Patent ID: 7617667

Claim:
A process for producing a high-modulus yarn having improved handling characteristics, comprising the steps of: providing a core yarn consisting of a large number of filaments of a high-modulus, brittle material; partially encasing said core yarn in a wrapper comprising at least one strand of a lower-modulus, less brittle material, such that between about 10% and about 75% of the surface of said core yarn is concealed beneath said wrapper; and coating the wrapped core yarn with an adhesive that remains tacky over time, such that the coated wrapped yarn may be caused to remain in a desired position against a suitable substrate by being pressed thereagainst with application of heat, said coating step being performed such that said adhesive does not entirely saturate the filaments of the core yarn, but forms a coating on the outer surface of the wrapped core yarn, whereby the inner filaments of the core are not adhesively bonded to one another and said coated wrapped yarn can be bent without fracture of the filaments of the core yarn.