1. A method for producing a biaxially oriented tube from thermoplastic material comprising:
drawing a tempered tube over an expansion device to transform the tube from a preform condition into a biaxially oriented tube with thermoplastic material that is oriented in an axial direction and in a circumferential direction;
cooling the biaxially oriented tube; and
sealingly engaging, by the tube in preform condition, a sealing member, wherein the sealing member forms an effective seal that prevents fluid from reaching a lumen of the tube upstream of the sealing member;
wherein the expansion device comprises:
a non-deformable expansion part having a gradually increasing diameter to a maximum diameter at a downstream end of the expansion part, wherein the expansion part is contacted by the tube and exerts an expanding force on the tube to expand the tempered tube in preform condition in the circumferential direction;
a run-on part located upstream of the expansion part, the run-on part having an upstream nose end and the sealing member, the sealing member being arranged upstream of the expansion part and having a diameter that is greater than the run-on part downstream of the sealing member; and
one or more fluid supply ducts having a port in the outer surface of the run-on part or the expansion part of the expansion device, wherein the fluid is introduced and forms a fluid volume between the expansion device and the tube; and
wherein the expansion device is absent an external part at the height of the sealing member that presses the tube in preform condition onto the sealing member.
2. Method according to claim 1 further comprising arranging the sealing member at the nose-end of the run-on part.
3. Method according to claim 1, wherein the sealing member is an annular sealing member fitted on the run-on section, wherein the sealing member includes a conical run-on surface for the tube, gradually increasing in diameter in the downstream direction.
4. Method according to claim 1, the expansion device having a run-off part downstream of the expansion part.
5. Method according to claim 4 further comprising establishing a second fluid volume between the run-off part of the expansion device and the oriented tube, wherein fluid supplied to the second fluid volume is a pressurized gas.
6. Method according to claim 4 further comprising providing a first external cooling device to cool the biaxially oriented tube externally over the run-off part;
wherein the run-off part has a reduced diameter section having a smaller diameter than the maximum diameter of the expansion part;
wherein at least one outer diameter ring member is arranged around said reduced diameter section; and
wherein the outer diameter ring member is arranged such that the oriented tube passes through the ring member while being in contact with the ring member, the outer diameter ring member and the reduced diameter section being dimensioned to avoid seizing of the biaxially oriented tube between the run-off part and the at least one outer diameter ring member, the inside of the biaxially oriented tube being radially spaced from the reduced diameter section, the expansion device having one or more fluid supply ducts having one or more ports in the reduced diameter section, a gas being supplied between reduced diameter section and the biaxially oriented tube to establish a second fluid volume.
7. Method according to claim 1, the expansion device further comprising one or more temperature sensors to measure the temperature of the tube in preform condition.
8. Method according to claim 1, wherein the expansion part has a first conical surface increasing in diameter in the downstream direction, adjoined at its downstream end by a cylindrical surface of a first diameter, adjoined at its downstream end by a second conical expansion surface increasing in diameter in the downstream direction, and wherein the diameter of the sealing member on the run-on part is greater than the first diameter of the expansion part.
9. A method for producing a biaxially oriented tube from thermoplastic material comprising:
drawing a tempered tube over an expansion device to transform the tube from a preform condition into a biaxially oriented tube with thermoplastic material that is oriented in an axial direction and in a circumferential direction;
cooling the biaxially oriented tube;
sealingly engaging, by the tube in preform condition, a sealing member, wherein the sealing member forms an effective seal that prevents fluid from reaching a lumen of the tube upstream of the sealing member;
influencing the temperature of the tube in preform condition using one or more heat exchange devices; and
influencing the temperature of the sealing engagement between the tube and a sealing member of a run-on part of the expansion device;
wherein the expansion device comprises:
a non-deformable expansion part having a gradually increasing diameter to a maximum diameter at a downstream end of the expansion part, wherein the expansion part is contacted by the tube and exerts an expanding force on the tube to expand the tempered tube in preform condition in the circumferential direction;
the run-on part located upstream of the expansion part, the run-on part having an upstream nose end and the sealing member, the sealing member being arranged upstream of the expansion part and having a diameter that is greater than the run-on part downstream of the sealing member; and
one or more fluid supply ducts having a port in the outer surface of the run-on part or the expansion part of the expansion device, wherein the fluid is introduced and forms a fluid volume between the expansion device and the tube.
10. Method according to claim 9 further comprising:
providing a first heating device adapted to control external heating of the tube in preform condition, the first heating device being arranged upstream of the sealing member of the run-on part; and
providing a second heating device adapted to control external heating of the tube in preform condition, the second heating device being arranged downstream of the sealing member;
wherein the first and second heating devices are independently controlled.
11. Method according to claim 10, wherein the first heating device controls the engagement between the tube and the sealing member.
12. A method for producing a biaxially oriented tube from thermoplastic material comprising:
drawing a tempered tube over an expansion device to transform the tube from a preform condition into a biaxially oriented tube with thermoplastic material that is oriented in an axial direction and in a circumferential direction;
cooling the biaxially oriented tube; and
sealingly engaging, by the tube in preform condition, a sealing member, wherein the sealing member forms an effective seal that prevents fluid from reaching a lumen of the tube upstream of the sealing member;
wherein the expansion device comprises:
a non-deformable expansion part having a gradually increasing diameter to a maximum diameter at a downstream end of the expansion part, wherein the expansion part is contacted by the tube and exerts an expanding force on the tube to expand the tempered tube in preform condition in the circumferential direction;
a run-on part located upstream of the expansion part, the run-on part having an upstream nose end and the sealing member, the sealing member being arranged upstream of the expansion part and having a diameter that is greater than the run-on part downstream of the sealing member; and
one or more fluid supply ducts having a port in the outer surface of the run-on part or the expansion part of the expansion device, wherein the fluid is introduced and forms a fluid volume between the expansion device and the tube;
wherein the fluid supplied to said fluid volume that is limited, at one end by said sealing contact between the tube in preform condition and the sealing member, and at another end by sealing engagement between the tube and at least a downstream portion of the expansion part, is a gas, the pressure of the gas causing gradual expansion of the tube before the tube contacts the expansion part.
13. Method according to claim 12, the expansion device further comprising one or more gas discharge ducts, the one or more discharge ducts having one or more inlet ports in the exterior surface of the expansion part of the expansion device, wherein whether an inlet port is open, closed, or partly closed depends on whether and which part of the inlet port is covered by the tube, the gas discharge ducts being adapted to relieve gas pressure from the fluid volume when the one or more corresponding inlet ports are at least partly open, thereby controlling the expansion of the tube caused by internal gas pressure.
14. Method according to claim 13 further comprising providing a plurality of inlet ports, each associated with a corresponding discharge duct, at differing diameter positions in the exterior surface of the expansion part, the differing diameter positions having different radial distances from a central longitudinal axis of the expansion part, wherein one or more operable valves are associated with the discharge ducts, so that a selected inlet port and associated discharge duct are adapted to relieve gas pressure when the tube does not fully cover and close the inlet port, and one or more non-selected inlet ports and associated discharge ducts are made ineffective, thereby providing control over the internal diameter of the tube as it expands by the internal gas pressure in the fluid volume before reaching the non-deformable expansion part.
15. Method according to claim 12, wherein the sealing member is an annular sealing member fitted on the run-on section, wherein the sealing member includes a conical run-on surface for the tube, gradually increasing in diameter in the downstream direction.
16. Method according to claim 12, the expansion device having a run-off part downstream of the expansion part.
17. Method according to claim 16 further comprising establishing a second fluid volume between the run-off part of the expansion device and the oriented tube, wherein fluid supplied to the second fluid volume is a pressurized gas.
18. Method according to claim 16 further comprising providing a first external cooling device to cool the biaxially oriented tube externally over the run-off part;
wherein the run-off part has a reduced diameter section having a smaller diameter than the maximum diameter of the expansion part;
wherein at least one outer diameter ring member is arranged around said reduced diameter section; and
wherein the outer diameter ring member is arranged such that the oriented tube passes through the ring member while being in contact with the ring member, the outer diameter ring member and the reduced diameter section being dimensioned to avoid seizing of the biaxially oriented tube between the run-off part and the at least one outer diameter ring member, the inside of the biaxially oriented tube being radially spaced from the reduced diameter section, the expansion device having one or more fluid supply ducts having one or more ports in the reduced diameter section, a gas being supplied between reduced diameter section and the biaxially oriented tube to establish a second fluid volume.
19. Method according to claim 12, the expansion device further comprising one or more temperature sensors to measure the temperature of the tube in preform condition.
20. Method according to claim 12, wherein the expansion part has a first conical surface increasing in diameter in the downstream direction, adjoined at its downstream end by a cylindrical surface of a first diameter, adjoined at its downstream end by a second conical expansion surface increasing in diameter in the downstream direction, and wherein the diameter of the sealing member on the run-on part is greater than the first diameter of the expansion part.
21. Method according to claim 12 further comprising:
providing a first heating device adapted to control external heating of the tube in preform condition, the first heating device being arranged upstream of the sealing member of the run-on part; and
providing a second heating device adapted to control external heating of the tube in preform condition, the second heating device being arranged downstream of the sealing member;
wherein the first and second heating devices are independently controlled.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A radio communication system in which radio communication is performed between a base station and a mobile station, the base station comprising:
first transmitting means for transmitting a first transmitted radio signal to the mobile station;
first receiving means for receiving a first received radio signal from the mobile station; and
first control means for controlling the first transmitting means and the first receiving means to achieve high-speed communication between the base station and the mobile station, when the mobile station exists in a specific area within a cell to which a basic-frequency channel is assigned, by using at least two basic-frequency channels, each basic-frequency channel having a multi-carrier OFDM signal; and
the mobile station comprising:
second transmitting means for transmitting a second transmitted radio signal to the base station;
second receiving means for receiving a second received radio signal from the base station; and
second control means for controlling the second transmitting means and the second receiving means to achieve high-speed communication between the base station and the mobile station by using at least two basic-frequency channels, when the mobile station exists in the specific area,
wherein the specific area is an area with a predetermined transmitting power, a predetermined radius between the circumference of the specific area and the border between two adjacent cells, and a predetermined radius for each cell.
2. The radio communication system according to claim 1, wherein the base station andor the mobile station determine whether the mobile station exists in the specific area based on the first received radio signal or the second received radio signal.
3. The radio communication system according to claim 1, wherein the high-speed communication is achieved through one OFDM frequency channel composed of the basic-frequency channels and sub-carrier channels provided among the basic-frequency channels.
4. A base station for use in a radio communication system in which radio communication is performed between the base station and a mobile station, the base station comprising:
transmitting means for transmitting a transmitted radio signal to the mobile station;
receiving means for receiving a received radio signal from the mobile station; and
control means for controlling the transmitting means and the receiving means to achieve high-speed communication between the base station and the mobile station, when the mobile station exists in a specific area within a cell to which a basic-frequency channel is assigned, by using at least two basic-frequency channels, each basic-frequency channel having a multi-carrier OFDM signal,
wherein the specific area is an area with a predetermined transmitting power, a predetermined radius between the circumference of the specific area and the border between two adjacent cells, and a predetermined radius for each cell.
5. The base station according to claim 4, wherein the control means determines whether the mobile station exists in the specific area based on the received radio signal the receiving means has received from the mobile station.
6. The base station according to claim 4, wherein the high-speed communication is achieved through the OFDM frequency channel composed of the basic-frequency channels and sub-carrier channels provided among the basic-frequency channels.
7. A mobile station for use in a radio communication system in which radio communication is performed between a base station and the mobile station, the mobile station comprising:
transmitting means for transmitting a transmitted radio signal to the base station;
receiving means for receiving a received radio signal from the base station; and
control means for controlling the transmitting means and the receiving means to achieve high-speed communication between the base station and the mobile station, when the mobile station exists in a specific area within a cell to which a basic-frequency channel is assigned, by using at least two basic-frequency channels, each basic-frequency channel having a multi-carrier OFDM signal,
wherein the specific area is an area with a predetermined transmitting power, a predetermined radius between the circumference of the specific area and the border between two adjacent cells, and a predetermined radius for each cell.
8. The mobile station according to claim 7, wherein the control means determines whether the mobile station exists in the specific area based on the received signal the receiving means has received from the base station.
9. The mobile station according to claim 7, wherein the high-speed communication is achieved through one OFDM frequency channel composed of the basic-frequency channels and sub-carrier channels provided among the basic-frequency channels.
10. A radio communication system in which radio communication is performed between a base station and a mobile station, the radio communication system comprising:
a plurality of first-type cells to which each of a plurality of basic-frequency channel is assigned respectively, each channel comprising a multi-carrier OFDM signal; and
a plurality of second-type cells, each of which is provided in one first-type cell, of the plurality of first-type cells, to which the basic-frequency channels are assigned to achieve high-speed communication between the base station and the mobile station,
wherein the specific area is an area with a predetermined transmitting power, a predetermined radius between the circumference of the specific area and the border between two adjacent cells, and a predetermined radius for each cell.
11. The radio communication system according to claim 10, wherein the high-speed communication is achieved through one OFDM frequency channel composed of the basic-frequency channels and sub-carrier channels provided among the basic-frequency channels.
12. A method of performing radio communication between a base station and a mobile station, the method comprising the steps of:
performing radio communication between the base station and the mobile station through a basic-frequency channel assigned to each cell, the basic-frequency channel comprising a multi-carrier OFDM signal; and
performing high-speed communication between the base station and the mobile station, through the basic-frequency channels when the mobile station exists in a specific area within the cell,
wherein the specific area is an area with a predetermined transmitting power, a predetermined radius between the circumference of the specific area and the border between two adjacent cells, and a predetermined radius for each cell.
13. The method according to claim 12, further comprises the step of
determining whether the mobile station exists in the specific area based on the signals received by either the base station and the mobile station.
14. The method according to claim 12, wherein the high-speed communication is achieved through one OFDM frequency channel composed of the basic-frequency channels and sub-carrier channels provided among the basic-frequency channels.