The present invention relates to shape memory materials and to a method for controlling shape change in shape memory materials. In particular, the invention relates to a method and a system for forming complex shapes from shape memory materials and to shape memory materials having complex shapes.

The present disclosure provides a dual layer heat shrink tube having: an inner polymeric layer with a thickness t.sub.1 and an outer diameter D.sub.1; and an outer, expanded polymeric layer with a thickness t.sub.2′ and an outer diameter D.sub.2′ obtained by expanding a polymer tube from D.sub.2 to D.sub.2′ and t.sub.2 to t.sub.2′ at a selected temperature so that D.sub.2′−2(t.sub.2′)>D.sub.1, wherein a ring cut from a cross-section of the dual layer heat shrink tube, slit into a rectangle and gripped at cut ends by tension grips within a DMA, and subjected to a temperature sweep of 3° C./min at a frequency of 1 Hz from the onset of a melting endotherm of the inner polymeric layer to that of the outer, expanded polymeric layer is greater than 1° C. and less than 12° C. The disclosure further provides associated methods for preparing and using such tubes, as well as to products comprising such tubes.

An object of the present invention is to provide a stretchable polyester having shape followability and flexibility by elastic response and being able to suppress deterioration over time due to secondary crystallization. The present invention provides a stretchable polyester which is an aliphatic copolymer polyester containing two or more types of monomer units, wherein the stretchable polyester contains an α-form and an amorphous structure, and a degree of orientation determined by X-ray of the α-form is 50% or greater.

[PROBLEMS] It is an object of the present invention to provide a heat-shrinkable polyester-based film roll which can reduce defects caused during a heat shrinking step due to the variation of a heat shrinkage rate in the heat-shrinkable polyester-based film roll having the longitudinal direction as the main shrinkage direction, specifically, defects of the film when covering an object by a wrap-around method and heat-shrunk. [SOLUTIONS] A heat-shrinkable polyester-based film roll, comprising a core; and a heat-shrinkable polyester-based film having a longitudinal direction as a main shrinkage direction that is wound around the core; wherein the film (roll) satisfy predetermined polyester composition, and all samples cutout every about 100 m have a heat shrinkage rate measured by immersion in hot water of 90° C. for 10 seconds of 30% or more and 80% or less and ±3% or less of an average in the longitudinal direction.

A housing structure manufacturing method and an electronic device are provided. The housing structure manufacturing method includes providing a plurality of memory polymeric materials, heating the plurality of memory polymeric materials, and forming the housing structure having a first morphology by printing the plurality of memory polymeric materials that are heated.

A process of heat shrinking an article is provided. The process includes shaping a thermoplastic vulcanizate (TPV) into an article, the TPV having: a partially vulcanized rubber dispersed in a continuous thermoplastic phase, wherein more than 5 wt % of the rubber is extractable in boiling xylene, and wherein the thermoplastic phase comprises a thermoplastic resin having a Tm>110° C. and a propylene-based elastomer (PBE) having a Tm<110° C.; and heating the article to a temperature between about 100° C. and 250° C. to shrink the article.

The combination of 3D printing technology plus the additional dimension of transformation over time of the printed object is referred to herein as 4D printing technology. Particular arrangements of the additive manufacturing material(s) used in the 3D printing process can create a printed 3D object that transforms over time from a first, printed shape to a second, predetermined shape.

A system, apparatus and method for thermal treatment of surface bonding optical is provided. An optical patch cord is surface bonded via thermal treatment with a tracer optical fiber which provides patch cord tracing in a bonding apparatus. During the process, the optical patch cord is also thermally treated to have the mechanical stress contained in its jacket relieved by rollers in the bonding apparatus to solve the patch cord shrink-back problem.

A system, apparatus and method for thermal treatment of surface bonding optical is provided. An optical patch cord is surface bonded via thermal treatment with a tracer optical fiber which provides patch cord tracing in a bonding apparatus. During the process, the optical patch cord is also thermally treated to have the mechanical stress contained in its jacket relieved by rollers in the bonding apparatus to solve the patch cord shrink-back problem.

An object comprising: a blend of (i) a phenol-containing polymer and (ii) a nitrile butadiene rubber; wherein the phenol-containing polymer is present in an amount of at least 5 wt % and up to about 95 wt % by total weight of components (i) and (ii). The object may further contain an electrically conducting component dispersed within the blend or on a surface of the blend. Also described is a method of thermal-activated reversible mechanical deformation of the object by (i) deforming the object at a first temperature, which is at or above the glass transition temperature of the object, and applying a stress on the object; (ii) fixing the deformed state by cooling the object to a second temperature of no more than 0° C. while under stress, and removing the stress; and (iii) recovering the object to the original shape by raising the temperature of the object to the first temperature.