Patent 7246418 was granted and assigned to Groz-Beckert on July, 2007 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
The felting needle according to the invention comprises a working part (12) with two partial sections (15, 16), each of which is preferably embodied with straight edges. The two partial sections are twisted slightly, relative to each other. Each partial section is provided with at least one ring of indentations with the indentations arranged offset to each other in axial direction. As a result, all notches are oriented uniformly in the direction of the longitudinal axis (14), despite the slight twisting of the section between the two partial sections (15, 16). The felting needle can thus be used to produce fleece materials and needle-punched felt materials, which have a nearly uniform tearing resistance in longitudinal as well as lateral direction.