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This short list of useful vocabulary will help designers understand more about the exciting world of composite manufacturing and their applications.
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a material composed of at least two elements working together to produce material properties different to those elements on there own. Most composites consist of a bulk material (called the 'matrix') and a re-enforcement to increase strength and stiffness... usually in fibre form... glass, carbon fibre, silicon carbide fibres. Concrete is a familiar example of a multi-phase composite... sand, cement, stone, even steel fibres which when combined form a tough and useful material. GRP and carbon-fibre are more useful modern composites.
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closely related to CAM, this technique is usually associated with front end design allowing three dimensional forms to be addressed by engineers and designers using highly sophisticated software tools.
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relates to the application of computers with fast processing times to control machinery and process.
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sequencing a series of production steps or micromoves to generate a high quality production process.
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uses high-speed computing to control the precise positioning of a cutting head. CNC is the concept of step-by-step sequencing of manufacturing steps controlled by a computer. (Early generation CNC systems used microprocessors linked to precision drilling and robot machining systems)
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The process of measuring and locating points on a surface in 3-dimensional space to allow machine extrapolation of the entire surface and object form in the virtual world.
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a machine measuring system that employs laser beams to precisely measure forms via a series of individual profiles (or slices across the surface).
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a mechanical system that measures points in space to generate a digital map of the surface, form or object.
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a sophisticated cutting machine using a high-speed cutting head that can move in 5 directions. In mouldCAMs process this is the traditional X,Y and Z axes plus two angular planes at +120 degrees and – 375 degrees to allow smooth positive and negative curved surfaces to be precisely generated.
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commonly used today in the marine environment and known colloquially as 'fibreglass'. Easily worked into complex forms it is light and strong, with good resistance to water, salt and corrosive effects.
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the 'female' or negative surface form that generates the actual composite surface.
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This is the 'male' or positive form of a mould surface and appears as the actual object to be generated.
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This is the generic term for common composite material such as GRP. They are also known as FRPs – Fibre Re-enforced Polymers (or Plastics).
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a plastic polymer used to coat the cut mould surface for a super smooth finish. Multiple generation use.
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the process of cutting the 3D surface or 2D section accurately from a series of passes across the material slug to create a mould or plug.
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taking an existing physical object or prototype design and precisely generating the design “in the computer” to allow exact replication or further enhancement and new design generation.
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a soft surface plastic polymer used to coat the cut mould surface to create a smooth finish at a more economical cost and generally one only use.
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