Far field measurements of small angle carbon fiber misalignments

摘要

Manufacturing of advanced composites for aircraft structures requires precise layups of carbon fiber tape. Currently visual inspection is the method used to determine if tape angle deviations are acceptable. Automated inspection during fabrication would decrease inspection times and therefore reduce costs. NASA's Advanced Composites Project is investigating technologies that increase automated remote inspection of aircraft composite structures. Therefore, microwave radiation is being investigated as a method of enabling rapid remote inspection of angular orientation of carbon fiber tow material. This work investigates the use of microwaves to measure the angle of carbon fiber tape misalignment using a far field technique.