U.S. patent application number 11/341130 was filed with the patent office on 2006-06-08 for self-closing protection sheath and method of fabrication.
Invention is credited to Hubert Andrieu, Lucia Della Putta, Benoit Laurent, Patrick Thomas.
Application Number | 20060118193 11/341130 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 28459797 |
Filed Date | 2006-06-08 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060118193 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Laurent; Benoit ; et
al. |
June 8, 2006 |
Self-closing protection sheath and method of fabrication
Abstract
The invention provides a self-closing thermal protection sheath.
The sheath is formed as a woven structure. The woven structure
includes first strips of a monofilament as the weft filament
interwoven with second strips different than said first strips as
the warp filaments.
Inventors: |
Laurent; Benoit; (Crepy En
Valois, FR) ; Andrieu; Hubert; (Crepy En Valois,
FR) ; Della Putta; Lucia; (Compiegne, FR) ;
Thomas; Patrick; (Crepy En Valois, FR) |
Correspondence
Address: |
DICKINSON WRIGHT PLLC
38525 WOODWARD AVENUE
SUITE 2000
BLOOMFIELD HILLS
MI
48304-2970
US
|
Family ID: |
28459797 |
Appl. No.: |
11/341130 |
Filed: |
January 27, 2006 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
10408091 |
Apr 8, 2003 |
7013929 |
|
|
11341130 |
Jan 27, 2006 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
138/123 ;
138/110; 138/128; 138/169 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F16L 59/021 20130101;
D03D 1/0043 20210501; F16L 59/08 20130101; D03D 1/0035
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
138/123 ;
138/110; 138/128; 138/169 |
International
Class: |
F16L 11/00 20060101
F16L011/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Apr 12, 2002 |
FR |
0204620 |
Claims
1. A self-closing thermal protection sheath comprising a woven
structure having a monofilament as the weft filament interwoven
with strips different than said monofilament as the warp
filaments.
2. The self-closing sheath according to claim 1 wherein said strips
are further defined as a polyester film and wherein said
monofilament is a polyester filament.
3. The self-closing sheath according to claim 2 wherein said strips
are from 2 mm to 5 mm wide and wherein said monofilament has a
diameter from 0.1 mm to 0.5 mm.
4. The self-closing sheath according to claim 2 wherein said woven
structure overlaps an angle from 45.degree. to 180.degree..
5. The self-closing sheath according to claim 1 further comprising:
at least one selvage filament parallel to said strips and extending
along a longitudinal edge of said woven structure.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims is a continuation application of
application Ser. No. 10/408,091 for a SELF-CLOSING THERMAL
PROTECTION SHEATH AND ITS METHOD OF FABRICATION, filed on Apr. 8,
2003, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its
entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a self-closing thermal
protection sheath. It also relates to a method of fabricating a
self-closing protection sheath. Generally speaking, the present
invention relates to self-closing sheaths used in automobile
vehicles to provide mechanical protection for wiring harnesses or
fluid pipes in the vehicle.
[0004] 2. Related Art
[0005] Sheaths that self-close around wiring harnesses or pipes to
provide mechanical and thermal protection thereof, for example, are
known in the art. Thus wiring can be protected from infrared
radiation by sheaths having a reflective structure. In particular,
woven sheaths in the form of a flat tape to which an aluminized
layer is then fixed are known in the art. The sheath is then closed
around a wiring harness and held in place by VELCRO.TM. and/or
adhesives. Glass fiber and/or polyester woven tapes that are
thermoformed to a tubular shape are also known in the art. An
aluminized foil can be provided on the external surface of the
self-closing tubular sheath. Thus the sheath can be fitted and
automatically closed around a wiring harness. Closure adhesives
then keep it closed, especially at bends, where the self-closing
sheath tends to open.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The invention provides a self-closing thermal protection
sheath. The sheath is formed as a woven structure. The woven
structure includes first strips of a monofilament as the weft
filament interwoven with second strips different than said first
strips as the warp filaments.
[0007] An object of the present invention is to propose an improved
self-closing protection sheath. To this end, it provides a
self-closing sheath, that includes an interleaved structure
comprising firstly strips of a monofilament and secondly strips
different than the first strips. According to a preferred feature
of the invention, the sheath has a woven structure comprising a
monofilament as the weft filament and different strips as warp
filaments. This structure can be produced by a conventional loom,
the monofilament conferring stiffness on the flexible sheath. Thus
the strips can be obtained by cutting them out from a polyester
film. According to another aspect of the invention, a method of
fabricating the above kind of self-closing sheath includes the
following steps: producing an interleaved structure in the form of
a flat tape comprising firstly strips of a monofilament and
secondly strips different than the first strips, and thermoforming
said flat tape into a tubular self-closing sheath. The interleaved
structure can therefore be made flat and then thermoformed into a
split tubular sheath so that it can be fitted around elongate
members simply by spreading apart the edges of the sheath and then
closing the sheath up around the members concerned. Other features
and advantages of the invention will become more apparent in the
course of the following description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] In the appended drawings, which are provided by way of
nonlimiting example only:
[0009] FIG. 1 is a view of a portion of a sheath according to the
invention before thermoforming, and
[0010] FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view of a self-closing
sheath according to the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0011] One embodiment of a self-closing thermal protection sheath
according to the invention is described first with reference to
FIGS. 1 and 2. The thermal protection sheath has an interleaved
structure comprising a monofilament 10 and strips of metallized
foil 11. The interleaved structure is woven in the conventional way
with a weft thread and warp threads. Of course, other interleaved
structures could be used, in particular a knitted or braided
structure, and possibly produced directly in a tubular form.
[0012] The weft filament of the woven structure is a monofilament.
The monofilament can be a polyester filament with a diameter from
0.1 mm to 0.5 mm. This kind of polyester monofilament can withstand
high temperatures, of the order of 150.degree. C., and impart some
strength to the self-closing sheath.
[0013] The warp filaments of the woven structure are different than
the weft filamenets. In the exemplary embodiment of the invention,
the warp strips of metallized foil. The metallized foil strips are
preferably strips of polyester film aluminized on both sides. Thus
aluminized polyester films available off the shelf can be cut into
strips. The strips can be formed into a spool ready for subsequent
use on a loom. It will be noted that it is beneficial if the
aluminized foil does not incorporate any varnish that could absorb
some of the infrared radiation and thereby reduce the reflective
power of the thermal protection sheath.
[0014] The strips of metallized foil are preferably from 2 mm to 5
mm wide. Generally speaking, the strips could be from 1 mm to 15 mm
wide. The Applicant has fabricated sheaths with strips 3 mm wide,
producing an entirely satisfactory woven structure. The woven tape
further includes a selvage filament 14 parallel to the strips 11 of
metallized foil. The selvage filament is woven with the strips and
therefore extends along a longitudinal edge of the sheath. The
selvage filament limits fraying of the sheath. It may be beneficial
to use a colored filament as the selvage filament, firstly so that
its presence can easily be detected (its absence constitutes a
defect) and secondly so that the "bound" edge of the fabric can
easily be identified.
[0015] As shown clearly in FIG. 2, the self-closing sheath thus
assumes a tubular shape having an overlapping portion S subtending
an angle from 45 degrees to 180 degrees. In this example the
overlapping portion subtends an angle of substantially 180 degrees.
This relatively wide overlapping portion means that the thermal
protection sheath can be fitted to wiring harnesses and pipes with
different diameters with guaranteed closure of the sheath by
overlapping of the edges.
[0016] Thus a reflective structure is obtained from the strips of
aluminized foil, requiring no addition of an attached aluminum
foil. This one-piece structure yields a flexible sheath that can be
fitted to wiring harnesses and pipes of diverse shapes.
[0017] A method of fabricating the above kind of self-closing
sheath is described next. In practice, an interleaved structure is
produced first, for example a woven structure, in the form of a
flat tape 12 as shown in FIG. 1, for example. Thus a conventional
loom can be used to weave a flat tape from a monofilament and
strips of metallized foil. The flat tape is then thermoformed into
a self-closing tubular sheath 13 shown in FIG. 2. The step of
weaving the flat tape uses as the weft filament a monofilament, for
example a polyester monofilament, and as warp filaments strips of
metallized foil made from an aluminized polyester film.
[0018] The thermoforming step preferably includes the following
substep: cold forming the flat tape into a tubular shape, with an
overlapping area subtending an angle of less than or equal to 180
degrees. Thus the tape can be cold-formed around a former of
appropriate shape so that an overlapping area is produced. The
thermoforming step also preferably includes the following substep:
heating the cold-formed tubular shape. The heating temperature is
between the temperature at which the polyester softens and the
temperature at which it melts. This heating step is of relatively
short duration, generally one minute or less. The thermoforming
step also preferably includes the following substep: cooling the
thermoformed sheath. The heated sheath is then cooled rapidly,
generally by contact with the surrounding air. Thanks to the
softening and cooling of the polyester filament, the sheath treated
as above remains closed, with an overlapping portion.
[0019] Of course, many modifications can be made to the embodiment
described above without departing from the scope of the invention.
In particular, the self-closing thermal protection sheath could be
produced by a different fabrication method, for example with a
braided or knitted structure. The interleaved structure could be
produced directly in a tubular form, requiring no thermoforming of
the resulting tape. Furthermore, the woven structure could include
a selvage filament on each longitudinal edge of the sheath.
Finally, the interleaved structure could include two layers, namely
a first layer comprising the strips of metallized foil interleaved
with a monofilament, adapted to reflect infrared radiation, and a
second layer, for example a layer of glass fibers, adapted to
insulate the wiring or pipes from heat transmitted by convection or
conduction. The interleaved structure could be obtained by a
double-sided weaving method, the side with the glass fibers
constituting the interior face of the tubular sheath.
[0020] Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present
invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is,
therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended
claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as
specifically described.
* * * * *