The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a wind turbine blade part. The method comprises providing one or more wind turbine blade components including a wind turbine blade component comprising a fibre material element, an electrically conductive element, a magnetic field generator for generating an Eddy current in the electrically conductive element; arranging the electrically conductive element, the magnetic field generator, and the fibre material element such that at least a part of the fibre material element is positioned between the electrically conductive element and the magnetic field generator; generating an Eddy current in the electrically conductive element using the magnetic field generator; generating, using a magnetic sensor, a signal representing a magnetic field induced by the generated Eddy current, and forming the wind turbine blade part by assembling the wind turbine blade components.

A method for manufacturing a wind turbine blade, comprising the steps of: arranging (S2, S3) a joining portion (8) comprising a fibre lay-up inside adjacent blade sections, covering (S4) the joining portion (8) and the adjacent blade sections at least partially with a vacuum bag, and applying vacuum to a space (54) covered by the vacuum bag (19, 38), infusing at least the fibre lay-up (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17) with a resin (43) and curing (S5) the resin (43) to obtain a cured joining portion (44) joining the blade sections (20, 24) inside. A light-weight and at the same time strong blade section joint is provided. In particular, the strength of this laminate joint formed by vacuum infusion is comparable to the strength of the pristine laminate. Compared to a connection using an adhesive, the laminate joint formed by vacuum infusion provides a lighter and stronger blade section joint, in particular, a better weight-to-strength performance.

One embodiment of a method according to the present disclosure may use a fixture with one or more boot recesses formed therein. An embedded member may be engaged with a boot and placed in a boot recess. Substrate lay-up may be placed around all or a portion of the embedded member and an outer member may be positioned over the substrate lay-up. A cover may be positioned over the outer member and engaged with the fixture. The pressure within an interior portion of the fixture may be reduced to less than ambient pressure and resin may be introduced to interact with the substrate lay-up and allowed to cure.

An example apparatus for fabrication of a co-cured composite assembly includes a layup tool body with a cavity, a thermal expansion insert inserted into the cavity of the layup tool body and a first uncured composite part of the composite assembly is positioned onto the thermal expansion insert, and a solid internal mandrel configured for insertion onto the first uncured composite part. During curing, the first uncured composite part compacts and reduces in thickness while the solid internal mandrel and the thermal expansion insert each increase in size to apply pressure to the first uncured composite part.

An apparatus for picking, placing, and forming a composite charge over a complex geometry tool comprises a first frame, a second frame, and a plurality of dynamic mechanisms. The first frame is formed from rigid material and includes a first frame member that forms at least a rectangular perimeter. The second frame is formed from flexible material and includes a second frame member that forms at least a rectangular perimeter. Each dynamic mechanism is connected to the first frame and the second frame and located along the perimeters of the first frame and the second frame. Each dynamic mechanism includes a length-variable component positioned between the first frame and the second frame, with at least a portion of the dynamic mechanisms configured to vary a length of the length-variable component for the second frame member to conform to the shape of the complex geometry tool.

A method for producing a component of a rotor blade, by providing a production mould (2) with a curved support surface (1), at least one flexible pultrudate (4) being laid onto the support surface (1), the at least one flexible pultrudate (4) being covered with a vacuum film (6), a vacuum being generated and the at least one flexible pultrudate (4) being pressed entirely onto the curved support surface (1) of the production mould (2) by the vacuum.

A bonding tool is described that is used to secure sacrificial pads to bonding locations on a perimeter of a rib during a bonding process. In one embodiment, the bonding tool includes a base member having a rib receptacle dimensioned to receive a rib of a wing, a plurality of compression forms disposed around at least a portion of the rib receptacle and proximate to a perimeter of the rib, where the compression forms include a plurality of sacrificial pads that face towards bonding locations on the perimeter of the rib, and at least one bladder proximate to the compression forms that expands between a wall of the base member and the compression forms to press the sacrificial pads against the bonding locations while the sacrificial pads bond to the bonding locations.

A structure comprising a plurality of walls defining a bladder cavity, the bladder cavity comprises an initial cross section size. A first plurality of wave features provided along at least one of the plurality of walls defining the bladder cavity. In one arrangement, the first plurality of wave features allow the structure to expand from the initial cross section size to a second cross section size after the structure becomes inflated during a composite charge cure, the second cross section size larger than the initial cross sectional size.

Systems and methods are provided for hardening wing panel preforms. One embodiment is a method for fabricating a wing panel for an aircraft. The method includes loading a wing skin preform onto a contour of an Outer Mold Line (OML) tool, applying stringer preforms to troughs of an Inner Mold Line (IML) tool, aligning the OML tool with the IML tool, and assembling the IML, tool and the OML tool into a cartridge that molds a wing panel preform comprising the wing skin preform and the stringer preforms. The method further includes inserting the cartridge into a press, and hardening the wing panel preform into a composite part while the cartridge resides in the press.

An apparatus for picking, placing, and forming a composite charge over a complex geometry tool comprises a first frame, a second frame, and a plurality of dynamic mechanisms. The first frame is formed from rigid material and includes a first frame member that forms at least a rectangular perimeter. The second frame is formed from flexible material and includes a second frame member that forms at least a rectangular perimeter. Each dynamic mechanism is connected to the first frame and the second frame and located along the perimeters of the first frame and the second frame. Each dynamic mechanism includes a length-variable component positioned between the first frame and the second frame, with at least a portion of the dynamic mechanisms configured to vary a length of the length-variable component for the second frame member to conform to the shape of the complex geometry tool.