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Title:
SYSTEM AND DEVICE FOR DE-ICING TRAILER-TOPS AND AIRCRAFT-WINGS
Document Type and Number:
WIPO Patent Application WO/2018/051152
Kind Code:
A1
Abstract:
Trailer-tops and aircraft are overlaid with carbon fiber chops in a felt-like structure, encased by electrodes at a constant distance or according to the density of carbon fiber layup.

Inventors:
KLAUSMEIER FRANK (DE)
Application Number:
PCT/IB2016/001292
Publication Date:
March 22, 2018
Filing Date:
September 14, 2016
Export Citation:
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Assignee:
KLAUSMEIER FRANK (DE)
International Classes:
B60J7/10; B64D15/12; E04F13/077; H05B3/34
Domestic Patent References:
WO1995015670A11995-06-08
Foreign References:
EP2955975A12015-12-16
DE102013000529A12013-07-25
DE102006019527A12007-10-31
DE102012108331A12014-03-13
Other References:
None
Download PDF:
Claims:
CLAIMS:

1. A laminar heating structure comprising a layer (1) of irregularly orientated carbon fibers, encased by at least two electrodes (4 and 5).

2. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , wherein the heating structure is achieved by applying a pasteous mix of carbon fibers and fillers.

3. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , wherein the carbon fibers are made from chopped carbon strands, possibly waste materials, or even from milled waste carbon-resin strands or panels.

4. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , wherein the heating layer (1) is enclosed by at least two linings (1 , 2).

5. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , that is laminated on, into or under the skin of aircraft-wings or fuselage or the roof of trucks and trailers.

6. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , laminated between two tarpaulins.

7. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , integrated into multi-layer wallpapers.

8. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , applied as a compound on a electrically non- conductive surface between two electrodes

AMENDED CLAIMS

received by the International Bureau on 10 July 2017 (10.07.2017)

1. A laminar heating structure comprising a layer (1) of irregularly orientated carbon fibers, mixed within a glue or varnish and encased by at least two electrodes (4 and 5).

2. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , wherein the heating structure is achieved by applying a mix of carbon fibers in glues or resins between the layers of the structure.

3. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , wherein the carbon fibers are made from chopped carbon strands, possibly waste materials, or even from milled waste carbon-resin strands or panels.

4. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , wherein the heating layer (1) is enclosed by at least two linings (1 , 2).

5. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , that is laminated on, into or under the skin of aircraft-wings or fuselage or the roof of trucks and trailers.

6. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , laminated between two tarpaulins.

7. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , integrated into multi-layer wallpapers.

8. A laminar heating structure as to claim 1 , applied as a compound on a electrically non- conductive surface between two electrodes (4,5)

Description:
System and Device for De-Icing Trailer-Tops and Aircraft Wings

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present Invention relates to de-icing surfaces of mobile units, operated under winterly conditions or at great altitudes.

More closely it relates to aircraft wings, where covering ice dangerously accumulates weight and deteriorates aerodynamical properties, as well as to trailer tops, where accumulating snow ad ice tends to break off in dangerous chunks at higher temperatures, when driving.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION /PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED

On trailer tops, exposed to snowfall and changing temperatures the build-up of ice layers usually is inevitable. These however are dangerous for the surrounding traffic and passengers if they come off in bigger chunks when lifted off by motion of the trucks or by partly melting.

Aircraft wings are prone to be covered by layers of ice, when changing temperatures at different altitudes first condense humidity on the wings and consequently freeze it at low temperatures. A thicker pack of ice, which may be accumulated in a few minutes, can be detrimental to the aerodynamic properties of the wings and add considerable weight to the airplane, thus provoking fall from heights or even a crash of the plane.

Another problem to be solved comes with residues from carbon filament production and recycling of carbon-epoxy structures.

The first one results from high quality demand with carbon fiber production, where high rates of discard are normal.

The recycling of structures with carbon fibers and resin matrices is a growing problem, due to the rising demand for lightweight parts in autobody and aerospace constructions - hitherto restricted to experimental and one-off-constructions, but in rising demand and application in consumer series.

Whereas glassfiber parts may be milled and used as aggregates in injection molding, carbon fiber parts are less suitable therefore and a better kind of reuse is required.

PRIOR ART

There are quite a few attempts for heating such surfaces or for breaking off layers of ice in small portions or blast it off, as long as there have not been big build-ups. Mostly these have been attempted by integrating heating wires into the surfaces, like those of Tungsten filaments, which were electrically activated to generate heat due to its electrical resistance.

The drawbacks of these use to be their problematic insertion into other materials, which might become prone to brittle and break under thermal stress along to the heating wires.

Woven structures have improved these problems, particularly with carbon fibers building the weft and non-conducting filaments like aramid fibres forming the shoot.

However, the high resistance to mechanical loads are not achieved in these structures as usual, since matrix materials, like epoxy raisins, do not have the same bridging properties when exposed to changing temperatures at interfacial bonding.

Moreover, these textures tend to be quite expensive due to application of threaded carbon filaments.

TASK OF THE iNVENTion

It is therefore the object of the here disclosed invention to build a heating layer for de-icing on conventional materials, charged preferably between two single strip electric conductors.

A second object of the invention is the recycling of carbon fiber strands and parts.

INVENTIVE STEP

The inventive step results from a series of experiments to find out best materials and methods of weaving a heating fabric.

When re-assessing a defective sample with quite a few cracks in its structure, it was found, that there was no relevant impact of those defects. Consequently more basic materials had been assessed. Thus the idea was born, to just apply a felt structure of residual carbon fibers , or fibers chopped from defective strands - to form a mat, similar to glassfiber mats used for simple layup-process with polyester resins - only without matrix, but laminated between two linings.

SOLUTION

A solution was found in a mat of irregularly orientated carbon fibres, encased by two electrodes and laminated between two linings, wherein the lateral electrical resistance should not vary at different length. This can be achieved by varying the density of the layup in compensation of possible differences in width between the electrodes.

In another embodiment of this invention, only a paste or compound of different glues was applied to mix the carbon fiber parts therein and apply it to wallpapers, edged by conducting leads to allow applications for heating surfaces. DESCRIPTION ALONG TO THE DRAWING FIG. 1 :

An irregular mat of fibers (1) is laminated between two linings (2 and 3), encased by two strip electrodes (4 and 5), which are connected to two poles of a source of electric tension, which results in an electrical current (6) running between the electrodes (4, 5) through the felt of carbon fibers (1), thus heating it and consequently heating the the surface of the trailer roof or aircraft wing.

This either impedes the build-up of ice from the beginning, or provokes lift-off of accumulated ice due to loosening the cohesion to the surfaces.