DPS COMPOSITE SKI BOOT

Ski boots are notoriously uncomfortable and restrictive. Besides small improvements, boot designs have remained relatively unchanged for the past decade. A local Salt Lake ski company contracted me to manufacture and lab test composite prototypes while I was working for the University of Utah Composites Laboratory. Their goal was to shed weight while maintaining stiffness. 

 

Industry has relied on injection molding of thermoplastic polymers to create complex, closed-contour geometries. These processes cannot be adapted for composite construction using matrix-reinforced fibers. I was responsible for developing manufacturing techniques and layup schedules to produce a series of prototypes. Early on, I 3D printed molds for wet-layup processes. As the project progressed, I implemented  internal bladder molding techniques to produce cleaner, prepreg components. 

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I conducted non-destructive testing using Digital Image Correlation (DIC) to identify stress concentrations. DIC analysis is a video mapping technique in which a speckled part is loaded and the changing distance between the speckles is tracked in 3D to determine the resulting strain. I used this data to modify layup schedules and improve the structural integrity of additional parts.