Patent Publication Number: US-2019181626-A1

Title: Protective textile sleeve with hot melt fixation, end fray prevention layer and methods of construction and application thereof

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This U.S. Divisional patent application claims the benefit of U.S. Utility patent application Ser. No. 14/468,997, filed Aug. 26, 2014, and U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/869,842, filed Aug. 26, 2013, both of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Technical Field 
     This invention relates generally to protective textile sleeves for providing protection to elongate members contained therein, and more particularly to protective textile sleeves having a fixation mechanism for fixing the sleeves to an elongate member extending therethrough. 
     2. Related Art 
     Protective textile sleeves for providing protection to elongate members extending therethrough are known. Typically, the protective sleeves are formed having one of a tubular wall having a circumferentially continuous wall, or a wrappable wall having opposite lengthwise extending edges configured to be wrapped into overlapping relation with one another. Regardless of the type of aforementioned wall, the sleeves are typically fixed to the elongate member extending therethrough via wrapped tape or separately applied glue. The application of tape is costly from a material and labor standpoint, and can also prove to be unsightly if not applied neatly. Further, the externally applied tape can become damaged, thereby affecting its ability to reliably fix the sleeve to the elongate member. The application of separately applied glue is also costly from a material and labor standpoint, and can further add cost from the need to provide drying time for the glue. In addition, the glue can prove messy in application, thereby leading to further cost associated with the necessary clean-up thereof. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In accordance with one aspect of the invention, a protective textile sleeve provided. The sleeve has a wall of interlaced yarn having a cavity bounded by an inner surface extending between opposite open ends. A first material, facilitating bonding the wall to an outer surface of an elongate member extending therethrough, including a hot melt adhesive material is bonded to the wall immediately adjacent the opposite ends, and a second material, facilitating prevention of end fray of the wall ends, including an elastomeric material is bonded to the wall immediately adjacent the opposite ends. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the first material and the second material can be provided as a mixture bonded to the wall immediately adjacent the opposite ends. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, an intermediate section of the wall extending between the opposite ends can remain free of the first and second materials. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the wall can be a wrappable wall having opposite edges adapted to be wrapped in overlapping relation with one another. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the wall can be a circumferentially continuous, seamless wall. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a method of constructing a textile protective sleeve is provided. The method includes interlacing yarn to form a wall having a cavity bounded by an innermost surface extending between opposite open ends. Further, bonding a first material including a hot melt adhesive material to the wall immediately adjacent the opposite ends, and further yet, bonding a second material including an elastomeric material to the wall immediately adjacent the opposite ends. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the method can further include applying the first and second materials as a mixture to the innermost surface. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the method can further include leaving an intermediate section of the wall extending between the opposite ends free of the first and second materials. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the method can further include forming the wall having opposite edges adapted to be wrapped in overlapping relation with one another. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the method can further include forming the wall having a circumferentially continuous, seamless wall. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the method can further include applying the mixture on an outer surface of the wall. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a method of fixing a textile sleeve, having a wall of interlaced yarn with a cavity bounded by an inner surface extending between opposite open ends with a hot melt adhesive material applied to the inner surface, about an elongate member is provided. The method includes extending the elongate member through the cavity; compressing the wall into abutment with the elongate member with a heated member and causing the hot melt adhesive material to bond with the elongate member. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the method can further include compressing the wall with the heated member adjacent the opposite open ends of the wall. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the method can further include leaving an intermediate section of the wall extending between the opposite ends in unbonded relation with the elongate member. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the method can further include applying an elastomeric material to the innermost surface in a mixture with the hot melt adhesive material. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       These and other aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more readily appreciated when considered in connection with the following detailed description of presently preferred embodiments and best mode, appended claims and accompanying drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a textile sleeve constructed in accordance with one aspect of the invention fixed to an elongate member extending therethrough; 
         FIG. 2A  is a perspective view of a wall of the textile sleeve constructed in accordance with one aspect of the invention; 
         FIG. 2B  is a perspective view of a wall of the textile sleeve constructed in accordance with another aspect of the invention; 
         FIG. 2C  is a perspective view of a wall of the textile sleeve constructed in accordance with yet another aspect of the invention; 
         FIG. 2D  is a perspective view of a wall of the textile sleeve constructed in accordance with yet another aspect of the invention; 
         FIG. 3  illustrates a method of wrapping the wall of the sleeve and fixing the wall of the sleeve to an elongate member extending therethrough; 
         FIG. 4A  is a perspective view of a textile sleeve constructed in accordance with another aspect of the invention fixed to an elongate member extending therethrough; and 
         FIG. 4B  is a perspective view of a textile sleeve constructed in accordance with yet another aspect of the invention fixed to an elongate member extending therethrough. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring in more detail to the drawings,  FIG. 1  illustrates a textile sleeve constructed in accordance with one aspect of the invention, shown as a wrappable sleeve, by way of example and without limitation, and referred to hereafter as sleeve  10 . The sleeve  10  has a wrappable wall  12 , such as a self-wrapping elongate wall that automatically curls into its wrapped configuration absent some externally applied force, for routing and protecting elongate members  14 , such as a cable, wires or a wire harness, by way of example and without limitation. The elongate wall  12  has opposite edges  16 ,  17  extending generally parallel to a central, longitudinal axis  18  between opposite open ends  19 ,  20 , wherein the edges  16 ,  17  are preferably biased into overlapping relation with one another in “cigarette wrapped” fashion to fully enclose the elongate member(s)  14  within a central cavity C of the sleeve  10 . The cavity C is bounded by an innermost surface  21  of the wall  12  and is readily accessible along the full length of the longitudinal axis  18  so that the elongate member(s)  14  can be readily disposed radially into the cavity C, and conversely, removed from the cavity C, such as during service. To fix the wall  12  to the elongate member  14 , thereby preventing relative rotational and axial movement therebetween, and further, to facilitate preventing end fray of the opposite ends  19 ,  20  the wall  12 , such as during cutting in manufacture and also during in use, the wall  12  has a coating  22  formed from a mixture of a first material and a different second material bonded to the innermost surface  21  of the wall  12  immediately adjacent the opposite ends  19 ,  20 . The first material includes a hot melt adhesive material to facilitate bonding the wall  12  to an outer surface of the elongate member  14  and the second material includes an elastomeric material to facilitate preventing end fray of the opposite ends  19 ,  20 . 
     Depending on the application needs, the wall  12  can be constructed having any suitable size, including length and diameter. Further, the wall  12  can be formed of interlaced yarn using any desired interlacing process, such as braiding, weaving or knitting. If the wall  12  is formed as a self-wrapping wall, at least some of the weft-wise, circumferentially extending yarn, whether multifilament and/or monofilament, can be provided as any suitable heat-settable polymeric material, such as polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) or polyethyleneterephthalate (PET), for example. 
     To apply the mixture of the coating  22  to the wall  12 , the mixture can be first formed as a pre-formed solid sheet of the coating  22  fabricated from the mixture, whereupon the solid sheet of the coating  22  can be laminated to the innermost surface  21  of the wall  12 . Otherwise, the coating  22  of the mixture can be applied as a liquid to at least the innermost surface  21  ( FIG. 2A ), or about the entirety of the wall  12  ( FIG. 2B ), such as via a spraying or dipping process, by way of example and without limitation. Regardless of how the mixture of the coating  22  is bonded to the wall  12 , at least the innermost surface  21  is coated, thereby providing the ability to bond the hot melt adhesive material of the mixture M to the outer surface of the elongate member  14 . As such, it should he understood that the mixture can he applied, whether a pre-formed sheet or liquid, to cover the entirety of the innermost surface  21 , and also, if desired, the entirety of the wall  12  including the outermost surface, thereby extending from one edge  16  to the other edge  17 , and from one end  19  of the wall  12  to an opposite end  20  of the wall  12 . Otherwise, as shown in  FIG. 2C , the mixture can be applied, whether as a preformed solid sheet or liquid, to only the end regions ER of the wall  12  extending immediately adjacent the opposite ends  19 ,  20 , thereby forming an intermediate region IR of the wall extending between the end regions ER, and thus, the opposite ends  19 ,  20 , that is free or void of the coating  22 , thereby saving expense on the cost of the coating, as well as maintaining maximum flexibility of the sleeve  10  within the intermediate region IR. 
     Upon bonding the coating  22  to the wall  12 , the wall  12  can be heat-set into a self-wrapping wall and/or wrapped about the elongate member  14 . Otherwise, it should be recognized that the wall  12  can first be heat-set into a self-wrapping wall and then the wall  12  can he sprayed, dipped or otherwise coated with mixture of coating material to arrive at one of the embodiments shown in  FIGS. 2B  (entire wall coated) and  2 D (only end regions ER coated). Then, the elongate member  14  can he disposed within the cavity C of the sleeve  10 , and as shown in  FIG. 3 , a compressive force F can then be applied to the wall  12  via a heated compressive member  24 , such as a clamp or otherwise, wherein the compressive member  24  can be heated between about 200-250 degrees C., by way of example, to bring the innermost surface  21  and the hot melt adhesive material within the coating  22  into abutment with the outer surface of the elongate member  14 , wherein the heated compressive member  24  causes the hot melt adhesive material to at least partially melt and bond to the outer surface of the elongate member  14 . Accordingly, the wall  12  is fixed against relative movement with the elongate member  14  and is further fixed in its wrapped configuration. It should be recognized that the heated compressive member  24  can be compressed at a plurality of locations along the length of the sleeve  10 , as desired, and preferably at least adjacent opposite ends  19 ,  20  of the sleeve  10  to ensure the ends  19 ,  20  are bonded with the elongate member  14 . 
     In  FIGS. 4A and 4B , a sleeve  110  constructed in accordance with another aspect of the invention is shown, wherein the same reference numerals, offset by a factor of  100 , are used to identify like features. Rather than the sleeve  110  having a wrappable a wall  112  of the sleeve  110  is constructed as a circumferentially continuous, seamless wall  112  using one of the aforementioned processes discussed above, such as, braiding, weaving or knitting. With the wall  112  being circumferentially continuous, a mixture of the material forming a coating  122  is not applied as a pre-formed laminated sheet to an innermost surface, but rather, the mixture of the first and second materials is applied as a liquid to an innermost surface  121 , such as by dipping or spraying the wall  112  in or with the mixture including hot melt adhesive material, such as a hot melt powder material added to an elastomeric material, by way of example and without limitation. Of course, other application methods for applying the liquid mixture to the innermost surface  121  can be used, such as spreading and coating the mixture material as a paste-like substance via any suitable spreading mechanism. In addition to the hot melt adhesive powder bonding the wall  112  to the elongate member  114 , the elastomer material within the mixture, upon solidifying the coating  122  on the wall  112 , at least about the end regions of the wall  112 , functions to prevent end fray of the yarn material of the wall  112 . As shown in  FIG. 4A , application of the mixture to the wall  112  can include dipping opposite ends  119 ,  120  of the wall  112  in a melted solution of the mixture and then allowing the dipped ends  119 ,  120  to dry and solidify, thereby forming the coating  122  on the end regions ER of the sleeve  110 , with an intermediate region IR remaining free of the coating. Of course, if the ends  119 ,  120  are dipped, then an outer surface of the wall  112  is also coated, which further contributes to the prevention of end fray. Of course, if desired, as shown in  FIG. 4B , the entire wall  112  could be dipped in the mixture thereby applying the coating  122  over the entire innermost and outer surfaces of the wall  112 . 
     As with the previous embodiment, upon applying and bonding the mixture to the wall  112  to form the desired coating  122 , the elongate member  114  is disposed within a cavity C of the wall  112 , and then, a compressive force F is applied to the wall  112  via a heated compressive member  24 , such as between about 150-250 degrees C. to at least partially melt and bond the adhesive material within the mixture to the outer surface of the elongate member  114 . Accordingly, the wall  112  is fixed against relative movement with the elongate member  114 , and the ends  119  are  120  are protected against end fray via the elastomeric material within the coating  122 . 
     Many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to be understood that the invention may he practiced otherwise than as specifically described, and that the scope of the invention is defined by any ultimately allowed claims.