Claims
- 1. A gasket comprising:
a central core defining two substantially planar surfaces; at least one sheet joined to at least one of said planar surfaces of said central core to form a composite gasket body having at least one side; and a bead material applied in a first thickness to a peripheral edge of said at least one side of said composite gasket body, said bead material including a foaming agent that results in said bead material expanding to a second thickness during a curing period.
- 2. A gasket as in claim 1, further including a plurality of tangs extending from at least one of said planar surfaces of said central core.
- 3. A gasket, as in claim 2, wherein said at least one sheet covers said plurality of tangs.
- 4. A gasket, as in claim 1, wherein said central core is a steel material.
- 5. A gasket, as in claim 1, wherein said bead material is a silicon foam rubber material.
- 6. A gasket, as in claim 1, wherein said at least one sheet of said composite gasket body is expanded graphite.
- 7. A gasket, as in claim 1, wherein said foaming agent is heat activated.
- 8. A gasket, as in claim 1, wherein said bead material is screen printed to said composite gasket body.
- 9. A gasket, as in claim 1, wherein said second thickness is generally one and one-half to three times greater than said first thickness.
- 10. A gasket comprising:
a central core defining two substantially planar surfaces; a plurality of tangs extending orthogonally from each of said planar surfaces of said central core; a graphite expanded sheet joined to each of said planar surfaces and covering said plurality of tangs to form a composite gasket body defining first and second sides; and a silicone foam rubber bead applied in a first thickness to peripheral edges of said first and second sides of said composite gasket body, said bead including a heat activated foaming agent that results in said bead expanding to a second thickness during a curing period.
- 11. A method of producing a gasket comprising the steps of:
providing a central core having a first planar surface and a second planar surface; joining sheets to the first planar surface and the second planar surface of the central core to form a composite gasket body; screen printing a material having a foaming agent to a peripheral edge of a first side of the composite gasket body; curing the composite gasket body for a first predetermined time at a first predetermined temperature to form a bead on the first side of the composite gasket body; screen printing the material having the foaming agent to a peripheral edge of a second side of the composite gasket body; and curing the composite gasket body for a second predetermined time at a second predetermined temperature to form a bead on the second side of the composite gasket body.
- 12. A method, as in claim 11, wherein said step of curing the composite gasket body to form the bead on the first side includes a first predetermined time of approximately ten minutes and a first predetermined temperature of approximately 300° Fahrenheit.
- 13. A method, as in claim 11, wherein said step of curing the composite gasket body to form the bead on the second side includes a second predetermined time of approximately ten minutes and a second predetermined temperature of approximately 300° Fahrenheit.
- 14. A method, as in claim 11, wherein said step of providing the central core includes punching a plurality of tangs into the central core that extend orthogonally from the first and second planar surfaces.
- 15. A method, as in claim 14, wherein said step of joining the sheets to form the composite gasket body includes covering the plurality of tangs.
PRIORITY CLAIM
[0001] The present application claims priority to Provisional U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 60/388,686, filed Jun. 14, 2002 and entitled “Silicone Foam Rubber Sealing Bead on Composite Gasket and Method of Manufacture.” Applicants incorporate the application herein by reference and claim priority of the earlier filed application pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §119(e).
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
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60388686 |
Jun 2002 |
US |