Ownership

Research

Interesting research, images, links, recap of regulations, etc.

• video on manufacturing process of a carbon fibre based seat Status Racing - The Making of a Ring Seat 

• video on pouring a foam insert for a bucket seat Making A Custom Foam Insert for the Race Seat

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/technical-stuff/9521-pics-carbon-fiber-seat-how-handmade-fsae.html

https://www.instructables.com/id/Simple-methods-for-molding-fiberglass-and-carbon-f/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzQlj0zZiC4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3q4GzggRumI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZasTVWY34A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76E-A357ZSg
https://www.intechopen.com/books/textiles-for-advanced-applications/textile-composites-for-seat-upholstery

https://www.compositesworld.com/articles/camismas-car-seat-back-hybrid-composite-for-high-volume

Material Concepting

Concepts for what materials to use

Should be split into separate components for ease: Brace (shell), foams, and seat cover (cloths).

Brace:

Should be cf (the concepts of aluminum and other composite metals was discussed and the skills set needed to work with these materials cannot be done in house).

Fiberglass/CF shell doesn’t improve the strength of the seat and therefore, we should if possible, use an entirely CF shell.

Foam:

Seat covering/cloth:

Mesh fabric (backpacks),

Manufacturing Concepting

Concepts for what manufacturing processes to use

Construction of the shell:

• plug

• cut out

• mold

Construction of the foams:

How to work with cloth:

Assembly Concepting

Concepts for how various materials and parts will assemble together

Foam to seat: Velcro, glue, tape, magnets

Cloth to foam: buttons, sewing, Velcro, hooks, tape, magnets

Cloth to seat: tie, button, sew, hook, Velcro, melt, glue, tape, magnets

Proof-of-Concept Testing

What sort of testing should we be doing to ensure our chosen materials/manufacturing processes/assembly methods will work on the end-product?

Test the glue in hot and humid conditions

Test with human interaction (if moving around in the seat will cause the foam to tear or to rip the Velcro or hooks, etc)

Test if materials a comfortable (get a sample and put it on your work chair and see if you can sit on it all day)

Could include ordering samples, testing fastening/joining methods, testing assembly procedures.

Seats Manufacturing

·         Seat pan/leg pan/supports: cut from flat panels

o   Need calculations on how strong the panels needs to be (both with the supports and without) (thickness that the panel needs to be)

·         Back rest:

o   Pre-preg with an MDF mold (there may be a slight problem with the way the bottom that touches the floor needs to be cut (it is not a radii at the moment its very sharp but I think it won’t matter because we have triangular supports)

§  Need calculations to see how thick the panel needs to be

·         Foams:

o   CNC hot wire cutting for the polyethylene for complex concave (ask them if the wire will do neoprene there website does not say that this is a type of foam that they cut)

o   Foam to foam is A & E contact cement (used in cosplay outfits if it good enough for them then it’s good enough for me)

o   Foam to cloth is A & E contact cement

o   Foam to seat 2 part epoxy

o   Foam should wrap around the corners of the seat back and seat pan to minimize injury of having exposed CF panel that is sharp

o   Neoprene, High density polyethylene closed cell, and polyethylene open cell (also High density)

·         Materials/cloth

o   Mesh (backpack type)

o   Power mesh

o   Neoprene

·         Inserts

o   Plastic inserts (simple in shape maybe able to just use the machine shop) general shape is a rectangular prism with a rim

o   If we tweak the dimensions we could just buy them off the shelf

·         Ballast

o   CF for the flat panels over lined the outside with foam to stop sharp edges

o   Flat panels just cut and attach with epoxy

o   For the pin mechanism maybe glue another material up there so it has something to drill into (stainless steel pivot hinge rotation they cost about $30 for 2)

o   Attaching panels should still be epoxy

o   Hold the ballast box in the box with the mushroom/Velcro thingy

o   Next steps: How to hold the swinging lid in place???

      Next steps:

o   Get calculations for the seats thickness (for all components)

o   Start CAD for the MDF mold (with a question about how to do the bottom that touches the floor)

Manufacturing detailed steps

Mockup:

Materials:

·        Wood (plywood)

·        Foams (all three)

Manufacturing:

1. Use ¼ in wood an place in the mockup

1. Place the foam and ask people

1. Ask about seat angle

1. Ask about the amount of padding

1. Adjust seat angle as needed

Seats Cushions:

Materials:

·        Neoprene ¼ in thickness foam

·        Polyethylene closed cell high density ½ in foam

·        Polyethylene open cell high density ½ in foam

·        A & E cement

·        Power knife

·        2 part epoxy

·        Mushroom Velcro stuff

Manufacturing:

1. Using the 2 part epoxy and the neoprene glue the layer on top of the carbon fiber seat back and the carbon fiber seat pan (making sure to pull the neoprene over the edges of the seat back)

1. Contour the polyethylene seat foam using a jig and a power knife (based on the predetermined mockup dimensions)

1. Add the polyethylene closed cell to the neoprene with the cement (the foam will need to be pressed down with a weight and left for 1-3 hours to dry). The cement should be applied to both sides of the cushioning. The ballast and the bolsters will also need a layer of foam (do this with the 2 part epoxy)

1. Place the open cell on the areas that need to be padded based on the mockup (again use the cement to secure the soft open cell to the closed cell)

Seat Pan:

Materials:

·        Carbon fiber flat panel from the flat panel

·        4 different panels: 2 front 2 rear (for dimensions see CAD)

·        Carbon fiber to carbon fiber adhesive (WHAT IS THIS)

Manufacturing:

1. Cut from the panel into the shape needed (

ask if this is possible)

Seat back:

Materials:

·        Carbon fiber pre-preg (HOW MUCH)

·        MDF/CNC mold from wood

·        Peel/wax

·        Nomex (1/4 in)

·        Tacky tape

·        Vacuum bag

·        (vacuum and/or oven)

·        Resin

·        Plaster (for filling in molds)

·        1 or 2 molds depending if filling in with plaster is an option (and doesn’t cause any problems)

Manufacturing:

1. Take CAD mold and CNC them

1. Line mold with wax (anti-peeler)

1. Take the pre-preg and make about 2 layers and vacuum bag (about 24-48 hours)

1. Place in the nomex and coat with resin (vacuum bag again) (about 24-48 hours)

1. Place the final 2 layers of pre-preg and vacuum /back again (about 24-48 hours)

1. Slowly remove from the mold

1. For the rear molds it may be possible to fill in the front molds with plaster and reuse the mold that way

Seat Supports:

Materials:

·        Carbon fiber flat panel

·        Carbon fiber to carbon fiber adhesive

Manufacturing:

1. Cut from the flat panel into triangular sections (see CAD for dimensions)

Flat Panels:

Materials:

·        Carbon fiber flat panel

·        Carbon fiber to carbon fiber adhesive

Manufacturing:

1. Cut from the flat panel into triangular sections (see CAD for dimensions)

Ballast:

Materials:

·        Carbon fiber flat panel

·        Carbon fiber to carbon fiber adhesive

Manufacturing:

1. Cut from the flat panel into triangular sections (see CAD for dimensions)

Inserts:

·        3D printer

·        PC-ABS plastic with solid fill and standard should be ok

Manufacturing:

1. Take mold from CAD

1. Put into machine