Claims
- 1. A material adapted to regulate vibration by distributing and partially dissipating vibration exerted thereon, the material comprising:
a first elastomer layer; and a support structure penetrated by and embedded on and/or within the elastomer layer, the support structure being semi-rigid or rigid and supporting the elastomer layer, the support structure having a first plurality of particles therein.
- 2. The material of claim 1, wherein the support structure comprises a second elastomer layer including a plurality of fibers, the support structure having a greater rigidity than the elastomer layer.
- 3. The material of claim 2, wherein the plurality of fibers are woven.
- 4. The material of claim 3, wherein the plurality of fibers include aramid fibers.
- 5. The material of claim 1, wherein the first elastomer layer includes a second plurality of particles.
- 6. The material of claim 5, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes gel particles.
- 7. The material of claim 5, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes sand particles.
- 8. The material of claim 5, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes glass beads.
- 9. The material of claim 2, wherein the second elastomer layer is formed of the same elastomer as the first elastomer layer, the plurality of fibers imparting a greater rigidity to the second elastomer layer relative to the rigidity of the first elastomer layer to make the support structure semi-rigid.
- 10. The material of claim 5, wherein the material is configured and adapted to form a grip for a tennis racquet having a handle and a proximal end, the material is adapted to enclose a portion of the handle and to enclose the proximal end of the tennis racquet.
- 11. The material of claim 5, wherein the material is configured and adapted to form a grip for an implement having a handle and a proximal end, the material is adapted to enclose a portion of the handle and to enclose the proximal end of the implement.
- 12. The material of claim 5, wherein the material is configured and adapted to form an insert for a shoe, the material being adapted to extend along an inner surface of the shoe from a location proximate to a heel of the shoe to a toe of the shoe.
- 13. A material adapted to regulate vibration by distributing and partially dissipating vibration exerted thereon, the material comprising:
a first elastomer layer; and a support structure formed by a second elastomer layer, the support structure being located and configured to support the first elastomer layer.
- 14. The material of claim 13, wherein the support structure comprises a cloth layer.
- 15. The material of claim 14, wherein the support structure comprises a plurality of cloth layers.
- 16. The material of claim 14, wherein at least one of the plurality of cloth layers is formed of aramid fibers.
- 17. The material of claim 13, wherein the support structure includes a first plurality of particles therein.
- 18. The material of claim 16, wherein the first elastomer layer includes a second plurality of particles.
- 19. The material of claim 18, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes gel particles.
- 20. The material of claim 18, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes sand particles.
- 21. The material of claim 18, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes glass beads.
- 22. The material of claim 18, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes chopped fibers.
- 23. The material of claim 18, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes metal particles.
- 24. The material of claim 19, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes foam particles.
- 25. The material of claim 17, wherein the support structure includes a first plurality of fibers.
- 26. The material of claim 17, wherein the support structure comprises a cloth layer.
- 27. The material of claim 17, wherein the support structure comprises a plurality of cloth layers.
- 28. The material of claim 13, wherein the first elastomer layer includes a second plurality of particles.
- 29. The material of claim 28, wherein the first elastomer layer comprises a plurality of fibers.
- 30. A material adapted to regulate vibration by distributing and partially dissipating vibration exerted thereon, the material comprising:
a first elastomer layer; and a support structure located and configured to support the elastomer layer, the support structure having a first plurality of gel particles therein.
- 31. The material of claim 30, wherein the first elastomer layer comprises a plurality of fibers.
- 32. The material of claim 30, wherein the support structure comprises a plurality of fibers.
- 33. The material of claim 30, wherein the support structure is formed, in part, by a polymer.
- 34. The material of claim 30, wherein the support structure is formed by a second elastomer layer.
- 35. The material of claim 30, wherein the first elastomer layer has a second plurality of gel particles therein.
- 36. The material of claim 5, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes plastic particles.
- 37. The material of claim 5, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes ceramic particles.
- 38. The material of claim 5, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes aramid particles.
- 39. The material of claim 5, wherein at least one of the first and second plurality of particles includes glass particles.
- 40. The material of claim 3, wherein the plurality of fibers include metal fibers.
- 41. The material of claim 3, wherein the plurality of fibers include ceramic fibers.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application is a continuation in part of and claims priority from the following U.S. patent applications: U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/173,063, filed Jun. 17, 2002, entitled “Material Adapted to Dissipate and Reduce Vibrations and Method of Making Same” which is hereby incorporated by reference herein as if fully set forth in its entirety; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/165,748, entitled “Multi-Layer Material Adapted to Dissipate and Reduce Vibrations,” filed on Jun. 7, 2002, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein as if fully set forth in its entirety; and U.S. Patent Application entitled “Material Adapted to Dissipate and Reduce Vibrations and Method of Making Same,” filed on Jan. 17, 2003, invented by Robert A. Vito et al., serial number not yet known, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein as if fully set forth in its entirety.
Continuation in Parts (2)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
10173063 |
Jun 2002 |
US |
Child |
10360353 |
Feb 2003 |
US |
Parent |
10165748 |
Jun 2002 |
US |
Child |
10360353 |
Feb 2003 |
US |