JP2003155645A - Method for producing woven fabric made of flat reinforcing fiber yarn and apparatus therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for producing a woven fabric made of a flat reinforcing fiber yarn, suppressing the fluctuation of the tension of supplied weft to an extremely low level even by increasing the rotational speed of the loom to prevent the twist of the weft and, accordingly, enable high-speed operation and provide an apparatus therefor. SOLUTION: The method for the production of a woven fabric made of a flat reinforcing fiber yarn contains at least the steps (A) and (B) in the weft insertion of the fabric. (A) A step to unreel the weft from a side of a bobbin while rotating the bobbin holding a flat yarn composed of the flat reinforcing fiber yarn while controlling the rotation of the bobbin and adjusting the feeding amount of the weft by the signal transmitted from a sensor for detecting the retention of the weft in a weft-retention device necessary for the weft insertion and (B) a step to store the weft necessary for the weft insertion by folding the weft in the retention device by air-suction while contacting the weft with a yarn guide for guiding the yarn to the retention device.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for producing a reinforced fiber flat yarn woven fabric for producing a high quality reinforced fiber flat yarn woven fabric used for a fiber reinforced composite material such as a carbon fiber composite material with high productivity and a method thereof. Manufacturing equipment

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A carbon fiber woven fabric made of carbon fiber having a large specific elastic modulus and a large specific strength is usually woven by a general shuttle loom or rapier loom and combined with a synthetic resin into a predetermined shape. By molding, it is often used as a reinforcing base material for composite materials such as carbon fiber reinforced plastic (hereinafter referred to as CFRP).

As such a reinforcing base material for a composite material, CFRP, for example, has begun to be used as a structural material of an aircraft by taking advantage of its excellent performance, but in order to further expand the range of use of CFRP. However, not only the molding but also the cost reduction of the intermediate base material such as carbon fiber or carbon fiber woven fabric has been a big problem.

As the carbon fiber becomes thicker and the fineness increases, the productivity in the precursor and in the flameproofing process and the firing process is improved, and it becomes possible to manufacture an inexpensive carbon fiber yarn. However, since a normal carbon fiber woven fabric is made by weaving carbon fiber yarns that are bundled into a substantially circular cross section, in the woven state, the cross section of the carbon fiber yarns at the intersecting portion where the warp yarns and the weft yarns intersect with each other. This is a large tendency because the oval shape is large and the woven yarn is crimped greatly. Especially, in the carbon fiber woven fabric using the thick carbon fiber yarn, the thick weft yarn and the thick warp yarn are interlaced.

For this reason, in the carbon fiber woven fabric in which the woven carbon fiber yarn is largely crimped, the fiber density becomes non-uniform, and the high strength characteristic of carbon fiber cannot be sufficiently exhibited. In addition, since carbon fiber fabrics using thick carbon fiber yarns generally have a large fabric weight and thickness, prepreg and fiber reinforced plastic (hereinafter referred to as FRP)
There was a tendency that the resin impregnation property at the time of molding was poor.

Therefore, the CFRP obtained by using the carbon fiber woven fabric using the thick carbon fiber yarn has many voids present in the resin, and high strength characteristics cannot be expected.

On the other hand, in a carbon fiber woven fabric using a thick carbon fiber yarn and having a small basis weight, the voids formed between the carbon fiber yarns become large. For this reason, when CFRP is formed using a carbon fiber woven fabric having a small basis weight, the content of carbon fiber yarns is low, and voids of resin are concentrated in voids formed between the carbon fiber yarns, resulting in high performance. There is a drawback that CFRP cannot be obtained.

With respect to such drawbacks, JP-A-58-1
No. 91244 discloses a thin and wide flat carbon fiber.
Woven thread, thickness less than 0.09mm, weight is 85g
/ M ²The following thin fabrics and their manufacturing methods have been proposed and their thickness
Because the yarn is very thin, the crimp of the yarn is small and
A thin weave that exerts a strong effect and is excellent for forming thin CFRP
Substrates made of objects have been proposed.

As described above, the weaving method of the carbon fiber woven fabric using the flat carbon fiber yarns is performed by the warp yarn beam in which the necessary number of carbon fiber yarns are wound, or the warp yarn sheet supplied from the carbon fiber yarn bobbin set on the creel. Is opened one by one with a heddle, and a weft thread is inserted into the opening with a shuttle or rapier.

Regarding the warp yarns, there are methods of beam supply and direct supply from the bobbin. In either case, the carbon fiber yarn bobbin is unrolled and unwound slowly, or the bobbin is unwound in the axial direction. Two methods of taking out and unwinding are adopted.

Regarding the weft yarn, as a general weft yarn feeding method, the weft yarn is pulled up from the bobbin wound with the reinforcing fiber yarn to the yarn feeding guide while unwinding the weft yarn vertically.
The method of inserting the weft thread while hooking the weft thread with the rapier's claw is used.

However, in this method, although intermittent weft insertion can be relatively smoothly unwound, in the case of carbon fiber yarn, a sizing agent is added in order to improve handleability, Since the threads tend to adhere to each other in a state of being wound on the bobbin, there is a problem that fluffing occurs or thread breakage occurs when the threads are instantly unwound from the bobbin. Furthermore, when unwinding vertically, bobbin 1
In the flat yarn woven fabric using the flat yarn, one twist is included in the yarn length of the circumference, and there is a problem that the yarn width of the flat yarn of the woven fabric becomes extremely narrow and the woven fabric has an uneven yarn width.

In order to improve these problems, Japanese Patent Publication No.
In JP-A-44023, as a method for storing the weft yarn while maintaining the flat shape of the weft yarn, the weft yarn bobbin is forcibly rotated to send out the weft yarn length required for one weft yarn insertion, and an unwinding dancer pulley is provided. A method has been proposed in which the weft yarn is stored above and below this roller. Since this method is the horizontal unwinding, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of fluff when the weft is pulled out and the occurrence of untwisting. However, since the storage method is based on the upper and lower sides of the roller, the roller is suddenly pulled up when the weft thread is inserted, and high tension is generated, so that the rapier tends to cause a weft thread grasping error or a weft thread breakage. Furthermore, in high-speed operation, the response speed of the vertical movement of the roller cannot follow the weft insertion speed,
There is a problem that the fluctuation in tension becomes even larger, the flat yarn is twisted, and the yarn width is not stable.

On the other hand, as a method of reducing this tension fluctuation, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-331056 proposes a weft thread storing method using expansion and contraction of a spring. In this method, tension is applied by expansion and contraction of the spring, and thus fluctuation in tension can be greatly improved. However, even in this method, at high speed operation, the response speed of the spring expansion and contraction does not follow the weft insertion speed, and the tension fluctuation becomes unstable, and especially when the weft is loosened, twisting occurs and the flat state cannot be maintained. There's a problem. Further, the wire diameter of the spring can be increased in order to increase the response speed, but if this is done, the tension at the time of storage will increase, and gripping mistakes during weft insertion and weft breaking will easily occur.

Further, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-294555 proposes a device for positively rotating the weft bobbin to store the weft by air suction and controlling the storage length by a yarn sensor arranged above and below the storage tank. Has been done.
Since this device utilizes the air resistance of the suction air, excessive tension does not act during weft yarn storage. However, since the weft yarn is hung down in the storage tank mainly due to the self-weight of the weft yarn and stored in a free state of only air suction, when a flat yarn is used and the weft insertion speed is high, Since the running position of the weft thread in the storage pipe is not regulated, it is difficult to control the running position of the weft thread only by air suction. The weft thread is easily twisted. That is,
When a flat yarn is used as the weft yarn, when the flat yarn is wound on the bobbin, it is wound while traversing so that it does not overlap the winding position, but this traverse is reversed at the bobbin end. Become. Then, the flat yarn is bent in the width direction at this inverted portion, the filament near the inside of the bent portion is loose, and the filament near the outside of the bend is tentatively set in the bobbin while being tightly set. It is wound and has a habit of winding. Therefore, when unwound from the bobbin around which the flat yarn is wound, tension acts on the filament only near the outside of the flat yarn width direction bending portion of the traverse reversal portion when the filament is pulled out. There is a problem that the flat yarn is easily twisted due to disturbance of suction air in the storage pipe.

[0016]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the background of the prior art described above, the present invention makes it possible to reduce the fluctuation of the tension of the weft yarn supply even when the number of revolutions of the loom is increased, and thus to prevent the weft yarn from being twisted. It is intended to provide a method and an apparatus for manufacturing a reinforcing fiber flat yarn woven fabric that can be prevented and can be operated at high speed.

[0017]

The present invention employs the following means in order to solve the above problems. That is, when manufacturing a flat yarn woven fabric composed of flat reinforcing fiber yarns, at least the following steps (A) and (B) are included in the insertion of the weft yarn of the woven fabric. . (A) The weft yarn is laterally unwound while rotating a bobbin wound with the flat yarn made of the flat reinforcing fiber yarn, and the weft yarn storage amount of a storage device for storing the weft yarn necessary for inserting the weft yarn is detected. The process of controlling the bobbin rotation by the signal from the sensor and adjusting the amount of weft supply. (B) The weft yarn necessary for inserting the weft yarn is stored by folding it back in the storage device by air suction, and
A step of storing the weft yarn while making contact with a yarn guide guide that guides the weft yarn in the storage device.

Further, in the apparatus for manufacturing the flat reinforcing fiber flat yarn woven fabric, the rotation of the weft bobbin wound with the flat reinforcing fiber yarn is controlled by a signal from a sensor for detecting the weft yarn storage amount of the weft yarn storing device. A weft thread supply mechanism including a weft thread supply mechanism, a tension application mechanism that applies tension to the weft thread sent out from the weft thread bobbin, and an air suction storage mechanism that stores the weft thread in the storage device by air suction. It is a feature.

[0019]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an example of a manufacturing device for manufacturing a reinforcing fiber flat yarn woven fabric by using the method for manufacturing a reinforcing fiber flat yarn woven fabric according to the present invention. This manufacturing device is used as a weft feeding device. Bobbin 1, rotary motor 2, tension roller 3, air suction / storage device 4, guide rollers 5-5
7, a leaf spring tension device 8, a push plate guide 9, a rapier 10, and the like. The bobbin 1 is wound with a weft thread Twf made of a reinforcing fiber thread, and the rotary motor 2
Is attached to. Then, the weft thread Twf is guided to the weft thread storage pipe 4 through the tension roller 3.
Here, the tension roller 3 moves from the bobbin 1 to the weft thread T.
When wf is unwound, it is located at the upper side, and when the loom stops, it automatically descends downward, and the brake works to stop the inertial rotation.

The rotation motor 2 is positively rotated by a signal from a weft yarn storage amount detection sensor (storage device intake side sensor 14 and storage device suction side sensor 15) attached to the storage pipe 4, and its rotation is controlled. The weft supply amount is adjusted so as not to be too large or too small. That is, when the suction side sensor 15 of the storage device 4 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a storage pipe) detects that the weft yarn storage amount is excessive, the rotation speed of the rotary motor 2 is stopped, and the supply of the weft yarn from the weft yarn bobbin 1 is stopped. It
Then, when the detection of the sensor is released, the motor is rotated again, and the supply of the weft thread is started. On the other hand, the storage pipe 4
When the intake side sensor 14 detects that the weft yarn storage amount is too small, the rotation of the rotary motor 2 is stopped, the supply of the weft yarn is stopped, and the shortage of the weft yarn can be prevented.

A photoelectric tube sensor or the like can be used as the sensor. This uses, for example, a pair of phototube sensors (a light emitter and a light receiver). When the light emitted from the light emitter is received by the light receiver, the motor is turned on, and when it is not received, the motor is turned on. If it is set to OFF and the photoelectric tube sensor is installed closer to the suction side than where the weft thread of the storage device according to the present invention bends in a U-shape, the light emitted from the projector when the supply amount becomes excessively high. Since it is blocked by, the light receiver cannot receive light, and the rotation of the motor is stopped. In addition, regarding the detection in the case of an insufficient amount, the reverse setting of the above-mentioned setting (motor power OFF when light is received, ON when light is not received) is set, and a phototube is installed on the intake side of the storage device. For example, the rotation of the motor can be stopped if the storage amount of the weft thread becomes small. It is also possible to integrate the photoemitter and the light receiver in the photoelectric tube and reflect the light emitted from the light receiver to receive the light. If the storage device is made of a transparent material such as an acrylic plate, the motor rotation can be controlled on / off even if a photoelectric tube sensor is installed outside the storage device.

The weft unwinding speed referred to here is determined by the number of revolutions of the loom and the length of weft insertion in the fabric. For example, when the number of revolutions of the loom is 200 revolutions / minute, the weft insertion length is If it is 1.1 m, the unwinding speed of the weft will be about 220 m / min.

Reinforcing fiber yarns, which are the weft yarns Twf and the warp yarns Twr, are carbon fibers, glass fibers, aramid fibers, etc. Among them, carbon fibers having a high specific strength and a high specific elastic modulus are mechanical properties of a composite material. It is preferably used because of its high utilization rate.

In addition, in order to improve handleability and weavability of the woven fabric, these reinforcing fiber yarns have
It is preferable to attach a sizing agent such as a sizing agent or a coupling agent in a small amount of about 2.5% by weight so that the sizing agent is bound. By doing so, generation of fluff due to rubbing with the yarn guide is suppressed, and when the composite material is formed, the adhesiveness with the resin is increased and the mechanical properties can be improved.

The reinforcing fiber yarn is wound around a bobbin 1 which is a cylindrical tube having a constant traverse width while being kept in shape with a sizing agent or the like. As the thickness of the yarn, the number of single fiber filaments is 1,000 to 100,000. The total fineness of the reinforcing fiber yarn is 50
It is preferably from 0 to 70,000 decitex.
If it is less than 500 decitex, the yarn is too thin and there is almost no problem due to twisting of the reinforcing fiber yarn.
The effect of the present invention cannot be exhibited. On the other hand, if it exceeds 70,000 decitex, it can be stored in the storage pipe, but it becomes difficult to insert the weft and cut the weft after the weft insertion.

The flatness of the flat reinforcing fiber yarn is preferably 10 to 100 in terms of yarn width / thread thickness ratio. If the oblateness is less than 10, the oblateness is so small that a yarn having a large fineness cannot be obtained as a woven fabric. On the other hand, when it exceeds 100, the distance between the weaving yarns in the woven fabric becomes large, and the warp yarn and the weft yarn are loosely restrained, so that the woven fabric becomes difficult to handle.

Then, the weft thread Twf sent to the storage pipe 4 is, as shown in FIG.
It is stored while being bent into a U-shape (including a V-shape) in the storage pipe through the guide 4a, and through the guide 4b.
It is guided by the horizontal guide roller 5, the vertical guide roller 6, and the horizontal guide roller 7 and guided to the leaf spring tension device 8.

Here, in the present invention, since the weft yarns are untwisted, even if the yarns are adhered to each other on the bobbin by applying the sizing agent, the weft yarns are almost perpendicular to the weft yarn bobbin axis. Since it is pulled out, the adhesive is easily peeled off, and no fluff or yarn breakage occurs. Further, unlike the case of the vertical unwinding, the yarn length for one round of the bobbin is not twisted once, so that the yarn width of the flat yarn can be stably held.

The weft thread pulled out from the bobbin is
Normally, it is located above while being in contact with the tension roller 3, and when the loom is stopped, the bobbin automatically descends downward even if the bobbin rotates inertially. Therefore, tension is constantly applied to the weft thread. The weft thread is not twisted because it is present.

Also, the intermittent weft thread T by the rapier 10 is used.
When the wf is inserted, the weft may loosen due to inertia at the moment the wf is inserted. However, the weft can be stored in the pipe by air suction and the weft Twf can be always tensioned. If the weft thread Twf is not tensioned by air suction, it will be twisted when it is loosened, and the twisted thread will pass through the guide rollers 5 to 7 and be woven.

The air suction / storage pipe 4c in this air suction / storage device has an intake port 4 at one end as shown in FIG.
Blower (not shown) having e and having the other end serving as a suction part 4f
It is connected to the suction hose 4d connected to. And
At the intake port 4e, yarn guides 4a and 4b are attached to the weft thread pull-in section and the weft thread pull-out section, respectively. The intake port 4e of the storage pipe 4 has only the weft yarn pull-in portion and the pull-out portion as openings, and the space between them is closed,
It is also possible to suck into the storage pipe from this opening, but then, since the air that has entered from this intake port is rapidly diffused in the storage pipe, turbulence of the air flow occurs in the pipe and the weft thread is easily twisted. Become. Therefore, it is preferable that the intake pipe of the storage pipe has a cross-sectional shape that is substantially the same as the cross-sectional shape of the pipe and that it is open. By doing so, a laminar flow state of air is formed in the storage pipe, swirling of the yarn can be prevented in the storage pipe, false twisting does not occur, and the flat state is easily maintained. Then, as described above, since a constant amount of weft yarn is continuously supplied to the storage pipe, it becomes easier to maintain the flat state of the weft yarn.

In high-speed operation, the running speed of the weft thread becomes high, and the weft thread may come out of the intake port 4e of the storage pipe 4 and air suction cannot be stored. Therefore, a stopper pin is installed at the intake port of the storage pipe. May be.

Further, since the weft yarn is a flat reinforcing fiber yarn, it is stored in a U-shaped folded state in the storage pipe, whereby air collides at the folded portion of the reinforcing fiber yarn and from the center of the yarn width. The yarn is opened by the airflow flowing to the ends, and the effect of widening the yarn width is obtained. Furthermore, a sizing agent or other sizing agent is added, and the winding habit caused by being wound on the bobbin can be removed because it is opened by colliding the flat reinforcing fiber yarn with air. It is also possible to reduce variations in weft thread width caused by the effect of thread twist due to habit. And, since the weft yarn is stored in the storage pipe under a smaller load condition for air suction at all times, there is almost no tension fluctuation and there is no yarn damage due to abnormal tension generation.
Since air suction is used, the retention tension of the weft thread is small, and high-speed insertion of the weft thread becomes possible.

The storage pipe has at least two sides parallel to each other as a shape of its intake port, and two planes extending in a direction perpendicular to the sides face each other in parallel. Is drawn in from one side of the intake port of the storage pipe and drawn out from the other side, it is preferable that the width direction of the weft and the side be parallel. By doing so, the weft yarn drawn into the storage pipe by the suction of the blower is folded into a U-shape while coming into contact with the parallel sides of the intake port and coming into contact with the inner wall surface of the pipe. Even if there is, the flat state can be maintained without being twisted by the air flow in the storage pipe.

The yarn width direction of the weft yarn is the direction in which the length becomes maximum when an arbitrary straight line is drawn in the yarn bundle cross section.

The term "side" as used herein is a part of the shape of the intake port of the storage pipe and is substantially straight.

Further, the term "parallel" includes those which are substantially parallel to each other, and some projections or inclinations may be provided to reduce frictional resistance.

Further, the storage pipe has at least two sides parallel to each other as a shape of its intake port, and a distance between two planes extending in a direction perpendicular to the sides is toward the suction portion. It is also preferable that the wefts are opposed to each other so as to be small, and when the weft is drawn in from one side of the intake port of the storage pipe and pulled out from the other side, the weft width direction of the weft and the side are parallel to each other.

That is, when the loom is operated at a higher speed, the suction force of the blower must be increased in order to store the weft thread stably. Then, the radius of curvature of the weft thread in the storage pipe becomes U-shaped. As the size becomes smaller, the ratio of contact with the inner wall surface of the storage pipe becomes smaller, and the flat weft yarn floats in the air in the storage pipe, and the twist of the flat yarn easily occurs due to turbulence of the air flow. Therefore, by tilting the space between the two surfaces of the storage pipe that come into contact with the weft thread so as to decrease from the intake port toward the suction portion, the weft thread makes contact with the inner wall surface of the storage pipe reliably and twisting occurs. Can be less. The tilt angle is
The inclination of the inner wall surface may be determined so that the weft threads come into contact with each other from the storage state of the weft threads in the storage pipe, but normally a small gradient of about 0.5 / 100 to 10/100 is preferable. .

The length of the storage pipe may be at least ½ or more of the weft insertion length by the rapier because the sucked weft yarn is folded back in the storage pipe, but usually (the weft insertion length 1/2) + (10-4
0) cm, for example, the weft insertion length is 1.1
A woven fabric having a width of 1 m, which is m, has a length of about 65 to 95 cm. Although the length of the storage pipe is an example in which the weft yarn is inserted once in the storage pipe, the length is not limited to this. In addition, storing the weft thread amount necessary for one weft thread insertion in the storage pipe means that the weft thread length required for at least one weft thread insertion is stored in the storage pipe. It does not mean that the length of the weft thread pulled in is the same as the weft thread amount required for one weft thread insertion.

Further, it is preferable that the weft yarn is drawn into the storage pipe so that the weft yarn can be easily drawn into the storage pipe even when the weft yarn storage amount is 0 immediately after the insertion of the weft yarn by the rapier.

In another preferred form, the storage pipe has a cross-sectional shape that is substantially uniform in the depth direction, and two yarn path guide guides facing each other are directed from the intake port to the suction portion in the storage pipe. The weft yarns that are provided so that their mutual distance becomes small and are fed into the intake port of the storage pipe between the two yarn guide guides and are drawn in while contacting one yarn guide guide. The yarn guide guide may be brought into contact with the yarn guide guide and stored.

Here, the yarn guide guide is a net-like object, a pin, or the like, and regulates the running position of the weft yarn in the storage pipe.

The yarn guide guide will be described in more detail with respect to the embodiment of the net-like material. As shown in FIG. 3, the cross-sectional shape of the storage pipe is substantially uniform in the depth direction, and two net-shaped objects 12 facing each other are provided in the storage pipe.
Between the two net-like objects, the weft thread that is provided from the intake port 4e toward the suction section 4f so that the mutual distance becomes small and is fed into the intake port of the storage pipe.
It is preferable that one net-like object 12a is pulled in while being in contact with the other net-like object 12b, and the other net-like object 12b is being pulled out while being kept in contact therewith.

By providing the two net-shaped members in an inclined manner in the storage pipe whose cross-sectional shape is substantially uniform in the depth direction, most of the suction airflow in the storage pipe flows between the net-shaped members, Part of the material flows from the space between the nets.

Therefore, the flat weft yarn is drawn into the storage pipe in a U-shape by the suction airflow between the two net-like objects. Moreover, since the flat yarn is sucked toward the net-like object by the suction airflow that passes through the net-like object and flows to the outside from between the two net-like objects, the flat yarn is surely brought into contact with the net-like object. Can be stored. Then, the phenomenon that the flat weft yarns stored in the U shape in the storage pipe float in the air in the storage pipe and the flat yarns are twisted due to turbulence of the air flow is avoided.

Here, a wire net, a plastic net, punching metal or the like can be used as the net-like material.
The porosity of the net-like material is preferably 10% or more in terms of the area through which air can pass in the net-like material / the total area of the net-like material, and the maximum width of the void portion per location is 3 mm. The following is preferable. That is, when the porosity is less than 10% and the maximum width of each void exceeds 3 mm, the amount of intake air that can pass through the net is reduced, and the weft floats in the air in the storage pipe and Twisting is likely to occur due to turbulence, and the weft thread is drawn into the voids, and abrasion fluff is likely to occur. Therefore, the porosity of the net is
It is preferable that it is 10% or more, and the maximum width of the void portion per location is 3 mm or less.

Regarding the inclination angle of the net-like material, the inclination of the net-like material may be determined so that the weft thread comes into contact with the weft thread in the storage pipe, but if the inclination angle becomes too large, Since the flow rate of the suction air in the storage pipe changes greatly and the storage becomes unstable,
Usually, a small gradient of about 0.5 / 100 to 10/100 is preferable.

The thread guide guide further illustrates the embodiment of the pin.

As shown in FIG. 4, the cross-sectional shape of the storage pipe is substantially uniform, and the storage pipe has a space,
Two rows of a large number of pins 13 arranged in parallel are opposed to each other and are provided so that the distance between the rows becomes smaller from the intake port toward the suction portion. The weft thread fed into the intake port of the pin is pulled in between the rows of the two opposing pins while contacting the row 13a of one pin, and the row 1 of the other pin
It is advisable to pull it out while making contact with 3b, and to make the weft width direction and the pin axial direction be the same direction.

By doing so, as in the case of using the net-like material, the flat weft yarn is drawn into the storage pipe in a U-shape by the suction airflow between the two rows of pins. In addition, since the flat yarn is sucked toward the wall surface of the storage pipe while coming into contact with the pins by the suction airflow flowing between the two rows of pins and passing between the pins, the storage can be surely stored. . Then, the flat weft yarn stored in the U shape in the storage pipe floats in the air in the storage pipe,
The phenomenon in which the flat yarn is twisted due to turbulence of the air flow is reliably avoided.

The pin used here has a diameter of 2 to
It is preferable that the length is 10 mm and the pins are arranged at intervals of 3 to 30 mm. Pin is 2m in diameter
When it is less than m or when the distance between the pins exceeds 30 mm, there are problems that the weft thread is easily caught on the pins and fluff is accumulated on the pins due to the air flow passing between the pins. Further, when it exceeds 10 mm or when the distance between the pins is less than 3 mm, the area occupied by the pins in the storage pipe becomes large, the suction airflow passing between the pins is reduced, and the stored weft threads are removed from the pins. The yarns are separated, and the weft thread is likely to be twisted. Therefore, the pins preferably have a diameter of 2 to 10 mm, and the pins are preferably arranged at intervals of 3 to 30 mm.

The surface of the pin may be treated with Teflon (R) or satin finish in order to reduce the contact resistance with the reinforcing fiber yarn.

The inclination angle may be determined by determining the arrangement inclination of the pins so that the weft threads come into contact with each other from the storage state of the weft threads in the storage pipe. Since the flow rate of the suction air changes greatly and the storage becomes unstable, normally 0.5
A small gradient of about / 100 to 10/100 is preferable.

The shape of the intake port of the storage pipe described above may be any shape as long as the opposite side into which the weft yarn is drawn and the opposite side are substantially straight lines and the respective sides are parallel to each other. Absent. For example, it is a shape in which both ends of two parallel straight lines are connected by an arc, or a trapezoid in which both ends of two parallel straight lines are connected by a straight line.

That is, in the side where the weft thread is drawn in and out of the storage pipe, and in the storage pipe,
If the weft yarns contact with each other in a straight line and are parallel to each other, the weft yarns are pulled into the storage pipe, and when the weft yarns are pulled out and stored in the storage pipe, the weft yarns run while in contact with this straight line portion, thus preventing twisting. be able to.

The storage pipe has a rectangular cross section, and the weft yarn is drawn in from the shorter side of the rectangle.
It is preferable to pull out the weft yarn from the opposite shorter side. By doing so, most of the air sucked into the storage pipe can be made to collide with the folded portion of the weft thread, and the ability of the blower can be effectively exhibited. In addition, since the distance between the weft thread pull-in section and the pull-out section can be increased, the weft thread can be folded back with a large curvature in the storage pipe, so that damage to the thread can be reduced.

Here, the length of the shorter side of the rectangular cross section is
10 to 40 m in order to suppress yarn width fluctuation during weft yarn storage
A range of m is preferred. If it is smaller than 10 mm, the weft supply position during storage changes, and the yarn width becomes narrower. If it is larger than 40 mm, the opening area in the storage pipe becomes large and it becomes necessary to increase the capacity of the blower. . The length of the longer side is 40 to 100.
It is preferably mm.

In addition, in the storage pipe, the weft yarn is aired.
-The amount of suction is 0.05 to 100m³Per minute
Preferably. 0.05m³If it is less than
The pulling amount is small and weft cannot be stably stored,
The weft is twisted. On the other hand, 100m³Per minute
Then, the suction amount becomes too large, and it is stored in the storage pipe.
Yarn sways, twists, distorts fibers, fluff
Is likely to occur. For this reason, weft the air
When sucking, the suction amount is preferably 0.05 to 100 m ³/ Min
To prevent the yarn from twisting and fluff.
Good from the aspect. More preferably, 0.1-50 m³/ Min
Is preferred. In addition, the rotation speed of the loom
For example, is the running speed of the weft thread in the storage pipe increased?
Therefore, it is preferable to increase the suction volume for stable storage.
Good The suction amount here is the intake port of the storage device.
It is the flow rate at.

Further, by attaching a yarn guide made of ceramic or the like to the intake port on the inlet side of the weft yarn cross section of the storage pipe and directly above the withdrawal side, it becomes possible to stabilize the yarn passage. It is possible to reduce generation of fluff due to rubbing during traveling.

As another method of tensioning the weft thread Twf, it is possible to use not only the storage by the air suction but also a mechanical storage method such as an eccentric cam. Then, by mechanically storing the necessary weft storage amount, only the remaining length required for storage is
Since the amount of yarn drawn in by the storage nozzle can be reduced and the length of the storage pipe can be shortened because it is only necessary to store by air suction, the device installation space can be reduced.

When the weft yarn is stored by the air suction storage pipe, an air jet may be used together.
In other words, according to the movement of the rapier when inserting the weft thread, when the storage amount becomes the smallest, air is momentarily jetted and the weft thread is pushed into the storage pipe, making it easier to pull the weft thread into the weft thread storage pipe. it can.

Further, it is preferable to provide a tenser at the lead-out portion of the storage pipe. By doing so, when the weft thread is inserted, the stored weft thread is suddenly pulled out, and when the weft thread insertion is completed, the weft thread loosens between the storage pipe and the rapier yarn feeding section due to inertia, and the flat weft thread is formed. Although there is a problem of twisting, the above problem can be solved by applying tension by a tensor at the drawing portion of the storage pipe.

Next, a method of supplying the stored weft threads to the rapier will be described.

The guide rollers 5 to 7 have a diameter of 10 to 20.
A rotation system having a built-in bearing having a length of about 100 mm and a length of about 100 mm to 300 mm is preferably adopted. If the diameter is too small, the reinforcing fiber yarns that make up the weft yarn Twf tend to bend, and breakage of single yarn easily occurs.
When it is more than m, there is a problem that the inertia of rotation becomes large and the tension fluctuation at the time of starting and stopping becomes large. In addition, the length of each guide roller 5-7 is such that the weft thread Tw passing through
f moves left and right or up and down to move the guide roller 5
It is necessary to have a length that does not come into contact with the support portion that supports ~ 7.
When the weft thread Twf comes into contact with the support portions of the guide rollers 5 to 7, the flat state is destroyed.

Horizontal guide roller 5 and guide roller 7
Determines the position of the weft thread Twf to be guided in the height direction, and the vertical guide roller 6 determines the position of the weft thread Twf in the horizontal direction. Therefore, the guide rollers at least in the horizontal direction and in the vertical direction may be arranged alternately.

At this time, the flat surface of the weft thread Twf is 90 degrees between the horizontal guide roller 5 and the vertical guide roller 6 and between the vertical guide roller 6 and the horizontal guide roller 7.
° Need to twist. Therefore, the guide rollers 5, 6
And the distance between the guide rollers 6 and 7 are
Although it depends on the width of wf, it is preferable to separate them by 50 mm or more. If the distance between the guide rollers is less than 50 mm, the weft thread Twf is twisted and passes through the vertical guide roller 6 and the horizontal guide roller 7 and is woven. Further, when the flat yarn is twisted by 90 ° at a short distance, tension is applied to both ends of the flat yarn, and fluff occurs.

The guide rollers 5 to 7 may be one, but when two sets each are provided and the weft thread Twf is passed in an S-shape, the tension acting on the weft thread Twf becomes stable,
The weft thread Twf can be reliably positioned.

Further, a tension device 8 is arranged downstream of the horizontal guide roller 7 for the weft thread Twf to make the tension of the weft thread Twf uniform. This tension device 8 is composed of two wide leaf springs 8a and 8b,
By sandwiching f, the tension of the weft thread Twf is maintained uniform.

In the weft feeding method of the flat yarn woven fabric manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, the vertical guide roller 6 determines the yarn path of the weft yarn Twf in principle, but the tension fluctuation and the hooking operation to the rapier 10 are performed. As a result, the yarn path of the weft yarn Twf may change. Therefore, even if the weft thread Twf moves in the width direction, it is preferable that there is nothing that interferes with the end portion of the weft thread Twf. Therefore, the wide leaf spring 8 is provided.
The tension device 8 provided with a and 8b is used. Leaf spring 8
The width of a and 8b is preferably 5 times or more the thread width of the weft thread Twf.

The pushing plate guide 9 is arranged on the downstream side of the weft thread Twf of the leaf spring tension device 8 and has a V-shaped end at the tip thereof.
It is a plate on which a character-shaped guide surface 9a is formed. The guide 9 is driven in the front-rear direction indicated by an arrow by using a cam mechanism that transmits the rotation of the loom in conjunction with the yarn feeding to the rapier 10.

Further, when a yarn feeding guide is used when the yarn is fed to the rapier 10, if the weft yarn Twf is a flat yarn, the weft yarn Twf is rubbed by the guide hole and the flat form is crushed. Therefore, in the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, between the leaf spring tension device 8 and the thread end gripping guide (not shown),
A push plate guide 9 is provided, and at the time of yarn feeding to the rapier 10, the weft yarn Twf is pressed to the rear of the loom by lowering the yarn end gripping guide and advancing the push plate guide 9 to the rapier 10. I tried to cross it.

As shown in FIG. 1, the rapier 10 is a long-line member arranged in the front part of the reed 11 which will be described later, and operates intermittently in the lateral direction to make the weft thread Twf the warp thread T of the weaving part.
It is inserted between wr and Twr.

In the apparatus for manufacturing the flat yarn woven fabric of the present invention, the weft yarn Twf wound around the bobbin 1 is sent out from the bobbin by the rotation of the rotary roller 2 by the weft yarn supplying process of the weft yarn supplying device as described above. The looseness at the time of intermittent weft insertion of the rapier 10 is absorbed by the air suction by the air suction / storage device 4. Then, the weft yarn Twf unwound from the bobbin 1 is guided by the guide rollers 5 to 7 and is maintained at a uniform tension by the leaf spring tension device 8, while the pressing plate guide 9 and the yarn end gripping guide cooperate. By the action, it is hooked on the nail of the rapier 10 and inserted between the warp threads Twr and Twr of the weaving portion.

Therefore, the weft thread Twf made of the flat thread
Is woven without twisting or flattening.

Regarding the warp yarn Twr, the warp yarn bobbin is unwound and unwound, and in a state where the flattened state is maintained, the weft yarn T is guided to the cloth fell and sent from the weft yarn feeding device.
It is woven into wf to produce a flat yarn woven fabric made of reinforcing fibers.

The number of revolutions of the loom is preferably in the range of 100 to 400 revolutions / minute. If it is less than 100 revolutions / minute, the production speed becomes slow and the production efficiency becomes poor. On the other hand, if it exceeds 400 revolutions / minute, the number of fluffs generated and weft breakage are likely to occur due to the high speed operation.
Therefore, the rotation speed of the loom is preferably 100 to 400.
The rotation / minute range allows the woven fabric to be manufactured with good productivity while suppressing the occurrence of fluff, and allows the woven fabric to be manufactured while maintaining the flat state without the weft thread being twisted.

[0079]

EXAMPLES The present invention will be described in more detail below with reference to examples.

Example 1 Tensile strength 4900 MPa, tensile modulus 230 GP
a, carbon fiber yarn with 12,000 filaments (fineness: 8,000 decitex), yarn width: 6.5 m
m, a yarn thickness of 0.15 mm, a yarn width / yarn thickness ratio of 43, and a flattened carbon fiber with a sizing agent adhered to maintain a shape of 0.6% are used as warp yarns and weft yarns. Warp and weft density is 1.25 threads / cm
The plain weave design has a basis weight of 200 g / m ² and a fabric width of 100.
cm fabric was woven at a loom speed of 250 rpm.
Here, as a weft supply method, a storage pipe in which guide pins are arranged in the storage pipe is used, and the weft yarn bobbin is fed by rotation of a motor to unwind and take out 110 cm length required for one weft insertion. The weft yarn was stored while being bent into a U shape while being in contact with the guide pin in the storage pipe by air suction, and the weft yarn was inserted by the rapier. The storage pipe has a cross-sectional size of 20 mm x 50 mm and a length of 70 cm. A storage pipe intake side sensor is located 5 cm from the intake port of the storage pipe, and a storage pipe suction is located 60 cm from the intake port. The side sensor was installed. Also,
For the suction, a blower having a rated suction amount of 0.6 m ³ / min was used, and after the weft was inserted by a rapier, the weft was opened by an air jet. The suction amount in the storage pipe was 1.00 m ³ / min.

The obtained flat yarn woven fabric had no twist during storage of the weft during weaving, and had a uniform fiber density with almost no voids at the intersections of the warp and weft, and had a fabric thickness of 0.28 mm. there were.

Next, the obtained fabric has a resin basis weight of 5
A 180 ° C. cure type epoxy resin film of 5 g / m ² was attached to the upper and lower surfaces of the woven fabric and then passed between calender rolls heated to 120 ° C. to impregnate the inside of the woven fabric with the resin to prepare a prepreg. Then, 12 sheets were laminated in the same direction to prepare a cured plate by an autoclave molding method, and the compression characteristics in the weft direction were evaluated according to JIS K7080 (in-plane compression test method for carbon fiber reinforced plastic).

The results are shown in Table 1 together with the thickness of the forming plate and the volume content of carbon fiber in the forming plate.

Comparative Example 1 For comparison, a carbon fiber flat yarn woven fabric was woven in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the expansion and contraction of a spring was used instead of the air suction using a storage pipe as a weft yarn storage method. did.

In the obtained woven fabric, the expansion and contraction speed of the spring did not follow the number of rotations of the loom, a twist occurred during weft yarn storage, and the weft yarn did not partially spread even when air opening treatment was performed. Since the yarn width became narrower, the woven fabric had a very coarse weave and a basis weight of 200 g / m 2.
^{Although it was 2} , the woven fabric thickness was 0.34 mm.

A reinforcing fiber flat yarn woven fabric prepreg was prepared from this woven fabric in the same manner as in Example 1, and then 12 sheets were laminated in the same direction to prepare a cured plate by an autoclave molding method.

Here, in the laminating step, the resin in the void portion of the woven fabric was taken by the release film and was chipped. Further, since the weft thread has a partial thickness unevenness, the weft thread was bent when it was passed through a calender roll. For this reason, in the obtained cured plate, the voids of the woven fabric were concave and convex on the surface, a large number of voids were observed inside, and the bending of the weft thread was large.

Further, the in-plane compression characteristics of the cured plate in the weft direction were evaluated by the test method of Example 1, and the results are shown in Table 1 together with the thickness of the molded plate and the volume content of carbon fiber in the molded plate. It was shown to.

Comparative Example 2 A carbon fiber flat yarn woven fabric was woven in the same manner as in Example 1 except that a weft guide guide was not provided as a weft yarn storage method for comparison.

In the obtained woven fabric, the running position of the weft yarn was not stable in the storage pipe, the width of the yarn was largely varied, and the yarn was often twisted. Further, the weaving length was twisted about once every 5 m and the yarn was entangled in the U-shape at the folded back portion, resulting in poor weft insertion and poor production efficiency. In addition, due to the twist of the weft thread, the weft thread did not partially spread even after performing the air opening treatment after weaving the woven fabric.
In the same manner as described above, a woven fabric having a portion where the yarn width becomes narrow was obtained. For this reason, the texture is very coarse and the basis weight is 200 g /
Although it was m ² , the fabric thickness was 0.40 mm.

Using this woven fabric, a reinforcing fiber flat yarn woven fabric prepreg was prepared in the same manner as in Example 1, and this was laid in the same direction 1
Two sheets were laminated and a cured plate was produced by an autoclave molding method.

Here, in the laminating step, the resin in the void portion of the woven fabric was taken by the release film and chipped. Further, since the weft thread has a partial thickness unevenness, the weft thread was bent when it was passed through a calender roll. For this reason, in the obtained cured plate, the voids of the woven fabric were concave and convex on the surface, a large number of voids were observed inside, and the bending of the weft thread was large.

Further, the in-plane compression characteristics of the cured plate in the weft direction were evaluated by the test method of Example 1, and the results are shown in Table 1 together with the thickness of the molded plate and the carbon fiber volume content in the molded plate. Indicated.

[0094]

[Table 1]

As is clear from the results shown in Table 1, according to the manufacturing method of Example 1, since the woven fabric can be formed while maintaining the flat cross section of the reinforcing fiber yarn, the cured plate produced has High strength and high elastic modulus properties could be effectively exhibited, and high compressive strength and compressive elastic modulus were obtained.

On the other hand, in Comparative Examples 1 and 2, a large number of voids were generated inside the molding plate, the crimp of the woven yarn was increased at the twisted portion, and the weft yarn was bent. I got it. It should be noted that in order to eliminate voids in the molded plate, the amount of resin can be increased so that resin deficiency does not occur in the prepreg manufacturing stage, but in that case, the weight of the molded plate increases and the CFRP becomes heavy. . Further, even if the resin deficient portion is eliminated and CFRP having no void inside is obtained, the crimping state of the weaving yarn and the bending of the weft yarn do not change, and therefore the compression characteristics are different from those of the fabric obtained by the method of Example 1. , Will be low.

[0097]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the method and apparatus for manufacturing a reinforced fiber flat yarn woven fabric of the present invention, since the weft yarn does not twist even when the loom is operating at high speed, its flat state A flat yarn woven fabric can be woven without being crushed, and a very thin woven fabric can be stably obtained.
For this reason, when CFRP is manufactured from this woven fabric, there are problems such as unevenness on the surface due to uneven thickness of the twisted portion, excessive resin portion in the void of the twisted portion, occurrence of voids, etc. It is possible to prevent a decrease in compressive strength due to an increase in the yarn crimp and a bending of the weft yarn.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing an example of a manufacturing apparatus for carrying out a manufacturing method of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway enlarged view showing an example of an air suction storage pipe of the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of the air suction storage pipe of the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing still another example of the air suction storage pipe of the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1: Bobbin (for weft) 2: Rotation motor 3: Tension roller 4: Air suction storage device 4a: Yarn guide on the weft thread pull-in side 4b: Yarn guide on the weft thread pull-out side 4c: Storage pipe 4d: Suction hose 4e: Intake port 4f: Suction section 5-7: Guide roller 8: Leaf spring tension device 9: Push plate guide 10: Rapier 11: Reed 12: Net-like material 12a: Net-like material on the weft thread pull-in side 12b: Net-like material on the weft thread pull-out side 13: Pin 13a: Weft thread pull-in pin 13b: Weft thread pull-out side pin 14: Storage pipe intake side sensor 15: Storage pipe suction side sensor Twf: Weft Twr: Warp thread

Continued front page    F-term (reference) 4L048 AA05 AB07 AB11 BA01 BA02                       DA41                 4L050 AA12 AA29 CB03 CB11 CB34                       CB48 CB62 EA03 EB05 ED02                       ED16

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. When manufacturing a flat yarn woven fabric composed of flat reinforcing fiber yarns, at least the following steps (A) and (B) are included in inserting the weft yarn of the woven fabric. Manufacturing method. (A) The weft yarn is laterally unwound while rotating a bobbin wound with the flat yarn made of the flat reinforcing fiber yarn, and the weft yarn storage amount of a storage device for storing the weft yarn necessary for inserting the weft yarn is detected. The process of controlling the bobbin rotation by the signal from the sensor and adjusting the amount of weft supply. (B) The weft yarn necessary for inserting the weft yarn is stored by folding it back in the storage device by air suction, and
A step of storing the weft yarn while making contact with a yarn guide guide that guides the weft yarn in the storage device. 2. The shape of the intake port of the storage device in the step (B) has at least two sides parallel to each other, and two planes extending in a direction perpendicular to the sides face each other in parallel. 2. The weft thread is drawn in from one side of the intake port of the storage device, and when the weft thread is drawn out from the other side, the weft width direction of the weft thread and the side are made parallel to each other.
The method for producing a reinforcing fiber flat yarn woven fabric according to 1. 3. The shape of the intake port of the storage device in the step (B) has at least two sides parallel to each other, and a distance between two planes extending in a direction perpendicular to the sides is They are opposed to each other so that they become smaller toward the suction part, and when the weft yarn is drawn in from one side of the intake port of the storage device and pulled out from the other side, the weft yarn width direction and the side should be parallel. The method for producing a reinforcing fiber flat yarn woven fabric according to claim 1. 4. The cross-sectional shape of the storage device in the step (B) is substantially uniform in the depth direction, and two yarn path guide guides facing each other in the storage device are directed from the intake port to the suction portion. The weft yarns that are provided so that the distance between them is small and are fed into the intake port of the storage device are drawn in between the two yarn guide guides while contacting one yarn guide guide, and the other yarn guide. The method for manufacturing a reinforced fiber flat yarn woven fabric according to claim 1, wherein the woven fabric is laid out while being brought into contact with a guide. 5. The storage device has a rectangular cross section, and the weft yarn is drawn from the shorter side of the rectangle, and the weft yarn is drawn from the opposite shorter side.
4. The method for producing a reinforced fiber flat yarn woven fabric according to any one of 4 above. 6. The flat reinforcing fiber according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein an amount of suction of the weft yarn in the storage device is 0.05 to 100 m ³ / min. A method for manufacturing a yarn fabric. 7. The method of manufacturing a reinforced fiber flat yarn woven fabric according to claim 1, wherein the reinforced fiber yarn is a carbon fiber. 8. The total fineness of the reinforcing fiber yarn is 500 to 70,0.
It is 00 decitex, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.
The method for producing a reinforced fiber flat yarn woven fabric according to any one of 1. 9. The method for producing a reinforced fiber flat yarn woven fabric according to claim 1, wherein the number of revolutions of the loom is 100 to 400 revolutions / minute. 10. A weft supply mechanism for controlling the rotation of a weft bobbin wound with a flat reinforcing fiber yarn by a signal from a sensor for detecting a weft storage amount of a weft storage device, and a weft fed from the weft bobbin. An apparatus for manufacturing a reinforcing fiber flat yarn woven fabric, comprising: a weft yarn supplying means including a tension imparting mechanism for imparting tension to the fabric and an air suction storage mechanism for storing the weft yarn in a storage device by air suction. 11. The apparatus for manufacturing a reinforced fiber flat yarn woven fabric according to claim 10, wherein the storage device is any one of the following (1) to (4). (1) The intake port shape has at least two sides parallel to each other, and two planes extending in a direction perpendicular to the sides face each other in parallel. (2) The intake port shape has at least two sides parallel to each other, and two planes extending in a direction perpendicular to the sides face each other so that the distance becomes smaller toward the suction portion. (3) The cross-sectional shape is substantially uniform in the depth direction, and the storage device is provided so that the distance between two net-shaped objects facing each other decreases from the intake port toward the suction portion. (4) The cross-sectional shape is substantially uniform in the depth direction, and two rows of a large number of pins arranged in parallel in the storage device at intervals are opposed to each other. It is provided so that the distance therebetween decreases from the intake port toward the suction portion. 12. The manufacturing apparatus for a reinforced fiber flat yarn woven fabric according to claim 10, wherein the storage device has a rectangular cross section.