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2019 © iCOMAT

Our Technology

Automated Material Placement

  • Steering using In-plane bending

  • Steering defects (Gaps & Overlaps)

  • Limited steering radius (over 500 mm)

  • Tape width is coupled with Steering radius

  • Complicated design process

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iCOMAT Technology

  • Steering using In-plane shear

  • No steering defects

  • Minimum steering radius less than 50 mm

  • Tape width irrelevant

  • Simplified design process

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 VS 

Defect-free Fibre Steering

  • Our innovative Continuous Tow Shearing (CTS), the world’s first automated composites manufacturing process that can place carbon fibre tapes along curved paths without generating defects.

  • Our patented fibre steering technology realises ultra-lightweight composite structures beyond the limit of the conventional straight fibre designs and complex geometry, which is not manufacturable using current state-of-the-art technologies.

CTS process for UD NCF tapes

ADVANCED

STRUCTURAL

EFFICIENCY

HIGH

GEOMETRICAL COMPLEXITY

REDUCED

MATERIAL

WASTE

 

Fibres can follow directly the primary load paths

  • Reduction of stress concentration (holes, joints, etc)

  • Drastically improved buckling performance (insensitivity to geometric imperfections)

  • Drastic weight savings

  • Expanded design space improves all aspects of structural performance (vibration response, aeroelastic tailoring, etc)

Realising complex composite structures non-manufacturable

in the past

  • Steering can lead to near net-shape preforms, reducing the material waste (e.g. curved wing stiffeners)

  • Steering of tapes is necessary to fully cover doubly-curved components

  • Potential benefits in forming performance

More effective use of expensive materials

CTS can also drastically reduce 

labour costs and manufacture

times owing to minimised material

use and wastage.

Without CTS

CTS

Potential Uses

Tell us a little about your needs and we'll get in touch.