Robotic lamination of composite parts

Robotic lamination of composite parts

The main objective of CANNIER is to develop a flexible robotic cell for the automatic lamination of carbon fibre reinforcements that have been pre-impregnated (prepreg) with activated resin, making the process more agile and sustainable. To achieve these results, tailored robotic end-effectors and a CAM software for the computing of the lamination trajectories will be developed.

The solution

The solution proposed consists of two main technological developments, brought by the project partners:
1-Roboticssa developed a CAM software that automatically generates the robot trajectories, extracting all required parameters from the CAD of the parts to be manufactured and of the robotic tools. To maximise effectiveness, a user-friendly HMI allows operators to adjust lamination trajectories based on their experience.
2-Stam was in charge of the mechanical design of the robotic hardware, including: tools for the ply lamination, a solution to quickly change the tools, the cell frame and jigs for mould positioning. The lamination tools were specially designed to adapt to several mould geometries and apply constant pressure, ensuring consistent ply consolidation.


Challenge

Small manufacturers of prepreg carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (CFRP) parts, such as Composite Industries, have the strong need to improve the agility of their manufacturing process, increasing productivity, quality, and repeatability of products, and reducing manufacturing costs.
The commonly used “hand lay-up” manufacturing technology, in which the final product is obtained by overlapping and laminating a specific number of different layers, represents the best economic moulding process for small batches of highly customisable components. The high flexibility required by this process is ensured by employing human operators, who are forced to perform repetitive and ergonomics-critical tasks.
The introduction of user-friendly and flexible robotic solutions represents the most suitable path to introduce automation in the CFRP components field for SMEs.



Impact

Thanks to CANNIER, composite parts manufacturers like Composite Industries, will benefit from several improvements. The lamination process is more agile, leading to an automated environment that ensures improved quality and repeatability of the parts manufactured. Moreover, CANNIER brings significant economic and environmental benefits, such as: reduction of lamination time (-40%) and cost (-25%), and reduction of non-compliant parts (-10%).
In the next few years, the growing interest in composite materials will ensure a strong market impact for the technology developers of CANNIER.

Facts and figures

  • FSTP Name:

    CANNIER

  • Beneficiary Lead:

    RoboticsSolution Advisor S.L.
    www.roboticssa.es/en/
    Spain

  • Beneficiary 2:

    STAM S.r.l.
    www.stamtech.com/
    Italy

  • Beneficiary 3:

    Composite Industries SRL
    Romania

  • Technology Area:

    Robot Cell Development

  • End User:

    Composite Industries SRL

  • Start Date - End Date:

    01/11/2021 - 30/11/2022

  • Duration:

    13 months

  • FSTP Funding:

    199 938,00 €

  • TRL Level at Start:

    4

  • TRL Level at End:

    6

  • Number of early adopters raised:

    1

    • Project results
    This solution is very useful for our production process. As production manager, I greatly appreciate the repeatability of the lamination process achieved thanks to the robotic cell.

    Claudiu Puscas, Production Manager at Composite Industries

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