Fiber-reinforced plastics for industrial applications face constantly increasing demands regarding efficiency, reliability, and economy. Furthermore, it was shown that fiber-reinforced plastics with tailored reinforcements are superior to metallic or monolithic materials. However, a trustworthy description of the load-specific failure behavior and damage evolution of composite structures can hardly be given, because these processes are very complex and are still not entirely understood. Among other things, several research groups have shown that material damages like fiber fracture, delamination, matrix cracking, or flaws can be discovered by analyzing the electrical properties of conductive composites, for example, carbon fiber–reinforced plastics. Furthermore, it was shown that this method could be used for structural health monitoring or nondestructive evaluation. Within this study, magnetic induction tomography, which is a new imaging approach, is introduced in the topic of nondestructive evaluation of carbon fiber–reinforced plastics. This non-contacting imaging method gains the inner spatial distribution of conductivity of a specimen and depicts material inhomogeneity, like damages, not only in two-dimensional images but also in three-dimensional images. Numerical and experimental investigations are presented, which give a first impression of the performance of this technique. It is demonstrated that magnetic induction tomography is a promising approach for nondestructive evaluation. Potentially, it can be used for fabrication quality control of conductive fiber–reinforced plastics and as a structural health monitoring system using an integrated or superficially applied magnetic induction tomography setup.

Numerous vibrating electromechanical systems lack a rigid connection to the inertial frame. An artificial inertial frame can be generated by a shaker, which compensates for vibrations. In this article, we present an encapsulated and perforated unimorph bending plate for this purpose. Vibrations can be compensated up to the first eigenfrequency of the system. As basis for an efficient system simulation and optimization, a new three-port multi-domain network model was developed. An extension qualifies the network for the simulation of the acoustical behavior inside the capsule. Network parameters are determined using finite element simulations. The dynamic behavior of the network model agrees with the finite element simulation results up to the first resonance of the system. The network model was verified by measurements on a laboratory setup, too. Furthermore, the network model could be simplified and was applied to determine the influence of various parameters on the stabilization performance of the plate transducer. The performance of the piezoelectric bending plate for position stabilization had been in addition investigated experimentally by measurements on a macroscopic capsule.

This contribution describes the properties and limitations of multi-layered mechanical devices with variable flexural stiffness. Such structures are supposed to be components of new smart, self-sensing and self-controlling composite materials for lightweight constructions. To enable a proper stiffness control, reliable actuators with high actuation capabilities based on smart materials are used. Those actuators are either driven by electroactive polymers (EAPs) or shape memory alloy (SMA) wires. They control the area moment of inertia of the multi-layered bending structures. To change the area moment of inertia and, hence, the flexural stiffness of an multi-layered beam within a wide range, it is necessary to stack as many layers as possible over each other. The fundamental function of this approach is demonstrated with a three-layer stack consisting of three independent layers and four form closure actuators driven by SMAs. This experimental set-up was able to change its bending stiffness k by a factor of 14.6, with a minimum and maximum stiffness of kmin = 0.11 N mm¯¹ and kmax = 1.73 N mm¯¹, respectively. The usage of four independently controllable actuators yields nine independent flexural-stiffness states of the beam. Both analytical and numerical calculations have shown good agreement with the measured stiffness values.

The ASME 2014 Conference on Smart Materials, Adaptive Structures and Intelligent Systems (SMASIS) was held from 8-10 September 2014 in Newport, Rhode Island. The scope of the Conference covers intelligent, flexible, adaptive materials and systems that respond to changes in the environment to perform in the most profitable way. Scientific strides and technological maturity in the field are linked to the interdisciplinary efforts at universities, government and industry. SMASIS aims at assembling world experts across engineering and scientific disciplines such as mechanical, aerospace, electrical, materials, and civil engineering, as well as biology, physics and chemistry, to discuss the latest findings and trends in this fruitful area of research.

A systematic development of a continuum model is presented, which is capable of describing the magneto-mechanical behavior of magnetic polymer gels commonly referred to as ‘‘ferrogels’’. In the present research, ferrogels are treated as multicomponent, multiphase materials. They consist of a polymer network (P), fixed magnetic particles (f), mobile magnetic particles (m), and liquid (L). By considering ferrogels as multicomponent materials, interaction among constituents of ferrogels can be captured. This helps in understanding the process occurring inside ferrogels under the influence of external stimuli, such as magnetic fields. In our modeling approach, the field equations of ferrogels are derived within the framework of the theory of mixtures. The basic equations include Maxwell’s equations, balance of mass, linear momentum, angular momentum, energy, and entropy. In the framework of the theory of mixtures, balance relations are first presented at the constituent level also referred to as partial balance relations. By summing partial balance relations over all constituents and imposing the restrictions of theory of mixtures, balance relations of mixture (for the ferrogel) are obtained. In the current work the specific magnetization (magnetization per density) is considered as an evolving variable. It is demonstrated that balance of angular momentum is satisfied using the evolution equation of specific magnetization and constitutive laws. In the process of modeling, a suitable free energy function is introduced and thermodynamically consistent constitutive laws are formulated. Introducing certain assumptions, a reduced model of the ferrogel, a coupled magneto-mechanical formulation, is subsequently presented. The reduced model consists only of a polymer network (P) and fixed magnetic particles (f). It is concluded that the reduced model compares well to the existing ones in the literature. The magneto-mechanical problem based on the reduced model is solved in 2D using the finite element method. The only unknowns for the finite element method implementation are mechanical displacement and magnetic potential. Deformation of a ferrogel in a magnetic field is subsequently investigated. Elongation and contraction of a ferrogel are observed when a magnetic field is applied in the x- and y-directions, respectively. The numerical results were compared with existing experimental work in the literature. A good qualitative agreement was found between numerical and experimental results.

The 2015 ASME Conference on Smart Materials, Adaptive Structures and Intelligent Systems (SMASIS) was held from 21 to 23 September 2015, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The scope of the conference covers intelligent, flexible, adaptive materials and systems that respond to changes in the environment to perform in the most profitable way. Scientific strides and technological maturity in the field are linked to the interdisciplinary efforts at universities, government and industry. SMASIS aims at assembling world experts across engineering and scientific disciplines such as mechanical, aerospace, electrical, materials, and civil engineering, as well as biology, physics and chemistry, to discuss the latest findings and trends in this fruitful area of research.

Tagungsbände des 1. und 2. Methodenworkshop der Querschnittsarbeitsgruppe 1 "Energetisch-wirtschaftliche Bilanzierung" des Spitzentechnologieclusters eniPROD / Proceedings of the 1st and the 2nd workshop of the cross-sectional group 1 'Energy-related technologic and economic evaluation' of the Cluster of Excellence eniPROD

3. Methodenband der Querschnittsarbeitsgruppe "Energetisch-wirtschaftliche Bilanzierung" des Spitzentechnologieclusters eniPROD / 3rd workbook of the cross-sectional group 'Energy-related technologic and economic evaluation' of the Cluster of Excellence eniPROD

Fügen und Montieren spielt seit jeher eine entscheidende Rolle in der Herstellung von Alltags- bis hin zu Hochtechnologieprodukten. Die Füge- und Montagetechnik ist an der Technischen Universität Chemnitz fast seit ihrer Gründung eine etablierte Wissenschaftsdisziplin. So wurde bereits 1922 an der damaligen staatlichen Gewerbeakademie als erste Hochschule Deutschlands das Fachgebiet Schweißtechnik in Lehre und Forschung eingerichtet. Mit der wissenschaftlichen Fachkonferenzreihe FüMoTeC will das Institut für Füge- und Montagetechnik (IFMT) der Technischen Universität Chemnitz seine laufenden Erkenntnisse in Wissenschaft und Forschung einem breiten Publikum zugänglich machen aber auch eine Plattform für Industrie und Wissenschaft zur Diskussion füge- und montagetechnischer Aspekte bieten. / Joining and Assembly has always played a crucial role in the production of everyday up to high-technology products. These research priorities are well-established scientific disciplines at the Technische Universität Chemnitz almost since its foundation. Already in 1922 at the former state “Gewerbeakademie” the field of welding technology was set up in teaching and research for the first time in Germany. With the scientific conference series FüMoTeC the institute for joining and assembly technology (IFMT) of the Technische Universität Chemnitz wants to present current findings in science and research to a broad audience as well as offering a platform for industry and academia for discussions.

Durch Funktionsintegration lassen sich im Automobilbau nicht nur die Anzahl der Bauteile, sondern auch Kosten und Gewicht reduzieren. Diese Methode wurde insbesondere für die Werkstoffe Blech und Kunststoff erforscht. Der Stand der Technik erlaubt es jedoch nicht, beide Werkstoffe mit ihren spezifischen Eigenschaften optimal zu kombinieren, um Bauteile mit integrierten Funktionen in großer Stückzahl herzustellen. In dieser Arbeit wurde ein sensorischer Werkstoffverbund behandelt, bestehend aus einer thermoplastischen Folie mit piezokeramischen Partikeln, einem Aluminiumblech und Kupferelektroden. Der Fokus lag auf den Prozessschritten des Fügens der thermoplastischen sensorischen Folie mit einem Aluminiumblech sowie der schädigungsfreien Weiterverarbeitung des sensorischen hybriden Laminats mittels Blechumformprozessen. Dabei wurde ein robuster kontinuierlicher Fügeprozess zwischen thermoplastischer Folie und Aluminiumblech realisiert und die mechanischen und technologischen Eigenschaften des sensorischen Hybridlaminats umfassend charakterisiert. Das sensorische Laminat wurde anschließend in einen Blechumformprozess überführt, um einen Funktionsdemonstrator herzustellen. Zusätzlich wurde ein Finite-Elemente-Modell zur Beschreibung des Umformverhaltens mit Fokus auf die Metall-Kunststoff-Grenzfläche entwickelt. Diese Methoden ermöglichten die Analyse und Optimierung des Prozesses. Abschließend wurde die Funktion des sensorischen Hybridlaminats als haptisches Eingabesystem und zur Zustandsüberwachung im Automobilbau demonstriert.:1 Einleitung 2 Stand der Technik 3 Motivation und Zielstellung 4 Konzipierung der Versuchsanlagen und Versuchsplanung 5 Prozesskette zur Herstellung ebener sensorischer hybrider Laminate 6 Ermittlung relevanter Kennwerte 7 Umformen von sensorischen Verbunden 8 Umformsimulation sensorischer hybrider Verbunde 9 Bestimmung der sensorischen Eigenschaften der umgeformten Verbunde 10 Zusammenfassung und Ausblick