A molding machine places strips of a tape material side by side and molds the tape material into a molded shape having a web portion and a flange portion, the tape material including a continuous fiber bundle extending in a longitudinal direction. The molding machine includes spreading unit able to increase a width of the tape material by spreading the tape material, and a laying roller that places the tape material which has passed through the spreading unit onto a surface of a molding tool. The spreading unit continuously changes the width of the tape material to avoid generation of a gap between adjacent strips of the tape material, the adjacent strips being adjacent to each other when the tape material is placed on the surface of the molding tool, and the laying roller places the strips of the tape material side by side in a plurality of rows.

A fiber placement head for applying a plurality of composite tape segments on a mold includes a supply roll for storing and supplying composite tape having a backing film to the fiber placement head; a film roll for receiving the backing film from the composite tape that is removed from the film roll; an electric motor that rotates the supply roll or the film roll; and a slip clutch, coupled with the supply roll or the film roll, that permits the relative displacement of the angular position of the film roll with respect to the angular position of the supply roll.

A portable welding device comprising: a base facing a work surface, designed to receive tapes in electrically conductive composite materials to be joined or defined by at least one already positioned tape; an operating head receiving one tape at a time and movable with respect to the base along at least a first movement line parallel to the work surface; a motorized arm connecting the operating head to the base and selectively activatable to impart movements to the operating head; and feeding means selectively activatable to feed one tape at a time to the operating head and connected to the operating head; the operating head comprises a positioning roller receiving a tape at a time; a pressure roller spaced from and aligned with the positioning roller along the first movement line; and an inductor interposed between the positioning roller and the pressure roller with reference to the first movement line.

A fiber placement head for applying a plurality of composite tape segments on a mold, including a pre-start lane assembly having a pre-start power roller that moves a composite tape segment from a composite tape source; a restart lane assembly having a restart power roller that also moves the composite tape segment from the composite tape source; and a cutting lane assembly having a reciprocating cutting blade, wherein the pre-start power roller draws composite tape from the composite tape source and the restart power roller positions a composite tape segment on a mold.

A cutting assembly for a tape lamination head that applies a plurality of composite tape segments includes a cutter carriage configured to slide relative to the tape lamination head and adjacent to composite tape in a direction of composite tape movement; and a cutter assembly, carried by the cutter carriage, comprising a cutting blade and a cutting anvil, wherein the cutting blade is configured to cut the composite tape while the cutting carriage is moving at the same velocity as composite tape moving through the tape lamination head.

A system is disclosed for additively manufacturing a composite structure. The system may include a support, and a print head operatively connected to and moveable by the support. The print head may include an outlet configured to discharge a material in a trajectory along a central axis of the outlet, and a compactor disposed downstream of the outlet relative to the trajectory and configured to press the material transversely against an adjacent surface. The outlet may be configured to translate relative to the compacting module.

A fiber placement head for applying a plurality of composite tape segments on a mold including a frame that supplies composite tape for application to the mold is configured to be releasably connected to a robotic arm; a tape application assembly that is slidably carried by the frame and applies the composite tape segments to the mold, wherein the tape application assembly moves linearly from one end of the frame toward another end of the frame along a W-axis

A manufacturing system (1) for manufacturing shaped laminates including: forming tools (2.1, 2.2) extending along a longitudinal direction X, located parallel to one another and configured to receive a laminate (4) between the forming tools; a shaping tool (3) extending along the longitudinal direction X and along a transversal direction Z, and configured to receive the laminate (4) on an external surface of the shaping tool, wherein the forming tools (2.1, 2.2) or the shaping tool (3) are movable in the longitudinal direction X and in the transversal direction Z, relative to the at least one of the shaping tool (3) and the two forming tools (2.1, 2.2).

A system is disclosed for additively manufacturing a composite structure. The system may include a support, and a print head operatively connected to and moveable by the support. The print head may include a first supply configured to hold a liquid matrix, a second supply configured to hold a continuous reinforcement, and a wetting module configured to separately receive the liquid matrix and the continuous reinforcement from the first and second supplies, respectively, and to discharge a composite material including the continuous reinforcement wetted with the liquid matrix. The wetting module may include a body forming an internal chamber having an upstream open end and a downstream open end, an entrant nozzle disposed within the upstream open end and configured to receive the continuous reinforcement, and an exit nozzle disposed within the downstream closed end and configured to discharge the composite material.

A fiber application head for the production of composite material parts, including a compacting roller having a rigid central tube, at least one cylindrical piece made of an elastically deformable flexible material, assembled on the central tube and a plurality of independent rigid rings stacked side by side on the cylindrical piece. Each cylindrical piece includes a cylindrical outer surface by which each ring is intended to come to bear against the lay-up surface, and two collars mounted on the central tube, on either side of the cylindrical piece, being able to block in translation the stack of rings on the cylindrical piece.