ELECTROTHERMAL HEATER MAT AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURE THEREOF

摘要

In a method of manufacturing an electrothermal heater mat (3), there is provided a preform (7) which comprises a laminated stack of dielectric layers (51-56) which are made of thermoplastic material and include a central layer or group of layers (501) which include(s) reinforcement and first and second outer groups of layers (502, 503) which do not include reinforcement. The preform (7) includes a heater element and the preform has a first configuration. The preform (7) is then heated to a temperature (e.g. 180°C) between the glass- transition temperature of the thermoplastic material and the melting point of the thermoplastic material, and the heated preform (7) is formed into a second configuration which is different to the first configuration so as to produce the heater mat (3).