A yarn includes elongated pieces of expanded graphite sheet and a tubular member made of knitted or braided fibers. In the tubular member, the pieces of expanded graphite sheet are twisted and packed. The yarns are knitted, or bundles of the yarns are twisted to form a gland packing.

Metal alloy knit fabrics, thermal protective members formed therefrom and their methods of construction are disclosed. This unique capability to knit high temperature metal alloy wire that is drapable allows for the creation of near net-shape preforms at production level speed. Additionally, ceramic insulation can also be integrated concurrently to provide increased thermal protection. The metal alloy knit fabrics described herein overcome the limitations of current welded stainless steel mesh seal coverings by providing coverings that withstand higher operational temperatures than stainless steel, are wear and snag resistant, can be a separate seal layer or as a portion of an integrated seal construction, can accommodate tight curvature changes to achieve complex shapes without wrinkling or buckling, and can be joined in the knitting process, sewed or mechanically fastened, without the need for welding.

In order to manufacture a yarn in which filler materials are loaded into a tubular member, the method of manufacturing a yarn has a step of knitting a wire material to form the tubular member. In the step of knitting the wire material, knitting of the wire material is advanced by a plurality of knitting needles, which are placed substantially concentrically about a rotation axis, while revolvingly moving the knitting needles about the rotation axis. When a stitch is to be formed by the wire material, the wire material is prepared so that an arcuate loop portion, which defines a part of the external shape of the stitch, is expanded in a direction which, in a state where the tubular member is developed, is inclined with respect to a straight line that extends in the axial direction of the tubular member.

A drum sealing gasket of a washing and drying machine is disposed on an end of a drum. The drum sealing gasket includes a band-shaped belt manufactured by cutting a felt in which natural fiber and synthetic fiber are mixed. A finishing space is formed by folding both peripheral portions of the belt and sewing the peripheral portions to the body of the belt with an adhesive-coated sewing thread. An extension is formed on one of the folded peripheral portions to cover a portion of the other of the folded peripheral portions. A flexible band is added and sewn to the surface of the extension with an adhesive-coated thread. Both ends of the belt are bound without a height difference.

An object of the present invention is to provide a gasket capable of maintaining a surface pressure for a long period of time while securing sealing performance and improving durability and a manufacturing method thereof. A gasket includes a first annular portion which is formed by a metal wire woven fabric and has a seal target hole and a main body portion which is formed by a metal wire woven fabric and is in contact with an outer peripheral edge of the first annular portion, in which a metal wire of the metal wire woven fabric and a metal wire of the metal wire woven fabric are entangled so that the first annular portion and the main body portion are joined to each other and a gap between the metal wires forming the first annular portion is sealed by a resin.

A yarn in which slipping of filler materials from a tubular member can be reduced while suppressing the manufacturing cost is provided. The yarn has a tubular member, and a plurality of filler materials that are formed into a strip-like shape, and is configured by loading the filler materials into the tubular member in a state where the longitudinal directions of the filler materials are made extending along the axial direction of the tubular member. In the yarn, the tubular member is configured by using wire material that is knitted so as to produce stitches. The wire material has arcuate loop portions that define parts of external shapes of the stitches. In a state where the tubular member is developed, the loop portions are expanded in a direction that is inclined with respect to a straight line that extends in the axial direction of the tubular member.

A method and apparatus to shield various components (e.g., a gasket, a sensor, a wire, a mechanical component made of metals and/or polymers) deployed in a vacuum environment using a shield assembly formed from multiple ceramic fibers. The shield assembly reduces damage to the components when exposed to a plasma and the generation of contaminants. The ceramic fibers are formed from a ceramic and arranged in a packed structure creating a tortuous trajectory that suppresses the transport of charged particles and/or contaminants through the shield assembly. The ceramic fibers are mechanically compliant and readily bent and/or packed into gaps without fracture. The ceramic fibers may also be formed into a tube to surround a fiberglass rod, a gasket, a sensor, and/or a wire. The presence of the shield assemblies also permits cleaning of the interior surfaces of the vacuum chamber using a plasma without generating contaminants from the gaskets.

A sealing material composition which comprises sheet-like members containing expanded graphite, and which hardly causes the sheet-like members to be broken is provided.

A sealing material composition 1 comprises: a stacked body 5; and a long surrounding body 6 which surrounds the stacked body. The stacked body has a plurality of sheet-like members 10 each of which is formed into a tape-like shape by expanded graphite. In the stacked body, the plurality of sheet-like members are stacked in a direction which intersects with the longitudinal direction of the surrounding body, and, in the plurality of sheet-like members, sheet-like members which are adjacent to each other in the stacking direction are disposed to be displaced from each other in the longitudinal direction of the surrounding body, in a relatively movable manner. The surrounding body allows the adjacent sheet-like members to be relatively moved in the longitudinal direction of the surrounding body, while maintaining the stacked state of the adjacent sheet-like members.

The present application pertains to a braided dual-sided compression packing seal, methods for producing and using such a seal, and apparatuses suitable for producing such a seal. The braided dual-sided compression packing seal is made up of two or more different materials that are braided together in such a way that, in cross-section, the compression packing seal has an asymmetrical configuration relative to a first axis that is substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and is substantially perpendicular to a side of the compression packing seal. Accordingly, when viewed in a cross-sectional plane, the compression packing seal may expose substantially only a first material along a first side of the seal, and substantially only a second material along a second side of the seal.

A ball screw in which a nut and a male-threaded shaft provided with an arcuate continuous groove threadedly engage by way of a multiplicity of steel spheres inserted between the male threads and female threads, the end portion seal member is capable of being attached toward a front or toward a back from said nut, and has a support frame body arranged at an outside circumference of said male-threaded shaft; a base fabric portion, a back surface of which is secured to an inside circumferential surface of said support frame body; and the cut pile that protrudes in such fashion as to be directed toward said groove from a front surface of said base fabric portion; wherein fiber tip portions of said cut pile are bent and made to abut said groove so as to occlude a gap between said groove and said support body, and good lubricant is retained.