The B. F. Goodrich Company

Edward Lee Morris, Jr

Ronnie Sze-Heng Liew

Afshin Bazshushtari

John S Linck

Philip William Sheehan

Lowell William Roemke

William Lewis Walthall

Wade W Fillmore

S Jay Cross

Jay H Killian, Jr

Wayne Lundblad

Hans-Adolf Lange

John A Hasler

Alexander B&uuml;sgen

Jerry Brown

Hannes Pum

A passenger restraint system ( ) for an occupant of a vehicle ( ) includes an inflatable belt portion comprising a seamless hollow inflatable textile member that becomes inflated upon the occurrence of a collision. The inflatable textile member may vary in size and construction along its length. The belt portion ( ) tightens against the occupant's body when the inflatable belt portion becomes inflated.

Seatbelt system having seamless inflatable member

The invention relates to a process for making thick fibrous structures. More particularly, the invention relates to a simplified needle-felting process wherein loose fiber is accreted into a thick fibrous structure by repeatedly driving a multitude of felting needles into the loose fiber, the felting needles penetrating all the way through the fibrous material at the beginning of the process, and penetrating only part way through the fibrous material at the end of the process. The processes according to the invention eliminate one or more intermediate steps of forming coherent fibrous layers that were previously thought necessary in the prior art in order to form a thick fibrous structure.

Simplified process for making thick fibrous structures

Fibrous substrates for the production of carbon and/or ceramic (including mixtures of these) fiber reinforced carbon and/or ceramic (including mixtures of these) matrix composites, particularly friction discs, and to methods of manufacture of same. Offcut waste fibrous sheet material may be recycled and reformed into a web useful in the manufacture of such composites.

Carbon fiber reinforced carbon/carbon composite and method of its

A rotary needling process including a multitude of felting needles repeatedly driven into a fibrous structure disposed on a surface of a needle penetrable support as the support is rotated about an axis of rotation. The process according to the invention comprises the steps of removably fixing a needle penetrable sheet to a rotary needling support, the rotary needling support defining a face disposed beneath a multitude of felting needles and having a needle penetrable area, the needle penetrable sheet covering the face and being fixed to the rotary needling support outside the face; rotating the needle penetrable sheet about an axis of rotation; depositing at least a first fibrous layer on the needle penetrable sheet; cohering the first fibrous layer and the needle penetrable sheet by repeatedly driving the multitude of felting needles into the first fibrous layer and the needle penetrable sheet; and, removing the first fibrous layer and the needle penetrable sheet from the rotary needling support subsequent to the first fibrous layer and the needle penetrable sheet being cohered. According to a further aspect of the invention, a rotary needling support for use in the process is also provided.

Rotary needling process and support for making needled fibrous structures

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 shaped fibrous structure comprising at least a first fibrous tape layer of a width generally corresponding to that of the fibrous structure to be formed, the first fibrous tape layer superposed upon and joined to least one other fibrous layer by needlepunching to produce cross-linking of the layers by fibers displaced out of the layers and extending in a direction generally perpendicular to the faces of the layers, and methods of making same. A shaped fibrous structure comprising at least a first fibrous tape layer formed from a plurality of tape portions each having a width substantially less than that of the fibrous structure to be formed, the selvedges of the tape portions being partially overlapped, the first fibrous tape layer superposed upon and joined to least one other fibrous layer by needlepunching to produce cross-linking of the layers by fibers displaced out of the layers and extending in a direction generally perpendicular to the faces of the layers, and methods of making same. The structure may include a plurality of helically wound fibrous tapes arranged to form a flat annulus having a plurality of interleaved fibrous layers. The structure may be used in the production of friction pads or discs.

Method of making near net shaped fibrous structures

Apparatus for the manufacture of curved braids comprises a braiding machine provided with pull-out and take-up apparatuses. The pull-out apparatus includes a forming ring and a pair of driven frustoconical pull rolls having an adjustable nip. The members to be braided are formed into a curved flattened tube as they are drawn through the forming ring by and through the nip of the pull rolls. The curved braid as it exits the nip of the pull rolls is guided onto a take-up bobbin. A conventional tubular braiding machine may be used. Such curved braids are suitable for use in the manufacture of fibrous preforms for the manufacture of friction discs.

Curved braid apparatus

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 shaped filamentary structure comprising at least a first braided filamentary tape layer of a width generally corresponding to that of the filamentary structure to be formed, the first braided filamentary tape layer superposed upon and joined to least one other filamentary layer by needlepunching 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, and methods of making same. The structure may include a plurality of hellically wound braided tapes arranged to form a flat, hollow annulus having a plurality of interleaved braided layers. The structure may be used in the production of friction discs.

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Pueblo, CO, United States of America

Edward Lee Morris, Jr