Abstract: Electrical conductive adhesive tapes comprising at least one carrier web having a low-adhesion face bearing thereon an adhesive layer having substantially uniform thickness and a Lap Shear Value from aluminum of at least 0.2 MPa, said tape being formed having a plurality of perforations, each perforation containing a plurality of electrically conductive particles in contact with the adhesive layer which is otherwise substantially free from electrically conductive material.

Abstract: A flexible carrier web has a planar surface bearing thereon a predetermined pattern consisting of at least one flat land area and at least one recess having a base and walls, and a layer of silicone on the land and/or the base of the recess while the walls of the recess are substantially free from the silicone. When that flexible carrier web is used as the backing of a pressure-sensitive adhesive layer, release values can be controlled simply by selecting the size and/or number of recesses.

Abstract: Electrically conductive elements on two substrates can be electrically interconnected by an adhesive tape containing electrically conductive particles, most of which are substantially uniformly spaced from their six nearest neighbors. Preferably the particles are spherical and of substantially equal diameter slightly exceeding the thickness of the adhesive layer. The adhesive tape can be made by forming a dense monolayer of the particles, covering a stretchable adhesive layer with that dense monolayer, biaxially stretching the adhesive layer to separate each particle from other particles of the monolayer, and then embedding the particles either into that adhesive layer or into the adhesive layer of another tape.

Abstract: The present invention provides a metal/polymer composite comprising a polymeric substrate and a sintered mat of randomly-oriented metal fibers embedded therein, the fibers having a substantially circular cross-section and a diameter of about 10 to 200 .mu.m. The polymeric substrate is typically a thin, flexible sheet-like material having a pair of planar surfaces. The polymeric substrate is preferably thermoformable. If thermoformability is desired the metal will have a melting point of less than the thermoforming temperature of the polymeric substrate. The thermoformable metal/polymer composite of the present invention may be stretched to at least 20%, and often can be stretched at least 200% of its original dimensions, at least in certain regions, without loss of electrical continuity or EMI shielding properties. The present invention also provides a method of making a metal/polymer composite and a sintered mat of randomly-oriented metal fibers.

Abstract: The present invention provides an abrasive article that has abrasive composite members secured firmly in recesses in a backing sheet in a precise pattern whereby there is desired lateral spacing between each abrasive composite member. The present invention also provides a method for preparing the abrasive article comprising the steps of providing an embossed backing sheet having a plurality of recesses in the front surface of the backing sheet. The recesses are filled with an abrasive slurry that includes a plurality of abrasive grains dispersed in a binder precursor. An expanding agent is also provided in the recesses, either separate from the slurry or dispersed in the slurry. The expanding agent, when activated, expands the abrasive slurry outward and above the front surface of the embossed backing sheet. After the binder precursor of the abrasive slurry is hardened, individual abrasive composite members extend above the front surface of the embossed backing sheet.

Abstract: A method of forming a transferable pattern or image of an inorganic film by coating an embossed substrate with an inorganic layer, that may comprise one or more films, over both recessed and raised surface portions, adhesively laminating a transfer substrate to the inorganic layer coating the raised surface portions of the embossed substrate and separating the embossed substrate and the transfer substrate. The adhesive is selected such that the bond between the transfer substrate and the inorganic film on the raised surface portions is greater than the bond between the inorganic layer on the raised surface portions and the embossed substrate.The embossed substrate resulting after removal of the inorganic layer coating the raised surface portions may be modified to include additional inorganic layers over the recessed surface portions by tinning or electroplating methods such that this thickened inorganic layer may also be transferred from the embossed substrate to a transfer substrate a set forth above.

Abstract: The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for patterning areas of a radiation absorbent film material. In the preferred embodiment, the film material is at least partially electrically conductive. The radiation is focused onto the film by a lenticular lens having a plurality of optically active elements to provide a radiation pattern on the film and remove or displace portions of the film to form a corresponding pattern, preferably a conductive pattern. The film may have one or more layers or regions, but at least one region must be radiation absorbent in order to allow the formation of patterns in the film in accordance with the present invention. The areas of the film affected by the phenomenon of radiation absorption are non-conductive voids which may separate the film into a plurality of conductive grid lines whereby the film is useful with a conductive lens film to increase the apparent efficiency of a photovoltaic cell.

Abstract: A sheet material comprising discrete depressions which are at least partially filled with micronized medicament and which are useful as or in a drug delivery device. This sheet material is useful in devices which provide for aerosolization of the medicament, for delivery to a patient by inhalation.

Abstract: A pressure-sensitive adhesive tape or sheet is reliably repositionable by having a plurality of spaced clumps of particles uniformly distributed over at least one surface of the pressure-sensitive adhesive layer with the tips of the clumps of particles being substantially free from adhesive, which particles are smaller than the thickness of the pressure-sensitive adhesive layer. Preferred particles are glass beads which may be from 5 to 15 .mu.m in diameter when the thickness of the pressure-sensitive adhesive layer is about 25 .mu.m. Each clump preferably contains from 5 to about 100 particles. The pressure-sensitive adhesive layer can be covered with a carrier web which has a low adhesion surface that is formed with depressions that protect the clumps of particles.

Abstract: The present invention provides a metal/polymer composite comprising a polymeric substrate and a sintered mat of randomly-oriented metal fibers embedded therein, the fibers having a substantially circular cross-section and a diameter of about 10 to 200 .mu.m. The polymeric substrate is typically a thin, flexible sheet-like material having a pair of planar surfaces. The polymeric substrate is preferably thermoformable. If thermoformability is desired the metal will have a melting point of less than the thermoforming temperature of the polymeric substrate. The thermoformable metal/polymer composite of the present invention may be stretched to at least 20%, and often can be stretched at least 200% of its original dimensions, at least in certain regions, without loss of electrical continuity or EMI shielding properties. The present invention also provides a method of making a metal/polymer composite and a sintered mat of randomly-oriented metal fibers.

Abstract: An edhesive tape has a flexible carrier web that has a low-adhesion face formed with a predetermined pattern of dimples, each of which contains a plurality of electrically conductive particles that can either be loose or bound together into clusters by a binder. An adhesive layer covers said face and deposited particles and can be a pressure-sensitive adhesive or a heat-activatable adhesive. When the adhesive layer is separated from the carrier web, it carries along the particles. When the particle-bearing adhesive layer is used to bond together two arrays of electrodes, facing pairs of the electrodes are electrically interconnected either by single particles or by clusters of the particles. When a binder is used to bind the electrically conductive particles into clusters, the binder can add to the strength of the adhesive bond between the electrode-bearing surfaces.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method of making a sheet material adapted to make bonded electrical connections to an array of closely-spaced conductive terminal pads. The method comprises the steps of providing a thin, flexible, insulating substrate, and squirting a plurality of fine molten strands onto the substrate to form metal strands. The metal strands individually have a cross-section with an area of about 100 to 100,000 .mu.m.sup.2 and the cross-section having a flat section and an arcuate portion. An adhesive or conductive adhesive may be coated over the metal strands, or the adhesive may be provided on the substrate and the conductors imbedded into the adhesive by pressure or heat-sinking the conductors into the adhesive layer.

Abstract: The present invention provides a discontinuous metal/polymer composite, with a metal layer, formed from a plurality of fine metal strands, which may be used, for example, in static or EMI shielding. The metal layer comprises a plurality of fine metal strands provided on the substrate, the metal strands individually having a cross-section with an area of about 100 to 100,000 .mu.m.sup.2 and the cross-section of the individual metal strands having a flat portion and an arcuate portion. The metal and polymer may be selected so that the composite is capable of being thermoformed without loss of electrical conductivity or transparency.

Abstract: A method of forming a transferable pattern or image of an inorganic film by coating an embossed substrate with an inorganic layer, that may comprise one or more films, over both recessed and raised surface portions, adhesively laminating a transfer substrate to the inorganic layer coating the raised surface portions of the embossed substrate and separating the embossed substrate and the transfer substrate. The adhesive is selected such that the bond between the transfer substrate and the inorganic film on the raised surface portions is greater than the bond between the inorganic layer on the raised surface portions and the embossed substrate.The embossed substrate resulting after removal of the inorganic layer coating the raised surface portions may be modified to include additional inorganic layers over the recessed surface portions by tinning or electroplating methods such that this thickened inorganic layer may also be transferred from the embossed substrate to a transfer substrate as set forth above.

Abstract: A method of providing patterned, thin-film materials on flexible substrates by depositing a first, etchable, integral mask onto a substrate, depositing a second pattern material over the mask region and then removing the mask, such as by etching. Patterned films useful as printed circuits and the like can be prepared by this method. In an alternate embodiment, patterned particles can be prepared for dispersion in a vehicle or matrix using the described process.

Abstract: Abrasive sheeting can produce fine finishes at surprisingly high cutting rates when its abrasive granules are individually positioned in a predetermined pattern, with an uncoated portion of virtually every granule protruding from the surface of the binder layer. Each of the abrasive granules preferably is a spherical composite of a large number of abrasive grains in a binder. For example, abrasive grains having a mean dimension of about 4 .mu.m can be bonded together to form spherical abrasive granules of virtually identical diameters, preferably within a range of from 25 to 100 .mu.m.

Abstract: The invention provides a sheet material adapted to make bonded electrical connection to an array of closely spaced conductive terminal pads. The material may be provided as a roll of an elongated flexible connector tape. The sheet material of the invention comprises a thin, flexible insulating substrate and a plurality of longitudinally-extending, regularly-spaced, metal conductive members. The sheet may also include an adhesive layer that may cover the conductive members or at least a portion of the conductive members may extend above the adhesive layer. The conductive members may be supported and held on the substrate or may be suspended in the adhesive, out of contact with the substrate.