METHOD OF FORMING A COMPOSITE STRUCTURE COMPRISING A FLANGE.

摘要

Method forming a composite structure (9) comprising a main body and a flange. The composite structure is manufactured by laying-up a preform (7) on a mould (6). The preform (7) does not have the first and second bends and comprises a first part which corresponds to the main body of the composite structure and a second part which corresponds to the flange of the composite structure. The second part of the (preform (7) has a proximal portion which corresponds to the wall portion of the flange and a distal portion which corresponds to the lip portion of the flange. The preform (7) comprises a plurality of plies and uni-directional ply material extends from the first part of the preform (7) to the distal portion of the second part of the preform (7). The flange is formed by advancing movable portion(s) (62) of the mould 6 to form the proximal portion of the second part of the preform (7) to create the first bend (81) and by forming the distal portion of the second part of the preform (7) around the advancing movable portion(s) (62) of the mould (6) to create the second bend (83). The presence of the two bends (81, 83) ensures that the ply material (78) is kept in tension during the forming operation.