Abstract: A method for producing a reinforcing fiber woven fabric of the invention is a method for producing a reinforcing fiber 1 for weaving the reinforcing fiber as at least a warp 2. The yarn width of at least the warp 2 constituting the woven fabric is widened in the direction of the weft 3 by reciprocating cylindrical bodies 4 in the direction of the warp 2 of the woven fabric while rolling the cylindrical bodies 4 in a pressurization state to the woven fabric 1 A apparatus for producing a reinforcing fiber woven fabric of the invention comprising: a guide roller 5 which comes into contact with the surface of a reinforcing woven fabric continuously passing through at a predetermined winding angle and rotates; a plurality of cylindrical bodies 4 rotatably supported on the woven fabric which comes into contact with the surface of the guide roller 5; and driving parts 6 to 10 for reciprocating the cylindrical bodies in the direction of the warp 2 of the woven fabric.

Abstract: A carbon fiber-made reinforcing woven fabric comprising a carbon-fiber woven fabric formed from warps consisting of carbon fibers and wefts consisting of carbon fibers, and auxiliary yarns arranged along at least either warps or wefts, the auxiliary yarns being passed over and under other yarns differently from associated warps or wefts. When prepreg is produced by applying matrix resin to this woven fabric by a wet/prepreg processing method before drying, the presence of auxiliary yarns in gaps in the vicinities of warp-weft intersections on the woven fabric allows matrix resin to remain around auxiliary yarns to produce no apertures in the obtained prepreg, whereby the woven fabric is suitable for a prepreg production by wet/prepreg processing.

Abstract: A wet process for manufacturing a cloth prepreg with a uniform fiber distribution and large cover factor comprises impregnating a woven fabric with a diluted resin and drying, which fabric has a number of crossing points of warp and weft in the range of 2,000 to 70,000/m2, which process further comprises at least one of the steps (A) and (B), namely (A) a step of distributing a line-shaped binder on the fabric to fix the yarn flatness prior to impregnating the fabric with a resin diluted with a solvent, at least 80% of which solvent is a nonsolvent of the binder and, (B) a step of calendering the woven fabric after drying.

Abstract: A method for producing a reinforcing fiber woven fabric of the invention is a method for producing a reinforcing fiber 1 for weaving the reinforcing fiber as at least a warp 2. The yarn width of at least the warp 2 constituting the woven fabric is widened in the direction of the weft 3 by reciprocating cylindrical bodies 4 in the direction of the warp 2 of the woven fabric while rolling the cylindrical bodies 4 in a pressurization state to the woven fabric 1 A apparatus for producing a reinforcing fiber woven fabric of the invention comprising: a guide roller 5 which comes into contact with the surface of a reinforcing woven fabric continuously passing through at a predetermined winding angle and rotates; a plurality of cylindrical bodies 4 rotatably supported on the woven fabric which comes into contact with the surface of the guide roller 5; and driving parts 6 to 10 for reciprocating the cylindrical bodies in the direction of the warp 2 of the woven fabric.

Abstract: The present invention is aimed at providing FRP formed by integrating a fiber reinforcing material and a non-woven fabric, and having excellent shaping ability, impact resistance after molding, and excellent reliability and low cost. The aim of the present invention is achieved by a complex fiber reinforcing material including a sheet-shaped fiber reinforcing material composed of reinforcing fibers, and a non-woven fabric laminated on at least one side of the fiber reinforcing material, wherein the fibers constituting the non-woven fabric pass through the fiber reinforcing material to integrate the non-woven fabric with the fiber reinforcing material.

Abstract: A carbon fiber-made reinforcing woven fabric comprising a carbon-fiber woven fabric formed from warps consisting of carbon fibers and wefts consisting of carbon fibers, and auxiliary yarns arranged along at least either warps or wefts, the auxiliary yarns being passed over and under other yarns differently from associated warps or wefts. When prepreg is produced by applying matrix resin to this woven fabric by a wet/prepreg processing method before drying, the presence of auxiliary yarns in gaps in the vicinities of warp-weft intersections on the woven fabric allows matrix resin to remain around auxiliary yarns to produce no apertures in the obtained prepreg, whereby the woven fabric is suitable for a prepreg production by wet/prepreg processing.

Abstract: An olefinic thermoplastic elastomer foam of the present invention has a density of less than 700 kg/m3, a compression set of less than 60% and a density of elastically effective chains v of preferably 3.0×10−5 to 2.0×10−4 (mol/cm3). An olefinic thermoplastic elastomer composition for preparing the above foam has an equilibrium creep compliance Je0 of 1.0×10−6 to 5.0×10−4 (Pa−1) and contains a crosslinked olefin rubber and an olefin plastic in a specific proportion. The olefinic thermoplastic elastomer composition can be prepared by melt kneading a specific crosslinked olefinic thermoplastic elastomer and a specific olefin plastic.

Abstract: A wet process for manufacturing a cloth prepreg with a uniform fibre distribution and large cover factor comprises impregnating a woven fabric with a diluted resin and drying, which fabric has a number of crossing points of warp and weft in the range of 2,000 to 70,000/m2, which process further comprises at least one of the steps (A) and (B), namely

Abstract: A stitched laminate, in which plural sheets respectively having plural tow-like carbon fibers arranged in parallel to each other are laminated, with the orienting directions of the carbon fiber yarns of the respective sheets kept at different angles against a reference direction, and are stitched integrally using stitching threads. The fineness of each of the carbon fiber yarns is in a range of 1,200 to 17,000 Tex, and the pitch of the arranged carbon fibers yarns is in the range of 8 to 60 mm. In the sheets, the arranged carbon fiber yarns are widened in yarn width to ensure that no gap substantially exists between the respectively adjacent carbon fiber yarns. The plural carbon fiber yarns supplied to form sheets are respectively brought into contact with plural rollers, to be bent and widened in yarn width.

Abstract: A stitched laminate, in which plural sheets respectively having plural tow-like carbon fibers arranged in parallel to each other are laminated, with the orienting directions of the carbon fiber yarns of the respective sheets kept at different angles against a reference direction, and are stitched integrally using stitching threads. The fineness of each of the carbon fiber yarns is in a range of 1,200 to 17,000 Tex, and the pitch of the arranged carbon fibers yarns is in the range of 8 to 60 mm. In the sheets, the arranged carbon fiber yarns are widened in yarn width to ensure that no gap substantially exists between the respectively adjacent carbon fiber yarns. The plural carbon fiber yarns supplied to form sheets are respectively brought into contact with plural rollers, to be bent and widened in yarn width.

Abstract: A sheet-shaped carbon fiber base material is made up from reinforcing carbon fiber and metal wire integrally formed into a carbon fiber base material which may be a a woven fabric, a tow sheet and a prepreg. The volume fraction of metal in the sheet-shaped reinforcing carbon fiber base material is no more than 4% of the carbon fiber. A laminate may also be formed from the sheet-shaped carbon fiber material, where the reinforcing carbon fiber and the metal wire are laid-up in such a way that the metal wire insertion positions are mutually different. Also disclosed is a method of detecting the number of plies in a laminate that includes non-destructively sensing with a detector the presence of metal wire in a laminate of plies of a sheet-shaped carbon fiber base material made up of reinforcing carbon fiber and metal wire integrally formed to make the sheet-shaped carbon fiber laminate material and determining the number of the plies in the laminate based on the metal wires detected.

Abstract: This invention provides a reinforcing woven fabric using as weaving threads flat and substantially nontwisted multifilaments of reinforcing fiber having less than 0.5 wt. % of sizing agent provided thereto and a binding property of 400-800 mm in hook drop value, and a method and an apparatus for manufacturing a reinforcing woven fabric by weaving the multifilaments of reinforcing fiber as warps and wefts. A reinforcing woven fabric having a small thickness and an extremely high covering factor and capable of indicating a high strength can be obtained at a low cost as a substrate for reinforcing composite materials.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for supplying twist free flat warp containing a plurality of carbon fibers to a plurality of wefts in a weaving loom, wherein the warp is transversely removed from a plurality of bobbins and twisted along a longitudinal travelling direction of the warps so that flat surfaces of individual flat warps are oriented at a right angle to an arranged direction. The plurality of flat warps are reeded to a desired density in relation to the arranged direction. The warps are then twisted along the longitudinal travelling direction so that the flat surfaces of the individual flat warps are oriented to the arranged direction.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for supplying twist free flat weft containing a plurality of carbon fibers to a plurality of warps in a rapier weaving loom wherein the weft is transversely removed from a bobbin by draw-off rollers and intermittently supplied to the rapier. An elastic force is applied to the length of weft accumulated between the rapier and the bobbin to take up any slack and obviate its twisting. By this technique a carbon fiber fabric is woven with flat wefts which ensure a high fabric strength since crimped yarns with non uniform densities are avoided as well as a non uniform fabric thickness caused by irregular yarn thicknesses.

Abstract: A method and apparatus is provided for manufacturing a carbon fiber woven fabric by opening and closing a warp sheet formed of carbon fiber warps and by injecting wefts made of carbon fibers by water-jet into the warp sheet when the warp sheet is open. The accumulation of fluffs generated by abrasion between the weft and various guides is reduced by interrupting dispersion of water injected from the nozzle onto the weft as the weft travels from a bobbin to the nozzle, by sucking fluffs from the weft, and/or by causing contact between the weft and fluffs on the surface of the nozzle by loosening the weft, thereby making it possible to conduct a high-speed continuous operation.

Abstract: A carbon fiber woven fabric which uses a flat carbon fiber yarn consisting of many carbon fibers as at least its warp or weft, its weaving method and weaving apparatus. The flat carbon fiber yarn is twist-free, the number of its carbon fibers being 6,000 to 36,000, the yarn size being 3,000 to 30,000 deniers, the yarn width being 4 to 16 mm, the yarn thickness being 0.07 to 0.6 mm, and the ratio of yarn width to yarn thickness being 20 to 150. In the carbon fiber woven fabric, the flat carbon fiber yarn has a yarn width of 4 to 16 mm, a yarn thickness of 0.07 to 0.6 mm, a ratio of yarn width to yarn thickness of 20 to 150, and a ratio of weaving yarn pitch to yarn width of 1.0 to 1.2, the thickness of the woven fabric being 0.1 to 0.6 mm, the weight of woven fabric being 90 to 500 g/m.sup.2, and the fiber density of woven fabric being 0.8 to 1.2 g/cm.sup.3. The woven fabric is woven by a weaving apparatus provided with at least a weft supply device or a warp supply device.

Abstract: A carbon fiber woven fabric which uses a flat carbon fiber yarn consisting of many carbon fibers as at least its warp or weft, its weaving method and weaving apparatus. The flat carbon fiber yarn is twist-free, the number of its carbon fibers being 6,000 to 36,000, the yarn size being 3,000 to 30,000 deniers, the yarn width being 4 to 16 mm, the yarn thickness being 0.07 to 0.6 mm, and the ratio of yarn width to yarn thickness being 20 to 150. In the carbon fiber woven fabric, the flat carbon fiber yarn has a yarn width of 4 to 16 mm, a yarn thickness of 0.07 to 0.6 mm, a ratio of yarn width to yarn thickness of 20 to 150, and a ratio of weaving yarn pitch to yarn width of 1.0 to 1.2, the thickness of the woven fabric being 0.1 to 0.6 mm, the weight of woven fabric being 90 to 500 g/m.sup.2 and the fiber density of woven fabric being 0.8 to 1.2 g/cm.sup.3. The woven fabric is woven by a weaving apparatus provided with at least a weft supply device or a warp supply device.

Abstract: A reinforcing woven fabric comprising warps of reinforcing filamentary yarns arranged to form a high-density portion of warps and low-density portion of warps in the transverse direction and wefts of reinforcing filamentary yarns extending obliquely to the warps, a preformed material formed using a plurality of the reinforcing woven fabrics, a fiber reinforced composite material formed using the preformed material and a beam particularly suitable as the fiber reinforced composite material. The high-density portion of warps in the reinforcing woven fabric can satisfy the strength and rigidity against bending or tensile stress required for the flange of the beam and the obliquely extending wefts in the low-density portion of warps can satisfy the strength against shear stress required for the web of the beam, when a plurality of the reinforcing woven fabrics are laminated to form the preformed material for the beam. The mechanical properties required for the beam can be efficiently obtained.