Pipe joints or couplings – With leakage or drip disposal
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-22
2001-09-18
Nicholson, Eric K. (Department: 3629)
Pipe joints or couplings
With leakage or drip disposal
C285S305000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06290263
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to hose couplings. More particularly, the invention is directed to a detachable hose coupling with an improved interlocking U-shaped staple for use in mining applications.
2. Prior Art
There exist a number of detachable coupling designs which include U-shaped interlocking staples. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,260,184 and 4,923,351 disclose fluid couplings which employ U-shaped staple connectors. The staples interlock male and female coupling pieces when disposed between aligned recessed or grooved surface areas of the exterior of the male piece and a bored surface of the female piece. Thus fair, the U-shaped staple connector has had either a rectangular, circular or D-shaped configuration. The grooved surface of the male piece commonly includes a linear line of contact and the bored surfaces include circular lines of contact. Consequently, the cross-sectional configuration of the U-shaped connector chosen impacted the coupling efficiency.
Each of the prior cross-sectional designs has benefits and disadvantages in certain field applications. Traditionally rectangular and circular cross-sectional U-shaped connectors have been employed in the coupling of the type of present invention due to their ease of manufacture and assembly. However, the rectangular cross-section has beer found to have short life due to fatigue as well as reduced tensile strength. Also, brinelling occurs within the circular bore of the female piece due to angled edges and causes stress points of coupling.
Likewise, the circular cross-section has been found to cause brinelling along a linear contact line of the male piece. However, fatigue and tensile strength of circular cross-sectional type configuration staple are greatly increased.
The advent of the D-shaped cross-section was an attempt to gain efficiencies of both prior configurations by incorporating shape to reduce wear at the points of contact of the staple at the sides and bottom of the grooved surface of the male piece by placing the curved surface of the staple in contact with the curved bored surface of the female piece. While the D-shaped cross-section was an attempt to solve the brinelling problem, it has not been readily accepted into a number of coupling fields.
This has been true in the mining industry which utilizes the rectangular cross-section U-shaped connector on a so-called “Super Stecko” coupling. Presumably, such D-shaped cross-sectional coupling staple connectors have yet to provide a suitable solution to uses in the field of coal mining, wherein coal dust, soot and oil can lodge between tight fittings and cause locking of coupling pieces.
Accordingly, there remains a need to improve detachable hose couplers. The present invention aims to overcome the stated problems in the art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to improve detachable hose couplings in the field of mining.
It is a further object to improve U-shaped staple connectors for use in detachable hose couplings.
Accordingly, the present invention is directed a detachable hose coupling having improved interlocking U-shaped staple. The coupling includes a generally cylindrical female sleeve piece having a pair of coaxially aligned bored open surfaces which are in opposing generally equidistant positions and displaced from a vertical plane passing through a central longitudinal axis of the female sleeve piece. The female sleeve piece has a longitudinal axial open surface extending therethrough in communication with the bored open surfaces.
Also, provided is a generally cylindrical male piece of a size and configuration to permit insertion into the female sleeve piece. The male piece has a longitudinal axial open surface extending therethrough and further has external recessed surface portion which when the male piece is inserted into the female sleeve piece is generally alignable with the bored open surfaces to provide an interconnecting open surface through the detachable hose coupling. The recessed surface is further defined to provide a first line of contact of a first predetermined configuration in the interconnecting open surface and the bored open surfaces each provide a second and third line of contact of a second predetermined configuration in the interconnecting open surface.
A generally U-shaped staple is included and has a cross-section with at least a first peripheral surface of a complimentary configuration to the first predetermined configuration for contact with the first line of contact and having, a second peripheral surface of a complimentary configuration to the second predetermined configuration for contact with the second line and third lines of contact. At least one of the first peripheral surface and the second peripheral surface includes at least one radially recessed surface portion to permit a predetermined amount of fluid flow thereby.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3527485 (1970-09-01), Goward et al.
patent: 3973791 (1976-08-01), Porta et al.
patent: 4260184 (1981-04-01), Greenawalt et al.
patent: 4431218 (1984-02-01), Paul, Jr. et al.
patent: 4537427 (1985-08-01), Cooke
patent: 4894156 (1990-01-01), Murken
patent: 5040831 (1991-08-01), Lewis
patent: 5135264 (1992-08-01), Elliot-Moore
patent: 5964483 (1999-10-01), Lon et al.
Graham R. William
Nicholson Eric K.
LandOfFree
Detachable hose coupling having improved interlocking staple does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Detachable hose coupling having improved interlocking staple, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Detachable hose coupling having improved interlocking staple will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2468812