Fastening device for use with induction heater apparatus and system for holding together two nonmetal surfaces
AssigneeThe Boeing Company
InventorMelvin R. Sindt
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Abstract
A fastening device having a sheet of eddy current conducting material sandwiched between two sheets of heat-activatable plastic material, the sheet of eddy current conducting material having a matrix of apertures, the sheets of heat-activatable plastic material covering the matrix area, and the device including means on an outer surface for releasably holding the device against a non-metallic surface prior to heat activation of the sheets of plastic material by an induction heater apparatus and system.
Claims2
A fastening device for joining nonmetallic objects together comprising a sheet of eddy current conducting metallic material having a matrix area of vertical columns and horizontal rows of apertures, the spacing between geometrical centers of said apertures along the length and width of said matrix area equal to about twice the widths of said apertures, said sheets disposed between a pair of sheets of heat activatable material for providing hot melt bonds between said nonmetallic objects via said matrix of apertures, and means for adhesively securing an exposed surface area of at least one of said pair of sheets to a nonmetallic object.
An integral sandwich structure comprising an eddy current conducting sheet of material disposed between a pair of sheets of heat activatable material forming a first sandwich, said first sandwich positioned between a pair of sheets of nonmetallic material, said eddy current conducting sheet of material comprising a sheet of steel having a matrix area of apertures for providing direct hot melt bonds between said pair of sheets of nonmetallic material through said matrix of apertures, said sheet of steel having a thickness of about 0.002 inch, said apertures having widths of about 0.050 inch, and the spacing between geometrical centers of apertures along the length and width of said matrix being about 0.060 inch.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.