Developing a Trajectory Planning for Curved-Contoured Surfaces for Use by 8-DoF Workcell in Robotic Fibre Placement

Abstract

The replacement rate of conventional material by composites is increasing. Possessing high specific strength and stiffness makes composites attractive to many applications. Different techniques are being utilized for composite placement processes. Robotic Fibre Placement (RFP) is introduced as a competing approach for composite fabrication. This approach can provide many advantages; e.g. low labor cost, high performance, quick and effective process. The current work proposes an 8-DoF system established for laying the composite material. This system composed of three main units includes a 6-DoF industrial robot and two mandrel tools with different configurations. A sensory-based feedback control system is developed to manage the placement process. The placement process can be performed on two different surfaces. The end-cap surface has been fabricated then the cylindrical surface. Different geometries of pressure vessels have been generated; e.g. Oxidizer tanks that can be used in many applications such as (Hybrid rockets).