Flexible, multilayered tube
AssigneesJapan Gore-Tex, Inc., Olympus Optical Co., Ltd.
InventorsFumihiro Sasaki, Hiroshi Shinmen, Akira Suzuki, Keiichi Arai
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Abstract
A flexible, multilayered tube with superior chemical resistance, heat resistance, and airtightness, as well as superior flexibility and resistance of the inner surface to staining. The tube comprises a flexible, multilayered tube having a first layer comprised of a non-porous polytetrafluoroethylene structure and a second layer comprised of a porous polytetrafluoroethylene structure laminated onto the outer peripheral surface of said first layer. The tube is useful as a medical tubing and in particular useful as an endoscope tube.
Claims25
A flexible, multilayered tube comprising
- a) a first layer consisting essentially of a non-porous structure comprised of polytetrafluoroethylene, said non-porous structure having a thickness of less than 300 micrometers and having an outer peripheral surface:
- and
- b) a second layer comprised of a porous polytetrafluoroethylene structure laminated onto the outer peripheral surface of said first layer, and having a porosity of about 30 to 70 percent;
- wherein the thickness of the first layer is 1/1000 to 1/2 of the combined thickness of the first layer and second layer.
A flexible, multi-layered tube comprising;
- a) a first, inner layer comprising a tubular polytetrafluoroethylene structure having inner and outer surfaces and a substantially uniform thickness of less than 300 microns therebetween, wherein the structure is substantially non-porous between the inner and outer surfaces of the first, inner layer;
- and
- b) a second layer laminated onto the outer surface of the first, inner layer, said second layer comprising a tubular polytetrafluoroethylene structure having inner and outer surfaces and further having substantially uniform porosity of about 30 to 70 percent between the inner and outer surfaces of the second layer;
- wherein the first and second layers have a combined thickness and the substantially uniform thickness of the first layer is 1/1000 to 1/2 of the combined thickness of the first and second layers.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.