Classifications

• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L—PIPES; JOINTS OR FITTINGS FOR PIPES; SUPPORTS FOR PIPES, CABLES OR PROTECTIVE TUBING; MEANS FOR THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L23/00—Flanged joints
  • F16L23/04—Flanged joints the flanges being connected by members tensioned in the radial plane
  • F16L23/06—Flanged joints the flanges being connected by members tensioned in the radial plane connected by toggle-action levers

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a coupler-decoupler with safety interlock and cylinder assisted opening.
• a coupler-decoupler is a device intended to provide a rapidly disconnectable connection between two sections of a fluid pipe. It is used in particular, but not exclusively, to ensure the coupling of the two isolation valves used in the emergency disconnectors of the loading or unloading arms of fluid transport vehicles.
• coupler-decouplers usually include a hoop or collar formed by arms articulated to each other and having a V-profile engaging on connection collars provided at the two ends of the sections of the pipe (or on the two taps that the '' we want to mate).
• This collar comprises, moreover, usually mounted on its two end arms, a locking device which locks in the closed position and comprising means of fast opening generally controlled by cylinder.
• this closure device must be designed so that in the closed and locked position, it exerts on the two end arms sufficient traction and, therefore, sufficiently intense tightening of the collar on the connection collars, to obtain, by virtue of the action of the oblique parts of the V-profile, a tight junction of the two sections of pipe or two robi ⁇ nets.
• the closure of the collar is then obtained by engaging the bearing surface of the support piece on the bearing surface of the abutment part, the lever then being in the raised position, then lowering the lever.
• the clamping piece exerts on the abutment piece a force causing the clamping of the collar, while the spring is compressed.
• the oscillating assembly (support piece / spring) rocks around its axis of rotation, so that the axis of the force exerted by the clamping piece on the stop piece varies in inclination.
• This locking is then completed by a safety locking obtained by means of a shear pin. arranged so as to block in rotation the lever (in the bracing position) on the end arm of the collar which supports it.
• Unlocking is then obtained by raising the lever to exit this bracing position.
• This lifting can be advantageously ensured by means of a jack mounted oscillating on the collar and the rod of which actuates the lever in the direction of opening.
• the invention therefore aims to eliminate these drawbacks. It proposes a coupler-decoupler in which the safety lock does not involve a frangible element and the jack provides an effective disconnection effort on the collar.
• this coupler involves a lever pivotally mounted, by one of its ends, by means of a first axis, on a support piece secured to one of the two arms d end of the necklace, a oscillating assembly comprising a support piece cooperating with elastic means, mounted to rotate on the lever around a second axis distant from the first, and a stop piece integral with the second end arm of the collar, this stop piece comprising a rounded bearing surface located on the side opposite to the first end arm of the collar and on which can bear a bearing sensi ⁇ ble shape complementary to the support piece.
• this coupler-decoupler is more particularly characterized in that:
• the support piece and said lever each comprise at least two oblong notches extending radially with respect to the above first axis and arranged so as to come into coincidence when the lever is in the closed position and that the assembly oscillating (support piece / spring) in support, on the stop piece forms a bracing;
• a jack pivotally mounted around the first axis and comprising a rod which carries, at its end, a safety locking part capable of coming to engage, in the retracted position of the jack, in said notches, when these are in coincidence and, consequently, the lever is in the closed position;
• the support piece comprises, beyond the above enco ⁇ che, a guide surface of said security locking piece, and the lever comprises, above said guide surface, an inclined ramp on which comes to carry said locking piece during the actuator deployment stroke, so as to generate a tilting of the lever causing the assembly (lever, bearing piece, spring) to exit its locking position;
• the abovementioned abutment part comprises, in the axis of the guide surface, when the collar is locked.
• Lé an abutment surface on which the safety locking piece acts, at the end of the displacement movement of the jack, to exert on the collar a disconnection force.
• an effective disconnection successively comprising: unlocking the security (release of the locking piece from the notches), opening the closing device by means of the action of the locking piece on said ramp, this action causing the assembly oscillating from its braced position, and a disconnection force, by the action of the locking piece on the stop piece, which ensures simultaneous opening of the two end arms of the collar and, consequently, separation of the collar and the pipe (or taps).
• Figure 1 is a cross section of a pipe equipped with a coupler-decoupler according to the invention
• Figure 2 is a partial view, on a larger scale, of the collar closure device used in the coupler-decoupler of Figure 1;
• Figures 3 and 4 are sections on a larger scale respectively along BB and CC of Figure 1; '
• Figure 5 is a top view of Figure 1;
• Figure 6 is a schematic representation of the closure device in the open position allows ⁇ both to highlight the forms of the lever and its support piece;
• FIGS. 7, 8 and 9 are partial diagrammatic representations making it possible to illustrate the operating principle of the closure device, FIG. 7 representing the closed-locked position, FIG. 8 showing the unlocking phase and FIG. 9 illustrating the opening phase;
• Figures 10 to 13 are schematic representations of the collar, making it possible to illustrate the function of the pin, during decoupling.
• the coupler firstly comprises a collar 1 formed by three circular arms 2, 3, 4 of the same radius and each extending over 120 ® , namely: a lower arm 2 and, articulated to the two ends of this arm (articulations 5, 6), two lateral arms 3, 4 which are closed, one towards the other, by their free ends 7, 8 in the bisector plane of the arm 2.
• the arm 4 comprises a pin 9 which extends its free end 8 and engages in a recess in the arm 3. The role of this pin 9 will be explained in more detail with reference to FIGS. 10 to 13.
• the arms 2, 3 and 4 each have a substantially square section with, on the inside, a V-shape, 10 intended to come over the collars 11, 12 of frustoconical shape equipping the ends of the two sections 13, 14 of the pipeline (or the two taps).
• These two cheeks 15, 16 have, on the side of the arm 3, a profile comprising a notch 21 extending radially with respect to the axis 20 and the lower edge of which has a greater length than the upper edge and fills, in the zone 22 located beyond the notch 21, a guiding function which will be specified below.
• the lever 18 is designed so as to extend 'beyond the junction plane of the arms 3, 4. It is formed by two, flanges 24, 25 joined in their upper part by a spacer 26. On the end free of this lever 18, which ' forms a hinge yoke, is mounted oscillating, about an axis 27, an assembly comprising a cylindrical body 28 inside which is slidably mounted a support piece or finger 29 which cooperates with a spring formed by a stack of Belleville washers 30 disposed between a shoulder 31 of the finger and the bottom 32 of the cylindrical body 28.
• the flanges 24, 25 have a substantially trapezoidal shape with the small base 33 located on the side opposite the collar and whose large base comprises a recess whose profile forms a notch 34 of the same width as the notch 21 and which extends radially with respect to the axis 20, so as to coincide with the notch 21 when the lever is in the closed position.
• the notch is, moreover, extended by a rectilinear zone 35 forming an oblique ramp relative to the guide zones 22 of the cheeks 15, 16 extending the notch 21.
• the arm 4 of the collar carries, near its free end 8, a stop piece formed of two parallel lateral cheeks 36 fixed on the sides of the arm by means of bolts 37 and connected to one another by a stopper 38 with rounded head and having two opposite circular concavities 39, 40 situated at the base of said head 41.
• the jack 19 is double-acting: it comprises, in a conventional manner, a rod 42 actuated by a piston 43, and the other end of which is provided with a transverse support piece (nut) 44 of shape cylindrical provided with two lateral crank pins 45, 46 of diameter substantially equal to the width of the notches 21, 34.
• the collar 1 is mounted on the collars 11, 12 of the two sections 13, 14 of the pipe until the free ends 7, 8 of the arms 3, 4 are facing each other at a short distance from one of the 'other.
• the lever 18 is in the raised position, for example as shown in FIG. 6, and the jack 19 is slightly deployed (however not enough to come against the stopper 38, the nut 44 being on the guide zone 22).
• the bearing piece 29 is brought against the concavity 40 of the stopper 38.
• tilting down the oscillating assembly 28, 29, 30 using a tool a locking by bracing.
• the notches 34 of the lever 33 et.celles 21 of the two cheeks 15, 16 are trou ⁇ wind in coincidence.
• the safety lock is then obtained by retracting the rod 42 of the jack 19, so that the crank pins 45, 46 of the nut 44 come to engage in the notches 21 and 34.
• the lever 18 is then solidari ⁇ se to the cheeks 15, 16 which makes any opening that can be caused by external causes impossible.
• the engagement- The crank pins 45, 46 in the notches 21, 34 are facilitated by a chamfered edge 50 of the notches 34.
• FIG. 7 shows the closure device in the closed-locked position.
• this figure shows only part of the arms 3, 4 of the collar, the parallel cheeks 15, 16, part of the lever 18 and the side crank pins 45, 46 of the nut. mounted at the end of the cylinder rod (not shown).
• the notches 21 and 34 are in coincidence.
• the cylinder is in the closed position and the crank pins 45, 46 are engaged in the notches 21, 34. They therefore provide mechanical locking preventing any tilting of the lever and, consequently, any untimely opening of the closing device.
• FIGS. 10 and 11 a collar without a pin has been shown in the closed position (FIG. 10) and during opening (FIG. 11), for example under the action of the jack, as in the example previously described. .

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Quick-Acting Or Multi-Walled Pipe Joints (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=9318085

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (3)

Families Citing this family (3)

Family Cites Families (2)

• 1985
  • 1985-04-10 FR FR8505359A patent/FR2580367B1/fr not_active Expired
• 1986
  • 1986-04-10 EP EP19860902413 patent/EP0217901A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 1986-04-10 WO PCT/FR1986/000117 patent/WO1986006146A1/fr unknown

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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