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Louisiana Tech developing improved carbon fiber drones
APPLICATIONS
Cost reduction According to David Holmes, Fibrelite’s technical director and head of product development, the composite trench covers have eliminated costly and time consuming procedures, as well as allowing for a load rating of up to 90 tonnes. ‘The associated increase in productivity and significant re-
Reinforced Plastics Volume 59, Number 6 November/December 2015
duction in costs were huge benefactors for the consulting engineers and customers alike,’ he said. ‘Having re-configured the internal fibreglass architecture we can meet the permanent set and test load requirements of BS EN 124, Class F900 (when tested in accordance with the Air BP test footprint).’
The design of the covers incorporates up to two lifting points for specially designed lifting handles. These allow the operator to remove the cover without trapping fingers or bending over thus maximising the safety of the lifting technique. Fibrelite; www.fibrelite.com
APPLICATIONS
Louisiana Tech developing improved carbon fiber drones Scientists at Louisiana Tech University in the US are developing new technologies for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), otherwise known as drones, that could improve their endurance and increase flight times and payload capacities. ‘The majority of the commercial off-theshelf UAVs that are available have limited flight times of less than 25 min and limited payload capabilities,’ said Wesley Palmer, instructor of geographic information systems (GIS) in Louisiana Tech’s School of Forestry and supervisor of its Spatial Data Lab Palmer. ‘We wanted to develop a UAV platform that could fly for a longer period of time, carrying a mid-sized payload. That’s what led to the development of the P9000.’ The P9000, a customizable autonomous UAV, features lightweight aluminum and
for a variety of geospatial mapping applications, covering a large area or a long pipeline corridor with its extended flight times. It is also swarm capable and GPS enabled.
Extended endurance
The P9000, a customizable autonomous UAV, features lightweight aluminum and carbon fiber materials.
carbon fiber materials integrated into the frame design to keep the platform light and strong, with a custom carbon fiber centreplate. The drone can fly for up to an hour, depending on payload, and can be used
Palmer says the goal of the P9000 project was to establish a UAV platform with extended endurance by more than doubling the working flight time of most commercially available UAVs in its class. ‘Now that we have achieved that goal and have a customizable platform with optimized endurance, we can put the P9000 to work in testing cameras and sensors,’ said Palmer. ‘At the end of the day, a UAV is a tool to perform some type of task. We can leverage this new tool to execute current and future research projects.’ Louisiana Tech University; www.latech.edu
FRP bridge system connects three US parks A township in Ohio has commissioned Composite Advantage to build a no-maintenance fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) bridge to connect three parks. The company designed the bridge deck to support pedestrian loads up to 85 psf and maintenance vehicle loads with a deck molded to withstand uplift force in the event of a 100 year flood. To give Green County a maintenance free span, it specified a weathered steel truss 45 ft superstructure along with two large, three ½ inch thick, six ft wide molded FRP bridge deck panels with black pigment. A brown non-slip wear surface was used to simulate
The company specified a weathered steel truss 45 ft superstructure along with two large, three ½ inch thick, six ft wide molded FRP bridge deck panels with black pigment.
timber planking and solar-powered lights were also added for illumination after dark. FRP Constructors transported the prefabricated bridge with FiberSPAN bridge deck to the park and set it in place, with installation taking less than a day. ‘Our FiberSPAN bridge deck products are a good fit for these types of applications,’ said Scott Reeve, president of Composite Advantage. ‘We’re able to provide a total bridge system that includes prefabrication and installation through our partner FRP Constructors.’ Composite Advantage; www. compositeadvantage.com
40% weight reduction with carbon fiber part Airbus Helicopters is replacing aluminum in a fitting in the aircraft door of the Airbus A350-900 with a high-modulus, carbon fiber-reinforced high performance polymer. 258
The brackets, made from Victrex Peek 90HMF40, have been developed by Airbus Helicopters and are in serial production for commercial use after receiving the relevant
component qualification. The successful substitution of metal has resulted in a 40% reduction in weight and costs. The injectionmolded polymer solution replaces the
Cost reduction According to David Holmes, Fibrelite’s technical director and head of product development, the composite trench covers have eliminated costly and time consuming procedures, as well as allowing for a load rating of up to 90 tonnes. ‘The associated increase in productivity and significant re-
Reinforced Plastics Volume 59, Number 6 November/December 2015
duction in costs were huge benefactors for the consulting engineers and customers alike,’ he said. ‘Having re-configured the internal fibreglass architecture we can meet the permanent set and test load requirements of BS EN 124, Class F900 (when tested in accordance with the Air BP test footprint).’
The design of the covers incorporates up to two lifting points for specially designed lifting handles. These allow the operator to remove the cover without trapping fingers or bending over thus maximising the safety of the lifting technique. Fibrelite; www.fibrelite.com
APPLICATIONS
Louisiana Tech developing improved carbon fiber drones Scientists at Louisiana Tech University in the US are developing new technologies for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), otherwise known as drones, that could improve their endurance and increase flight times and payload capacities. ‘The majority of the commercial off-theshelf UAVs that are available have limited flight times of less than 25 min and limited payload capabilities,’ said Wesley Palmer, instructor of geographic information systems (GIS) in Louisiana Tech’s School of Forestry and supervisor of its Spatial Data Lab Palmer. ‘We wanted to develop a UAV platform that could fly for a longer period of time, carrying a mid-sized payload. That’s what led to the development of the P9000.’ The P9000, a customizable autonomous UAV, features lightweight aluminum and
for a variety of geospatial mapping applications, covering a large area or a long pipeline corridor with its extended flight times. It is also swarm capable and GPS enabled.
Extended endurance
The P9000, a customizable autonomous UAV, features lightweight aluminum and carbon fiber materials.
carbon fiber materials integrated into the frame design to keep the platform light and strong, with a custom carbon fiber centreplate. The drone can fly for up to an hour, depending on payload, and can be used
Palmer says the goal of the P9000 project was to establish a UAV platform with extended endurance by more than doubling the working flight time of most commercially available UAVs in its class. ‘Now that we have achieved that goal and have a customizable platform with optimized endurance, we can put the P9000 to work in testing cameras and sensors,’ said Palmer. ‘At the end of the day, a UAV is a tool to perform some type of task. We can leverage this new tool to execute current and future research projects.’ Louisiana Tech University; www.latech.edu
FRP bridge system connects three US parks A township in Ohio has commissioned Composite Advantage to build a no-maintenance fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) bridge to connect three parks. The company designed the bridge deck to support pedestrian loads up to 85 psf and maintenance vehicle loads with a deck molded to withstand uplift force in the event of a 100 year flood. To give Green County a maintenance free span, it specified a weathered steel truss 45 ft superstructure along with two large, three ½ inch thick, six ft wide molded FRP bridge deck panels with black pigment. A brown non-slip wear surface was used to simulate
The company specified a weathered steel truss 45 ft superstructure along with two large, three ½ inch thick, six ft wide molded FRP bridge deck panels with black pigment.
timber planking and solar-powered lights were also added for illumination after dark. FRP Constructors transported the prefabricated bridge with FiberSPAN bridge deck to the park and set it in place, with installation taking less than a day. ‘Our FiberSPAN bridge deck products are a good fit for these types of applications,’ said Scott Reeve, president of Composite Advantage. ‘We’re able to provide a total bridge system that includes prefabrication and installation through our partner FRP Constructors.’ Composite Advantage; www. compositeadvantage.com
40% weight reduction with carbon fiber part Airbus Helicopters is replacing aluminum in a fitting in the aircraft door of the Airbus A350-900 with a high-modulus, carbon fiber-reinforced high performance polymer. 258
The brackets, made from Victrex Peek 90HMF40, have been developed by Airbus Helicopters and are in serial production for commercial use after receiving the relevant
component qualification. The successful substitution of metal has resulted in a 40% reduction in weight and costs. The injectionmolded polymer solution replaces the