The objective of this design problem is to create a process in which a robot arm link will be wrapped in a carbon fiber composite filament. The process will be developed for the designers of a composite robot arm. The goal of the customer is to integrate arm links using an automated composite fiber application technology. The reason the customer wants to automate the process is to improve the speed and repeatability of the hand lay-up method which is currently used. The need for the customer is quite real, as they need to reduce lead times and produce a consistent product in order to remain competitive.
A filament winding process can be used to make the link on its own. However, when the links are joined, the fibers need to be wrapped around the end (a complex geometry), which would require more intricate movement than that which is found in traditional filament winding technology. Also, when these geometries are being followed, there should be consistent tension and torsion in the filament as it is being applied.
Thank you for visiting the site. The design team laboured endlessly on this project, and are happy to share their work.
