Thin-wall plastic tubing and process of manufacture

Claim 1

AS A NEW ARTICLE OF MANUFACTURE A THIN-WALL TRANSPARENT TUBING, THE TUBING BEING COMPRISED OF AT LEAST ONE RIBBON OF POLYMERIC COMPOSITION HELICALLY COILED SO THAT A PORTION OF THE RIBBON OVERLAPS ANOTHER PORTION TO FORM A JOINT WHEREIN THE OVERLAPPED PORTIONS ARE IN INTIMATE CONTACT, THE RIBBON BEING OF A THICKNESS NOT SUBSTANTIALLY EXCEEDING 0.0020 INCH AND CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF A POLYESTER POLYMER MATERIAL AND THE RIBBON WHEN OVERLAPPED HAVING ORIENTED AND NONHEAT-SET PROPERTIES THE ORIENTED PROPERTIES HAVING BEEN OBTAINED BY LONGITUDINAL AND LATERAL STRETCHING OF THE RIBBON IN ITS PREPARATION, THE TUBING HAVING BEEN HEATED TO A TEMPERATURE NO HIGHER THAN THE NO-STRENGTH TEMPERATURE OF THE POLYESTER POLYMER AND QUENCHED FROM SAID HIGHER TEMPERATURE DOWN TO A TEMPERATURE OF THE ORDER OF ROOM TEMPERATURE, WHEREBY A MONOLITHIC STRONG THIN-WALLED TUBING IS OBTAINED WITHOUT THE NEED OF CEMENT, SOLVENT, GLUE OR PRESSURE OF A MAGNITUDE NOT SUBSTANITALLY GREATER THAN THAT INHERENT IN SAID WINDING.