Systems, methods, apparatus, and articles of manufacture for automated composite layup quality assurance.

The present invention provides a method for preparing a customized polymeric article including: providing two mold half-sections, each half-section having an outer surface and an inner surface; assembling the two mold half-sections to form a mold assembly such that the inner surfaces define a cavity there between; applying one or more magnetic fluids to the inner surface of a mold half-section; inserting a fluid polymeric material into the cavity; controllably applying a magnetic field to the magnetic fluids to form a customized reversible surface in accordance with a predetermined specific surface topography; subjecting the mold assembly to conditions sufficient to effect polymerization or hardening of the fluid polymeric material; and separating the two mold half-sections. Articles prepared by the method also are provided.

A method of processing BMGs in a non-ideal environment (such as air) to create a uniform and smooth surface is provided. By utilizing the contact-line movement and an engineered flow pattern during TPF the method is able to create complex BMG parts that exhibit uniform smooth appearance or even can be atomically smooth. In addition, to mending surface imperfections, this method also eliminates void formation inside the material, allows for the creation of precise patterns of homogeneous appearance, and forms improved mechanical locks between different materials and a BMG.

A method of manufacturing a needle-shaped body includes forming a needle-shaped body precursor such that the needle-shaped body precursor has a base portion and a needle-shaped portion on the base portion, and that the needle-shaped portion has a portion which contacts the base portion and has a form of a polygon, producing a needle-shaped body original plate by forming a curved surface portion in at least a portion of an apex portion of the polygon in a junction portion at a boundary between the base portion and the needle-shaped portion, producing a resin plate by transfer molding with the needle-shaped body original plate such that the resin plate has a concave pattern corresponding to the needle-shaped portion and the curved surface portion, and producing a needle-shaped body by transfer molding with the resin plate such that the needle-shaped body has a transferred needle-shaped portion and a transferred curved surface portion.

A method for manufacturing a masking film includes forming a molten polymer web that includes at least one polymer, spraying a fluid on one side of the molten polymer web to rapidly cool a random pattern of locations on the one side of the molten polymer web, and cooling the molten polymer web to form the masking film. The masking film includes a plurality of protrusions on one side thereof that correspond to the random pattern of locations on the one side of the molten polymer web contacted by the fluid.

Systems for forming composite parts, methods of forming composite parts, and methods of precisely performing a plurality of operations on a composite part. The systems include a layup mandrel that includes a mandrel body and a plurality of regions of isotropic surface finish. The methods of forming the composite part include positioning a plurality of plies of composite material on a layup mandrel, conforming the plurality of plies of composite material to a layup surface shape of the layup mandrel, and curing the plurality of plies of composite material. The methods of precisely performing the plurality of operations on a composite part include detecting a corresponding imprinted feature of a plurality of imprinted features, aligning an operating assembly of an end effector relative to the corresponding imprinted feature, and performing a corresponding operation of the plurality of operations on the composite part.

A superhydrophobic structure with droplet-guiding capability includes: a substrate having a surface and front and rear sides; and a plurality of oblique cones exhibiting superhydrophobic properties and protruding frontwardly and obliquely from the surface in an inclined direction inclined to the surface, so that liquid droplets are guided by the oblique cones to move therealong when the liquid droplets move frontwardly from the rear side toward the front side and so that the liquid droplets move against the oblique cones when the liquid droplets move rearwardly from the front side toward the rear side. A method of making the superhydrophobic structure is also disclosed.

The present invention is a method that (i) allows for creating micro and/or nanostructures on either planar or non-planar three-dimensional surfaces in a single molding step, and (ii) allows for the molded production of complex high-aspect ratio micro and/or nanostructures including but not limited to cylinders, conical structures, low aspect-ratio channels, bumps, or posts. An example of such a complex structure are high aspect ratio pillars with enlarged mushroom-shaped or undercut tips which demonstrate enhanced, repeatable adhesion and shear strength on a variety of substrates when compared with other micro and/or nanostructures and unstructured materials. The mold of such a material requires an undercut feature that cannot be produced using typical micro/nano-molding processing techniques.

There is described a method for making an array of micro-needles, comprising the steps of: depositing a plurality of drops of a liquid substance comprising a polymer on a surface of a starting substrate; positioning a pyroelectric substrate at a certain distance from the starting substrate in such a way that the drops deposited are positioned between said surface of the starting substrate and a surface of the pyroelectric substrate; varying the temperature of the pyroelectric substrate or a part thereof to induce on said surface of the pyroelectric substrate a charge density such that starting from the drops deposited, under the effect of an electrodynamic force, respective cones are formed having a tip facing towards the pyroelectric substrate; determining a consolidation of the cones, to form said micro-needles, preventing the tip of said cones from contacting said surfaces of the pyroelectric substrate.

A method for manufacturing a composite material includes forming a composite precursor material comprising a nonwoven layer comprising a plurality of fibers and a polymer film layer laminated to the nonwoven layer; forming a plurality of apertured extended cells in the polymer film layer, each of the apertured extended cells having a continuous sidewall extending away from the nonwoven layer that terminates in an aperture at a distal end; and, while forming the plurality of apertured extended cells, pushing, with a fluid, at least one of the fibers into at least one of the apertured extended cells so that a portion of the at least one of the fibers extends into the at least one of the apertured extended cells and through the aperture at the distal end.