阅读说明：本技术 具有热收缩纱线的防护编织套筒及其构造方法 (Protective woven sleeve with heat shrinkable yarn and method of construction thereof ) 是由 福山正藏 于 2020-01-23 设计创作，主要内容包括：提供一种防护织物套筒(10)及其构造方法。所述套筒(10)包括无缝的管状编织壁(12),其具有多根相互编织的纱线(20,22)。所述纱线(20,22)中的一些纱线为耐高温的非热收缩纱线(20),并且所述纱线(20,22)中的一些纱线为热收缩纱线(22),其中所述热收缩纱线(22)在不会导致所述耐高温的非热收缩纱线(20)收缩的温度下收缩。所述套筒(10)在被编织时具有第一长度(L1)和第一厚度(t1),并且在被暴露于单个热处理过程时具有小于所述第一长度(L1)的第二长度(L2)和大于所述第一厚度(t1)的第二厚度(t2)。(A protective textile sleeve (10) and method of construction thereof is provided. The sleeve (10) includes a seamless tubular knit wall (12) having a plurality of yarns (20, 22) knit with one another. Some of the yarns (20, 22) are high temperature resistant non-heat shrinkable yarns (20) and some of the yarns (20, 22) are heat shrinkable yarns (22), wherein the heat shrinkable yarns (22) shrink at a temperature that does not cause the high temperature resistant non-heat shrinkable yarns (20) to shrink. The sleeve (10) has a first length (L1) and a first thickness (t1) when braided, and a second length (L2) less than the first length (L1) and a second thickness (t2) greater than the first thickness (t1) when exposed to a single heat treatment process.)

1. A protective braided sleeve comprising: a seamless, circumferentially continuous, flexible tubular wall extending longitudinally along a central longitudinal axis between opposite ends, said wall comprising a plurality of yarns interwoven with one another in a first non-heat treated state, a first plurality of said plurality of yarns being substantially non-heat shrinkable yarns, a second plurality of said plurality of yarns being heat shrinkable yarns that shrink longitudinally at a temperature that does not cause substantial shrinkage of said non-heat shrinkable yarns and cause said substantially non-heat shrinkable yarns to buckle axially in a second heat treated state.

2. The protective braided sleeve of claim 1, wherein said wall has a first thickness in said first non-heat treated state and a second thickness in said second heat treated state, said second thickness being approximately 25% -90% thicker than said first thickness.

3. The protective braided sleeve of claim 2, said second thickness being approximately 50% -90% thicker than said first thickness.

4. The protective braided sleeve of claim 2, said second thickness being approximately 70% -90% thicker than said first thickness.

5. The protective braided sleeve of claim 2, wherein said wall has a first abrasion resistance in said first non-heat treated state and a second abrasion resistance in said second heat treated state, said second abrasion resistance being greater than said first abrasion resistance.

6. The protective braided sleeve of claim 2, wherein said wall has a first end wear resistance in said first non-heat treated state and a second end wear resistance in said second heat treated state, said second end wear resistance being greater than said first end wear resistance.

7. The protective braided sleeve of claim 2, wherein said wall has a first heat resistance in said first non-heat treated state and a second heat resistance in said second heat treated state, said second heat resistance being greater than said first heat resistance.

8. The protective braided sleeve of claim 2, wherein said wall has a first density in said first non-heat treated state and a second density in said second heat treated state, said second density being greater than said first density.

9. The protective braided sleeve of claim 1, wherein said non-heat-shrinkable yarns and said heat-shrinkable yarns are braided with one another in an equal end count manner, said non-heat-shrinkable yarns and said heat-shrinkable yarns being braided with one another in a 1:1 braiding manner and being interwoven with one another in opposite S and Z helical directions.

10. The protective braided sleeve of claim 1 wherein said non-heat shrinkable yarns are multifilament yarns and said heat shrinkable yarns are monofilament yarns.

11. A protective braided sleeve comprising: a seamless and circumferentially continuous flexible tube wall extending longitudinally along a central longitudinal axis between opposite ends, the wall comprising a first plurality of yarns braided with a second plurality of yarns, the first and second pluralities of yarns each having a different heat shrinkage ratio, the wall having a first thickness prior to being exposed to a predetermined temperature and a second thickness after being exposed to the predetermined temperature, the second thickness being approximately 25% -90% thicker than the first thickness.

12. The protective braided sleeve of claim 11, wherein said wall has a first length prior to being exposed to said predetermined temperature and a second length after being exposed to said predetermined temperature, said second length being less than said first length.

13. The protective braided sleeve of claim 12, wherein said second length is at least 10% less than said first length.

14. The protective braided sleeve of claim 13, wherein said first plurality of yarns longitudinally shrink by at least 10% of the braid length and said second plurality of yarns longitudinally shrink by less than 2% of the braid length when said wall is exposed to said predetermined temperature.

15. The protective braided sleeve of claim 14, wherein said first plurality of yarns are monofilaments and said second plurality of yarns are multifilaments.

16. A method of constructing a protective textile sleeve, comprising: knitting a plurality of first yarns with a plurality of second yarns to form a seamless tube wall extending longitudinally along a central longitudinal axis, the seamless tube wall formed having a first thickness; and

exposing the woven wall to a predetermined temperature, causing the first yarns to longitudinally contract, and causing the second yarns to axially crimp under the force exerted by the first yarns to expand the seamless tube wall to a second thickness greater than the first thickness.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising increasing the first thickness by about 25% -90% to the second thickness.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising increasing the first thickness by about 50-90% to the second thickness.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising increasing the first thickness by about 70% -90% to the second thickness.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising shrinking the first yarns longitudinally by at least 10% and shrinking the second yarns longitudinally by less than 2% while exposing the woven wall to the predetermined temperature.

Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to textile sleeves, and more particularly to a woven textile sleeve and method of construction thereof.

Background

It is well known to protect elongate members that are temperature sensitive, such as by means of wires and temperature sensitive sensors connected to the wires by heat resistant tubular members (e.g. solid polymer or metal tubes). While conduits are known to provide high temperature protection for wires extending within the conduit, such conduits are typically stiff and inflexible and, therefore, are limited in their ability to be routed along a curved path. Some attempts have been made to provide more flexible tubular members, such as by braiding; however, the heat resistance of such braided tubular members (also referred to as sleeves or sheaths) is typically limited to temperatures below about 280 degrees fahrenheit. Furthermore, the abrasion resistance of the braided sleeve is generally low, and therefore, the sleeve may be worn over time, resulting in damage to the wires within the sleeve.

Accordingly, there is a need for a protective sleeve that provides high temperature (e.g., temperatures above 280 degrees fahrenheit) protection to elongate members extending therethrough, and that is flexible, wear resistant, and abrasion resistant.

Disclosure of Invention

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a protective textile sleeve includes a seamless, circumferentially continuous braided tube wall extending longitudinally along a central longitudinal axis between opposite ends. The wall includes a plurality of yarns interwoven with one another, some of the yarns being high temperature resistant non-heat shrinkable yarns and some of the yarns being heat shrinkable yarns. The heat-shrinkable yarn may shrink at a temperature that does not cause the high temperature resistant non-heat-shrinkable yarn to shrink, or at least does not cause the high temperature resistant non-heat-shrinkable yarn to substantially shrink. Thus, by way of example and not limitation, the heat-shrinkable yarn may shrink longitudinally more than 10% of its original length, such as within a range of about 10% -90% or more of its original length, while the non-heat-shrinkable yarn may shrink by about 2% or less than about 2% of its original length when the sleeve is exposed to a heat-shrinking, heat-treating process.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the heat-shrinkable yarns and the non-heat-shrinkable yarns are interwoven such that when the heat-shrinkable yarns shrink, the non-heat-shrinkable yarns are caused to axially compress, also known as axially concentrate, axially warp, or axially buckle, thereby increasing the thickness of the woven wall of the sleeve by about 25% -90% relative to its thickness prior to heat-shrinking of the heat-shrinkable yarns, the increased wall thickness providing better abrasion resistance and greater abrasion resistance, better stain resistance, better thermal insulation, and a better level of thermal protection against high temperature thermal conditions.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, upon heat-shrinking the heat-shrinkable yarns, the non-heat-shrinkable yarns are axially compressed and crimped between the heat-shrinkable yarns, thereby increasing the density of the wall, and thus improving wear resistance, increasing thermal insulation, improving the level of thermal protection against high temperature heat conditions, improving contamination resistance, and improving wear resistance of the yarns and end wear resistance of the sleeve when the sleeve wall is cut to length in use.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the non-heat shrinkable yarns and the heat shrinkable yarns may be provided in equal numbers of end portions that are woven with one another, thereby providing a uniform appearance and a consistent level of protection for the entire sleeve.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the non-heat shrinkable yarn and the heat shrinkable yarn, which are interwoven with each other in opposite S and Z spiral directions, may be respectively woven in a 1:1 weaving manner.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the non-heat shrinkable yarns may be provided as monofilaments and/or multifilaments, as desired, to provide the sleeve with a desired type of abrasion resistance protection, coverage, and flexibility.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the non-heat shrinkable yarn may be provided as an aramid multifilament yarn to improve the resistance of the sleeve to degradation when exposed to high temperatures (e.g., over 280 degrees fahrenheit).

According to another aspect of the invention, the heat shrinkable yarn may be provided as a Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) monofilament.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a protective braided sleeve includes a seamless, circumferentially continuous, flexible tubular wall extending longitudinally along a central longitudinal axis between opposite ends, the tubular wall including a plurality of first yarns braided with a plurality of second yarns, wherein the plurality of first yarns and the plurality of second yarns each have a different heat shrinkage rate. The wall has a first thickness before being exposed to a predetermined temperature and a second thickness after being exposed to the predetermined temperature, the second thickness being approximately 25% -90% thicker than the first thickness, thereby increasing the wear resistance, stain resistance, and heat resistance of the tube wall.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the wall has a first length before being exposed to the predetermined temperature and a second length after being exposed to the predetermined temperature, the second length being less than the first length, thereby contributing to an improvement in wear resistance, stain resistance, and heat resistance of the wall.

According to another aspect of the disclosure, the second length is at least 10% shorter than the first length.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the plurality of first yarns longitudinally contract at least 10% of the woven length and the plurality of second yarns longitudinally contract less than 2% of the woven length when the wall is exposed to the predetermined temperature, thereby contributing to an increase in thickness of the wall when the wall is exposed to the predetermined temperature, thereby improving wear resistance, stain resistance, and heat resistance of the wall.

According to another aspect of the invention, the first plurality of yarns may be provided as monofilaments and the second plurality of yarns may be provided as multifilaments.

According to another aspect of the invention, the wall may be woven to include only the first plurality of yarns and the second plurality of yarns.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, a method of constructing a protective fabric sleeve includes weaving a plurality of non-activated, non-heat shrinkable yarns and a plurality of activatable, heat shrinkable yarns together to form a seamless tubular wall extending longitudinally along a central longitudinal axis, the formed woven wall being in a first non-heat treated state. Further, heat treating the woven wall to bring the woven wall into a second heat treated state and activate and longitudinally shrink the activatable heat shrinkable yarns without substantially longitudinally shrinking the non-activated non-heat shrinkable yarns, and crimping the non-activated non-heat shrinkable yarns and imparting a serpentine bend to the shrunk yarns along their lengths.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the method may further include weaving the non-heat shrinkable yarn and the heat shrinkable yarn with each other in a 1:1 weave such that the sleeve has a substantially uniform content and distribution of the non-heat shrinkable yarn and the heat shrinkable yarn.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the method may further include increasing a first thickness of the woven wall in a first non-heat treated state to a second thickness of the woven wall in a second heat treated state, for example, the second thickness being 25% thicker than the first thickness, preferably the second thickness being 50% thicker than the first thickness, more preferably the second thickness being 75% thicker than the first thickness, thereby increasing the wear resistance and thermal insulation of the wall, thereby providing better resistance to contamination and better thermal protection of the elongate member surrounded by the wall under high temperature external ambient thermal conditions (such as greater than 280 degrees fahrenheit).

According to another aspect of the disclosure, the method may further comprise increasing the first density of the woven wall in the first non-heat treated state to its second density in the second heat treated state such that the second density is substantially greater than the first density, for example, the second density is 25% greater than the first density, preferably the second density is 50% greater than the first density, and more preferably the second density is 75% greater than the first density, thereby substantially increasing the wear and thermal insulation of the wall, providing the elongated member surrounded by the wall with better thermal protection and contamination resistance under high external ambient thermal conditions, and further increasing the wear resistance of the wall when cut and used.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, a method of constructing a protective textile sleeve may include weaving a first plurality of yarns with a second plurality of yarns to form a seamless tubular wall extending longitudinally along a central longitudinal axis, the seamless tubular wall formed having a first thickness. Further, exposing the woven wall to a predetermined temperature and causing the first yarns to longitudinally contract and the second yarns to axially crimp under the force exerted by the contracted first yarns, thereby expanding the seamless tube wall to a second thickness greater than the first thickness.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the method may further include increasing the first thickness by about 25% -90% to the second thickness upon exposing the woven wall to a predetermined temperature.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the method may further include increasing the first thickness by about 50% -90% to the second thickness upon exposing the woven wall to a predetermined temperature.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the method may further include increasing the first thickness by about 70% -90% to the second thickness upon exposing the woven wall to a predetermined temperature.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the method may further include longitudinally shrinking the first yarns by at least 10% and longitudinally shrinking the second yarns by less than 2% when exposing the woven wall to a predetermined temperature, such that the first yarns exert an axially-oriented force on the second yarns and axially corrugate the second yarns to increase a thickness of the woven wall.

Brief description of the drawings

These and other aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more readily appreciated when considered in connection with the following detailed description of the presently preferred embodiments and best mode, appended claims and accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a tubular braided sleeve constructed in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, shown in a first, non-activated, initially braided, and non-heat treated state, and having an elongate member disposed in a cavity thereof for protection;

FIG. 1A is a view similar to FIG. 1, wherein the tubular braided sleeve is shown in a second, activatable, heat-treated state;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary schematic view of the wall of the tubular braided sleeve of FIG. 1 shown in an initially braided, non-heat treated, non-activatable first state;

FIG. 2A is an enlarged fragmentary schematic view of the wall of the tubular braided sleeve of FIG. 1A shown in an activatable, heat-treated second state;

FIG. 3 is a side view of non-heat shrinkable high temperature yarns being knit in the wall of the tubular knit sleeve showing the high temperature resistant non-heat shrinkable yarns prior to heat treating the tubular knit sleeve; and

fig. 3A is a view similar to fig. 3 showing the non-heat shrinkable yarn after heat treating the tubular knit sleeve.

Detailed Description

Referring in more detail to the drawings, FIGS. 1-2A illustrate a tubular braided protective textile sleeve, hereinafter sleeve 10, constructed according to one aspect of the present invention. The sleeve 10, which is woven in a single continuous weaving process, has a woven, circumferentially continuous seamless tubular wall 12, the wall 12 enclosing a through passage, also referred to as a cavity 13, extending longitudinally along a central longitudinal axis 14 between opposed open ends 16, 18, wherein the cavity 13 receives an elongate member 15 to be protected, such as a wire harness, conduit, duct, or the like. The wall 12 is a woven wall that includes a plurality of ends of yarns woven with one another (the ends being yarns, either monofilaments or multifilaments as understood in the art), wherein the plurality of yarns are high temperature resistant non-heat shrinkable yarns 20 (as shown in fig. 3 and 3A; high temperature means that the yarns are capable of withstanding temperatures in excess of 280 degrees fahrenheit without changing their material properties or length), and the plurality of yarns are heat shrinkable yarns 22 (cross-linked heat shrinkable yarns means that the yarns 22 can be activated to shrink more than 10% or 10% of their original unactivated length until they shrink 90% of their original unactivated length; as shown in fig. 1 and 1A). The heat shrinkable yarns 22 may shrink during the heat treatment at a temperature that does not cause shrinkage of the high temperature resistant yarns 20 or at least does not cause substantial shrinkage of the high temperature resistant yarns. Thus, by way of example and not limitation, the heat shrinkable yarns 22 may shrink longitudinally (axially) more than 10% of their original length, such as shrinking about 10% -90% of their original length, while the non-heat shrinkable high temperature yarns 20 may shrink about 2% or less than 2% of their original length when the sleeve 10 is exposed to a heat treatment process. Thus, after heat treating the sleeve 10, the heat shrinkable yarn 22 shrinks about 10% to 90% in the machine direction, while the high temperature resistant non-heat shrinkable yarn 20 remains substantially non-shrinkable. Thus, as shown in FIG. 3A, the high temperature resistant non-heat shrinkable yarns 20 have a serpentine configuration that is curved along their length as a result of being axially compressed (also referred to as axially concentrated, axially warped or axially crimped) such that the effective thickness of the woven wall 12 of the sleeve 10 is increased, for example, by at least 25% from a first thickness t1 prior to heat shrinking the heat shrinkable yarns 22, preferably by about 50% -90% from a first thickness t1 (FIG. 2; showing a portion of the wall 12, recognizing that the remaining invisible portion of the wall 12 is the same as the portion shown) to a second thickness t2 after heat shrinking the heat shrinkable yarns 22 (FIG. 2A; showing a portion of the wall 12, recognizing that the remaining invisible portion of the wall 12 is the same as the portion shown), and the density of the wall 12 is increased from a first density d1 prior to heat shrinking the heat shrinkable yarns 22 (FIG. 2A) to a second density d1 after heat shrinking the heat shrinkable yarns 22 (FIG. 2A) A second density d2, wherein d2 is 25% greater than d1, preferably d2 is 50% greater than d1, more preferably d2 is 75% greater than d 1. The increased wall thickness t2 and the increased density d2 provide a synergistic effect, including: in use (fig. 2A), the yarns 20, 22 have better abrasion resistance when the sleeve wall 12 is cut to length, better abrasion resistance at the ends 16, 18 of the sleeve 10, better thermal insulation, and better thermal protection under high temperature thermal conditions.

The provision of braided yarns 20, 22 forming the entirety of the wall 12 or substantially the entirety of the wall 12 (if other yarns are included) in such a manner that the sleeve 10 has a substantially uniform content of yarns 20, 22 in the circumferential direction and a uniform thickness and density in the circumferential and lengthwise directions in any desired ratio of ends of high temperature yarns 20 to heat shrinkable yarns 22, such as 1:1 (fig. 2 and 2A), with a desired number of opposing ends (one end referred to as a single yarn) interwoven with one another in opposite S and Z helical directions (the S and Z directions shown in the figures, as will be understood by those skilled in the textile art upon viewing the present disclosure).

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, the heat-shrinkable yarns 22 may be provided as any suitable heat-shrinkable monofilament and/or multifilament heat-shrinkable yarns 22. In one example, a sleeve having a diameter of 1/4 inches was produced, and by way of example and not limitation, the heat shrinkable yarn 22 was provided as PEEK monofilament, and by way of example and not limitation, the heat shrinkable yarn 22 had a diameter of about 0.26mm and a heat shrinkage of about 15% at a heat treatment temperature of about 280 degrees fahrenheit. Further, in the exemplary embodiment, the non-heat shrinkable yarn 20 is provided as an aramid multifilament yarn, by way of example and not limitation, the non-heat shrinkable yarn 20 having a diameter of about 0.13mm and a heat shrinkage of about 0.5% at a heat treatment temperature of about 280 degrees fahrenheit. In heat treating the exemplary wall 12, for example, by heat treating the wall 12 at a temperature of about 250-320 degrees Fahrenheit for about 0.5-3 minutes, by way of example and not limitation, the shrinkage in length is about 19%, such that the length of the sleeve 10 (shown in FIG. 1) prior to the heat treatment is reduced from the length L1 to the length L2 (shown in FIG. 1A; L1X 81%), while the thickness t1 of the wall 12 (shown in FIG. 2) is increased by about 80% to the thickness t2 (FIG. 2A; caused by the axial concentration and bending of the non-heat shrinkable yarns 20, prior to heat treating the wall 12, as shown in FIG. 3, and after heat treating the wall 12, as shown in FIG. 3A). The resulting sleeve 10 has better resistance to contamination, better abrasion resistance and better thermal insulation, enabling it to withstand and protect the electronic components therein from high temperature grilling for up to about 40 hours at an external ambient temperature of up to about 320 degrees fahrenheit, the sleeve 10 maintaining high flexibility and radial expansion characteristics. It is contemplated herein that non-heat shrinkable yarns 20 and heat shrinkable yarns 22 having suitably sized diameters and suitable numbers of ends thereof can be used to produce sleeves of any desired diameter, as will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, a method of constructing a woven textile sleeve 10 is provided. The method includes interweaving a plurality of yarns 20, 22 with one another to form a seamless tubular wall 12 extending longitudinally along a central longitudinal axis 14 in a first non-heat treated state, wherein at least some of the yarns are non-activated and the non-heat shrinkable yarns 20 and at least a portion thereof are provided as activatable heat shrinkable yarns 22. The woven wall is then heat treated at a first temperature to cause the activatable heat shrinkable yarn 22 to shrink longitudinally without causing the non-activated non-heat shrinkable yarn 20 to shrink or substantially shrink at the first temperature.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the method may further include weaving the non-heat shrinkable yarns 20 and the heat shrinkable yarns 22 with each other in a 1:1 weaving pattern such that the sleeve 10 has a substantially uniform content of the non-heat shrinkable yarns 20 and the heat shrinkable yarns 22.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, the method may further include heat treating the woven wall 12 to cause the heat shrinkable yarns 22 to shrink longitudinally by about 10% to about 90% while maintaining the non-heat shrinkable yarns 20 in a non-heat shrinkable or substantially non-heat shrinkable state to maintain the length of the non-heat shrinkable yarns 20 within about 98% of their original woven length.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, the method may further include: upon completion of the heat treatment process, the first thickness t1 of the wall 12 in its first, non-heat treated state is increased to a second thickness t2, wherein the first thickness is typically increased by about 25% -90% to the second thickness t2, preferably the first thickness is increased by about 50% -90%, more preferably the first thickness is increased by about 70% -90%, and in one embodiment the first thickness t1 is increased by about 80%, thereby increasing the wear resistance, density, thermal insulation, and end wear resistance of the wall 12.

Many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. Further, it should be appreciated that the braided tube wall constructed according to aspects of the present invention may have a variety of uses, including, by way of example only and not limitation, a protective member or a strapping member. It is, therefore, to be understood that the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described and that the scope of the invention is to be defined by any claims which ultimately issue.