A production method of a composite material includes placing a fiber base material on a mold. The fiber base material includes a first fiber base material portion and a second fiber base material portion. The method further includes disposing a mold release member in part of a region where the first fiber base material portion and the second fiber base material portion are in contact with each other, and curing a resin with which the first fiber base material portion and the second fiber base material portion are impregnated, so as to mold the composite material.

An end of arm tool (EOAT) for use during manufacture of parts using one or more pre-impregnated composite plies is disclosed. In an embodiment, the EOAT includes a mechanical gripper arrangement with first and second fingers configured to supply a compressive force to grip a pre-impregnated composite ply therebetween. At least one of the first and second fingers include a roller member to engage opposite surfaces of the pre-preg ply and supply a compressive gripping force. The roller member on either or both the first and second fingers preferably include a torque regulator to selectively adjust an associated roller member's resistance to rotation via supply of a rotational torque resistance.

Systems and methods are provided for compacting laminates. One embodiment is a method for compacting a laminate onto a surface of a forming tool. The method includes placing the laminate onto the forming tool, disposing a compaction device over the laminate, gripping the compaction device to the forming tool, compacting the laminate with a pressure foot of the compaction device, and removing the compaction device from the forming tool.

A molding system and methods of forming a structure are presented. A molding system is configured to form a composite structure. The molding system comprises a first tool comprising a first vacuum groove, a first trough having a first edge configured to form a first bend of the composite structure, and a first molding surface; and a second tool comprising a second vacuum groove, a second trough having a second edge configured to form a second bend of the composite structure, and a second molding surface.

The disclosure relates to photovoltaic modules comprising one or more photovoltaic cells embedded in a fiber-reinforced composite thermosetting material, wherein at a front side of the photovoltaic cells, the fiber-reinforced composite material comprises a substantially transparent resin, and substantially transparent fibers, and wherein the refractive indices of the resin and the glass fibers are substantially the same. In particular, the fibers can be glass fibers treated with aminosilane coupling agents and the resin can be an epoxy resin. Further disclosed are methods of manufacture of photovoltaic modules comprising one or more crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells comprising: providing a mold, one or more photovoltaic cells in the mold, and reinforcement fibers in the mold and positioning a bag surrounding the mold cavity. Then a vacuum is created in the bag substantially gradually, and the resin is infused with the mold due to the created vacuum.

A system for fabricating composite parts efficiently. Pre-impregnated (prepreg) composite material is drawn as a sheet from a roll and fed by advancement rollers into a stamping and molding station in which a piece of the prepreg material is cut, on a mold, from the sheet. Pressure is applied to cause the prepreg material to conform to a surface of the mold, and the prepreg is cured with ultraviolet light. Additional layers of prepreg may be cut and cured on any layers that have already been cured on the mold. The complete part may be removed from the mold with ejector pins. Scrap prepreg may be recycled in a recycling station that separates reinforcing fiber from uncured resin.

A method of curing an aircraft component including applying a temperature sensitive adhesive to a surface of a component, the surface having a contour; positioning a heating tool including a manifold with a ventilation path such that the ventilation path is adjacent to the surface by aligning the ventilation path to the contour of the component; and heating the surface of the component with uniform airflow from the ventilation path; wherein the manifold includes a chamber with a diverging portion configured to provide uniform airflow through the ventilation path to provide heating to the surface.

Apparatus and methods of stretch-forming material are provided. In one example embodiment, a variable material stretch-forming apparatus comprises a stretch-forming assembly configured to stretch-form at least one section of a sheet of material to a longer length than at least one other section of the sheet of material before the sheet of material is applied to a tool.

A fiber composite laying method for producing a fiber composite scrim for forming a fiber composite component. The method includes supplying a reinforcement fiber band to a laying head, laying and compacting the supplied reinforcement fiber band on a laying surface at an average compaction pressure by a compaction roller, and detecting a local compaction pressure on the laid reinforcement fiber band by pressure sensors on the compaction roller.

According to one implementation, a preform shaping apparatus includes a rigid mold and a pressurizing jig. The rigid mold has a shape corresponding to a shape of a preform which has been shaped. The pressurizing jig presses an unshaped material of the preform to the rigid mold at different positions and different timings. Further, according to one implementation, a method of shaping a preform includes: producing the shaped preform by pressing an unshaped material of the preform to a rigid mold at different positions and different timings; and using a pressurizing jig for pressing the material. The rigid mold has a shape corresponding to a shape of the preform. The pressurizing jig is adapted to apply pressures on the material at the different positions and the different timings.