Heat brake
OwnerFran Lanciauxinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A heat brake for heating and softening a thermoplastic sheet for bending is disclosed. The heat brake has a split work piece support table having two edges defining a slot between adjacent portions of the table. A first plenum is provided below the split work support table. During operation, the first plenum has a negative pressure. Air is drawn into the first plenum through the slot when a work piece does not span the slot. When a work piece spans the slot, the flow of air into the first plenum is reduced. The heat brake has a tube heater with an outlet nozzle positioned in the first plenum. A portion of the tube heater is positioned in a second plenum which is pressurized during heating. Air is moved from the second plenum through the heater tube and is directed against a work piece supported on the table.
Claims8
A heat brake especially suited for producing clad duct from a laminate including a sheet of thermoplastic, said heat brake comprising
- a split work piece support table having two edges defining a slot between adjacent portions of said split work support table,
- a first plenum below said split work support table, said plenum being in communication with said slot,
- a first blower for creating a negative pressure within said first plenum,
- a tube heater having an outlet nozzle positioned in said first plenum, said nozzle being operable to direct air heated in said tube heater through said slot towards a work piece,
- a second plenum in communication the interior of said tube heater, and
- a second blower for pressurizing said second plenum so that air heated in said tube heater is directed through said nozzle against a work piece.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.