Patent ID: 8123910

Claim:
A papermaker's fabric for use as a forming fabric comprising: plurality of machine direction (MD) yarns and cross machine direction (CD) yarns interwoven in a m-shed repeat pattern, wherein m≧2, and a plurality of MD (MDR) reinforcing yarns each having a n-shed repeat pattern, wherein n≧2, and said MDR yarns form knuckles with one CD yarn per repeat, wherein said MD and CD yarns, and said MDR yarns are monofilament yarns; wherein at least some of said MDR yarns and at least some of said CD yarns have a first melting point temperature and the MD yarns have one or more melting point temperatures each higher than said first melting point temperature; wherein said fabric is heated to a predetermined temperature which is at least equal to said first melting point temperature yet lower than each of said one or more melting point temperatures of the MD yarns; and wherein said MDR yarns which are in contact with or in close proximity to CD yarns prior to being heated, bond to said CD yarns after being heated to said predetermined temperature.