FR2915553A1 - Fluidic connector for garden, has vertical ribs producing return force to push back thrust to operate sleeve in regular manner to stop stuck of retaining device due to deformation and operation failure, when sleeve is pushed towards bottom - Google Patents

Abstract

The connector has a set of thrust projections (83) positioned on an internal wall of a sleeve (80) and in alignment with flexible vertical ribs (712) of a resilient retaining device (70) such that the ribs are forced to be deformed and to produce a return force, when the sleeve is pushed towards the bottom. The force pushes back the projections towards their original place, when the sleeve is not subjected to external force to operate the sleeve in regular manner to stop the stuck of the device due to the deformation and operation failure, when the sleeve is pushed towards the bottom.

Description

FLUID CONNECTOR FOR GARDEN Background of the Invention

  The invention relates to an improved fluidic garden connector which consists of a tubular body, a resilient retainer and a sleeve. The tubular body is provided with a plurality of holes for receiving a locking hook, respectively, and the resilient retainer is peripherally equipped with a plurality of pairs of flexible vertical ribs, with an expansion gap defined therebetween. . On the inner wall of the sleeve are arranged a plurality of thrust protrusions which are positioned in relation to the flexible vertical ribs, respectively, so that when the sleeve is pushed downward, it is possible to force the flexible ribs to deform and store a force which can instantly push the sleeve push protrusions back to their place of origin when the sleeve does not undergo external force, making sleeve operation more smooth and easy without bringing the resilient retainer of the conventional fluidic connector to become stuck when the sleeve is pushed down, as a result of deformation and fatigue due to operation. As shown in FIG. 1, the perspective diagram represents the exploded components of the prior art cited by the present inventor.

  It comprises a tubular body 10, a locking collar 20, a sleeve 30 and a resilient retaining device 40 in which the tubular body 10 has a tubular passage from one end to the other with a connection tube 11 which extends from one end of the tubular body 10 to form a flanged section.

  The other end of the connecting tube 11 extends to the end of the tubular body 10 with a plurality of attachment teeth 12 disposed thereon and a support flange 13 defined in the middle of the tubular body 10 and having a limiting projection 131 placed on the periphery thereof. There is a plurality of axially spaced and axially extending guide grooves 14 defined on the front section of the tubular body 10 and each having a pair of rising guard ribs 141, 142. A through hole 15 is provided on each 14 and a flange of a sealing closure 16 is defined at the front end of the tubular body 10. The locking collar 20 having a terminal end defined in a threaded form is engaged with the end of the tubular body. tubular body 10 by threaded sections so that the threaded end 21 of the locking collar 20 can force the clamping teeth 12 to clamp an inserted pipe or an inserted pipe and put it or the latter in place. In addition, the sleeve 30 has a plurality of stop blocks 31 disposed on the inner wall thereof, in alignment with the through holes 15 of the tubular body 10.

  Such a prior art structure of the fluidic connector has, in practice, the following disadvantages. 1. the elastic component 43 of the retainer 40 is arc-shaped and can be easily deformed under pressure, as shown in Fig. 2, when the sleeve 30 is actuated by a user, resulting in the decrease of elasticity and loss of the resistive function of the abutment blocks 31. Thus, the operating life of the fluid connector is inevitably shortened; 2. the elastic components 43 of the resilient retainer 40 are arc-shaped, the locking unit 42 is easily jammed as a result of the unequal application of a force when the sleeve 30 is actuated, making the thrust and the traction of the sleeve 30 irregular and impractical; 3. the coupling pipe A can easily loosen from the engagement of the locking unit 42 as long as the sleeve 30 is pushed down and the coupling pipe A can accidentally jump under a high pressure of water when a watering process. Thus, the person operating the sprinkler will be splashed and wet by accident. In addition, the fluidic connector illustrated in another published prior art, described in US Pat. No. 7,021,669, is equipped with a number of insertion bodies 5 and compression springs 3 housed in the coupling portion 1 Such a structure is relatively complicated, and is provided with relatively too many components, making assembly difficult and time-consuming on one side and costly in terms of production and processing on the other.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, the main object of the present invention is to provide an improved garden fluid connector, wherein the sleeve is provided with a plurality of thrust projections on its inner wall, which cooperate with a plurality of pairs of vertical ribs. flexible, disposed on the periphery of a resilient retainer, so that the widening space of each pair of flexible ribs can provide a biasing force to push each inserted thrust protrusion rearwardly so that the sleeve, relieved of the external force, will instantly resume its original position. Such a structure can prevent a traditional resilient retainer from becoming wedged due to deformation and operational fatigue when the sleeve is forced down. Thus, the operation of the fluidic connector becomes more consistent on one side and its cost of production and assembly can be reduced effectively on the other hand, when considering economic benefits and market competition. Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved garden fluid connector in which the resilient retainer makes use of the inner wall cavity sections of the support wall sections and use of the stop posts and cavities for positioning the restriction posts, abuts against the support blocks and the tubular body engaging blocks to provide a double reinforced support for the resilient retainer to make it more robust and durable even under a strong pressure produced by the sleeve pushed down. Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved garden fluid connector, wherein the sleeve is provided with a plurality of guide posts peripherally disposed on the inner wall thereof, which are in cooperation with each other. with guiding apertures, slide ramps, stop posts, and restraining posts of the resilient retainer, to allow each guide post of the sleeve to slide from each restriction post, along the sliding ramp to the stopping posts, respectively, and to be set up and maintained at this level without further downward movement. In this way, the sleeve can be securely put in place and maintained and a coupling pipe will not be instantly disengaged under the pressure of the water coming from the fluidic connector when the sleeve is pressed down accidentally, causing the water to flow. watering to splash and wet individuals nearby.

  Still another object of the present invention is to provide an improved garden fluid connector in which the tubular body engaging blocks are used solely to fit into the positioning cavities of the stop posts and studs. restricting the resilient retainer, respectively, whereby it is possible to prevent rotation of the resilient retainer with the sleeve, controlling the positioning of the sleeve being more precisely.

  BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a prior art relating to the present invention; Fig. 2 is a diagram showing the resilient retainer of Fig. 1 engaged when the sleeve is pushed down; Fig. 3 is a perspective diagram showing the exploded components of the present invention; Fig. 4 is a perspective sectional diagram showing a partial portion of the sleeve of the present invention; Fig. 5 is a perspective diagram showing the assembly of the resilient retainer and the tubular body of the present invention; Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional diagram showing the present invention; Fig. 7 is a diagram showing the sleeve of Fig. 6 pushed down; Figure 8 is another sectional view of the assembly of the present invention; Fig. 9 is a diagram showing the sleeve 15 of Fig. 8 pushed down; Fig. 10 is another perspective diagram showing the exploded components of the present invention; Fig. 11 is a perspective diagram showing exploded components of the enlarged diagram of Fig. 10; Fig. 12 is a sectional diagram showing the sleeve, the resilient retainer, and the tubular body of Fig. 11; Fig. 13 is a perspective sectional diagram of the resilient retainer of Fig. 11; Fig. 14 is a perspective diagram showing the assembly of the resilient retainer and the tubular body shown in Fig. 11; Fig. 15 is a first sectional diagram showing the assembly of the sleeve and the resilient retainer of Fig. 11; Fig. 16 is a second sectional diagram of the assembly of Fig. 11; Figure 17 is a third sectional diagram of the assembly of Figure 11; Fig. 18 is a diagram showing the sleeve of Fig. 11 pushed down; Fig. 19 is another diagram showing the sleeve of Fig. 11 pushed down; Fig. 20 is a diagram showing the guide posts of Fig. 11 slidable along the sliding ramps of the resilient retainer; Fig. 21 is a diagram showing the guide posts of the sleeve of Fig. 11 sliding along the sliding ramps of the resilient retainer and being set up and stopped; Fig. 22 is a fourth sectional diagram of Fig. 11; Fig. 23 is a diagram showing the sleeve of Fig. 22 pushed down.

  DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention are hereinafter described in conjunction with the drawings of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 3, which is the perspective diagram of the exploded components of the present invention, together with FIG. 4, this includes a tubular body 50, a clamping ring 60, a resilient retainer 70, and a sleeve 80. The tubular body 50 has a flow passage 51 at the open end for a flow to flow therethrough. At the end of the tubular body 50 there is disposed an externally threaded section with a plurality of axially extending axially extending resilient locking teeth 52 arranged adjacent thereto so that the clamping ring 60, having an internally defined threaded section 61, can work together to set up a conduit and tighten it. At the upper end of the tubular body 50 are peripherally disposed a number of sealing flanges 53. In the middle of the tubular body 50 is disposed a flat peripheral support 54 above which are positioned a plurality of holes 55 provided. a vertical limiting rib 551 defined at each side thereof. Each of the two vertical limiting ribs 551 is disposed a horizontal abutment rib 552. The resilient retainer 70 is made of a single piece of plastic and has a circular ring seat 71 from which extends several hooks of V-lock 711, in correspondence with the holes 55 of the tubular body 50. A pair of flexible vertical ribs 712 having an enlargement gap 713 defined therebetween, is disposed adjacent to each locking hook 711 or alternatively. Each locking hook 711 is downwardly connected with an arcuate gap section 714 and a support section 715. The sleeve 80 is peripherally provided with a plurality of stop blocks 81 and retaining teeth 82, respectively, in connection with a thrust projection 83, opposite to the widening space 713 and having an arcuate guiding face 831, on the inner wall thereof, in correspondence with the holes 55 and the sealing flange 53 of the tubular body 50. The Y-push protrusion 83 has a pair of claws provided with the smooth guide face 831, respectively.

  During assembly, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the locking hooks 711 of the resilient retainer 70 are first positioned to engage the holes 55 of one end of the tubular body 50 after a pushing downwards until the circular ring 71 is in abutment against the flat peripheral support 54, causing the locking hooks 711 to position themselves in the holes 55 and to lock themselves between the vertical limiting ribs 551, respectively such that the flexible vertical ribs 712 abut against the horizontal abutment ribs 552. Then, the abutment blocks 81 of the sleeve 80 are aligned with the holes 55 to allow the sleeve 80 to receive the tubular body 50 therein, the retaining teeth 82 being flexibly positioned with the inner side of the sealing flanges 53, so that the thrust protrusions 83 enter simp in abutment with the ends of the flexible ribs 712 and facing respective enlargement spaces 713. The locking hooks 711 subjected to the abutment block stop 81 stick to the flow passage 51 to clamp a connecting conduit (not shown in the drawing) in position. When the sleeve 80 is pushed down, as shown in FIG. 7, the guide face 831 of the thrust protrusions 83 will automatically urge the flexible vertical ribs 712 to move sideways, parallel to the horizontal stop ribs 552 and come into contact with each other. In the widening space 713, at the same time, the abutment blocks 81 move downwards in the arc-shaped deviation section 714 in order to deliver the locking hooks 711 of the abutment of the blocks. At the same time, a connecting conduit (not shown) may be selectively withdrawn from or engaged with the flow passage 51 of the tubular body 50. As soon as the sleeve 80 is no longer subjected to no thrust, the flexible vertical ribs 712 delivered from the abutment of the thrust protrusions 83, will resume their position along the guide face 831, in order to instantly push the sleeve 80 upwards so that it resumes its position. The operation is made easier and more smooth and can prevent the elastic parts of the conventional connector from jamming due to deformation and elastic fatigue when the sleeve is subjected to a pressing force.

  The operation is constantly in an ideal state and this saves the cost of the use and installation of springs, bringing a better production of the connectors from an economic point of view and making the product more competitive on the market. , to consumers. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, in another modified embodiment, the thrust protrusions 83 'of the sleeve 80 are provided with an arch-shaped guide face 831' narrowing from the bottom upwards so that when the sleeve 80 is pushed downwards, the two flexible ribs 712 move parallel to the abutment ribs 552 and also below the limit of the guide face 831 'and are forced to bend towards the widening space 713 and are contained by the guiding face 831 '. As soon as the sleeve 80 no longer undergoes pressure, the flexible ribs 712 are released from the servitude of the guiding face 831 'and will quickly resume their position towards the outside and will instantly push the sleeve 80 upwards in another mode of operation. Referring to Figs. 10, the perspective diagrams of the exploded components of another embodiment of the present invention are illustrated, and with reference also to Figs. 11 to 13, the tubular body 50 is provided with a plurality of support blocks. 56 in linear alignment with the holes 55 arranged directly above them. At each side of the support block 56 is disposed an engagement block 561 and stop blocks disposed at each side of the hole 55 and positioned just between a support block 56 and an engagement block. 561, respectively. Underneath each gap section 714 of the resilient retainer 70 is a support wall 72 on the inner side of which is defined a cavity section 721 positioned to position itself with a respective support block 56. At the right side of the support wall 72 extends upwardly a stopper 722 defined in an inverted L-shape and at the left side a spaced-apart restriction post 73 is arranged to form an opening. Guide 74. The stopper 722 and the restriction amount 73 are level with each other and are provided with a positioning cavity 7221 and 731 respectively. A sliding ramp 723, starting from the stopper 722, toward the guide opening 74 is set at a lower level on the support wall 72. The gap section 714 of the locking hook 711 starts on the inner side of the sliding ramp and extends upwards. The abutment blocks 81 of the sleeve 80 have a smooth, downwardly inclined surface in connection with an arcuate contact plane 811. At the bottom of each abutment block 81 is a vertical guide upright 84 in alignment. with the guide opening 74 of the resilient retainer 70. The thrust projection 83 has a pair of smooth guide corners 831 at the bottom thereof. Referring to Figs. 14 to 17, the locking hooks 711 of the resilient retainer 70 are first aligned with the holes 55 of the tubular body 50 so that the resilient retainer 70 can be forced to engage with each other. in engagement with the tubular body 50 from one end thereof, the circular ring 71 being in contact with the peripheral support 54. In this manner, the locking hooks 711 are simply locked into engagement with the holes 55 and enclosed between the two limiting ribs 551 at both sides thereof and the cavity section 721 at the inner side of each support wall 72 simply rests against the support blocks 56 to purposefully construct a support. Meanwhile, the engagement block 561, at both sides, the stopper 722 and the positioning cavity 7221 and the positioning cavity 731 of each restriction post 73 are engaged with each other in order to forming a reinforced support, the resilient retainer 70 actually working as a control and positioning component. Then, the stop blocks 81 of the sleeve 80 are aligned with the holes 55 to allow the tubular body 50 to be forced to engage the sleeve 80 with the retaining teeth 82 resiliently engaged with the internal side of the sealing flanges 53. Thus, the thrust protrusions 83 are just in abutment against the upper end of the flexible vertical ribs 712 and in front of the widening space 713 and the guide posts 84 are just aligned with the guiding apertures 74 and constrained by the stop posts 722. The locking hooks 711 are subjected to the abutment of the contact planes 811 of the abutment blocks 81 and are positioned in the flow passage 51 of the tubular body 50 in order to clamp a connecting conduit (not shown in the diagrams) and holding it in place.

  When the guide posts 84 of the sleeve 80 are forced downwardly along the guide opening 74 of the resilient retainer 70, as shown in FIGS. 18 and 19, the guide corners 831 of the thrust protrusions 83 will urge. the flexible vertical ribs 712 sideways and slide in the widening spaces 713, respectively, and at the same time, the abutment blocks 81 are forced to move downward in the respective gap sections 714 in order to deliver the locking hooks 711 of the abutment 811 contact planes. Here, a connecting conduit can be inserted into or removed from the flow passage 51 of the tubular body 50. As soon as the sleeve 80 is released from a thrust, the ribs Flexible verticals 712 delivered from the abutments of the thrust protrusions 83 will produce a restoring force along the guide corners 831 to push the guide posts 84 and the abutment blocks 81 of the sleeve 80 towards the to return to their original position. Such a mechanism makes the operation more regular and simpler. Conventional resilient portions can be prevented from becoming wedged due to deformation and elastic fatigue during operation when the sleeve is forced downward. In addition, the resilient retainer 70 utilizes the inner cavity section 721 and the stopper 722 of each support wall 72, and the positioning recesses 7221 and 731 of each restriction post 73 are supported by the support block 56 and the engaging block 561, so that reinforced supports are obtained when the sleeve 80 is subjected to downward thrust, the resilient retainer 70, being reinforced and more enduring, may be subject to to a larger force without being easily damaged. This also reduces the cost of production insofar as spring components are not used and an assembly is saved, making the product of the present invention more competitive in the markets. As shown in Figs. 20 and 21, when water is sprayed, the guide post 84 moves from the restriction post 73 along the slide ramp 723 to the stopper 722, and then the sleeve 80 can not be further pushed down and held in position using the restriction of the guide post 84 and the stop amount 722. In this way, the sleeve 80 can not be pushed down in operation, by accident, preventing a connecting pipe to be released instantaneously because of a high water pressure, the individuals in the vicinity being therefore splashed and wet. At the same time, the engaging blocks 561 of the tubular body 50 are engaged with the locating recesses 7221 and 731 of each restriction post 73 to prevent the resilient retainer 70 from rotating with the pivoting of the sleeve 80, the control and a fixing being carried out more precisely.

  Referring to Fig. 22 and Fig. 23, the sleeve 80 has an arcuate thrust projection 83 'having a guide face 831' becoming narrower from bottom to top. When the sleeve 80 is pushed down, the two soft vertical ribs 712 move along the guide face 831 'and are folded to fit into the widening space 713 and are limited by the 831 'guidance. As soon as the sleeve 80 is delivered from a force exerted, the two flexible ribs 712 enclosed in each enlargement space 713 will produce a restoring force to move outwardly to instantly push the sleeve upwards to resume a other mode of operation.

  Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and shown, from which we can provide other modes and other embodiments, without departing from the scope of the invention. .20

Claims (13)

  A fluidic garden connector, comprising a tubular body (50), a resilient retainer (70), and a sleeve (80), characterized in that said tubular body (50) is provided with a plurality of holes (55) for receiving locking hooks (711) from said resilient retainer (70), respectively, and said resilient retainer (70) is circumferentially equipped with a plurality of pairs of flexible vertical ribs (712) with an expansion gap (713) defined between them; on an inner wall of said sleeve (80) are disposed a plurality of thrust projections (83; 83 ') which are positioned in alignment with said flexible vertical ribs (712) arranged in pairs so that when said sleeve (80) is pushed towards at the bottom, said flexible ribs (712) arranged in pairs can be forced to deform and produce a restoring force which can instantly push said thrust protrusions (83, 83 ') of said sleeve (80) back to their place of origin when said sleeve (80) does not undergo external force, making operation of sleeve (80) more smooth and easy without causing said resilient retainer (70) of said fluid connector to become stuck when said sleeve (80) is pushed toward down as a result of deformation and fatigue of operation.   2. Fluidic connector according to claim 1, characterized in that said thrust projections (83, 83 ') defined on the inner wall of said sleeve (80) are equipped with an arcuate guide face (831, 831 ') at each side to allow each thrust projection (83, 83') to regularly push said flexible vertical ribs (712) arranged in pairs outwardly as each said thrust projection (83, 83 ') is engaged with said enlargement gap (713).   3. Fluidic connector according to claim 1, characterized in that each of said thrust projections (83, 83 ') is made in a Y-shape so as to allow each said thrust projection (83, 83') of said sleeve ( 80) to move outwardly said flexible vertical ribs (712) arranged in pairs.   4. Fluidic connector according to claim 1, characterized in that at the bottom of each said thrust projection (83, 83 ') of said sleeve (80) is disposed an arch-shaped guide face (813, 831'). becoming narrower from bottom to top so that when said sleeve (80) is pushed downward, each of the paired flexible ribs (712) moves below the boundary of said arch guide (831, 831 '), the inside or towards each other, and is contained by said guide face (831, 831 ').   5. Fluidic connector according to claim 1, characterized in that said locking hooks (711) are made in one piece with said resilient retaining device (70) and arranged alternately between two flexible vertical ribs (712) arranged in pairs.   The fluid connector according to claim 5, characterized in that each said locking hook (711) of said retainer (70) is connected to a support section (715) and having a gap section in the form of arc (714) defined on it.   The fluid connector of claim 1, characterized in that said resilient retainer (70) is circumferentially equipped with a plurality of flat support walls (72) alternately disposed between said flexible ribs (712) disposed in pairs; at the right side of each said support wall (72) upwardly extends a stopper (722) and at the left side thereof is disposed a spaced apart restriction (73) for forming a guide opening (74); said stop posts (722) and restriction posts (73) are leveled with each other and are provided with a positioning cavity (7221, 731), respectively, said slide ramp (723) starting from said stop amount (722). ) to said guide opening (74) is defined at a lower level on said support wall (72); on an inner wall of said sleeve (80) are circumferentially disposed a plurality of guide posts (84) facing said guide apertures (74), respectively, to allow said guide posts (84) to slide along said apertures guide (74) and said guide posts (84) of said sleeve (80) are slidable along said slide rails (723), respectively, and are stopped and held in place by said stop posts (722) at the end, whereby said sleeve (80) can not be pushed down to engage said locking hooks (711) with said holes (55) of said tubular body (50).   8. Fluidic connector according to claim 7, characterized in that said stopper (722) is made in an inverted L shape.   9. Fluidic connector according to claim 7, characterized in that said tubular body (50) is peripherally equipped with a plurality of support blocks (56), each being arranged under one of said holes (55) thereof.   The fluid connector according to claim 7, characterized in that on one inner side of each said stop post (722) and each said restriction post (73) of said resilient retainer (70) is disposed a positioning cavity. (7221, 731), on said tubular body (50) are arranged a plurality of engagement blocks (561) in correspondence with said positioning cavities (7221, 731) of said stop posts (722) and said restriction amounts ( 73), respectively, for engagement and support purposes.   Fluidic connector according to claim 7, characterized in that said tubular body (50) is circumferentially provided with support blocks (56) each disposed under one of said holes (55) and at each side of each said support block (56) is provided with a vertical engagement block (561), respectively; and said resilient retainer (70) has a plurality of support walls (72) respectively having an inner cavity section (721) thereon with which each said support block (56) of said tubular body (50) is taken; at each said stop amount (722) and each said restriction amount (73) of said hold-down device (70) is disposed a positioning cavity (7221, 731), on said tubular body (50) are arranged at a plurality of engagement blocks (561) positioned in said positioning cavities (7221, 731) of said stop posts (722) and said restriction posts (73), respectively, for engagement and support purposes.   Fluidic connector according to claim 7, characterized in that each said locking hook (711) of said resilient retaining device (70) extends in one piece from an inner side of each said sliding ramp ( 723).   A fluid connector according to claim 7, characterized in that each locking hook (711) of said resilient retainer (70) extends in one piece from an inner side of each said slide ramp (723). ) to form an arc-shaped gap section (714).