SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ADDITIVELY MANUFACTURING FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS INTO EXISTING COMPONENTS

1 . A head for an additive manufacturing system, comprising:

a liquid matrix reservoir;

a nozzle fluidly connected to the liquid matrix reservoir and configured to discharge a composite material into at least one of a groove, a crack, and a recess in an existing component; and

a guide operatively connected to the nozzle and having detection hardware configured to detect a location of the at least one of the groove, the crack, and the recess.

2 . The head of claim 1 , wherein the guide physically engages a wall of the at least one of the groove, the crack, and the recess and generates a signal indicative of a spatial relationship between the nozzle and the at least one of the groove, the crack, and the recess.

3 . The head of claim 2 , wherein:

the guide is located at one side of the nozzle relative to a travel direction of the nozzle; and

the head further includes a scanner located at a side of the nozzle opposite the guide.

4 . The head of claim 1 , wherein the guide is a scanner configured to generate a signal indicative of a spatial relationship between the nozzle and the at least one of the groove, the crack, and the recess.

5 . The head of claim 1 , further including at least one of a shoe and a compaction wheel located at a trailing side of the nozzle.

6 . The head of claim 1 , further including a cutting mechanism configured to form the at least one of the groove, the crack, and the recess in the existing component.

7 . The head of claim 6 , wherein the cutting mechanism is configured to cut away material from the existing component to form the at least one of the groove, the crack, and the recess.

8 . The head of claim 6 , wherein the cutting mechanism is configured to split the existing component to form the at least one of the groove, the crack, and the recess.

9 . The head of claim 8 , wherein the cutting mechanism is an integral portion of the nozzle.

10 . The head of claim 1 , further including a cure enhancer configured to expose composite material discharging from the nozzle to a cure energy.

11 . The head of claim 1 , wherein the nozzle is a multi-channel nozzle.

12 . The head of claim 11 , wherein the nozzle includes:

a first channel fluidly connected to the liquid matrix reservoir; and

a second channel fluidly isolated from the liquid matrix reservoir, the second channel being non-intersecting with the first channel.

13 . The head of claim 11 , wherein:

the first channel is configured to discharge a fiber wetted with a liquid matrix from the liquid matrix reservoir; and

the second channel is configured to discharge at least one of a wire and an optical fiber into a bed of the wetted fiber.

14 . The head of claim 13 , further including a third channel located at a side of the second channel opposite the first channel and configured to discharge a thermoplastic matrix over the at least one of the wire and optical fiber.

15 . The head of claim 14 , further including a heater associated with the third channel.

16 . The head of claim 15 , wherein an amount of heat from the heater sufficient to initiate a reaction in the liquid matrix is conducted through the nozzle to the first channel.

17 . The head of claim 14 , further including a fourth channel located between the first and second channels, wherein:

the second channel is configured to discharge at least one of a wire and an optical fiber having a first size; and

the fourth channel is configured to discharge at least one of a wire and an optical fiber having a second size.

18 . The head of claim 17 , further including a cutter located to sever the at least one of the wire and the optical fiber discharging from both of the second and fourth channels.

19 . The head of claim 1 , further including at least one of a shoe and a compaction wheel at a trailing side of the nozzle.

20 - 30 . (canceled)