental benefits associated with utilizing automated fiber placement when manufacturing blade spars is to increase part quality while reducing costs. These manufacturing techniques are applicable to almost any composite spar blade that is currently made. Fiber placement technologies also have potential to expand to other aerospace components. |