NZ285260A - Thin-walled flexible plastic tubing with helically bonded bead and electrical resistance conductor, for medical use, and associated forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

New Zealand No. International No. 285260 TO BE ENTERED AFTER ACCEPTANCE AND PUBLICATION Priority dates: 27.05.1994; Complete Specification Filed: 01.05.1995 Classification:^) F16L11/127,127 Publication date: 24 November 1997 Journal No.: 1422 NEW ZEALAND PATENTS ACT 1953 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION Title of Invention: Apparatus and method for making flexible tubing with helically wound heating conductor Name, address and nationality of applicant(s) as in international application form: STEWARD PLASTICS, INC., 23322 Del Lago Drive, Laguna Hills, California 92653, United States of America New Zealand No. International No. 285260 NEW ZEALAND PATENTS ACT 1953 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION Title of Invention: Apparatus and method for making flexible tubing with helically wound heating conductor Name, address and nationality of applicant(s) as in international application form: STEWARD PLASTICS INC, of 23322 Del Lago Drive, Laguna Hills, California 92653 1387, United States of America 285 2 60 APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR MAKING FLEXIBLE TOTING WITH HELICALLY WOPND HEATING CONDPCTOR BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates in general to plastic tubing and, more particularly, to apparatus and methods 5 for making flexible and externally helically ribbed or beaded tubing integrally incorporating at least one electrically conductive wire. 2. Description of Related Art Tubing having a relatively thin wall and an integral 10 helical supporting bead is known in the art. Such sup-port-bead tubing construction provides substsuitial crush resistance while leaving the tube wall flexible enough to permit short-radius bends without collapsing or kinking the tube. The versatility of this kind of tubing is evi-15 denced by its wide applicability in construction, ventilation, manufacturing processes, auto washes, hospitals and other fields.

The walls of a support-bead tubing can be quite thin to minimize overall weight. This light weight for the 20 tubing is an important feature, for example, in an inhala-tor tube to provide a patient with more comfort during oxygen delivery. Two other features of known thin wall support-bead or bead-reinforced tubing are transparency and smoothness of bore. Transparent plastic material per-25 mits inspection of the fluid coursing through the tube, to detect, for example, the presence of moisture in an anesthetic or patient oxygen delivery application. A smooth inner surface of such a tube is desirable to keep the tube free from deposits of contaminants and to discourage non-30 laminar flow. 28 5 2 6 0 U.S. Patent No. 3,910,808 to Steward,• assigned to the same assignee as this application, discloses apparatus for forming such thin-walled, flexible, crush resistant sup-port-bead tubing. Steward discloses means for extruding 5 a plastic strip having a longitudinal rib, and winding means for helically winding the strip about an axis to produce a corrugated flexible tubing having a smooth bore.

Many applications, however, require or are enhanced by the presence of controlled heating of such tubing. Neo-10 natal patients, as well as patients in shock or who are sustained on breathing equipment, are among those who benefit from gas flowing through heat-conditioned tubing.

Prior attempts to achieve heating of a tube include providing: a resistance element extending linearly along 15 the tube's axi6 (U.K. Patent No. 1,448,473 to Grant); fabric tape secured to a wire and applied to the tube (U.K. Patent No. 897,292 to Reik); or resistive wire in a tubing with no crush-resistant or thin-walled features (U.S. Patent No. 4,038,519 to Foucras; U.S. Patent No. 20 4,553,023 to Jameson et al.; and U.S. Patent No. RE 29,332 to Bilbro et al.). These tubings and those to be described in more detail in this section have one or more characteristics inconsistent with use in a medical environment. For example, tubing which relies on an adhesive 25 binding for the support bead may deteriorate as a result of repeated sterilization. Materials may be biomedically incompatible, and exteriors are invariably characterized by crevices adjacent to the support bead which can harbor particulate matter and microbes. In addition, the more 30 separate and distinct steps that are required in producing such tubing, the greater the cost, complexity and potential for failure of the product in use.

Another beatable tubing is described by DE 42 44 493A1 to Eilentropp. The '493A1 patent is believed to describe 3 5 a respiratory tube with a spirally ribbed outer surface upon which electric heating conductors are placed adjacent 285 2 60 to the spiral ribs. The heating conductors may be glued on to the outer surface of the tube. The ribs may be formed as a separate smaller tube profile which is then glued to the outer surface of the respiratory tube in a 5 spiral arrangement. With a respiratory tube according to the ' 493A1 publication, the resistance wires must be separately secured to the outer surface of the tube, requiring a separate manufacturing step. Also, the separate glue may not provide as secure an attachment of 10 the heating conductors to the respiratory tube as would be desired. There is a distinct possibility of imperfect match between the tube and the glue, and the glue also presents a possibility of solvents being released in the medical environment. As previously mentioned, the glue 15 may not endure sterilization as well as the tube itself.

Finally, U.S. Patent No. 3,686,354, issued to Makin, is believed to provide a thin-walled, flexible, but helically-ribbed collapse-resistant hose for inhalation apparatus. An inner thin-walled flexible tubular member defines 20 a helical groove to which is helically secured am outer heater cable. The electrical heating cable is round in cross-section and is bonded to the outer surface of the tubular member by adhesive or vulcanization. With the inhalation hose according to the '354 patent, the helical 25 heater cable does not become an integral part of the inner tubular member, but instead lays in a helical groove of the inner tubular member, defining a helical crevice on each side of the heater cable. This crevice or pair of crevices may provide an area in which soil and bacteria 30 can escape cleaning and sterilizing efforts. Also, the heat originating at the conductors of the heater cable must be conducted through not only the insulation on this cable but also through to the wall of the inner tube. In fact, these heating conductors would appear to be more 3 5 directly coupled to the ambient air than to tidal air in the tube. 28 5 2 1 No prior product, method of manufacture, or apparatus is known which provides a transparent, sterilizable, thin-walled, smooth bore tube having a resistive wire helically imbedded in the outer surface of the tube and fully pro-5 tected by a contemporaneously wound supporting and encapsulating bead, the bead, wire and tube forming a unitary structure with a smooth, crevice-free outer surface.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 10 In view of the deficiencies of the related art as discussed above, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a flexible, lightweight, crush-resis-tant tubing having an electrically conductive wire and wire-supporting bead helically wound about and integral 15 with the surface of the tubing.

It is another object of this invention to provide apparatus and method for inexpensively making a heatable tubing including resistance wire, supporting bead, and tube wall as a unitary body free of adhesive and binders 20 and having a smoothly corrugated outer surface free of crevices.

These and other objects are achieved by the present invention which provides apparatus for combining a thin film or ribbon, a supporting bead, and a conductive wire 25 to make a flexible tubing, and provides a method for producing the tubing in a single winding operation. The present invention employs a winding mechanism which accepts in sequence an extruded plastic flat ribbon, an electrically conductive wire and an extruded supporting 30 bead. The ribbon is helically wrapped so that its edges overlap and simultaneously heat-bond to themselves to form a lap joint. The wire is overlaid along the overlapped edges of the ribbon and the bead is laid atop the wire and heat-bonded to the ribbon at the lap joint, forming a 35 unitary body as described below. 2 8 5 2 While other heat-bondable plastics nay be successfully used for the flat ribbon, for a variety of medical applications a polyester elastomer such as HYTREL™ 5556 is preferable for its properties including chemical purity, 5 reusability, transparency and resistance to damage from sterilization. Thermoplastic rubbers such as SANTOPRENE® or thermoplastic elastomers such as SARLINK® are suitable materials for ribbon formation, although their transparency is inferior to that of HYTREL™. The bead material 10 is chosen for its ability to heat-bond with the flat ribbon, and may be of the same composition as the ribbon or of a suitable compatible different composition including the materials just mentioned. For heating purposes, the wire conductor is preferably resistive metal such as 15 nickel chromium.

Walls of the tubing are formed by overlapping, heat-bonding and cooling successive laps or convolutions of the flat ribbon as the ribbon is extruded onto canted and rotationally driven winding rolls. The present invention 2 0 provides a unique wire-feeding mechanism to align the conductive wire precisely along an edge of a ribbon convolution which is sufficiently cooled to prevent the wire from cutting completely through the thin ribbon, yet still warm enough to partially embed the wire in the ribbon. 25 The configuration of the support bead is defined by splayed surfaces on either side of and cooperatively defining a wire-receiving recess. The surfaces are spread apart in order to form a smooth, crevice-free juncture as the bead heat-bonds to the film while the recess receives 3 0 the wire, the bead thereby surrounding the wire and integ rating the ribbon, wire and bead into a unitary structure.

In operation, the ribbon is extruded and helically wound onto the winding rolls from an elevated position with respect to the rolls so that any sag caused by low 3 5 viscosity of the extrudate is reduced or eliminated. After several laps of the ribbon axe wound on the rolls, 2 8 5 2 6 0 resistance wire is paid out through the wire-feeding means to a draw point on a lap joint of the rotating workpiece where the workpiece surface is still warm enough to partially embed the wire.

Thereafter, the supporting bead is extruded over the wire on a lap joint selected so that the bead fully encapsulates the wire that is still partially embedded in the outer wall of the rotating tubing.

The unitary construction just described has a signifi-10 cant advantage in addition to the foregoing resistance to the accumulation of soil and bacteria and inherent supportive strength. Since a primary purpose of the tubing is to heat the tidal fluid within the bore, substantial benefit is derived by insulating the heating wire from 15 ambient conditions, as accomplishes by the encapsulating bead. Moreover, the internal fluid is separated from the heating wire by only the thin wall of the tubing, resulting in enhanced transfer of heat energy to the tidal fluid.

Further applications of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from a consideration of a fully detailed exemplary embodiment thereof. To aid in the explanation of the exemplary embodiment, reference will be made to the figures of the appended sheets of 25 drawings, which figures will first be described briefly.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The advantages and features of the present invention will be better understood by the following description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying 3 0 drawings in which: Fig. l is a schematic plan view illustrating the features of an exemplary embodiment of this invention and wherein parts of the apparatus are relocated for clarity of illustration; PCT/US95/0S357 2 8 5 2 6 0 Fig. 2 is a schematic illustration of a workpiece cross-section showing the sequential placement of the lap joint bonded ribbon, wire, and external support-bead feature of the invention; Fig. 3 is a fragmentary elevation view, partly in cross-section, of the tubing of the invention in an unflexed condition; Fig. 4 is an elevation view of the tubing of Fig. 3 in a flexed condition; Fig. 5 is an isometric view illustrating the machine, steps in the process, and resulting product of the invention; Fig. 6 is a section view taken along lines 6-6 of Fig. 1 with typical draw angles of extrudates and wire 15 shown for clarity; Fig. 7 is a section view of a bead portion of the flexible tubing product taken along line 7-7 of Fig. 5; Fig. 8 is an enlarged section view of a wall portion of the tubing of Fig. 3 illustrating the unitary construc-20 tion of the wall, bead and wire of the invention; Fig. 9 provides an enlarged fragmentary cross-sec-tional view similar to Fig. 3, but showing an alternative embodiment of the invention; and Fig. 10 is a greatly enlarged fragmentary view of a 25 portion of Fig. 9.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF AN EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENT An embodiment of the invention including steps in the process of making the tubing product is illustrated generally in Figs. 1 and 5. Fig. 1 illustrates apparatus 30 10 including winding means 12 having four cantilevered and rotationally driven winding rolls 14, canted and spaced about a longitudinal axis 16 for winding and rotationally advancing a helically wound and ribbed heatable flexible tubing 18. The rolls 14 rotate in unison in a clockwise 3 5 direction as illustrated in Fig. 6.

WO 95/33163 PCT/US95/05357 ?G 5 2 6 0.

Apparatus io includes also first extrusion means 20 for eictruding a heat bondable flat ribbon 22 having a leading edge 24 and trailing edge 26 and second extrusion means 30 for extruding a heat bondable bead 32. Although 5 extrusion means 20 and 30 are shown as physically separate components for ease of explanation in Fig. 1, it should be understood that both ribbon 22 and bead 32 may be extruded from co-located dies corresponding to very small draw angles as described later with reference to Fig. 6. 10 Ribbon 22 is wrapped about the rolls 14 and is ad vanced helically toward the left, viewing Figs. 1 and 5, so that it encircles the rolls 14 and wraps upon itself with a certain overlap, as seen in Fig. 2, to form successive convolutions 28. The adjacent convolutions or laps 15 of the film 22 are heat-bonded to adjacent convolutions at a lap joint 29 cooperatively defined by adjacent convolutions 28.

Referring again to Figs. 1 and 5, apparatus 10 includes wire feeding means 34 employing payout mechanism 36 20 for feeding and embedding electrically conductive wire 38 along leading edge 24 of each convolution or lap 28 just prior to application of bead 32 to tube 18 as shown. Wire 38 is shown in Fig. 2 partially imbedded in each ribbon convolution 28 and positioned adjacent leading edge 24, 25 awaiting the laying on and heat-bonding of bead 32. For ease of explanation, both lap joints 29 and the V-shape of bead 32 are exaggerated in schematic Fig. 2. In reality, lap joints 29 are virtually coplaxiar heat bonds, and bead 32 forms an integral part of laps 38 at joints 29, com-30 pletely encircling wire 38, as more clearly shown in Figs. 3 and 8. The canting of winding rolls 14 causes tubing 18 to move continuously off winding means 12, defining the downstream direction of tubing 18 movement, as designated by directional arrow 39 in Figs. 1 anc 5. 35 Cooling means including a conduit 13 (Fig. 6) within winding means 12 sprays water directed radially outwardly PCIYUS95/05357 ? 8~5 2 6 0 against the inner surface of the tubing 18, and also in a downstream direction which assists in discharging tubing 18 from winding means 12.

The resulting tubing 18 is shown in more detail in 5 Figs. 3 and 4. Fig. 3 illustrates tubing 18 in an un-flexed condition with bead 32 and wire 38 in cross-section, showing the relationship of bead 32 encapsulating wire 38 and covering lap joint 29. Bead 32 forms a smooth, crevice-free juncture with ribbon 38 on both sides 10 of bead 32. Fig. 4 shows how tubing 18 may be bent to a small radius, forming buckles 40 on the inner side of the bend.

One specific arrangement for the wire feeding means is illustrated in Fig. 5. Trough 42 in extension arm 44 15 forms a guide for wire 38 as it is fed from a known payout mechanism 36 through wheel bearings or pulleys 46 mounted on base plate 48. Base plate 48 is secured to sliding block 50 which traverses mounting arm 52 and is restricted from lateral movement by face plate 58. Mounting arm 52 20 is clamped to a back plate 54 of winding means 12. Longitudinal placement of extension arm 44 relative to the axis 16 of winding means 12 is achieved by the sliding of block 50 along mounting arm 52 until wire 38 is positioned before extruded bead 32 at a leading edge 24 of a lap 28. 25 Guiding rod 56 is fixed to sliding block 50 and extends through aperture 60 in vertical stop 62 mounted at the downstream end of mounting arm 52. Sliding block 50 is biased towards the upstream or winding means back plate end of mounting arm 52 by a coil spring 64 encircling 30 guiding rod 56. Adjustment nut 66 at the downstream end 68 of guiding rod 56 is adjusted to fix extension arm 44 in place.

An exrtrudate such as HYTREL™ 5556 polyester elastomer is particularly suited for medical uses because of its 3 5 purity, sterilizability, transparency and high strength. Because of the relatively low viscosity of such an extru- 285 2 date, a vertical or near vertical draw angle from die to lap at powered rolls 14 is preferable. Fig. 6 illustrates draw angles from the vertical "a" and "B" for ribbon 22 and bead 32 respectively. Angles a and B preferably may 5 be in the range of 0° to 45° depending on viscosity of extrudate and convenience of die placement, with 45° representing an experimentally preferable angle for both the bead 32 and the ribbon 22. As angles a and B approach 0°, the extrusion means for ribbon 22 and bead 32 are 10 positioned successively closer to one another, and ultimately a single extruder may be used to provide both ribbon 22 and bead 32. On the other hand, with presently available materials having a greater melt viscosity and cohesiveness than HYTREL™, or with other materials which 15 may become available in the future having such greater melt viscosity and cohesiveness, the angles a and B may be greater than 45° from the vertical. In other words, the draw angles a and B may approach or even pass the horizontal with a material having a sufficient body in its 20 extrudate condition. Moreover, although ribbon 22 is illustrated in Fig. 6 as descending onto rolls 14 from the right of bead 32, it will be appreciated that ribbon 22 and bead 32 may descend as well from positions interchangeable with one another. Bead 32 is fed onto each lap 25 28 at a point following the draw point of wire 38 so that bead 32 heat bonds with lap 28 as it encapsulates wire 38.

The cross-section of bead 32 is configured as shown in Fig. 7 to facilitate the smooth heat bonding of bead contact edges 70 with ribbon lap 28, while providing a recess 30 72 between edges 70 to accommodate wire 38 as wire 38 and bead 32 are sequentially drawn onto tubing 18. Splayed edges 70 provide a smooth interface with ribbon lap 28, as illustrated in Fig. 3, inhibiting the accumulation of microbes and particulate matter that are typical of the 35 sharp angles resulting from traditional bead-forming practice. 2 80 Heated bead 32 surrounds embedded wire 38 forming a unitary structure with ribbon lap 28 as shown in more detail in Fig. 8. The greater bulk of bead 32 is shown separating resistance wire 38 from the ambient environ-5 ment, inhibiting loss of heat energy external to tubing 18 from resistance wire 38. Conversely, the separation between resistance wire 38 and the internal surface 74 of tubing 18 is minimal, facilitating efficient transfer of heat to the tidal fluid within the tubing 18 bore. 10 Viewing now Figs. 9 and 10, an alternative embodiment of the present invention is presented. Xn order to obtain reference numerals for use in describing the embodiment of Figs. 9 and 10, features which are the same, or which are analogous in structure or function to those described 15 above, are referenced with the same numeral used above, and having a prime added thereto.

Figs. 9 and 10 in conjunction show that this embodiment of the tubing 18' includes flat film 22' helically wrapped on itself and overlapped to form a lap joint at 20 28' to form a thin walled flexible tube upon which a helical bead 32 • is applied and integrally heat-bonded atop the joint 28'. Under the bead 32' and adjacent to an outer edge of the film 22' is positioned a heating conductor, generally referenced with the numeral 38'. However 25 as Figs. 9 and 10 depict, the conductor 38' is not a single conductor like conductor 38 of Figs. 1-8. More particularly, heating conductor 38' includes a pair of parallel, but slightly spaced apart single heating conductors 74, which are carried in an insulating jacket 76. 3 0 The conductors 74 may be similar to or the same as conductor 38 described above. Jacket 76 may be made of poly-urethane, for example, and spans the spacing between the single conductors 74 so that the heating conductor 38' is in fact a small twin-lead cable construction. 35 During manufacture of the tubing construction 18' seen in Figs. 9 and 10, the conductor 38' is fed into the 28 5 2 6 0 depicted position just before the bead 32 • is applied using a wire feeder like the device 34 depicted and described with respect to the first embodiment of the invention. However, the wire trough 42 is made wide 5 enough to accept and guide the twin-lead conductor 381.

An advantage of the tubing construction 18* seen in Figs. 9 and 10 is that the two conductors 74 nay be used to form opposite sides of a heating circuit. That is, electrical connections to the conductors 74 are made 10 individually at one end of a length of the tubing 18'. Adjacent to the opposite end of the length of the tubing 18 *, the bead 321 is partially stripped away to expose the conductor 38'. Electrical connection between the conductors 74 is then effected at this location. As described, 15 the tubing 181 has a particular advantage for use with a medical patient ventilator apparatus. That is, the electrical connections to the tubing can be effected at the proximal end near the ventilator. At the distal end of the length of tubing near the patient, connection of 20 the conductors 74 to one smother is all that is needed to complete the electrical heating circuit of the tubing 18.

While two exemplary forms of the invention have been shown in the drawings and described, variations from the exemplary forms will be apparent to those skilled in the 25 art. The invention therefore should not be construed as limited to the specific forms shown and described, but instead as is set forth in the following claims.

Claims (30)

WO 95/33163 PCT/US95/05357 -13- 28 5 2 60 WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A thin-walled, flexible and collapse-resistant plastic tubing having a substantially- smooth bore for conducting tidal air flow and a helical outer support bead, the tubing including an electrical resistance 5 conductor for heating tidal air flow in said bore, said tubing comprising: a flexible tubing wall formed of elongate thermoplastic ribbon having opposite side edges, said ribbon being helically wrapped on itself to overlap said opposite 10 side edges a certain amount forming a helical lap joint whereat opposite side edge portions of said ribbon are heat-bonded to one another so that a thin-walled elongate tubular body is formed; an elongate electrical resistance heating conduc-15 tor disposed helically around and along said flexible tubing wall adjacent to an outer one of said opposite side edges; and an elongate thermoplastic support bead disposed helically around and along said flexible tubing wall atop 20 both said helical lap joint and said electrical resistance heating conductor and being heat-bonded to said tubing wall to form a unitary body therewith encapsulating said electrical resistance heating conductor, said elongate thermoplastic support bead having a thickness between said 25 electrical resistance heating conductor and ambient which is substantially greater than said ribbon, and having a heat transfer conductivity which its substantially less than said ribbon; whereby said electrical resistance heating con-3 0 ductor is insulated from said tidal air flow by only a single thickness of said ribbon, but is insulated from ambient conditions outwardly of said tubing by said support bead. WO 95/33163 PCT/US95/05357 28 5 2 60

2. The -tubing of claim l wherein said elongate plastic ribbon comprises a polyester elastomer.

3. The tubing of claim l wherein said elongate support bead comprises a thermoplastic rubber.

4. The tubing of claim 1 wherein said elongate plastic ribbon and said elongate support bead comprise identically the same material.

5. The tubing of claim 1 wherein said resistance heating conductor is a nickel chromium alloy.

6. The tubing of claim l wherein said resistance conductor for heating includes a pair of parallel conductors spaced apart and insulated from one another.

7. The tubing of claim 6 wherein said resistance conductor for heating includes a jacket carrying said pair of conductors in spaced apart parallel relationship to one another.

8. The tubing of claim 7 wherein said pair of conductors is electrically connected together adjacent a distal end of a length of said tubing.

9. An apparatus for making helically wound seamless flexible tubing having an integral helical external support bead encapsulating an electrically conductive wire, said apparatus comprising: first extrusion means for extruding a flat plastic ribbon having opposite side edges; winding means for helically winding said flat ribbon in laps about an axis to form the wall of a flexible tubing rotatable about said axis with one of said opposite side edges of said ribbon at each lap overlapping WO 95/33163 PCT/US95/05357 285 2 60 and heat-bonded to a side edge of an immediately preceding lap to form a helical lap joint, said winding means including rotationally driven rolls circumferentially spaced apart around and extending in a downstream direction of 15 said axis; means for feeding said conductive wire continuously adjacent to an outer one of said overlapping edges of said each lap joint; second extrusion means for extruding a plastic 20 bead helically applied atop both said helical lap joint and said conductive wire and heat-bonding onto said tubing wall to form a unitary body therewith encapsulating said conductive wire; and cooling means for cooling said tubing.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said first extrusion means and said second extrusion means are co-located to provide a single extrusion means for extruding said flat ribbon and said bead.

11. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said means for feeding said conductive wire further comprises means for simultaneously embedding said wire in the outer surface of said flexible tubing wall.

12. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said conductive wire comprises a resistance heating conductor for heating said tubing.

13. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the means for feeding said wire comprises: a mounting eumi clamped adjustably to a back plate of said winding means and extending generally parallel to 5 said winding means axis in said downstream direction; a sliding block assembly slidably mounted on said mounting arm, said sliding block assembly having an WO 95/33163 PCT/US95/05357 285 2 60 extension arm provided with a longitudinal trough having a proximal entrance end and a distal exit end, 10 said extension arm extending generally perpen dicular to said mounting arm; a guiding rod extending generally parallel to said mounting arm having a bias spring and adjustment nut, and 15 mutually opposed bearing wheels positioned on opposite sides of said trough at said entrance end; and means for paying out said wire around said bearing wheels and through said trough from said entrance end to said exit end.

14. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said cooling means further comprises means for assisting the displacement of said tubing axially off said winding means.

15. A method for making a helically wound, seamless plastic tubing comprising the steps of: forming an elongate ribbon of molten thermoplastic having opposite side edges, helically wrapping 5 said elongate ribbon so that said opposite side edges overlap a certain distance to form a helical lap joint and simultaneously heat-bonding said ribbon to itself to form an elongate tubular body; laying an elongate, electrical heating conductor 10 helically around and along said tubular body; forming em elongate bead of thermoplastic material; and helically wrapping said bead around and along said tubular body atop said electrical conductor and 15 simultaneously heat-bonding said bead with said ribbon to form a unitary body including said ribbon and said bead with said electrical conductor embedded therebetween. WO 95/33163 PCT/US95/05357 285 2 60 17-

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the step of forming and wrapping said elongate ribbon further comprises feeding said ribbon at a first draw angle tangential to said elongate tubular body, said first draw angle 5 being in the range of 0° to 90° from the vertical.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein said first draw angle for said ribbon is 45°.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the step of wrapping said elongate bead further comprises feeding said bead at a second draw angle tangential to said elongate tubular body, said second draw angle being in the range of 5 o° to 90° from the vertical.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein said second draw angle for said bead is 45°.

20. A thin-walled, flexible and collapse-resistant plastic tubing having a wall with a substantially smooth bore for communicating fluid, and a helical radially outwardly extending support bead carried upon said wall, 5 the tubing including an electrical resistance conductor embedded within said support bead, which resistance conductor has a comparatively conductive heat transfer relationship to fluid within said bore and a less conductive and more insulative heat transfer relationship with 10 ambient conditions outside of said tubing wall, said tubing comprising: a flexible tubing wall formed of elongate thermoplastic ribbon having opposite side edges, said ribbon being helically wrapped on itself to overlap said opposite 15 side edges a certain amount forming a helical lap joint whereat opposite side edge portions of said ribbon are WO 95/33163 PCT/US95/05357 -18- 28 5 2 6 0 heat-bonded to one another forming a thin-walled elongate tubular body; an elongate electrical resistance heating conductor 20 disposed helically around and along the length of said flexible tubing wall atop said elongate thermoplastic ribbon and adjacent to an outer one of said opposite side edges; and an elongate thermoplastic support bead having a 25 thickness in the radial direction of said tubing which is substantially greater than said ribbon and being disposed helically around and along said flexible tubing wall atop both said helical lap joint and said electrical resistance heating conductor and being heat-bonded to said tubing 3 0 wall to form a unitary body therewith and encapsulating said electrical resistance heating conductor; whereby said electrical resistance heating conductor is insulated from said fluid by only the single thickness of said elongate thermoplastic ribbon forming said tubing 35 wall but is insulated from ambient conditions by said support bead, and said support bead provides collapse-resistance to said tubing wall.

21. The tubing of claim 20 wherein said elongate plastic ribbon is formed of a polyester elastomer.

22. The tubing of claim 20 wherein said elongate support bead is formed of a thermoplastic rubber.

23. The tubing of claim 20 wherein said elongate plastic ribbon and said elongate support bead are fozrmed of identically the same material.

24. The tubing of claim 20 wherein said resistance heating conductor is a nickel chromium alloy. WO 95/33163 PCT/US95/05357 -w- 28 5 2 60

25. The tubing of claim 20 wherein said resistance conductor for heating includes a pair of parallel conductors spaced apart and insulated from one another.

26. The tubing of claim 25 wherein said resistance conductor for heating includes a jacket carrying said pair of conductors in spaced apart parallel relationship to one another forming a twin-lead heating cable, said twin-lead 5 heating cable being disposed with one of said pair of conductors adjacent to said outer one of s<*id overlapped side edges of said elongate thermoplastic ribbbn and with the other of said pair of conductors adjacent to said one conductor in side-by-side relationship and with each 10 conductor of said pair separated from said thermoplastic ribbon only by said jacket.

27. The tubing of claim 26 wherein said pair of conductors is electrically connected together adjacent a distal end of a length of said tubing.

28. A thin-walled, flexible and collapse-resistant tubing substantially as herein described with reference to any of Figures 2 to 5 or 7 to 10 of the accompanying drawings.

29. An apparatus for making helically wound seamless flexible tubing substantially as herein described with reference to Figure 1 or Figure 5 of the accompanying drawings.

30. A method as claimed in claim 15 substantially as herein described.