Lawrie Technology Incorporated

Duncan J Lawrie

Peter J Jones

Peter L Valentine

A torsion box, useful for skis, snowboards or the like, has a constant cross section and a hollow interior. The torsion box is made from a plurality of plies and a resin matrix, at least some of the plies consisting of fibers disposed at an angle with respect to a longitudinal axis of the torsion box. The plies include fibers preferably selected from the group consisting of glass, carbon and Kevlar.RTM.. Particularly, the fibers will be angled with respect to the longitudinal axis of the torsion box within a range of about 0.degree. to about 45.degree.. The torsion box may be made by a pultrusion process where the desired fibers are pulled through a resin bath, or injected with resin, and heated in a die, then cut to a desired length. The plies are arranged to impart a material imbalance to the torsion box so that, upon cooldown, the product exhibits a predetermined camber. When applied to skis, the torsion box and process according to the invention allow for ski manufacturing in a continuous, rather than batch, process.

Method for making a pultruded product

A flexible composite coupling (20) wherein a wound filament or roving is wound between two attachment members (22) and (24) and is fully or partially impregnated with a resin matrix such as urethane to form a flexible element (32). The attachment members (22) and (24) include radially extending flanges (26) and (28) which have a radiused periphery (30) formed on them, over which the flexible element (32) is wound. The flexible element (32) diverges inwardly from the flanges' (26) and (28) radiused periphery (30) to form opposed diaphragm portions (34) and (35) of the flexible element (32) which smoothly meet at a minimum diameter (36). Hoop winds (38) of a material with high strain capacity wrapped about this minimum diameter (36) pretension the filaments or roving within the flexible element (32).

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Erie, PA, United States of America

Duncan J Lawrie