A method of making a surgical suture having a reformed tip includes providing an elongated fiber having a first end, a second end, a central axis extending between the first and second ends thereof, and an outer surface that defines a cross-sectional dimension of the elongated fiber, and compressing a center region of the elongated fiber that is located between the first and second ends thereof for reshaping the center region into a core mass and a deformed mass that extends laterally outside the cross-sectional dimension of said elongated fiber. The method includes separating the deformed mass of the center region from the core mass of the center region so that only the core mass remains for interconnecting the first and second ends of the elongated fiber, and after separating the deformed mass from the core mass, reshaping the core mass into a reformed mass having a reformed mass central axis that is offset from the central axis of the elongated fiber.

The invention relates to a plastic container which is stretch blow-molded from a preform and which comprises a container body having a container neck attached thereto, on which container neck there is provided an outlet opening, wherein the container body has a second opening closed by a weld seam. The container is made from a copolyester. The wall of the stretched container body has a stretching ratio relative to the wall of the unstretched container neck in the region of the at least one weld seam of more than 6:1. After the welding, the stretched container body has a density increase relative to the unstretched container neck in the region of the at least one weld seam of less than 0.06 g/cm.sup.3.

A method for manufacturing a fiber preform including a number of plies greater than or equal to two, includes: a) heating a ply; b) depositing the ply on a preforming mold; c) forming the ply, the ply then forming an intermediate preform; d) heating a new ply; e) depositing the new heated ply on the intermediate preform; f) forming the new ply in order to form a new intermediate preform; g) where applicable, repeating steps d) to f) at least once, the intermediate preform being replaced in these steps by the new intermediate preform in order to produce the fiber preform with the number of plies.

A fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) molding system in which FRP material, having stacked prepregs, is molded to manufacture an arc-shaped FRP component. The FRP molding system comprises inner and outer jig plates, a partial pressing device, and transfer devices. The jig plates are arc-shaped members having outer and inner surfaces that respectively fit with inner and outer surface shapes of the FRP component. The FRP material is sandwiched between the jig plates to form an integrated jig plate. The partial pressing device intermittently compresses a portion of the integrated jig plate in a radial direction orthogonal to an arc of the FRP component so that the FRP component is partially molded. The transfer devices intermittently move the compressed portion of the integrated jig plate by the partial pressing device. By repeating the partial pressing and the transport, the entire integrated jig plate is compressed to form the FRP component.

A container that includes a microwave interactive web at least partially overlying and joined to a three-dimensional support, wherein the three-dimensional support may be formed prior to having the microwave interactive web mounted thereto. The three-dimensional support may be a preformed container that is sufficiently rigid and dimensionally stable for use in containing food.

A flat laminate element made of thermoplastic is hot-formed in a two-stage method. In a first stage, the flat laminate which includes film(s) and/or panels(n) is placed on a flat frame-shaped pallet and is heated to a forming temperature in a heating zone between two flat heat screens in a contactless manner. The edge zone of the hot flat laminate element lies on the pallet such that the laminate piece cannot be clamped in a first laminate direction but rather can be slide on the pallet in this direction. Two non-flat rigid contours which are identical or largely identical act on two opposing parallel laminate edge sections uniaxially and perpendicularly to the laminate plane and only in the first laminate direction, i.e. monodirectionally, and shape the entire heated laminate element into a monodirectionally molded blank.

A non-compliant fiber-reinforced medical balloon comprises a first fiber layer and a second fiber layer embedded in a continuous matrix of thermally-weldable polymer material defining a barrel wall, cone walls and neck walls. The fibers of the first fiber layer have a pattern of different lengths and are divisible into a first group and a second group based on length. The length of the fibers of the second group varies progressively in accordance to their proximity to the fibers of the first group; the fibers of the second group closest to the fibers of the first group being longer than the fibers of the second group further from the fibers of the first group. The fiber of the second fiber layer winds circumferentially around the longitudinal axis of the balloon substantially over the entire length of the balloon.

A controlled shear vacuum forming method that includes forming a three-dimensional (3D) structure from a preform material on a molding tool using restraints during vacuuming to prevent wrinkling. The restraints are withdrawn during vacuuming to allowing the preform material to come into contact with the sidewalls of the molding tool in a gradual manner. Such forming method is particularly suitable for forming wing spars with bent sections and/or curved contours.

A method for assembling an assembly comprising a tape (100) of retaining elements and a substrate (200), said method comprising the following steps: a step of forming a tape of retaining elements by dispensing a molding material into a molding device (1), so as to form a tape (100) of retaining elements comprising a base (51) presenting a bottom face (511) and a top face (512), the top face (511) of the base (51) being provided with retaining elements; and a step of applying a substrate (200) against the bottom face (511) of the base (51) prior to said bottom face (512) of the base (51) solidifying in such a manner as to cause the substrate (200) to penetrate at least in part beyond a plane defined by the bottom face (511) of the base (51) of the tape (100).

Composite structures and methods of forming composite structures are provided. The composite structures can include one or more composite structure components. Each composite structure component is formed from a composite panel that includes one or more sheets of material. The sheets of material include a thermoplastic material and a plurality of reinforcing fibers. A composite panel can be formed in three dimensions to form a composite structure component. Multiple composite structure components can be fused to one another to form a composite structure. In addition, each composite structure component and the composite structure formed therefrom can include an aperture. An interior volume can be formed between adjacent composite structure components. Methods for forming a composite structure can include a step of simultaneously molding and fusing composite structure components.