Abstract: The present invention relates to low or zero-tack composite materials such as pre-pregs and their use in automated manufacturing, particularly robotic pick and place. The present invention further relates to an automated process for preparing an article, particularly a molded article, from a fiber-reinforced composition material. The molded articles prepared by the process described herein are particularly suitable as components for transport applications, and particularly the automotive industry. The automotive components prepared by the present invention are particularly suitable as mid- or high-volume automotive parts, in which cost and speed of production are paramount. The present invention provides a process in which the cutting and handling of pre-preg materials is greatly simplified, providing advantages of efficiency and economy.

Abstract: A sports mat system incorporating a reversible thermochromic leuco dye includes an impact pad portion having a reversible thermochromic leuco dye incorporated into it in order to provide a temporary visual indication of the path of a sports apparatus swing. The impact portion changes color with a temperature change due to frictional contact between the pad and the equipment being swung, in order to visually illustrate the swing path of the club along with the club head/face orientation during impact. In another implementation, a racquet is provided incorporating a reversible thermochromic leuco dye into a portion of racquet strings to temporarily visually illustrate the contact area between the racquet face and a ball being struck, in order to provide the user with feedback relating to characteristics of their swing.

Abstract: Curative fibre components comprise one or more fibres for filaments of curative suitable to cure curable resins such as thermoset resin. In curative fibre components comprising a plurality of fibres of curative, the fibres can be commingled, such as twisting, to form a thread or yarn. Curative fibre components can be used to form a material in the form of a sheet, fabric, layer, textile or mat of woven or non-woven curative fibres. Curative fibre components can be used to produce composite materials such as fibre reinforced resinous composite materials. The curative fibre components can be commingled, including interwoven, stitched and layered with other fibres or fibrous materials, such as fibrous reinforcement, fibrous curable resin, fibrous thermoplastic, other non-reinforcing fibres to form composite materials, prepregs, preforms and articles.

Abstract: The present invention relates to low or zero-tack composite materials such as pre-pregs and their use in automated manufacturing, particularly robotic pick and place. The present invention further relates to an automated process for preparing an article, particularly a moulded article, from a fibre-reinforced composition material. The moulded articles prepared by the process described herein are particularly suitable as components for transport applications, and particularly the automotive industry. The automotive components prepared by the present invention are particularly suitable as mid- or high-volume automotive parts, in which cost and speed of production are paramount. The present invention provides a process in which the cutting and handling of pre-preg materials is greatly simplified, providing advantages of efficiency and economy.

Abstract: The present invention relates to thermoset resin fiber components, composite materials including thermoset resin fiber components, composite articles manufactured using such composite materials and methodologies for manufacturing same. The thermoset resin fiber components may include a single fiber of thermoset resin or a plurality of fibers commingled together. The properties and characteristics of the thermoset resin used are chosen according to the material to be produced therefrom. The thermoset fiber components may be woven into reinforcement fibers to form prepregs. Thermoplastic fibers may be commingled and co-woven with the thermoset fiber components.

Abstract: A tool for use in forming moulded articles, the tool comprising a tool body formed of a foamed material, a resinous material on the tool body and elastomeric material between said tool body and resinous material to inhibit the movement of resin from the resinous material into the tool body. The invention also provides a method of manufacturing a tool, a method of moulding articles using such a tool, and elastomeric material for use in forming a tool. One particular application of the tools of the present invention is in the formation or manufacture of moulded articles using curable, resinous composite materials.

Abstract: The present invention relates to thermoset resin fibre components, composite materials including thermoset resin fibre components, composite articles manufactured using such composite materials and methodologies for manufacturing same. The thermoset resin fibre components may include a single fibre of thermoset resin or a plurality of fibres commingled together. The properties and characteristics of the thermoset resin used are chosen according to the material to be produced therefrom. The thermoset fibre components may be woven into reinforcement fibres to form prepregs. Thermoplastic fibres may be commingled and co-woven with the thermoset fibre components.

Abstract: The present invention relates to thermoset resin fiber components, composite materials including thermoset resin fiber components, composite articles manufactured using such composite materials and methodologies for manufacturing same. The thermoset resin fiber components may include a single fiber of thermoset resin or a plurality of fibers commingled together. The properties and characteristics of the thermoset resin used are chosen according to the material to be produced therefrom. The thermoset fiber components may be woven into reinforcement fibers to form prepregs. Thermoplastic fibers may be commingled and co-woven with the thermoset fiber components.

Abstract: Curative fibre components comprise one or more fibres for filaments of curative suitable to cure curable resins such as thermoset resin. In curative fibre components comprising a plurality of fibres of curative, the fibres can be commingled, such as twisting, to form a thread or yarn. Curative fibre components can be used to form a material in the form of a sheet, fabric, layer, textile or mat of woven or non-woven curative fibres. Curative fibre components can be used to produce composite materials such as fibre reinforced resinous composite materials. The curative fibre components can be commingled, including interwoven, stitched and layered with other fibres or fibrous materials, such as fibrous reinforcement, fibrous curable resin, fibrous thermoplastic, other non-reinforcing fibres to form composite materials, prepregs, preforms and articles.

Abstract: A curable resinous material, and a method of manufacturing same, the curable resinous material comprising a resinous matrix material (R) with thermoplastic material (TP) distributed therein, some of said thermoplastic material (TP) being substantially fully dissolved in the matrix resin material (R) with other of the thermoplastic materials (TP) being only partially dissolved within the matrix material (R) when the resinous material is cured. The invention also provides a curable resinous material, and a method of manufacturing same, comprising a resinous matrix material (R) and a thermoplastic material (TP) distributed within the resinous matrix material (R) so that at least some of said thermoplastic material (TP) remains partially undissolved in the resinous matrix material (R) when cured.

Abstract: The present invention relates to thermoset resin fibre components, composite materials comprising thermoset resin fibre components, composite articles manufactured using such composite materials and methodologies for manufacturing same. The thermoset resin fibre components may comprise a single fibre of thermoset resin or a plurality of fibres commingled together. There properties and characteristics of the thermoset resin used are chosen according to the material to be produced therefrom. The thermoset fibre components may be woven into reinforcement fibres to form prepregs. Thermoplastic fibres may be commingled and co-woven with the thermoset fibre components.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a composite and of securing a metallic coating to a resin-based composite material, comprising the provision of a keying structure on a metallic electroplated preform and bringing the keying structure and the composite material together under conditions to cause the composite material and the keying structure to interlock. The invention also provides a composite comprising a resin-based composite material with a metallic coating on a surface, or part surface thereof, the metallic coating comprising an outer electroplated preform, and an inner keying structure which is located generally between said electroplated preform and the composite material to provide attachment of the electroplated preform on the composite material.

Abstract: A tool for use in forming moulded articles, the tool comprising a tool body formed of a foamed material, a resinous material on the tool body and elastomeric material between said tool body and resinous material to inhibit the movement of resin from the resinous material into the tool body. The invention also provides a method of manufacturing a tool, a method of moulding articles using such a tool, and elastomeric material for use in forming a tool. One particular application of the tools of the present invention is in the formation or manufacture of moulded articles using curable, resinous composite materials.

Abstract: A moulding material comprising a fibrous layer carrying resinous material to have at lest one area of relatively high resin content and at least one other area of relatively low resin content defined on a surface of the fibrous layer such that upon curing or partial curing resin from the said relatively high resin content area(s) moves over the relatively low resin content area(s) to provide a substantially even distribution of resin between the areas.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a means for achieving simultaneous transmission of data and speech with only a minimal expansion of the bandwidth of the speech signal. A Fourier transform (14) is performed on the speech signal and a predetermined number of phase components are replaced with data (d(n)) in an appropriate form. The number of phase components replaced with data is determined by approximately classifying the speech (16) as either "silence", no data inserted; "unvoiced" speech, M phase components convey data; and "voiced" speech, J phase components convey data; where J is less than M, and M is not greater than the number of phase components in the message band of the speech signal. An inverse Fourier transform (22) is subsequently performed on the combined data and speech signal. The combined message signal (G(t)) will comprise approximately the same bandwidth as the original speech signal, by virtue of the frequency domain insertion of the data into the speech.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a frequency-hopped single sideband (SSB) mobile radio system implemented by hopping the carrier frequency of an input signal (s(t)) every .tau. seconds. The hopping is controlled by a carrier-frequency-hopped sequence (f.sub.i (t)) generated by a carrier-frequency-hopping generator (16,24). When employed in a frequency-hopped SSB transmitter (10), the carrier sequence functions to modulate the input signal, "hopping" it to a different carrier frequency every .tau. seconds. The carrier-frequency-hopped SSB receiver (20) employs the identical carrier sequence as used by the transmitter to demodulate the transmitted carrier-frequency-hopped SSB signal, thereby recovering the original single sideband signal (s(t)). By frequency hopping the carrier signal of an SSB signal, the present invention mitigates the effects of co-channel interference and frequency selective fading inherent in prior art SSB cellular mobile radio systems.

Abstract: In its most general form, the present invention may be employed to simultaneously transmit information, either digital or analog, from two separate and distinct sources, denoted A and B, where the information from at least one of the sources, for example, A, possesses some known statistical properties of coherence. The less coherent information from, for example, source B, is used to generate a set of scrambling key sequences, where each separate scrambling key sequence is associated with a unique segment of information from source B. The key sequences are used to scramble the information from source A, and the scrambled information is produced as the output of the transmitter. In one form, the information from source A could be an analog signal (x(t)) and the information from source B could be a digital data sequence ({d.sub.k }) which is capable of transmitting n data bits per every N samples of the analog signal from source A.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a secure communication system for analog signals which preserves the bandwidth of the original message signal by employing scrambling, or masking, techniques in the frequency domain instead of the time domain. At the transmitting end, the message signal x.sub.a (t) is sequentially passed through a Fourier transform processor (12) and a scrambling arrangement (14) before being masked to form a secure Fourier transform sequence X.sub.s (n). The secure message signal x.sub.s (t) is formed by passing the secure sequence X.sub.s (n) through an inverse Fourier transform processor (16) which produces a secure signal x.sub.s (t) comprising the same bandwidth as the original message signal x.sub.a (t). At the receiving end, the secure signal x.sub.

Abstract: An arrangement reduces transmission errors in a communication system that includes a transmitter operative to convert an input signal into blocks of coded signals and a receiver operative to convert the coded blocks into a replica of the input signal. In the transmitter, a signal representative of first features of the input signal and a signal corresponding to second features of the input signal are generated. In the receiver, corrupted received coded signals are detected responsive to the first feature signal and the received blocks of coded signals. Each corrupted received coded signal is modified jointly responsive to the received blocks of coded signals and the second feature signal to reduce errors in the input signal replica.

Abstract: Pump valves are flushed by accelerated fluid flow therethrough induced by moving the pump rods through an accelerated downstroke.