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EP0173541A2 Expired / Lapsed EP ⏱️ 0.0 years remaining

Method of forming a duct seal

Assignee: Tyco Electronics Raychem GmbH
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Filing: 1985-08-21
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2005-08-21
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Abstract

Abstract An aperture, for example a duct having a cable passing through it, is sealed by installing a laminate, comprising an adhesive layer, a heater layer, and a heat-recoverable foam layer, the thickness of which increases on heating, into the gap between the duct wall and the cable with the adhesive layer facing both the wall and the cable. On energizing the heater, the foam increases in thickness and forces the adhesive into sealing engagement with the wall and cable.

Inventors

  • 👤 Karlheinz Becker
  • 👤 Bernd Gerlach

Bibliographic Details

Application Number —
Jurisdiction EP
Data Source google_patents
Last Synchronized 2026-11-04 17:50
CPC Classifications
H; H02; H02G; H02G3/00; H02G3/02; H02G3/04; H02G3/0462; H02G3/0481; B; B29; B29C; B29C61/00; B29C61/06; B29C61/0608; B29C61/0616; B29C61/0625; H02G15/00; H02G15/013; B29K; B29K2105/00; B29K2105/04; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S277/00; Y10S277/919; Y10S277/931; Y10S277/933; Y10T; Y10T428/00; Y10T428/249921; Y10T428/249953; Y10T428/249982; Y10T428/249983; Y10T428/249987

Claims Analysis

Total Claims: 17
Claim 1
Independent Claim 39 words
A laminate comprising a layer of sealant or adhesive, a flexible heater layer, and a layer of heat-recoverable material having interstices therein, the direction of recovery being such as to cause an increase in the thickness of the layer.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim 39 words
A laminate comprising a layer of sealant or adhesive, a flexible heater layer, and a layer of heat-recoverable material having interstices therein, the direction of recovery being such as to cause an increase in the thickness of the layer.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim 14 words
A laminate as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sealant or adhesive is heat-activatable.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim 45 words
A laminate as claimed in claim 2, wherein the temperature of activation and the temperature of recovery are so related that, when the heater is energized, the sealant or adhesive is activated by the time the increase in thickness of the heat-recoverable layer takes place.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim 18 words
A laminate as claimed in any one of claims to 3, wherein the heater is an electrical heater.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim 26 words
A laminate as claimed in claim 4, wherein the heater comprises a layer of an electrically conductive polymeric composition having laminar electrodes on opposite faces thereof.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim 20 words
A laminate as claimed in claim 5, wherein the heater layer has staggered slits extending through the whole thickness thereof.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim 19 words
A laminate as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the heat-recoverable material is a foam.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim 22 words
A laminate as claimed in any one of claims to 7, wherein the layers are in the order stated in claim 1.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim 39 words
A laminate as claimed in claim 8, which comprises, in the order specified, a sandwich structure comprising a layer of sealant or adhesive, a heater layer, a foam layer, a heater layer, and a layer of sealant or adhesive.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim 21 words
A laminate as claimed in claim 1, substantially as described with reference to any one or more of the accompanying drawings.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim 64 words
A method for sealing an aperture, which method comprises installing in the aperture a laminate as specified in claim 1, the laminate being installed with the sealant or adhesive layer facing the wall of the aperture, and energizing the heater to cause the layer to increase in thickness and the sealant or adhesive layer to make sealing or adherent contact with the aperture wall.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim 27 words
A method as claimed in claim 11, wherein there is a substrate in the aperture, and the sealant or adhesive layer also faces the substrate on installation.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim 55 words
A method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the laminate is initially a sheet, and is folded into a generally U -shaped form, with the adhesive or sealant layer on the outside, then formed into a closed loop with one U-shaped end tucked into the other U-shaped end, and is so installed in the aperture.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim 34 words
A method as claimed in claim 13, wherein the aperture is a duct, and the loop is installed in the duct with the base of the U facing towards the interior of the duct.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim 13 words
A method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the substrate is a cable.
Claim 17
Independent Claim 26 words
A method as claimed in any one of claims 11 to 14, wherein the laminate is as specified in any one of claims 2 to 8.

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