Electric soldering iron delivering heat by change of state of a liquid heat transporting medium

Claim 1

A soldering device comprising a holder, at least one hollow and closed soldering element supported by said holder, a heating place formed by a first heat transmission wall located at one point on said soldering element at which point heat can be supplied to said soldering element, at least one hollow soldering tip located at an end of said element formed by at least one second heat transmission wall located at a different point on said soldering element at which point heat can be delivered by said soldering element for performing a soldering operation, a source of heat supported by said holder positioned for supplying heat to said first heat transmission wall of said soldering element, means connected to said heating source for causing it to produce thermal energy, a vaporizable liquid heat transporting medium carried within and partially filling said soldering element for absorbing heat from said source of heat through said first heat transmission wall so that said medium will thereby change from the liquid phase to the vapor phase and will supply heat to the second heat transmission wall and thereby change from the vapor phase back to the liquid phase, and a capillary mass of porous material for providing capillary action contained within said soldering element and extending continuously between said first anD second heat transmission walls so that said heat transporting medium in the liquid phase after condensation from the vapor phase can flow back from the second to the first heat transmission wall as a result of capillary action.