A high-frequency dielectric heating adhesive contains a thermoplastic resin, in which the thermoplastic resin contains a styrene copolymer resin, an amount of the styrene copolymer resin contained in the thermoplastic resin is 40% or more by volume and 100% or less by volume, the styrene copolymer resin has a styrene monomer unit content of 10% or more by mass and 90% or less by mass, the high-frequency dielectric heating adhesive has a tensile modulus of 20 MPa or more, and the high-frequency dielectric heating adhesive has a dielectric property (tan δ/ε'r) of 0.005 or more, where tan δ is a dielectric loss tangent at 23° C. and a frequency of 40.68 MHz, and ε'r is a relative dielectric constant at 23° C. and a frequency of 40.68 MHz.

A method for forming a solar panel can include attaching one or more tacking pads to one or both of a first surface of a first solar panel subassembly and a second surface of a second solar panel subassembly. The method further includes dispensing an adhesive onto at least one of the first and second surfaces. The first and second surfaces are placed in contact with the one or more tacking pads, thereby tacking the first and second solar panel subassemblies together, during which the first and second surfaces contact the adhesive, thereby decreasing a thickness and increasing a surface area of the adhesive. Subsequently, the adhesive is cured. The tacking pad(s) maintain fixed alignment of the solar panel subassemblies during curing of the adhesive, and establish a bond line of the adhesive.

A high altitude balloon, including a method and machine for manufacture, uses a perimeter border strip to couple two circular balloon panels with a lap or butt seal. Simultaneous sealing of two perimeter seals, one between the border strip and each of two balloon panels, is provided by supporting stacked balloon panels on a rotatable support and sealing around the full perimeter of the two interposed balloon panels and the border strip. The method and machine for manufacture allow for the mass production of high altitude balloons and minimize necessary material handling. The perimeter border strip can be dispensed and guided relative to the perimeter of the balloon panels for positioning before sealing together, as a bonding device is rotated relative to the balloon envelope.

Described is a heating means for thermally connecting two objects each having a plastic material, wherein, during the connecting, a first inner object is surrounded at least partially by a second outer object, and the heating means surrounds the first inner object at least partially along a complete circumferential course around the first inner object, and is located between the first inner object and the second outer object. The heating means has a ribbon-type structure. The ribbon-type structure has an auxiliary heating material, which is inductively heatable, wherein the auxiliary heating material is spatially distributed or arranged along the circumferential course such that an electrical conductivity is interrupted at at least one position along the complete circumferential course around the first inner object. Further described are an arrangement and a system each having such a heating means as well as a method for thermally connecting two plastic objects.

A welding head comprises a welding element for welding a lid to an opening device of a container, a supporting body for supporting the welding element and a compensating device for compensating a possible mutual mispositioning of the welding element and the lid during welding of the lid to the opening device, the compensating device being interposed between the supporting body and the welding element, the compensating device comprising a planar spring arrangement provided with at least one planar spring element having a first member and a second member mutually connected by deformable elements.

A method of fabricating a composite assembly may include providing a first laminate and a second laminate respectively formed of first and second composite plies, and having a respective first and second cured section and a respective first and second uncured section. The method may further include interleaving the first composite plies in the first uncured section with the second composite plies in the second uncured section to form an interfacial region. The method may additionally include curing the interfacial region to join the first laminate to the second laminate and form a unitized composite assembly.

A method and apparatus for sealing a bag made of a polymeric material by applying heat activated layers on different portions of the bag, wherein the first adhesive layer and the second adhesive layer have respective heat activation temperatures below the softening point temperature of the polymeric material; after creasing the bag along a fold line, applying heat at a temperature below the softening point temperature of the polymeric material to activate the first adhesive layer and the second adhesive layer to adhesive states after the bag has been filled with contents; and folding the bag to form an adhesive-to adhesive seal by contact between the heat activated first adhesive layer and the heat activated second adhesive layer.

A process of constructing an air tight and water tight seam, comprising cutting a sheet of selected material into two or more panels, sealing the panels at respective selected edges using an ultrasonic machine to form a seam, overlaying the seam with a tape made of the same selected material, and sealing the tape and seam using a radio frequency (RF) welding machine.

Described is a heating device for thermally connecting a pipe, which has a first plastic material, to a bushing, which has a second plastic material, and which surrounds at least a section of the pipe, wherein an inductively heatable heating means is located between the pipe and the bushing and/or integrated in the pipe and/or the bushing. The heating device has a coil arrangement, which is excitable by a generator, and which has a first coil, which has at least one complete winding within a first cross-sectional area, and a second coil, which is electrically coupled to the first coil, and which has at least one complete winding within a second cross-sectional area. The first cross-sectional area is different from the second cross-sectional area. Furthermore, a heating system having such a heating device as well as a method for thermally connecting a pipe to a bushing are described.

A method for manufacturing a vane from a composite material with a fitted metal leading edge includes the successive draping, on a template of the leading edge of the vane to be manufactured, of a first layer of a base material and of a second layer of an adhesive material, the transfer of the first and second draped layers in the recess of a metal foil, the positioning of the foil including the first and second draped layers alongside the leading edge of a vane preform including a fiber reinforcement impregnated with a precursor of a matrix, the co-curing of the vane preform and of the first and second draped layers so as to obtain a vane made of composite material including on its leading edge a bonded metal foil.