AU2007202374A1

AU2007202374A1 - Access fitting

Info

Publication number: AU2007202374A1
Application number: AU2007202374A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Mark Edward Trail
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2007-05-24
Filing date: 2007-05-24
Publication date: 2008-12-11

Description

P/00/011 Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990

ORIGINAL

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention Title: "ACCESS FITTING" The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us: ACCESS FITTING This invention relates to an access fitting for a tank which may be connected to dispensers or hoses for delivery of a wide range of fluids including water, chemicals, hydraulic fluid, propane gas and natural gas which may be included in the tank. The access fitting of the invention may also be used in irrigation systems and mining and construction applications.

Reference may be made to Australian Patent Specification 2004201688 which describes an access fitting for a tank which has a head flange and a hollow shank extending from the head flange which shank has a proximal screw threaded portion adjacent the head flange and a distal screw threaded portion remote from the head flange characterised in that there is provided an intermediate unthreaded portion between the proximal and distal portions which in use may be engaged by a tool to prevent rotation of the shank. The unthreaded intermediate portion may be knurled or milled so as to be provided with a suitable surface to be gripped by a tool such as a spanner. Alternatively the unthreaded portion may have a hexagonal shape to be gripped by a socket.

Australian specification 2004201688 also described a nut having an internal screw threaded passage having the same thread as the proximal screw threaded portion of the shank and which engaged the proximal screw threaded portion during installation of the access fitting to a tank.

The invention which was the subject of Australian specification 2004201688 had the advantage of being able to be installed to a tank incorporating the access fitting by one person in an efficient and quick operation. It also had a further advantage that when it was necessary to disconnect and/or reconnect an external fitting or internal fitting to the access fitting all that was necessary was that the hexagonal unthreaded portion be gripped by a spanner.

However one notable feature of the access fitting of Australian specification 2004201688 was the inclusion of the distal screw threaded portion remote from the head flange. It has now been discovered that in some cases this distal screw threaded portion could be omitted especially when it was desired to use couplings such as hoses attachable to the access fitting or alternatively couplings suitable for dispensing or transferring chemicals, natural gas or propane gas, cryogenic fluids, hydraulic fluids or alternatively use dry break couplings, pneumatic interchange couplings, interchange couplings generally or general purpose couplings.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide an access fitting which utilises means to attach the access fitting to an external fitting which does not incorporate a screw threaded portion distal from the head flange.

Therefore the invention provides an access fitting for a tank having a head flange and a hollow shank extending from the head flange which shank has a proximal screw threaded portion adjacent the head flange and a distal non-threaded connection portion remote from the head flange and an intermediate unthreaded portion between the proximal screw threaded portion and the distal non-threaded connection portion.

The distal non threaded connection portion may include a tail having a plurality of arcuate barbs or ribs all of which are in parallel planes and which also may have a slight outward taper in the direction of the head flange.

The barbed tail as described above is suitable for attachment to hoses preferably made from flexible material such as natural or synthetic rubber by a circlip or peripheral clamp which engages an outer surface of the hose as it is retained on the barbed tail by the plurality of barbs which resist movement N of the hose to free itself from the tail.

Alternatively the distal non threaded connection portion may include a lower planar portion and an upper planar portion separated by groove of concave shape. This particular connection portion is suitable for attachment of couplings or hose clamps having one or more lever arms which require manual delatching of a locking means wherein each lever arm may have an arcuate or eccentric shaped cam at a fixed end which engages the concave groove in the locked position. Alternatively a coupling or hose clamp may be used which has a plurality of spring loaded balls or other part of the hose clamp engaging the concave groove.

The unthreaded intermediate portion may be knurled or milled so as to be provided with a suitable surface so as to be gripped by a tool such as a spanner such as a shifting spanner, wrench or socket. However more preferably the unthreaded intermediate portion may be provided with a hexagonal or polygonal shape so as to be gripped by a tool having a socket or gripping part of corresponding shape. The unthreaded part may have a length between 6-25mm as may be required by the user.

The proximal threaded portion may be of left hand thread although the reverse may be adopted if suitable in some circumstances.

The flange may have any suitable shape such as a circular or polygonal such as hexagonal.

The access fitting of the invention may also include a nut component having an internal screw threaded passage or bore of the same hand as the proximal screw threaded portion of the shank. Usually this will be a left hand thread.

The nut component may comprise a disc suitably of hexagonal configuration having the abovementioned internal passage or bore.

Alternatively the nut component may comprise an integral assembly of outer flange and a flange of lesser diameter which constitutes a gripping means for a spanner or other tool as shown in the preferred embodiment.

The shank may also include an internal threaded bore or internal passage for connection of an internal fitting.

The access fitting of the invention may also comprising sealing means between the flange and an internal surface of a tank wall surrounding the aperture through which the shank may extend. The sealing means may include a disc having a central aperture made of rubber or other elastomeric material or more preferably is an O-ring located in a retaining groove in a surface of the flange abutting the internal surface of the tank wall.

Reference may now be made to a preferred embodiment of the invention as shown in the drawings wherein FIG 1 is a side view of one embodiment of the access fitting prior to attachment of the nut component; and FIG 2 is a similar view to FIG 1 showing the access fitting with the nut component attached to the shank of the access fitting and a hose attached thereto by a circular clamp.

FIG 3 is a side view of another embodiment of the access fitting prior to attachment of the nut component; FIG 4 shows a side view of the access fitting with the nut component attached to the shank of the access fitting with an adjacent outlet fitting having a pair of cam-operated locking arms; FIG 5 is a similar view to FIG 4 showing a sectional view of the outlet fitting of FIG 4 attached to the access fitting with the cam-operated locking arms in a locked position; and FIG 6 is a sectional view of the access fitting of FIG 3 attached to another type of outlet fitting.

In FIGS 1-2 reference is made to access fitting 10 including a head or end flange 11, shank 12 having a screw threaded left hand inner portion 13, hexagonal unthreaded portion 14 and outer connection portion Unthreaded portion 14 includes flats 14A separated by peripheral portions 14B. The access fitting 10 also includes an internal passage 16 shown by lines in phantom, and groove 17 having O-ring 18 located in flange 11.

Internal passage 16 may, if desired, be screw threaded from end to end.

The access fitting 10 is shown in FIG 1 with flange 11 abutting internal surface 19 of peripheral wall 21 of a tank with O-ring 18 in bearing contact with internal surface 19. Shank 12 protrudes through an aperture 20 located in tank wall 21.

There is also provided an external nut component 22 having an internal screw thread (not shown) adapted to be screw threadedly attached to screw threaded portion 13 as shown in FIG 2. Component 22 is provided with inner flange 24 and outer flange 25. Outer flange 25 may be gripped by a spanner or other suitable tool for attaching nut component 22 to threaded portion 13.

Outer connection portion 15 is a barbed tail 26 having a plurality of circumferential barbs 27 all in parallel planes and each having a taper 28 which extends inwardly in the direction of free end 29 of access fitting FIG 2 shows a hose 30 of flexible material engaged with barbed tail 26 wherein each of the barbs 27 resists removal of hose 30 from access fitting 10. The attachment of hose 30 to barbed tail 26 is completed by circular clip 31 having clamp 32 associated therewith.

In FIGS 3-4 there is shown access fitting 10A and similar reference numerals describe similar parts as discussed above. Access fitting 10A is provided with an outlet fitting 35 having a pair of lever arms 36 attached to a pair of lugs 37 by rivet 38.

Each of lever arms 36 has an eccentric or cam 34 at a free end thereof. Access fitting 10 is provided with outer connection portion having a concave groove 39 between unthreaded portions 40 and 41. Outlet fitting 35 is also provided with a cylindrical upper part 33 and a lower part 32 of lesser diameter. Outlet fitting 35 also has hollow interior or socket 46.

FIG 5 shows the attachment of outlet fitting 35 to access fitting wherein each of cams 34 engage with concave groove 39 as shown when they are pivoted from the position shown in FIG 4 to the position shown in FIG 5. FIG 5 shows one of lever arms 36 in phantom intermediate an open position shown in FIG 4 to the locked position shown in FIG 5. Outlet fitting also has groove 47 and O-ring 48.

Reference also may be made to FIG 6 which shows an alternative type of outlet fitting 42 attached to access fitting 10 wherein in the closed position a plurality of balls 43 engage in concave groove 39. Each of balls 43 are subject to the action of spring 44. The fitting 42 also has a pair of movable levers 45 subject to the action of spring 44.

In each of the embodiments of FIG 5 and FIG 6 there is also shown hose 30 attached to outlet fittings 35 and 42 by being clamped to outlet part 46 by circular clip 31 having clamp 32.

It will be appreciated from the foregoing that the scope of the access fitting of Australian Patent Specification 2004201688 by the advent of the present invention has been considerably broadened and thus may be attached to hoses, valves or other connectors by the use of barbed tail 26 or concave groove 39. Thus outlet fittings 35 are known by various trade marks inclusive of KAMLOK, CAMLOCK, AUTOLOK and KAMVALOK which are examples of well known outlet fittings or quick connect couplings which may be used for a wide variety of fluid transfer operations. Outlet fittings 42 are also well known in relation to fluid transfer operations.

The invention also includes within its scope a method of interconnecting a tank to a hose which includes the steps of: attaching an access fitting as described above to the tank wherein the head flange of the access fitting abuts or is located adjacent an 8 Sinternal wall of the tank and is attached thereto by a nut component engaging the proximal screw threaded portion; and (ii) attaching a hose to the distal non threaded connection portion and clamping the hose thereto.

Claims

1. An access fitting for a tank having a head flange and a hollow shank extending from the head flange which shank has a proximal screw threaded portion adjacent the head flange and a distal non-threaded connection portion remote from the head flange and an intermediate unthreaded portion between the proximal screw threaded portion and the distal non-threaded connection portion.

2. An access fitting as claimed in claim 1 wherein the distal non threaded connection portion is a tail having a plurality of barbs or ribs each oriented in parallel planes.

3. An access fitting as claimed in claim 3 wherein each of the barbs or ribs have a slight taper progressively extending outwardly in the direction of the head flange.

4. An access fitting as claimed in claim 1 wherein the distal non threaded portion includes a lower planar portion and an upper planar portion separated by a groove of concave shape.

A method of interconnecting a tank to a hose which includes the steps of: attaching an access fitting as claimed in claim 1 to the tank wherein the head flange of the access fitting abuts or is located adjacent an internal wall of the tank and is attached thereto by a nut component engaging the proximal screw threaded portion; and (ii) attaching a hose to the distal non threaded connection portion and clamping the hose thereto.

6. A method as claimed in claim 5 wherein the distal non threaded connection portion has a plurality of retaining ribs each arranged in parallel planes and the hose is clamped to the distal non threaded connection portion by a hose clamp.

7. A method as claimed in claim 5 wherein the distal non threaded connection portion has a lower planar portion and an upper planar portion separated by a concave groove and the hose is attached thereto by a hose clamp having one or more lever arms which when moved to a locking position retain part of the hose clamp within the concave groove.