Patent ID: 7041192

Claim:
A method of making a composite carbon fiber material, comprising the steps of: forming a central layer of a plurality of non-metallic carbon fibers aligned in a common direction and adhered to one another by an electrically conductive resin matrix; arranging a first nonwoven carbon fiber mat in which the fibers are randomly arranged in the plane of the nonwoven carbon fiber mat on a first flat surface of the central layer; arranging a second nonwoven carbon fiber mat in which the fibers are randomly arranged in the plane of the nonwoven carbon fiber mat on a second flat surface of the central layer; coating an exterior surface of the first nonwoven carbon fiber mat with a layer of a thermoplastic resin; causing the thermoplastic resin to penetrate through the first nonwoven carbon fiber mat to the first flat surface of the central layer; coating an exterior surface of the second nonwoven carbon fiber mat with a layer of the thermoplastic resin; and causing the thermoplastic resin to penetrate through the second nonwoven carbon fiber mat to the second flat surface of the central layer.