CompoTech’s Compolift technology uses automated filament winding technology to produce high strength and rigid retractable masts for mobile surveillance vehicles, boats, etc. #app
        Comolift’s carbon fiber/epoxy telescoping mast extends up to 7 meters (23 feet), adding strength and rigidity to mount surveillance equipment on mobile border guard vehicles. Photo credit, all images: CompoTech
        CompoTech (Susice, Czech Republic) was founded in 1995 to provide composite winding solutions from concept design and analysis to production. The company uses or licenses its patented automated filament winding process to create cylindrical or rectangular carbon fiber/epoxy resin components for aerospace, automotive, hydrogen, sports and recreation, marine and other industries. In recent years, the company has expanded into new processes and applications, including robotic filament placement, a continuous fiber connection solution called Integrated Loop Technology (ILT), and innovative tool and material concepts.
        One area of ​​technology that the company has been working on for several years is telescopic masts, poles made up of hollow tubular sections that slide against each other, allowing the entire structure to expand. In 2020, Compolift was established as an independent company specialized in the production of these telescopic masts for various industries.
        Humphrey Carter, director of business development at CompoTech, explained that Compolift’s technology came from several scaling projects that CompoTech has completed in the past. For example, the company worked with a team from the University of West Bohemia (Pilsen, Czech Republic) to build a research demonstrator for an industrial crane’s telescopic boom. In addition, telescoping masts are part of several offshore projects, such as the proof-of-concept (POC) mast designed to carry an inflatable wing that can extend from 4.5 meters (14.7 ft) to 21 meters (69 ft) with winches. system. As part of the WISAMO project to develop wind sails as an auxiliary source of clean energy for cargo ships, a smaller version of the mast has been developed for testing on a demonstration yacht.
        Carter noted that telescoping masts for mobile monitoring devices became a key application for this technology and eventually led to the spin-off of Comolift as a separate company. For many years, CompoTech has been manufacturing solid antenna masts and filament masts for mounting radars and similar equipment. Telescoping technology allows the mast to be extended for easy installation or removal.
        More recently, the Compolift telescopic mast concept has been used to develop a series of 11 masts for the Czech Republic Border Police, mounted on mobile police vehicles to carry visual/sound surveillance and radio communication equipment. The mast reaches a maximum height of 7 m (23 ft) and provides a stable and rigid work platform for 16 kg (35 lb) equipment.
        CompoTech designed the mast itself as well as the winch mechanism used to raise and lower the mast. The mast consists of five hollow interconnected tubes with a combined weight of only 17 kg (38 lb), 65% lighter than alternative aluminum structures. The whole system is extended and retracted by a 24VDC/750W electric motor, gearbox and winch, and the power and feed cables are helically wound on the outside of the telescopic mast. The total weight of the system, including the drive system and accessories, is 64 kg (141 lb).
        Individual composite mast sections were wound in carbon fiber and a two-component epoxy system using a CompoTech automated robotic filament winding machine. The patented CompoTech system is designed to accurately place continuous axial fibers along the length of the mandrel, resulting in a rigid, high strength end piece. Each tube is filament wound at room temperature and then cured in an oven.
        The company claims customer testing has shown that its filament winding technology produces parts that are 10-15% stiffer and have 50% greater bending strength than the same parts made using other filament winding machines. This, Carter explained, has to do with the technology’s ability to wind at zero tension. These features give the fully assembled mast the stability needed for surveillance equipment with little to no twisting or bending.
       As biomimetic design continues to be used in the production of composites, techniques such as 3D printing, custom fiber placement, weaving, and filament winding are proving to be strong candidates for bringing these structures to life.
        In this digital presentation, Scott Waterman, Director of Global Sales at AXEL Plastics (Monroe, Conn., USA), talks about the unique differences in filament winding and winding that affect the choice and use of release agents. (sponsor)
       Swedish company CorPower Ocean has developed a prototype 9m filament-wound fiberglass buoy for efficient and reliable wave energy production and rapid on-site fabrication.