Redirect roller apparatus for fiber placement machine

Claim 1

In a fiber placement machine, having a band of fibers oriented with its length running along a path with respect to a relatively stationary machine member, the band of fibers being ultimately paid-out to a fiber application surface, an improved fiber guidance system comprising: a fiber supply creel including plural spools of fiber mounted to said relatively stationary machine member said fiber supply creel also including means for maintaining tension on said fibers; a manipulator wrist affixed to said relatively stationary machine member; a fiber placement head affixed to said manipulator wrist, and having a fiber payout zone, said head capable of being manipulated through a variety of spatial orientations by said manipulator wrist, especially at least two-dimensional spatial orientations with respect to said relatively stationary machine member; a plurality of fiber redirect rollers, having roller elements rotatable about a first roller axis with respect to a roller base, and wherein said roller base includes a bearing member for providing rotary movement of said base about a base axis transverse to the roller axis as said fiber placement head is manipulated, and wherein at least a first redirect roller is affixed to said relatively stationary machine member and at least a second redirect roller is affixed to said fiber placement head, and wherein a band of fibers is trained around said first and second redirect rollers under tension, and said redirect rollers will cooperatively swivel about their bases in accordance with spatial orientation of the placement head and in accordance with tension of the fiber band, thereby maintaining approximately equal tension at the outer fibers at each side of the fiber band, while guiding said fiber band.