Simultaneous Grasping and Heating Technology for Automated Handling and Preforming of Continuous Fiber Reinforced Thermoplastics

Nowadays large-scale production systems for lightweight car-bodies made of composite materials become increasingly important. Especially, the use of thermoplastic matrix materials makes these composites worthwhile for large quantities. However, these so-called organo-sheets must be heated above melting temperature before manufacturing. In this state, the composite becomes form unstable, which complicates the handling in an automated process. To simplify the handling, this paper presents an approach, which allows the handling, heating and preforming of organo- sheets. This includes the introduction of a robot-tool, which is composed of heatable vortex-grippers and a folding mechanism, as well as a analysis of its automation potential.