A docking device includes a hollow cylindrical body portion having an internal surface and an outer surface. The hollow cylindrical body portion is formed of a three-dimensional (3D) woven fabric comprising a plurality of different types of fibers.

Said preform (3) defining two parts (21, 23) and comprising: a first group (C1) of layers of warp yarns, which is external in the first part, a second group (C2) of layers of warp yarns immediately beneath said first group, and a first group (T1) of layers of weft yarns which is external in the first part. Furthermore, the first group of layers of warp yarns is absent in the second part and the first group of layers of weft yarns (19) extends into the second part, the first group of layers of weft yarns being external in the second part. The yarns of the first weft group have a lower yarn count than the yarns of the second weft group; and/or the yarns of the first warp group have a lower yarn count than the yarns of the second warp group.

An insulating, double-knit fabric containing a first knit layer and a second knit layer coupled with the first knit layer through a plurality of first direction spaced apart rows in a first direction forming a plurality of air pockets in a grid pattern. The fabric also contains a plurality of intermediate fiber regions positioned in the plurality of air pockets, where each of the intermediate fiber regions contain a plurality of rows of multi-filament fibers extending parallel to at least one of the first and second knit layers.

A multi-layer ballistic woven fabric, including an upper woven layer having upper warp yarns and upper weft yarns that are interwoven together to form the upper woven layer. The multi-layer ballistic woven fabric also includes a lower woven layer having lower warp yarns and lower weft yarns that are interwoven together, and a plurality of securing yarns, each securing yarn interwoven with at least some of the upper yarns and some of the lower yarns so as to secure the upper and lower woven layers together. At least one of the securing yarns is woven underneath a first lower weft yarn, then above a second upper weft yarn adjacent the first lower weft yarn, then underneath a third lower weft yarn adjacent the second upper weft yarn and then above a fourth upper weft yarn adjacent the third lower weft yarn. The multi-layer ballistic woven fabric is formed by interweaving the securing yarns with the warp yarns and weft yarns as the upper woven layer and lower woven layer are made.

A fibrous preform obtained by three-dimensional weaving, comprising a first skin, a second skin, and a central portion connecting them and forming a stiffening element. In a transverse plane, transverse threads of the first skin and the second skin are woven in pairs in the first skin and the second skin on either side of the central portion; the threads of a first pair of the first skin and of a second pair of the second skin are separated into two unitary threads at the central portion by being woven with longitudinal threads, and a thread of the first pair crosses a thread of the second pair at least twice in the central portion.

A fibrous texture intended to form the fibrous reinforcement of a turbomachine blade made of composite material including a fibrous reinforcement densified by a matrix, wherein the fibrous texture includes an area of reduced stiffness including warp yarns or strands made of second fibers having a second elongation at break greater than the first elongation at break, the area of reduced stiffness extending in the longitudinal direction from the stilt area and up to a height less than or equal to 30% of the height of the blade, extending in the transverse direction between a first area and a second area, the first area extending over a first length from a first edge of the texture intended to form a leading edge, and the second area extending over a second length from a second edge of the texture intended to form a trailing edge.

A deflection member that includes a reinforcing member and a plurality of tiles fastened to the reinforcing member.

The invention related to an insulating, double-knit fabric having a width and a length and comprising a first knit layer and a second knit layer coupled with the first knit layer forming a plurality of rows of lofted fibers separated by rows of air spaces. The air spaces extend along the length of the insulating, double-knit fabric for the entire length of the fabric and the lofted fibers extend in a direction having an orthogonal component with respect to the at least one of the first knit layer and the second knit layer.

A volumetric weaving approach employs a vertical aspect of woven warp and weft fibers to generate volumetric structures through formation of tie-downs. Tie downs define warp and weft fibers that take a vertical path or component extending perpendicular to a weave plane. Independently controlled heddles provide selective warp fibers control, and a two-dimensional creel that dispenses the warp fibers at differing feed rates allows manipulation of the fibers into three dimensional structures or portions. As a shuttle draws the weft fiber, different layers are raised and lowered to lend a vertical axis to the resulting volumetric structure. Interconnections between the portions include the use of the tie downs to connect multiple portions to define 3-dimensional panels of a finished article such as a shoe. A single pass defining all the interconnected portions of the shoe generates the fully formed shoe without subsequent cutting and seaming of different textile panels.

A method of forming a substrate includes mapping a three dimensional spatial distribution of at least one structural protein fiber of extracellular matrix of biological material of interest, designing a fiber assembly pattern based on an intrinsic pattern of the at least one structural protein fiber of the extracellular matrix of the biological material, and assembling fibers based on the fiber assembly pattern to form the substrate.