Patent ID: 7175407

Claim:
A device for dividing a thermoplastic material supplied to a meltspinning apparatus having a cross-machine direction and a machine direction orthogonal to the cross-machine direction, the meltspinning apparatus having a plurality of liquid inlets for the thermoplastic material, the device comprising: a linear flow equalizer including a plurality of flow passageways of substantially equal path length that extend in a downstream direction, each of said plurality of flow passageways receiving the thermoplastic material from at least one of the plurality of liquid inlets, said plurality of flow passageways arranged in a plurality of rows, each of said plurality of rows aligned in the cross-machine direction, adjacent pairs of said plurality of rows being positioned in a spaced relationship relative to each other in the machine direction, and said plurality of flow passageways in each of said plurality of rows dividing the thermoplastic material in the cross-machine and machine directions; and a forming member positioned downstream from said linear flow equalizer, said forming member having a surface oriented in the cross-machine direction and positioned relative to said plurality of flow passageways for intercepting the thermoplastic material discharged from said plurality of flow passageways.