Radio frequency heat sealing of cable assemblies
US5792988A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jan 16, 1996 |
| Grant date | Aug 11, 1998 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 16, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10T29/49179
- WIPO fieldOther special machines
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
A cable assembly (8, 80) including an electrical cable (10) having a flexible tubular jacket (12) and a reinforcing structure (14) attached to the outside of the jacket in a smooth sealing connection (30), and a method of using radio-frequency electrical energy, applied radially through the cable jacket (12) and the reinforcing structure (14), to make the connection (30). A shield conductor (26) inside the cable jacket (14) may be used as an RF electrode, with a second RF electrode (42, 44) circumscribing a portion of the cable (12) and the reinforcing structure (14) and shaping the outer surface of the connection. The RF energy may be used instead to activate an adhesive (108). An outer electrode (118) may be embedded in the reinforcing structure (116) in one variation of the invention.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.