Guideline for the Development of 3D-woven Profiles Produced on Conventional Narrow Weaving Machines

Reinforcement profiles out of Fibre Reinforced Composites bear a high potential for lightweight design in many industries, like in the aerospace or automotive sector. Despite the high potentials still many open questions exist which inhibit the market introduction of such profiles. In this thesis, the following issues are addressed:

- A step-by-step guideline for the design of composite structures is provided, taking into account the interdependencies between process and product development as well as production planning. The guideline also shows how to incorporate common industrial design methods in defined stages.
- A faster and more stable method for the mechanical FEA-calculation of complex fabric structures is described, which decreases the calculation times by factor 1000.
- Machine settings for Carbon weaving with low filament breakage are described. Additionally it is shown how to improve the fabric quality step by step.
- Methods for testing complex three-dimensional composite profiles are given, including optical strain measurement and the derivation of stresses.
- Tools are described for the cost calculation of the entire production chain; from fabric production over preforming to the impregnated part.