A wire rope having improved durability and that can be used in a medical device to be inserted into a patient's body. The wire rope includes a core wire and side wires. The core wire is a special metal element wire that has a hardness at an outer periphery in a cross-section thereof that is higher than that at a center in the cross-section thereof. The wire rope does not include grease.

A steel cord for the reinforcement of elastomer products such as elevator belts, conveyor belts, synchronous or timing belts or hoses or tyres is presented. The steel cord comprises strands and monofilaments made of steel filaments. The strands themselves are also made of steel filaments twisted together. The strands form the outer layer of the steel cord. The monofilaments are twisted into the cord with the same lay length and direction as the strands and are positioned in the valleys between the strands on the radial outer side of the steel cord. The steel cord has the advantage that it has a better fill factor and a rounder aspect. Furthermore the monofilaments may act as an early wear indicator of the elastomer product.

A steel cord for the reinforcement of elastomer products such as elevator belts, conveyor belts, synchronous or timing belts or hoses or tyres is presented. The steel cord comprises strands and monofilaments made of steel filaments. The strands themselves are also made of steel filaments twisted together. The strands form the outer layer of the steel cord. The monofilaments are twisted into the cord with the same lay length and direction as the strands and are positioned in the valleys between the strands on the radial outer side of the steel cord. The steel cord has the advantage that it has a better fill factor and a rounder aspect. Furthermore the monofilaments may act as an early wear indicator of the elastomer product.

The invention provides a steel cord for rubber reinforcement. The steel cord comprises a core strand and at least three outer strands twisted around the core strand, the core strand comprises at least one first core filament and multiple first outer filaments twisted around the first core filament, each outer strand comprises a number of second filaments, at least one of multiple first outer filaments is preformed prior to being twisted into the core strand, and at least one of second steel filaments is straight prior to being twisted to form each outer strand. The steel cord has improved performance on core filament migration.

The invention provides a steel cord for rubber reinforcement. The steel cord comprises a core strand and at least three outer strands twisted around the core strand, the core strand comprises at least one first core filament and multiple first outer filaments twisted around the first core filament, each outer strand comprises a number of second filaments, at least one of multiple first outer filaments is preformed prior to being twisted into the core strand, and at least one of second steel filaments is straight prior to being twisted to form each outer strand. The steel cord has improved performance on core filament migration.

Provided are continuous filament-based elongate bodies having improved durability and bending fatigue performance. The elongate bodies are formed from a plurality of fibers where at least one component fiber is a multifilament ultra-high molecular weight polyolefin fiber having a filament intrinsic viscosity (IV.sub.f) of from 15 dl/g to about 45 dl/g when measured in decalin at 135° C., wherein said at least one multifilament ultra-high molecular weight polyolefin fiber has a tenacity of at least 32 g/denier, a denier of greater than 800, and a denier per filament of greater than 2.0. The high tenacity combined with high fiber denier and high filament denier (dpf) enhances the cyclic bend over sheave (CBOS) durability when the elongate body is incorporated in a multi-fiber construction such as a rope.

Provided are continuous filament-based elongate bodies having improved durability and bending fatigue performance. The elongate bodies are formed from a plurality of fibers where at least one component fiber is a multifilament ultra-high molecular weight polyolefin fiber having a filament intrinsic viscosity (IV.sub.f) of from 15 dl/g to about 45 dl/g when measured in decalin at 135° C., wherein said at least one multifilament ultra-high molecular weight polyolefin fiber has a tenacity of at least 32 g/denier, a denier of greater than 800, and a denier per filament of greater than 2.0. The high tenacity combined with high fiber denier and high filament denier (dpf) enhances the cyclic bend over sheave (CBOS) durability when the elongate body is incorporated in a multi-fiber construction such as a rope.

Disclosed is a blended rope having an outer sheath (8) enclosing at least a strength member (7), the strength member (7) having high-strength synthetic fibers, the strength member (7) being a blended strength member (7) formed with a combination of ARAMID fibers and HMPE fibers, the blended strength member comprising a non-homogeneous distribution of the ARAMID and HMPE fibers, wherein the weight ratio of ARAMID to HMPE in the strength member (7) is preferably a minimum of 80:20.

Disclosed is a blended rope having an outer sheath (8) enclosing at least a strength member (7), the strength member (7) having high-strength synthetic fibers, the strength member (7) being a blended strength member (7) formed with a combination of ARAMID fibers and HMPE fibers, the blended strength member comprising a non-homogeneous distribution of the ARAMID and HMPE fibers, wherein the weight ratio of ARAMID to HMPE in the strength member (7) is preferably a minimum of 80:20.

A steel cord for rubber reinforcement comprises a first group of core filaments (105) having a number of m and a second group of sheath filaments (110) having a number of n, m is three or four, the core filaments (105) are forming a helix, the core filaments (105) are not twisted together and being substantially parallel or the core filaments (105) have a twist pitch being more than 300 mm; the second group and the first group are twisted with each other, and the sheath filaments (110) are forming a flattened helix in the same direction of the helix of the core filaments (105), and the sheath filaments (110) have a cord twist pitch, at any cross-section of the steel cord, at least one interstice between two adjacent core filaments (105) is present. The steel cord has improved abrasion resistance and can contribute to the reduction of the weight of the tire.