Abstract: A method and apparatus for shaping a section bar (for example, a “T-shaped” or “J-shaped” stringer) made of composite material is provided. The method comprising the steps of placing the stacked reinforced-fiber sheets on a pair of side presses opposing to each other with a predetermined gap; inserting a punch through the gap from above to fold the stacked reinforced-fiber sheets in half, while holding ends of the stacked reinforced-fiber sheets between upper surfaces of the side presses by block members; drawing out the punch upward and then pressing the stacked reinforced-fiber sheets folded by the side presses therebetween. A shaped product shaped thereby is high quality in which a distortion (“fluctuation”) of the stacked reinforced-fiber sheets in the inner side ply or plies of bending does not occur and ends of the stacked reinforced-fiber sheets are aligned between plies.

Abstract: A connector element for connecting frame parts at a joint location in a bicycle frame is made of a single part of structural fiber based material, typically carbon fiber material, after reticulation in a mold exploiting the expansion of a core on which windings of fiber fabric material are provided, to obtain the application of a uniform radial pressure on the layers of fiber based material. In one embodiment, the connector element defines a bicycle bottom bracket and tubular extensions extending therefrom for connection to elements of the bicycle frame.

Abstract: A process and a production installation for producing shell-shaped, fiber-reinforced plastic parts are provided. The plastic parts can be produced efficiently, in an automated manner which is flexible with respect to the process and workpiece and is operationally reliable. A blank of the endless fiber mat corresponding to a workpiece is placed in an automated manner by industrial robots onto a clamping frame surrounding the female mold and is taken over by the clamping frame in a clamping manner and in such a way that it can slide after itself against a defined resistance. Wide-ranging accessibility required for this is created by a horizontally movable unit, comprising a female mold and a clamping frame, being temporarily moved completely out from the forming press and moved back again into the forming press after completion of loading.

Abstract: A method of fabricating laminate articles. A plurality of support templates are arranged to define a part outline corresponding to the laminate article. An outer surface of a primary panel to is secured to the plurality of templates. A secondary panel is arranged in a desired relationship with the primary panel. A vacuum bag is secured to the primary panel to define a vacuum chamber. A vacuum is applied to the vacuum chamber to remove air from between the at least one primary panel and the at least one secondary panel. Optionally, at least one locater peg may be secured to the primary panel and at least one locater hole may be formed in the secondary panel. In this case, the secondary panel is displaced relative to the primary panel such that the at least one locater peg enters the at least one locater hole.

Abstract: A method of making golf club grip includes the steps of overlapping a textile fabric on a first raw rubber layer and painting a rubber latex on the textile fabric to attach the textile fabric on the first raw rubber layer to form a thin reinforced rubber layer laminated with the textile fabric; preparing a second raw rubber layer which is shaped and sized to form two control members; shaping the first raw rubber layer to form two anti-slip members; aligning the anti-slip members with the control members in an end to end manner in two halves of heat mold respectively; and vulcanizing the anti-slip members and the control members in a heat mold to form the golf club grip including a tubular anti-slip arrangement and a tubular control arrangement coaxially extended from a lower end of the anti-slip arrangement.

Abstract: A method for making figures/stripes on an article, including steps of: preparing a substrate; wrapping an outer surface of the substrate with a fiberglass fabric drenched with resin; placing at least one thin or slender covering material on an outer face of the fiberglass fabric, the substrate, fiberglass fabric and the covering material together forming a wrapping body; using a binding means to bind the wrapping body to harden and pattern the fiberglass fabric; taking off the binding means after the wrapping body is hardened and patterned, whereby the fiberglass fabric is hardened to form an inner layer, the covering material positioned on the inner layer and forming the figures/strips; painting an outer resin on an outer face of the wrapping body after the outer resin is hardened; and buffing the hardening layer to complete the article.

Abstract: A method is provided that uses half-period translations, ply-upon-pin repositions, and shape-maintaining pins with a bolster plate, with insertable nodal heating elements that provide heat at their rectangular ends and when driven under pressure against opposing pins with rectangular faces cure portions of a pre-impregnated fabric to make honeycomb core composite articles.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing an integral one-piece solar collector panel 10 by a rotational moulding process is disclosed. The solar collector panel 10 has a plurality of fluid ways 15 extending between opposed ends 18, 19 and transverse headers 18, 19 opening into the open ends of the fluid ways 15. The panel 10 is moulded by a rotational moulding process using mould faces with a non planar topography, eg in the form of a plurality of lines projecting outwardly proud of the remainder of the mould plate. This enables areas of the moulded body 12 to be formed that are not hollow and form a solid wall in the moulded panel and other areas of the body to be formed that are hollow and form the fluid ways 15 and headers 18, 19. After the moulding of the panel 10 has taken place the two opposed mould faces are moved towards each other to cause the contacting layers of mould material to firmly adhere to each other.

Abstract: A process for the production of composite tubing, particularly for air conditioning, from a structure of mineral or organic fibers, natural or artificial. The structure of fibers is impregnated with a suitable resin, and after shaping in or on a mold, the temperature and possibly the pressure is raised for polymerization of the resin, a sealing of the wall of the shaped piece being carried out in the course of this process. The structure of fibers is constituted by a single ply of a unit weight of at least about 400 g/m2, which ply is impregnated with resin at an impregnation quantity of at least 40%, then there is emplaced on one of the surfaces of the single ply a coating of a sealing agent. The polymerization is carried out while the single ply and its coating have the desired shape in or on the mold.

Abstract: This invention involves forward integration of the art paste extrusion process by adding a step to the processing sequence to change the uniaxially-oriented art form to a desirable planar biaxially-oriented form. This invention also involves the backward integration of the resin preparation to reduce the commercial coagulated dispersion resin particle size (average 500 micron) to the size range of colloidal size particles contained within the original 500 micron particle. In this small particulate form, the polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) resin can be blended more homogeneously and extruded with less turbulence in the plug extrusion process, the rheological mechanism of this extrusion process. The size reduction makes processing of micron size fillers possible in up to 90 percent volume of the PTFE resin. This invention also provides a direct and simple method of producing planar biaxially-oriented sheet and a source of resin formulations for fabricating other forms and shapes.

Abstract: A fiber preform constituting fiber reinforcement of a composite material part that is to be fabricated is made by superposing and bonding together fiber plies, and by densifying the needled preform by introducing a material constituting the matrix of the composite material into it. During the process of making the preform, a powder is dusted onto the surface of at least some of the plies, the powder comprising at least one ingredient selected from a solid resin in powder form and solid fillers in powder form. The powder is dusted onto the surface of the top ply of the preform that is being made, prior to superposing and needling at least one additional ply.

Abstract: The invention is a process for forming a preform for use in a structure having at least one curved portion of a specific length, including the steps of: 1) providing a preform having cable of expanding in length threads in rows parallel to the direction of curvature over a length equal to the length requiring curvature, such that the gaps between each thread row are spaced from the gaps in the adjacent tread rows; and 2) stretching the portions of the preform requiring curvature in a sine-wave pattern.

Abstract: A unidirectional tape comprising carbon fibers and a fugitive binder is provided, as well as methods for forming the tape and composite parts using the unidirectional tape in a resin-transfer molding (RTM) process. A fugitive binder adheres fibers of the tape. The tape is laid in an RTM mold, and the mold is sealed or vacuum bagged, then heated. Hot nitrogen gas is pumped through the mold cavity, heating the carbon fibers to completely pyrolyze the binder. No residue from the binder remains, as the nitrogen carries gaseous products from the pyrolysis out of the mold. The mold is cooled to a temperature suitable for resin injection, and resin is injected into the mold cavity, wetting the fibers of the tape and completely filling the cavities of the mold. The mold is heated to cause curing of the resin, then cooled and disassembled for removal of the completed composite component.

Abstract: A method of ejecting containers from a blow mold comprises the steps of: opening a blow mold containing containers, the blow mold comprising a pair of pistons having a head and a heel, an end cap disposed behind the heel, and a pair of ejector rods, each ejector rod coupled to a different piston; simultaneously with the opening forcing a fluid against each head of each of the pair of pistons, extending each of the ejector rods to maintain contact with an opposite side of a center portion of the containers in the blow mold and pushing the containers from the blow mold; and forcing a fluid against the heel of each of the pair of pistons operative to retract the pair of ejector rods away from the containers when the containers are separated from the blow mold.

Abstract: The invention relates to the production of a hybrid component, whereby a piece of metal sheet (1) is a least partly coated with plastic by injection molding, by means of the following steps: a) placing the metal sheet (1) in one mold half of an injection mold, b) closing the injection mold, such that a first mold cavity opposite an upper side (O) of the metal sheet (1) and a second mold cavity opposite an under side (U) of the metal sheet (1) are cut off from each other, c) treatment of the upper side (O) with plastic by means of at least a first sprue (9) to produce an essentially flat coating (4) connected to the metal sheet (1) and, finally, d) treatment of the under side (U) by means of at least one second sprue (10) to produce a reinforcing structure (6) connected to the metal sheet (1).

Abstract: Saddle made of composite material, in particular for a bicycle, comprising a support structure provided with a padding having a seating surface. The support structure comprises a plurality of first layers of high-rigidity composite material having an opening formed centrally therein and a second layer of composite material with a rigidity less than that of the first layers, fixed to the latter along a superimposed surface covering the opening so as to form an elastically yielding zone which is preferably located in the prostatic and ischiatic zones of the seat of the saddle.

Abstract: A manufacturing system and method for use in the production of high strength plastic materials which can be used in the construction arts. The system and method includes a central rotary mold element which has vacuum means and cooling means placed inside thereof. Heating elements are positioned exteriorly of the rotary mold. Treated long fiber sheets are introduced to the rotary mold and combined with plastic sheets which are also fed to the mold.

Abstract: Hybrid matrix fiber composites having enhanced compressive performance as well as enhanced stiffness, toughness and durability suitable for compression-critical applications. The methods for producing the fiber composites using matrix hybridization. The hybrid matrix fiber composites comprised of two chemically or physically bonded matrix materials, whereas the first matrix materials are used to impregnate multi-filament fibers formed into ribbons and the second matrix material is placed around and between the fiber ribbons that are impregnated with the first matrix material and both matrix materials are cured and solidified.

Abstract: A closed ring fiber reinforced frame structure is produced by first preparing a prepreg. A section of the prepreg is formed into a flange preferably after impregnation by folding the flange section along a folding line. The folding line is formed by securing a deformable or drapable fiber ribbon material, for example by sewing or stitching to a carrier substrate which is preferably also a fiber material. The sewing seam or stitching line becomes the folding line. The ribbon material is so secured to the carrier substrate that the fiber orientation of the ribbon material is uniformly distributed all around a ring component that is formed of the ribbon material on the substrate. The impregnated ring component with its substrate is then cured after the folding of the flange to complete the ring frame structure.

Abstract: An improvement to a process for making a reusable soft flexible bag for use in infusion processes for making plastic parts, wherein a reusable polymer bag is formed by spraying or swirl spraying one or multiple layers or coats of a polymer made from one or plural component polymer material, to create a desired configuration of the bag. Successive coats can be applied without waiting for the previous layer to be cured. The bag once completely cured can be removed from the original pattern from which it was configured and placed into the resin infusion process on the same opposing mold for multiple uses before exhausting the life of the bag. Resin ports and vacuum ports and where necessary molding in handles can be included or formed during the spray process to allow for easy removal from one part and transference to a new part to be molded.