The B. F. Goodrich Company

The Goodyear & Tire Rubber Company

David M Ronyak

James C Putt

Kevin L Leffel

Richard L Rauckhorst

Robert N Hohenshil

Andrew A Graven

Edward B Bose

Fibrous substrates for the production of carbon and/or ceramic (including mixtures of these) fiber reinforced carbon and/or ceramic (including mixtures of these) composites and to methods of manufacture of same. A multilayered annular shaped fibrous structure (10, 40) having a radius and a thickness, suitable for use in the manufacture of a friction disk, is made by forming a multidirectional fabric (30, 50) having filaments (12) or fibers extending in at least two directions; cutting arcuate or trapezoidal sectors (20, 20') of an annular shape from the multidirectional fabric, each sector having a radial width generally corresponding to the radial width of the fibrous structure (10, 40) to be formed; assembling the sectors in end to end or circumferentially overlapping contiguous relationship to form an annular layer having a radial width generally corresponding to the radial width of the fibrous structure to be formed; providing a stack of thus formed layers of fibrous material, one layer on top of another; and needlepunching the stacked layers to produce cross-linking of the layers by filaments displaced out of the layers and extending in a direction generally perpendicular to the faces of the layers. The multidirectional fabric is preferably a braided fabric (30) or a crosslapped fabric (50).

Annular filamentary structures and methods of making

A rapid acting valve capable of delivering a high pressure impulse of compressible fluid has a pilot section, and an output section. The output section is pressurized to approximately equilibrium with the inlet pressure during the load portion of the operating cycle. During the dump portion of the operating cycle, the pilot section and output section cooperate to provide extremely rapid full opening of the output section to release fluid under pressure from an accumulator through an output section piston seat. The valve is particularly suitable for use in combination with pneumatic impulse separation systems such as those employed for deicing aircraft surfaces. A plurality of valves may be arranged in series such that dumping of the first tier valve initiates dumping of one or more second tier valves in the series each of which in turn initiates dumping of one or more third tier valves, and so forth until all valves in the series have been actuated, each by its preceding valve.

Cascaded pneumatic impulse separation system and valves therefor

A portable apparatus which can be used by local tire distributors to customize a tire by forming in the sidewall of the tire, personalized indicia requested by the owner of the tire. The apparatus has a support for holding the desired pattern of indicia, a stylus that is traceable on the indicia, and a small router-like engraving tool which is movable, in unison, with the stylus for grinding into the sidewall of the tire, indicia corresponding to that of the desired pattern.

Apparatus for engraving the sidewall of a tire

Growing community of inventors

Copley, OH, United States of America

David M Ronyak