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With the rapid development of UAV technology, the application of composite materials in the manufacture of UAV components is becoming more and more widespread. With their lightweight, high-strength and corrosion-resistant properties, composite materials provide higher performance and longer service life for UAVs. However, the processing of composite materials is relatively complex and requires fine process control and efficient production technology. In this paper, the efficient machining process of composite parts for UAVs will be discussed in depth.

Processing characteristics of UAV composite parts
The machining process of UAV composite parts needs to take into account the characteristics of the material, the structure of the parts, as well as factors such as production efficiency and cost. Composite materials have high strength, high modulus, good fatigue resistance and corrosion resistance, but they are also characterized by easy moisture absorption, low thermal conductivity, and high processing difficulty. Therefore, it is necessary to strictly control the process parameters during the machining process to ensure the dimensional accuracy, surface quality and internal quality of the parts.

Exploration of efficient machining process
Hot press can molding process
Hot press tank molding is one of the commonly used processes in the manufacture of composite parts for UAVs. The process is carried out by sealing the composite blank with a vacuum bag on the mold, placing it in a hot press tank, and heating and pressurizing the composite material with high-temperature compressed gas for curing and molding in a vacuum (or non-vacuum) state. The advantages of the hot press tank molding process are uniform pressure in the tank, low component porosity, uniform resin content, and the mold is relatively simple, high efficiency, suitable for large area complex surface skin, wall plate and shell molding.

HP-RTM Process
HP-RTM (High Pressure Resin Transfer Molding) process is an optimized upgrade of the RTM process, which has the advantages of low cost, short cycle time, high volume and high quality production. The process uses high-pressure pressure to mix the resin counterparts and inject them into vacuum-sealed molds pre-laid with fiber reinforcement and pre-positioned inserts, and obtains composite products through resin flow mold filling, impregnation, curing and demolding.The HP-RTM process can produce small and complex structural parts with smaller dimensional tolerances and better surface finishes, and achieve consistency of composite parts.

Non-hot press molding technology
Non-hot-press molding technology is a low-cost composite molding technology in aerospace parts, and the main difference with hot-press molding process is that the material is molded without applying external pressure. This process offers significant advantages in terms of cost reduction, oversized parts, etc., while ensuring uniform resin distribution and curing at lower pressures and temperatures. In addition, molding tooling requirements are greatly reduced compared to hot pot molding tooling, making it easier to control the quality of the product. The non-hot-press molding process is often suitable for composite part repair.

Molding process
Molding process is to put a certain amount of prepreg into the metal mold cavity of the mold, the use of presses with a heat source to produce a certain temperature and pressure, so that the prepreg in the mold cavity by heat softening, pressure flow, full of mold cavity and curing molding a process method. The advantages of the molding process are high production efficiency, accurate product size, surface finish, especially for the complex structure of the composite material products can generally be molded once, will not damage the composite material products performance.

3D Printing Technology
3D printing technology can rapidly process and manufacture precision parts with complex shapes, and can realize personalized production without molds. In the production of composite parts for UAVs, 3D printing technology can be used to create integrated parts with complex structures, reducing assembly costs and time. the main advantage of 3D printing technology is that it can break through the technical barriers of traditional molding methods to prepare one-piece complex parts, improve material utilization and reduce manufacturing costs.

In the future, with the continuous progress and innovation of technology, we can expect more optimized production processes to be widely used in UAV manufacturing. At the same time, it is also necessary to strengthen the basic research and application development of composite materials to promote the continuous development and innovation of UAV composite parts processing technology.