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Publication Number
US-11174972-B2
Publication Date
2021-11-16
Expiration Date
Abstract
A pipe joint includes a joint body formed with a through hole therein along an axial direction, and having male threads and an extending shaft portion formed on one end side thereof; and a nut member formed with an insertion hole through which a tube member is inserted, and having female threads formed therein that screw-engage with the male threads. Annular projections are formed on an outer circumferential surface of the extending shaft portion, and the tube member, which is expanded in diameter, is gripped between the annular projections and an inner circumferential surface of the nut member.
Core Innovation
The invention relates to a pipe joint architecture that uses a joint body and a nut member to insert an elastically deformable tube member having an expanded diameter portion. The expanded diameter portion is gripped between radially extending annular projections on an extending shaft portion and an inner circumferential surface of the nut member, while the nut member includes male and female thread engagement and the expanded diameter portion is constrained while being elastically deformed during screw-engagement.
Sealing is formed through a combination of tapered surfaces and a controlled radial clearance relationship between the annular projections and the cylindrical inner circumferential surface. A first tapered surface on the extending shaft portion cooperates with a tapered-surface-projection projecting outward from the first tapered surface to expand the elastically deformable tube member, and a second tapered surface flares outward toward the male threads while a third tapered surface on the inner circumferential surface of the nut member faces the second tapered surface so that the expanded diameter portion is sandwiched between the second tapered surface and the third tapered surface.
The architecture further includes regulation features for tightening and additional seal and retention structures. End face projections are formed on an end surface of the nut member, and plural arcuately shaped grooves are formed on the joint body in confronting relation to the end face projections, with widths and lengths configured to allow insertion and circumferential movement. Dependent embodiments further define an annular latching part and nut side annular projections that form additional sealing relationships.
Claims Coverage
The independent claim defines a pipe joint with an elastically deformable tube whose expanded diameter portion is gripped between shaft-side annular projections and a cylindrical nut inner circumferential surface, while multiple tapered surfaces form seals under screw-engagement with constrained clearance. It also includes end face projections interacting with arcuately shaped grooves to regulate tightening, and dependent claims add an annular latching part and nut-side projection variants to further establish sealing and retention.
Expanded tube gripping between shaft annular projections and nut inner circumferential surface
The elastically deformable tube member inserted in the nut member includes an expanded diameter portion which is gripped between the annular projections and an inner circumferential surface of the nut member, with distance constraints between semicircular radially distal ends of the annular projections and the cylindrical inner circumferential surface that are smaller than the tube thickness at corresponding axial locations, such that the expanded diameter portion is elastically deformed by the at least one annular projection and a first seal is formed by the radially distal end and an inner wall surface of the expanded diameter portion.
Multiple tapered surfaces to sandwich and seal the expanded diameter portion
A first tapered surface on an axial end of the extending shaft portion and a tapered-surface-projection projecting outward from the first tapered surface expand the elastically deformable tube member; additionally, a second tapered surface flares outward toward the male threads on an end of the extending shaft portion, and a third tapered surface is formed on the inner circumferential surface of the nut member at a position facing the second tapered surface, so the expanded diameter portion is sandwiched between the second tapered surface and the third tapered surface.
Tightening regulation using nut end face projections and arcuately shaped grooves
End face projections which regulate an amount of tightening of the nut member with respect to the joint body are formed on an end surface of the nut member, and plural arcuately shaped grooves are formed on the joint body in confronting relation to the end face projections, where the grooves have widths that allow insertion of the end face projections and have lengths that allow movement of the end face projections in a circumferential direction, with the end face projections and the grooves disposed on a common circumference as viewed in the axial direction when the female threads are screw-engaged with the male threads.
Annular latching part for added sealing near the insertion hole
A nut side annular latching part is formed on an end near an opening of the insertion hole such that the latching part presses the elastically deformable tube member inward against a first tapered surface with the latching part abutting the tube member outer wall, whereby an additional sealing relationship including a second seal is formed at least between the latching part and the tapered-surface-projection.
Nut-side annular projections pressing the expanded diameter portion toward selected directions
Nut side annular projections are formed on the inner circumferential surface of the nut member to press the expanded diameter portion of the elastically deformable tube member in directions toward recesses formed between adjacent shaft-side annular projections, and an alternative dependent arrangement provides nut side annular projections that press the expanded diameter portion in directions toward the annular projections.
Overall, the claims cover a pipe joint in which an expanded diameter portion of an elastically deformable tube is gripped and elastically deformed under constrained clearance to form a first seal, while tapered surfaces sandwich the expanded portion to form additional sealing. Tightening is regulated through end face projections engaging arcuately shaped grooves, and dependent embodiments broaden sealing and retention coverage using an annular latching part and nut-side annular projections with defined pressing directions.
Stated Advantages
Not explicitly described in patent.
Documented Applications
Not explicitly described in patent.
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