JP2011241494A - Production apparatus and production method of opened fiber sheet - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a production apparatus of an opened fiber sheet which can be produced stably at a lower cost from a fiber bundle, regardless of a movement distance in the width direction of fibers of a fiber bundle and without causing a rip in the opened fiber sheet.SOLUTION: An opened fiber sheet production apparatus 1A is a production apparatus 1A of a fiber sheet comprising at least an air fiber-opening apparatus 40 for opening a fiber bundle F conveyed. The production apparatus 1A comprises, on an upstream side of a conveyance direction L of a fiber bundle F from the air fiber-opening apparatus 40, a roll with protrusions 10 having a peripheral surface 10a on which a plurality of protrusions 11, 12 are formed to enter between fibers of the fiber bundle F and partially separate the fiber bundle F.

Description

  TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a spread sheet in which fiber bundles are opened and a manufacturing apparatus therefor, and in particular, a method for manufacturing a spread sheet suitable for manufacturing a fiber reinforced resin material impregnated with a matrix resin and a manufacturing apparatus therefor. About.

  Conventionally, a fiber reinforced resin material (FRP) in which a reinforced fiber is impregnated with a matrix resin is lighter than a metal material and higher in strength than a resin material. Material.

  Such a fiber reinforced resin material is obtained, for example, by opening a fiber bundle in which fibers (reinforced fibers) are aligned in one direction to form a spread sheet, and impregnating the spread sheet with a matrix resin. In general, a carbon fiber bundle, a glass fiber bundle or the like is used as the fiber bundle before opening. In addition, a sizing agent made of an epoxy resin or a polyester resin is used for the fiber bundle in consideration of adhesiveness to the matrix resin, handleability of the fiber bundle, and the like. Such a sizing agent softens when heated and carbonizes when heated to a high temperature and can be easily removed.

  As a method for producing a spread sheet obtained by opening such a fiber bundle, for example, a production method as described in Patent Document 1 has been proposed. In this manufacturing method, the fiber bundle is heated before it is opened to soften the sizing agent of the fiber bundle, and the fiber bundle containing the sizing agent in the softened state is opened by air opening. ing.

  In this way, before the fiber bundle is opened, the sizing agent that bonds the fibers of the fiber bundle is heated and softened, so that the fibers of the fiber bundle are easily unraveled. As a result, a spread sheet in which the fiber bundle is spread so as to spread in the width direction can be easily obtained.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-172562

  However, when the fiber is opened as in Patent Document 1, the sizing agent is not completely uniformly dispersed in the fiber bundle, or the fibers of the fiber bundle are partially dense. The fiber tends to open from a position where the strength is partially weak. Thereby, the obtained spread sheet may have a tear (break) along the fiber direction.

  In particular, when trying to open a fiber bundle to a wide state at a time, such a phenomenon is more likely to occur as the fiber bundle is larger at the same opening magnification. For example, when the spread magnification is 4 times, (1) a fiber bundle having a fiber width of 5 mm becomes a spread sheet having a fiber width of 20 mm. At this time, the movement amount of the fiber bundle in the width direction is (20−5) /2=7.5 mm on one side. On the other hand, (2) a fiber bundle having a fiber width of 10 mm becomes a spread sheet having a fiber width of 40 mm. At this time, the movement amount in the width direction of the bundle of fibers on the line is (40−10) / 2 = 15 mm on one side. Thus, as shown in (2), when the fiber width of the fiber bundle is large, the amount of movement of the fiber in the width direction becomes large, so that the phenomenon of tearing along the fiber direction becomes more prominent.

  Furthermore, in actually manufacturing the spread sheet, from the viewpoint of manufacturing cost, it is desirable to increase the fiber bundle conveying speed to increase the fiber bundle opening speed. However, as the speed increases, higher heat input must be applied to the fiber bundle before opening, and it is difficult to uniformly heat the fiber bundle and maintain this heated state.

  In addition, if the sizing agent is heated too much when the fiber bundle is heated, the sizing agent may adhere to a portion where the fiber bundle comes into contact, such as the apparatus guide portion. This sometimes impairs the quality of the fiber and the spreadability of the fiber bundle.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and is stably and inexpensively manufactured from a fiber bundle without causing a tear or the like in the spread sheet regardless of the movement distance of the fiber bundle in the width direction. An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for manufacturing a spread sheet.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, a spread sheet manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention is a fiber sheet manufacturing apparatus including at least a fiber opening apparatus that opens a conveyed fiber bundle, and the manufacturing apparatus includes Provided with a protrusion-equipped roll having a plurality of protrusions formed on the peripheral surface for entering into the space between the fibers of the fiber bundle and partially dividing the fiber bundle on the upstream side in the transport direction of the fiber bundle from the fiber opening device. It is characterized by.

  According to the present invention, before the conveyed fiber bundle is opened by the fiber opening device, the roll with protrusions is rotated while the fiber bundle is wound around the roll with protrusions having a plurality of protrusions formed on the peripheral surface. Thus, the fiber bundle can be partially separated by inserting protrusions between the fibers of the fiber bundle. As a result, the fiber bundle can be opened using the divided part of the fiber bundle as a starting point. Thereby, not only the fiber bundle before opening is opened more than before, but also the fiber bundle can be opened without heating in some cases. In this way, since the fiber bundle can be unwound regardless of the type of sizing agent and the heating temperature, the types of fibers that can be used are widened, and the degree of freedom in selecting the material for the fiber bundle can be expanded.

  Here, the “partial splitting of the fiber bundle” referred to in the present invention means that a plurality of fiber bundles are formed by inserting protrusions between the fibers of the fiber bundle made of fibers (filaments) aligned in one direction. The fiber bundle consists of fibers that are aligned in one direction, and the fibers of the fiber bundle are widened so that the fibers are opened. This means that the fiber bundle is thinned and moved into a sheet by moving in the direction.

  The arrangement of the plurality of protrusions formed on the peripheral surface is not particularly limited as long as the fiber bundle is uniformly opened at the time of opening, but as a more preferable aspect, the protrusions are shafts. Protrusion rows arranged at equal intervals along the direction are formed.

  According to the present invention, since the protrusions constituting the protrusion row are arranged at equal intervals along the axial direction, the fiber bundle can be partially divided substantially evenly. Thereby, the fiber of a fiber bundle can be moved uniformly (split) at the time of fiber opening, and the fiber crack biased in the width direction can be prevented.

  Furthermore, the protrusion rows are more preferably arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction. As a result, not only in the width direction but also in the transport direction (fiber length direction), partial splitting can be performed substantially uniformly.

  It is more preferable that each protrusion constituting the protrusion row and each protrusion of the protrusion row adjacent to the protrusion row in the circumferential direction are arranged on different circumferences. Since the positions of the split fibers adjacent in the transport direction do not coincide with each other due to the arrangement of the protrusion rows, the split fiber bundle can be unraveled more uniformly during the fiber opening.

  And the shape of the said protrusion formed in the roll with a protrusion can mention columnar shape, weight shape, etc. Since a fiber bundle can be partly divided without damaging the fiber of a fiber bundle. If it exists, the shape of the protrusion is not particularly limited. However, more preferably, the shape of the protrusion is a conical protrusion. By making the shape of the protrusion conical, the protrusion is easily caught without being caught by the fiber at the time of partial division.

  Furthermore, as a more preferable aspect, in the spread sheet manufacturing apparatus, a plurality of the rolls with protrusions are arranged on the upstream side in the conveyance direction of the fiber bundle from the spread apparatus. By using a plurality of rolls with protrusions, it is possible to further increase the number of parts where the fiber bundle is partially separated, and to further increase the fiber opening ratio of the fiber bundle.

  The present invention also discloses a method for producing a spread sheet that can favorably spread a fiber bundle using the above-described protrusion roll. In the method for producing a spread sheet according to the present invention, the fiber bundle is wound around a roll with a protrusion having a plurality of protrusions formed on a peripheral surface thereof, and the protrusion roll is rotated to rotate the fiber bundle between the fibers. The method includes at least a splitting process in which protrusions are inserted to partially split the fiber bundle, and a process of opening the fiber bundle after the splitting process.

  According to the present invention, the fiber bundle can be partially separated by inserting protrusions between the fibers of the fiber bundle. As a result, the fiber bundle can be opened starting from the portion of the fiber bundle that has been split.

  As a preferable aspect, the protrusions are formed as protrusion rows arranged at equal intervals along the axial direction, and as a more preferable aspect, the protrusion rows are arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction. Yes. According to the present invention, since the protrusions constituting the protrusion row are arranged at equal intervals along the axial direction, the fiber bundle is partially divided approximately evenly, and the fibers of the fiber bundle are uniformly distributed at the time of opening. It is possible to prevent uneven fiber cracking. In addition, partial splitting can be performed substantially uniformly along the conveying direction (fiber length direction).

  It is more preferable that each protrusion constituting the protrusion row and each protrusion of the protrusion row adjacent to the protrusion row in the circumferential direction are arranged on different circumferences. Since the positions of the split fibers adjacent in the transport direction do not coincide with each other due to the arrangement of the protrusion rows, the split fiber bundle can be unraveled more uniformly during the fiber opening.

  The protrusion is more preferably a conical protrusion, which makes it easier for the protrusion to enter without being caught by the fiber during partial division. Furthermore, it is more preferable to perform the said division | segmentation process in multiple times, and this can further increase the partial division | segmentation location of a fiber bundle. Therefore, even when the fiber bundle opening ratio is further increased, the fiber bundle can be unraveled uniformly.

  According to the present invention, a spread sheet can be manufactured stably and inexpensively from a fiber bundle without causing a tear or the like in the spread sheet, regardless of the movement distance of the fiber bundle in the width direction.

The typical conceptual diagram of the manufacturing apparatus of the spread sheet which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a typical conceptual diagram of the roll with a protrusion shown in FIG. 1, (a) is a side view of a roll with a protrusion, (b) is AA arrow sectional drawing of (a). The typical perspective view for demonstrating the winding state of the roll with a protrusion shown in FIG. The figure for demonstrating the partial division | segmentation of the fiber bundle by the protrusion of the roll with a protrusion shown in FIG. The typical conceptual diagram of the manufacturing apparatus of the spread sheet which concerns on 2nd Embodiment.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described based on embodiments. FIG. 1 is a schematic conceptual diagram of the apparatus for manufacturing a spread sheet according to the first embodiment, FIG. 2 is a schematic conceptual diagram of the roll with protrusions shown in FIG. 1, and (a) is with a protrusion. It is a side view of a roll, (b) is AA arrow sectional drawing of (a). FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view for explaining a winding state of the roll with protrusions shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 shows partial division of the fiber bundle by the protrusions of the roll with protrusions shown in FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the spread sheet manufacturing apparatus 1 </ b> A according to this embodiment opens a fiber bundle (multifilament) made of fibers aligned in one direction in a width direction and opens the sheet into a sheet shape. It is a device for.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the manufacturing apparatus 1 </ b> A includes a pair of entrance-side transport rolls 31 and 32 on the upstream side in the transport direction of the fiber bundle F. A motor (not shown) is connected to the entry-side transport rolls 31 and 32. The fiber bundle F is sandwiched between the entrance-side transport rolls 31 and 32 while rotating the entrance-side transport rolls 31 and 32 by driving the motor. Thereby, the fiber bundle F is conveyed along the conveyance direction L.

  Further, on the downstream side in the conveyance direction L of the fiber bundle F from the entry-side conveyance rolls 31 and 32, the roll with protrusion 10 is arranged. The roll 10 with protrusions is a splitting roll for partially splitting the fibers of the fiber bundle F, and is connected to the motor 50 to be rotatable by driving of the motor 50.

  Furthermore, winding rolls 21 and 22 for winding the fiber bundle F around the lower peripheral surface of the protruding roll 10 are provided on the upstream side and the downstream side of the protruding roll 10. In this way, as shown in FIG. 3, the protrusion-equipped roll 10 can rotate while being wound around the fiber bundle F on the upstream side in the transport direction L of the fiber bundle F from an air opening device 40 described later.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the protrusion-provided roll 10 is formed with a plurality of protrusions 11 and 12 on the peripheral surface 10a for entering the fibers of the fiber bundle F and partially dividing the fiber bundle F. ing. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 2A, the protrusions 11 and 12 form protrusion rows 11A and 12A arranged at equal intervals along the axial direction P. Further, the protrusion rows 11A and the protrusion rows 12A are alternately arranged along the circumferential direction C at equal intervals.

  Furthermore, each protrusion 11 constituting the protrusion row 11A and each protrusion 12 of the protrusion row 12A adjacent to the protrusion row 11A in the circumferential direction C are arranged on different circumferences. More specifically, each protrusion 12 of the adjacent protrusion row 12A is arranged at a position along the circumferential direction C from the center position of the protrusions 11 of the protrusion row 11A. Each of the protrusions 11 and 12 is a conical protrusion.

  An air opening device 40 is provided on the downstream side in the conveying direction L of the fiber bundle F from the roll 10 with protrusions. Inside the air opening device 40, a suction air conduit 43 connected to a vacuum pump is arranged, and on the upstream side and downstream side in the transport direction L across the suction air conduit 43, the fiber bundle F Support rolls 41 and 42 for supporting the toner in the conveying direction L are arranged.

  The air opening device 40 may be, for example, a generally known air opening device as shown in Patent Document 1 described above. In addition to this, for example, a water jet is injected into a fiber bundle. A device for opening the fiber bundle, a device for opening the fiber bundle by ultrasonic vibration, a device for opening the fiber bundle by high-pressure air flow, and the like. The opening device is not particularly limited as long as it can be opened in a sheet form.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a pair of exit side transport rolls 61 and 62 are provided on the downstream side in the transport direction L of the fiber bundle F from the air opening device 40. A motor is also connected to the exit side transport rolls 61 and 62, and the manufacturing apparatus 1 </ b> A transports the fiber bundle F sandwiched between the exit side transport rolls 61 and 62 further downstream in the transport direction L by driving the motor. Is configured to do.

  Using the thus configured manufacturing apparatus 1A, the spread sheet S is manufactured as follows.

  First, a fiber bundle is prepared by aligning continuous fibers in one direction and converging them to a predetermined width and thickness with a sizing agent. Examples of the fiber of the fiber bundle can include fibers such as glass fiber, carbon fiber, aramid fiber, alumina fiber, boron fiber, steel fiber, PBO fiber, high-strength polyethylene fiber, or natural fiber. It is a fiber corresponding to a reinforcing fiber of a resin material (FRP). In addition, the sizing agent is a sizing agent such as an epoxy resin type or a polyester resin type.

  Next, the fiber bundle F is sandwiched between the entrance-side transport rolls 31 and 32 and these rolls are rotated to transport the fiber bundle F along the transport direction L. Next, before the conveyed fiber bundle F is opened by the air opening device 40, the fiber bundle F is formed on the roll 10 with protrusions on which the plurality of protrusions 11 and 12 are formed by the winding rolls 21 and 22. Wrap. In this state, the motor 50 is driven to rotate the protruding roll 10.

  Thereby, as shown in FIG. 4, the conical protrusions 11 and 12 are inserted between the fibers of the fiber bundle F, and the fiber bundle F can be partially divided without damaging the fibers. Further, since the protrusions 11 and 12 constituting the protrusion rows 11A and 12A are arranged at equal intervals along the axial direction P, the fiber bundle F can be partially divided approximately evenly. Furthermore, since the protrusion rows are arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction, partial separation can be performed substantially uniformly not only in the width direction but also in the transport direction L (longitudinal direction). it can.

  In this way, as shown in FIG. 3, the split fiber bundle Fd is regularly bundled by the sizing agent in the width direction and the longitudinal direction corresponding to the positions of the protrusions 11 and 12 of the roll 10 with protrusions. The resulting fiber bundle can be partially separated.

  The split fiber bundle Fd is sent to the air opening device 40 and opened. At this time, the fiber bundle Fd divided by suction of the suction air duct 43 is bent in a bow shape in the longitudinal direction, and the fiber separation F (dividing part) f of the fiber bundle Fd divided in the width direction is a starting point. , Evenly divided. Thereby, the fibers of the fiber bundle move in the width direction, and the spread sheet S can be obtained from the fiber bundle.

  The obtained spread sheet S has almost no uneven fiber cracking. In particular, each protrusion 11 constituting the protrusion row 11A and each protrusion 12 of the protrusion row 12A adjacent to the protrusion row 11A in the circumferential direction are arranged on different circumferences. Since the positions of the split fibers adjacent to each other do not coincide with each other, the split fiber bundle Fd can be unraveled more uniformly during the fiber opening.

  In this way, not only can the fiber bundle F be opened without almost heating the fiber bundle F before opening, but in some cases, the fiber bundle can be formed without heating at all. It can also be opened. Thereby, since the fiber bundle F can be solved regardless of the type of sizing agent and the heating temperature, the types of fibers that can be used can be widened, and the degree of freedom in selecting the material of the fiber bundle can be increased.

  Then, the spread sheet S thus obtained is impregnated with a matrix resin made of a thermoplastic resin or a thermosetting resin, and a fiber-reinforced resin material sheet or tape having a uniform distribution of fibers (reinforced fibers). Can be obtained.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic conceptual diagram of a spread sheet manufacturing apparatus 1B according to the second embodiment. The point in which 2nd Embodiment differs from 1st Embodiment is the point which has arrange | positioned the roll 10 with a protrusion instead of the rolls 21 and 22 with winding. In addition, the structure which becomes the same function as 1st Embodiment attaches | subjects the same code | symbol, and abbreviate | omits the following detailed description.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the same three rolls with protrusions as the roll with protrusions according to the first embodiment are wound around the fiber bundle F on the upstream side in the transport direction of the fiber bundle from the opening device. Has been placed.

  In this way, by arranging the three rolls with protrusions 10 so as to be wound around the fiber bundle and rotating them, the number of times of partial separation of the fiber bundle F is made plural times (in the case of this embodiment, three times). )It can be carried out. As a result, if opening is performed on a fiber bundle in which the partial splitting points are increased, in the case of the second embodiment, a fiber opening sheet S with a further increased fiber bundle opening ratio is manufactured. It becomes possible to do.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various designs can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention described in the claims. It can be changed.

  For example, in this embodiment, the roll with protrusions is connected to the motor and rotated, but if the protrusions of the roll with protrusions can enter and rotate between the fibers of the fiber bundle, they are not particularly connected to the motor. May be.

  In the present embodiment, the two types of protrusion rows 11A and 12A are provided on the peripheral surface of the roll. However, the fiber bundles are partially separated so that the fiber bundles can be uniformly opened. If it can be performed, a plurality of different types of protrusion rows may be provided, and the protrusions may be arranged in a spiral shape at equal intervals.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1A, 1B: Manufacturing apparatus of spread sheet, 10: Roll with protrusion, 10a: Circumferential surface, 11, 12: Protrusion, 11A, 12A: Protrusion row | line | column, 21, 22: Winding roll, 31, 32: Entrance side conveyance roll 40: Air opening device, 41, 42: Support roll, 43: Suction air conduit, 50: Motor, 61, 62: Outlet conveyance roll, C: Circumferential direction, f: Splitting part, F: Fiber bundle, Fd: split fiber bundle, L: transport direction, P: axial direction, S: spread sheet

Claims (12)

A fiber sheet manufacturing apparatus including at least a fiber opening device for opening a conveyed fiber bundle,
In the manufacturing apparatus, a plurality of protrusions are formed on the circumferential surface to enter between the fibers of the fiber bundle and partially divide the fiber bundle on the upstream side in the transport direction of the fiber bundle from the opening device. An apparatus for producing a spread sheet, comprising a roll with a protrusion.   The apparatus for producing a spread sheet according to claim 1, wherein the protrusions form protrusion rows arranged at equal intervals along the axial direction.   The apparatus for producing a spread sheet according to claim 2, wherein the protrusion rows are arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction.   4. The protrusions constituting the protrusion row and the protrusions of the protrusion row adjacent to the protrusion row in the circumferential direction are arranged on different circumferences. 5. Equipment for manufacturing spread sheets.   The apparatus for producing a spread sheet according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the protrusion is a conical protrusion.   6. The apparatus for manufacturing a spread sheet according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the rolls with protrusions are arranged on the upstream side in the transport direction of the fiber bundle from the spread apparatus. By rotating the roll with protrusion while winding the fiber bundle around a roll with protrusions having a plurality of protrusions formed on the peripheral surface, the protrusions are inserted between the fibers of the fiber bundle to partially Splitting process to split into
And a step of opening the fiber bundle after the fiber separation step.   The method of manufacturing a spread sheet according to claim 7, wherein the protrusions form protrusion rows arranged at equal intervals along the axial direction.   The method for manufacturing a spread sheet according to claim 8, wherein the protrusion rows are arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction.   The projections constituting the projection row and the projections of the projection row adjacent to the projection row in the circumferential direction are arranged on different circumferences. Of manufacturing a spread sheet.   The method for producing a spread sheet according to any one of claims 7 to 10, wherein the protrusion is a conical protrusion.   The method for producing a spread sheet according to any one of claims 7 to 11, wherein the splitting step is performed a plurality of times.

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