AU2006303863A1 - Assembling pipe fitting components with crimped ferrule clamping a pipe to the fitting - Google Patents

Description

WO 2007/045012 PCT/AU2006/001139 1 Assembling pipe fitting components with crimped ferrule clamping a pipe to the fitting. 5 Field of the Invention This invention relates to pipe fitting constructions and to methods for assembling such pipe fittings. 10 Background of the Invention When water pipe systems are being installed in new or existing buildings, the components of the system are generally laid out temporarily before finally securing them together to form a watertight installation. Typically, those components will 15 comprise a range of pipe fittings which require assembly and which are used to join lengths of plastic pipe. The pipe fittings may comprise a number of components which are initially loosely assembled before being securely fixed to the plastic pipe by a securement step. The 20 securement step may comprise crimping a collar or ferrule over the pipe so as to force it into holding engagement with the pipe fitting. The current commonly used systems typically suffer from a number of disadvantages. For example, the loose assembly of pipe fitting components has a tendency to fall 25 apart prior to the final fixing step. Furthermore, the pipe or fittings cannot be readily rotated for inspection purposes when placed loosely in position for fear of the assembly falling apart. It is an object of the invention to provide a pipe fitting which obviates or ameliorates 30 at least one of the aforesaid disadvantages.

WO 2007/045012 PCT/AU2006/001139 2 Disclosure of the Invention The invention provides in one aspect a pipe fitting comprising, a tubular member having an open end, 5 a retaining region provided around the outer surface of the tubular member at a position remote from the open end, a least one ridge having an effective outer diameter greater than the effective outer diameter of the retaining region, the at least one ridge being located on the tubular member between the open end and one side of the retaining region, 10 a stop on the tubular member provided at an opposite side of the retaining region, a ferrule coaxially mounted on the tubular member and surrounding the at least one ridge, the ferrule being located and sized so as to allow an end of a pipe to be inserted over the open end to be sandwiched between the ferrule and the at least 15 one ridge, and a necked portion of the ferrule held in the retaining region between the at least one ridge and stop. The tubular member may typically comprise metal or plastic. In one embodiment it 20 may comprise brass. The pipe fitting may comprise a plurality of tubular members. For example, a linear pipe fitting may comprise two tubular members joined end to end with a stop therebetween. The at least one ridge of one of the tubular members may comprise the 25 stop for the other of the two tubular members. Alternatively the tubular members may be joined to form an elbow shaped pipe fitting. In another embodiment, three tubular members may be joined to form a T-shaped pipe fitting. 30 The retaining region may comprise a circular channel provided between the stop and one ridge.

WO 2007/045012 PCT/AU2006/001139 3 Typically, there may be a plurality of ridges. They may be generally circular. They may have sharp edges to facilitate sealing of the ridges with an end of a pipe. Typically there will be at least four or more circular ridges arranged on the tubular member between the open end and the stop. 5 The ferrule may comprise a material which can be crimped to secure the end of the pipe to the pipe fitting. It may comprise copper. It may comprise stainless steel. It may comprise aluminium. 10 One or more viewing holes may be provided in the ferrule. The viewing holes may be positioned so as to view the insertion of the pipe over the tubular member. To ensure that the pipe is inserted sufficiently far over the tubular member, the viewing hole may be located close to the necked portion of the ferrule. 15 The stop may comprise a wall of the circular channel. It may be part of a joining portion between tubular members. The ferrule may be secured to the tubular member by fitting it over the tubular member and pressing the circular end of the ferrule against the stop to bend the 20 circular end inwardly to form the necked portion and to hold the necked portion of the ferrule in the retaining region. To this end, the circular end of the ferrule may be partially bent inwardly prior to being fitted over the tubular member. Alternatively, if the ferrule is in the form of a collar of constant diameter prior to fitting, the stop may be shaped in such a way as to form the necked portion when the ferrule is pressed 25 against the stop. In another alternative the necked portion of the ferrule may be formed by using a tool to deforn it inwardly after the ferrule is inserted over the tubular member. The tool may act as a stop to bend the ferrule inwardly. 30 The pipe fitting according to the invention may be joined to a pipe by inserting the pipe end over the open end of the pipe fitting and crimping the ferrule so as to WO 2007/045012 PCT/AU2006/001139 4 provide a seal between the tubular member and the pipe. The ridges surrounding the tubular member may act to provide the seal when the ferrule is crimped thereon. Preferred aspects of the invention will now be described with reference to the 5 accompanying drawings. Brief Description of the Drawings Figure 1 shows an elevational view of a T-fitting according to the invention 10 having a sectioned ferrule mounted thereon and includes an expanded view of an encircled portion of the drawing; Figure 2 shows the pipe fitting of Figure 1 mounted in a press arrangement for securing the ferrule; Figure 3 shows a press for securing the ferrule to a pipe fitting; 15 Figure 4 shows the ferrule of a pipe fitting being secured to a pipe by crimping; and Figure 5 shows various pipe fittings according to the invention joined by sections of pipe. 20 Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment The various elements identified by numerals in the drawings are listed in the following integer list. 25 Integer List 1 Pipe fitting 3 Tubular member 4 Open end 30 5 Ridge 7 Retaining region 8 Central portion 9 Stop WO 2007/045012 PCT/AU2006/001139 5 11 Ferrule 12 Viewing hole 13 Inwardly bent region 15 Necked in region 5 17 Anvil 21 Hammer 23 Press 25 Lever 27 Crimper 10 28 Pipe 29 Crimped portion 32 Linear fitting 33 Elbow fitting 15 Referring to Figure 1 of the drawings, there is shown a pipe fitting according to the invention generally designated 1. The pipe fitting is a T-fitting provided with three tubular members 3 in communication with each other through the central portion of the fitting 8. 20 Typically the tubular members and central portion may be cast, machined or moulded as a single unit from a metal such as brass or a hard plastics material. Each of the tubular members has an open end 4. A number of circumferential ridges 5 encircling each tubular member are provided to assist with sealing. The ridges may 25 typically have sharp edges which assist with sealing the pipe fitting to a pipe. Each of the tubular members 3 has a retaining region 7 in the form of a circular channel. 30 One side of the circular channel comprises a stop 9 for purposes to become apparent. The stop is simply the edge of the central portion 8 joined to each of the tubular members 3.

WO 2007/045012 PCT/AU2006/001139 6 A ferrule 11 formed of a crimpable material such as copper has been slid over the tubular member so that the inwardly bent region 13 provided at one end of the ferrule may be brought into abutment with the stop 9. 5 The ferrule is provided with viewing holes 12 near the inwardly bent region to allow a user to visually confirm that a pipe has been correctly located over the end of the tubular member as will be described hereinafter. Referring to Figure 2 it can be seen that the pipe fitting shown in Figure 1 after it has 10 been placed in a press 23 (shown in Figure 3) between the anvil 17 and hammer 21 of the press. It is noted that the anvil 17 is a tubular anvil with a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the tubular member 3 and slightly smaller than the diameter of the ferrule 15 11. Operation of the lever 25 (see Figure 3) of the press causes the hammer to press the inwardly bent region 13 shown in Figure 1 between the anvil and the stop 9 thereby bending it further to form the necked in region 15 (see Figure 2). This causes the 20 forward edge of the necked in region to be captured in the retaining region 7 between the stop and one of the ridges 5. The hammer is then released by operating the lever 25 (see Figure 3) of the press to lift the hammer. Referring to Figure 3, it can be seen how a pipe 28 which has been fitted over a 25 tubular member 3 in the gap between the ferrule and the tubular member is secured by means of a crimper 27. The crimper presses the ferrule onto the pipe, and the pipe is inturn pressed against the ridges 5. This creates a seal between the pipe and tubular member. As the ferrule 11 is made of a deformable material such as copper, the crimping action permanently deforms it. As a result the crimped portion 29 maintains 30 the hold and seal between the pipe fitting and the pipe. Referring to Figure 5, there is shown a typical arrangement in which a range of pipe fittings according to the invention comprising a T-fitting 1, a linear fitting 32 and an WO 2007/045012 PCT/AU2006/001139 7 elbow fitting 33 can be used to join various pieces of pipe 28 using a crimper as described with reference to Figure 4. It can also be joined to a host of other fittings which include the fitting design of the invention, including tap, shower and valve fittings etc. 5 It should be noted that the ferrule 11 which is captured in the retaining region 7 may be rotatable with the pipe 28 for inspection prior to the ferrule being crimped. As the ferrule is held to the pipe fitting the risk of the assembly falling apart when it is rotated is acceptably low.. 10 Whilst the above description includes the preferred embodiments of the invention, it is to be understood that many variations, alterations, modifications and/or additions may be introduced into the constructions and arrangements of parts previously described without departing from the essential features or the spirit or ambit of the 15 invention. It will be also understood that where the word "comprise", and variations such as "comprises" and "comprising", are used in this specification, unless the context requires otherwise such use is intended to imply the inclusion of a stated feature or 20 features but is not to be taken as excluding the presence of other feature or features. The reference to any prior art in this specification is not, and should not be taken as, an acknowledgment or any form of suggestion that such prior art forms part of the common general knowledge in Australia.

Claims (16)

1. A pipe fitting comprising, 5 a tubular member having an open end, a retaining region provided around the outer surface of the tubular member at a position remote from the open end, a least one ridge having an effective outer diameter greater than the effective outer diameter of the retaining region, the at least one ridge being located on the 10 tubular member between the open end and one side of the retaining region, a stop on the tubular member provided at an opposite side of the retaining region, a ferrule coaxially mounted on the tubular member and surrounding the at least one ridge, the ferrule being located and sized so as to allow an end of a pipe to 15 be inserted over the open end to be sandwiched between the ferrule and the at least one ridge, and a necked portion of the ferrule held in the retaining region between the at least one ridge and stop. 20

2. The pipe fitting of claim 1 wherein the at least one ridge comprises a plurality of circular ridges surrounding the tubular member.

3. The pipe fitting according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the retaining region comprises a circular channel on the outer surface of the tubular member and the stop 25 comprises a wall of the circular channel.

4. The pipe fitting according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the ferrule comprises a viewing hole for viewing the insertion of the pipe over the tubular member. 30

5. The pipe fitting according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the ferrule comprises a metal collar having a circular end which bends inwardly to form the necked portion. WO 2007/045012 PCT/AU2006/001139 9

6. The pipe fitting according to any one of the preceding claims comprising a plurality of the tubular members joined together to allow fluid communication between the tubular members, each tubular member having a ferrule coaxially 5 mounted thereon in the manner defined in claim 1.

7. The pipe fitting according to claim 6 comprising two tubular members joined to form a linear or elbow shaped pipe fitting. 10

8. The pipe fitting according to claim 6 comprising three tubular members joined to form a T-shaped pipe fitting.

9. The pipe fitting according to any one of the claims 1 to 8 wherein the ferrule comprises copper. 15

10. A method of forming a pipe fitting constructed in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 9 wherein the necked portion of each ferrule is formed from a metal collar which has been co-axially fitted over a respective tubular member and a circular end of the ferrule is pressed against a stop to bend the circular end inwardly to form the 20 necked portion and hold the necked portion of the ferrule in the retaining region.

11. The method according to claim 10 wherein the circular end of the ferrule is partially bent inwardly prior to being fitted over the respective tubular member. 25

12. The method according to claim 11 wherein the circular partially bent end of the ferrule is pressed against the stop by an annular anvil member fitted between the ferrule and the respective tubular member.

13. The method according to claim 10 wherein the ferrule is a collar of 30 substantially constant diameter prior to fitting over the respective tubular member and the respective stop is shaped so as to form the necked portion when the ferrule is pressed against the stop. WO 2007/045012 PCT/AU2006/001139 10

14. A method of joining an end of a pipe to a pipe fitting according to any one of the claims 1 to 9 comprising inserting the pipe end over the open end and crimping the ferrule so as to provide a seal between the tubular member and the pipe to hold the pipe on the tubular member. 5

15. The pipe fitting according to claim 1 substantially as hereinbefore described.

16. The method of forming a pipe fitting according to claim 10 substantially as hereinbefore described.