Issue 41 Unmanned Systems Technology December/January 2022 PteroDynamics X-P4 l Sense & avoid l 4Front Robotics Cricket l Autonomous transport l NWFC-1500 fuel cell l DroneX report l OceanScout I Composites I DSEI 2021 report

91 Composites | Focus Company, involves pressing many small pieces of carbon fibre together into a moulded shape as the resin cures, which is called a ‘forged composite’. The technique is said to enable a wider range of shapes to be formed with greater precision than conventional carbon fibre techniques. By pressing a high number and volume of fabric pieces together, it creates isotropic parts with a very high Vf and strength over typical carbon fibre parts. While the term ‘forged composite’ was trademarked in the automotive sector by Lamborghini in 2018, this technique (or variations on it) might yet pose an accessible and cost-effective route towards sustainable, high-quality composites for the aerospace and marine vehicle markets. It is also worth mentioning that since additively manufactured composites are made largely from thermoplastics, many 3D-printed parts can in fact be re-melted and the plastics reconstituted for use in injection moulding (which requires less material ‘purity’ and uniformity of shapes than the pellets in additive powders). Conclusion Unmanned vehicles are getting larger and larger, from high-altitude pseudo- satellite and heavy-freight UAVs to ‘mothership’ UUVs. With bigger hulls and carrying requirements appearing everywhere, new techniques from composite manufacturers for reducing material cost, waste and weight while enhancing strength and stability will inevitably be fundamental to the success of these new industries. Acknowledgements The author would like to thank Franco Cevolini at CRP Group, Harry Dodge at Norco Composites, Scott Kratzer at Composite Factory, Mike Dewhirst at Lentus Composites, Mike Graham at Real Carbon, and Cole Nielsen at Orbital Composites for their help with researching this article. Unmanned Systems Technology | December/January 2022 USA ACP Composites +1 925 443 5900 www.acpsales.com ACT Aerospace +1 435 528 7199 www.actaero.com Aeronix +1 321 984 1671 www.aeronix.com Applied Composites Engineering +1 317 243 4225 www.appliedcomposites.com A&S Composites Engineering +1 204 333 6773 www.ascomposites.ca Black Peak Engineering +1 970 825 5546 www.blackpeakengineering.com Carbon by Design +1 760 643 1300 www.carbonbydesign.com Composite Engineering +1 916 945 5739 www.compositeeng.com Composite Factory +1 704 696 1084 www.compositefactory.com Composites Universal Group +1 503 249 2097 www.compositesuniversal.com Crawford Composites +1 704 483 4175 www.crawfordcomposites.com CRP USA +1 704 660 0258 www.crp-usa.net Decavo +1 541 716 0100 www.decavo.com Delta Zee Solutions +1 520 347 3476 www.deltazee.com ECS Composites +1 541 476 8871 www.ecscomposites.com Flighthouse Engineering +1 503 249 2097 www.fhengineering.com Griffon Aerospace +1 256 258 0035 www.griffonaerospace.com Harwood Custom Composites +1 250 656 0392 www.harwoodcomposites.com Hexcel +1 203 969 0666 www.hexcel.com Orbital Composites +1 510 825 9555 www.orbitalcomposites.com Protech Composites +1 365 573 7800 www.protechcomposites.com Rapid Composites +1 941 322 6647 www.rapidcomposites.com Real Carbon +1 541 386 9292 www.realcarbon.com Rock West Composites +1 801 566 3402 www.rockwestcomposites.com Solid Concepts +1 661 295 4400 www.solidconcepts.com Specialized Composites +1 703 754 8648 www.specializedcomposites.com Swift Engineering +1 949 492 6608 www.swiftengineering.com