V-LAB: A Virtual Laboratory for Structural Integrity Assissment of Composite Components

Investigation of failed composite components requires tress analysis to assess their structural integrity. Currently there exist no general-purpose software packages for composite structural analysis that are accessible to failure investigators who are not experts in these types of analysis. The proposed research and development effort will fill this void with a flexible user friendly, PC-based analysis tool for assessing the structural integrity of composite components. V-LAB is a general framework for implementing independent analysis methods which can be coupled for structural analysis of composite components. The underlying software framework will be based on emerging techniques in object-oriented programming, while the underlying mechanics will be based on state-of-the-art methods ranging from micromechanics-based material models to aerospace industry design and failure analysis codes. An intuitive, graphically-based interface will be developed to facilitate user interaction with V-LAB, supplemented by an on-line tutorial based on the stress Failure Analysis Logic Network. Air Force case studies will be used to demonstrate the V-LAB analysis system.