GB2334562A

GB2334562A - A connector

Info

Publication number: GB2334562A
Application number: GB9903541A
Authority: GB
Inventors: David Frederick Hawkins
Original assignee: Eden Ltd
Current assignee: Eden Ltd
Priority date: 1998-02-20
Filing date: 1999-02-16
Publication date: 1999-08-25
Anticipated expiration: 2019-02-16
Also published as: GB9903541D0; GB2334562B; GB9803630D0

Abstract

The invention relates to a connector 1, comprising a body 2 including at least one socket for receiving a pipe (not shown), a collet 4 in the socket and having a plurality of resilient arms 14 extending axially from a ring for gripping a pipe inserted therein, the ring being adapted to fit within the socket to provide support to a pipe therein. A plurality of apertures 11 are provided in the body 2 to interact with arms 14. Thus, if an outward axial load is applied to the pipe, received in the socket, the pipe and collet 4 move together until a cam surface of each arm 14 contacts edge 11a of aperture 11. Further axial movement of the pipe causes edges 11a to follow the cam surfaces of the arms to radially move inwards to grip the pipe. Rotation of a cap (41) (figure 7-not shown) causes cam surfaces of cap 41 to move arms 14 radially outwards through the apertures 11 to release the pipe.

Description

A CONNECTOR The invention relates to connectors, and in particular relates to connectors for connecting tubing for distribution of fluids.

Push-fit connectors are known and provide a convenient and quick method of forming joins between lengths of tubes or pipes and fittings. They can be releasable, wherein the pipe or tube can be withdrawn, or non-releasable, wherein after a pipe or tube is inserted it cannot be readily removed. Whether releasable or non-releasable, pipe connectors should be cheap and easy to manufacture, and should provide a secure and leak-free connection. It is an object of the present invention to provide such a connector.

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a pipe connector, comprising a body including at least one socket for receiving a pipe, releasable gripping means of the socket to grip the pipe, and rotatable release means to release the gripping means on rotation thereof.

The release means for releasing the gripping means may function by means of a cam.

In particular the releasable gripping means may comprise a collet in the socket having a plurality of resilient arms extending axially from a ring for gripping a pipe therebetween. It is preferred that the release means functions to release the arms of the collet by moving them radially outward with respect to a tube inserted in the connector.

The release means may include a cam disposed to interact with a cam surface of each arm of the collet. The release means may comprise a cap adapted to fit on the end of the socket.

According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a connector comprising a body including at least one socket for receiving a pipe, a collet in the socket having a plurality of resilient arms extending axially from a ring for gripping a pipe therebetween, the ring being adapted to fit within the socket to provide support to a pipe therein.

It is preferred that a plurality of apertures are provided in the body disposed to interact with the collet arms. Each aperture may preferably include an edge substantially perpendicularly disposed to the longitudinal axis of the connector.

Each collet arm may include a nib for cooperation with the edge, and each nib may include a cam surface.

According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a kit of parts for installation of pipework, including a connector as hereinbefore defined.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention there is provided a plumbing installation including a connector as hereinbefore defined.

The invention will further be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a side view of a part of a connector according to the invention; Fig. 2 is an end view of the part of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the part of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a sectional view along the line A-A in Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of a connector according to a first embodiment of the invention; Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view of a part of the connector of Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view of a connector according to a second embodiment of the invention; Fig. 8 is a sectional view along the line A-A of Fig. 7; Fig. 9 is an end view of a cap for use with the connector of Fig. 7; Fig. 10 is a sectional view along the line A-A of Fig. 9; Fig. 11 is an end view of a collet for use with the connectors of Figs. 5 and 7; and Fig. 12 is a sectional view along the line A-A of Fig. 11.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 6, 11 and 12, of the drawings, there is illustrated a first embodiment of connector 1, comprising a body 2 including at least one socket 3 for receiving a pipe (not shown), a collet 4 in the socket 3 having a plurality of resilient arms extending axially from a ring for gripping a pipe inserted therein, the ring being adapted to fit within the socket to provide support to a pipe therein.

The connector 1 consists of a straight coupling, however it will be appreciated that the invention in all forms can be equally well applied to a right angle connector to form an elbow or it can back onto a male/female threaded section to form an adapter. It can be applied to many other configurations which can be readily manufactured by plastic injection moulding and the design principle can be easily applied to other tube sizes which gives an extremely flexible system which will provide for a full catalogue of assemblies to satisfy market requirements and can be applied to reducers/enlargers .

Referring in particular to Fig. 3, the body 2 has a first bore 6 which is formed to be the same diameter as or just larger than the largest bore of any of the pipes/tubing/adaptors which it will be used in conjunction with. A second bore 7 is provided having a clearance on all possible pipe/tube types that will be used, and a third bore 8 is provided, having a diameter substantially constant to the outer edge of the body 2 and designed to receive a seal 9 such as an 'O'-ring seal as illustrated.

The wall 10 of the third bore 8 is provided with apertures 11 therethrough.

The apertures may be any shape but in the embodiment they are substantially rectangular. When the connectors according to the invention including apertures are manufactured by moulding, within the two opening halves of the mould tool, windows may be provided which shut-off on the largest diameter and create the apertures 1l in the moulding. This configuration allows for the body moulding to be produced in one operation.

A circumferential groove 12 is provided on the outer surface of the body 2 adjacent the socket end to enable a cap to be fixed thereto, as described. At the mouth of the socket 3, on the inner edge thereof, ramps 13 are provided to assist in assembly of the connector components.

The connector has gripping means 4 in the form of a collet comprising four resilient, axially extending arms 14 extending from a ring 15 (see Figs. 11 and 12). The ring 15 has a flange or washer 16. Each arm 14 has towards its distal end a thickening, with a nib 17, an outer cam surface 18 and an inner cam surface 19. By virtue of the fact that they are resilient the arms 14 can be radially compressed inwardly or radially expanded outwardly.

It is advantageous for the ring 15 to be formed with a diameter corresponding substantially to that of the third bore 8 so that it provides support to a pipe in position. The nibs 17 should extend out beyond this diameter so that the arms 14 must be inwardly compressed to fit the collet 4 into the socket.

To assemble the connector 1 to form a non-releasable connector, as illustrated in Fig. 5, a seal 9 is first inserted to but against a wall 20 between the second and third bores 7, 8. Then the collet 4 is inserted, flange-first so that the flange 16 butts up to the wall 20, forming a seating and support for the seal 9. This helps the seal 9 to retain its correct shape and integrity when a load is applied to a pipe in position in the connector 1 and thereby helps to prevent leakage, without the need to provide a discrete groove for the seal 9 in the body.

The collet arms 14, by virtue of the nibs 17 extend radially wider than the diameter of the third bore 8, and therefore must be radially inwardly compressed in order for the collet 4 to be fitted into the socket 3. The ramps 13 ensure easy entry of the collet arms 14 into the body 2 to ensure good alignment of the components before the assembly action is commenced. On assembly the collet 4 is pushed into the socket until it reaches its position with the flange 16 against the seal 9. The collet 4 is positioned so that the ends of the arms 14 correspond in position to the apertures 11 and are thus able to move outwardly, by virtue of their resilience, into the apertures 11.

A cap 21 may then be applied to the end of the socket 3 which provides support to a pipe and prevents ingress of dirt etc. As illustrated the cap 21 may comprise an end wall 22 with a skirt 23 depending therefrom, the skirt including a ridge 24 around its inner circumference to mate with the groove 12 for holding the cap 21 in place. The end wall 22 has a bore to receive a pipe, which is provided with a circumferential flange 25 to support the pipe in use.

In use, when a pipe is inserted into the connector 1 the resilient arms 14 of the collet 4 are forced apart, any outward radial movement thereof being accommodated by the apertures 11. The pipe is thus held between the arms 14, the nibs 17 of the arms protruding into the apertures 11.

If an outward axial load is applied to the pipe, the pipe and collet 4 move together a small distance outwardly so that the outer cam surface 18 of each arm 14 is brought into contact with the edge 11a of its corresponding aperture 11 which substantially prevents further outward movement. On further outward axial movement of the pipe, the edges 11a of the apertures follow the outer cam surfaces 18 of the arms 14 causing them to move radially inwards gripping more firmly the pipe in the socket and preventing its removal. To assist in this, the arms 14 may be provided with means such as metal teeth inserts 26 at or adjacent their distal ends on the inner, in use, surfaces thereof, which bite into the material of the pipe further hindering its removal.

Referring now to the embodiment of Figs. 7 and 8, there is illustrated a connector 1, comprising a body 2 including at least one socket 3 for receiving a pipe, releasable gripping means 4 of the socket for gripping a pipe inserted therein, and rotatable release means 41 of the socket to release the gripping means.

The connector of this embodiment shares in common with the first embodiment the body 2 and collet 4, however in this embodiment the connector is releasable. Thus, only the differences will be highlighted here.

Rotatable means 41 is provided in the form of a cylindrical cap of generally similar configuration to the cap 21 but including extensions 42 extending from the circumferential flange 25 of the bore. In the illustrated embodiment there are four extensions, however the number of extensions can be varied as long as it corresponds to the number of arms 14 of the collet 4. Each extension 42 includes a wedge-shaped cam surface 43 at one side and a further extension forming a stop 44 at the other side (see Figs. 8 and 10). The cap 41 is fitted to the connector 1 by a push-fit so that the extensions 42 lie between the collet arms 14 as shown in Figs. 7 and 8. The cap 41 is rotatable about the socket end.

In use, a pipe is inserted into the connector 1 in the same way as for the previous embodiment, the collet arms 14 being forced apart and accommodated by the apertures 11, the interaction between the outer cam surfaces 19 and aperture edges 11a substantially preventing removal thereof as described. In this embodiment however, when it is desired to remove the pipe from the connector 1, the cap 41 is rotated in a direction to bring the cam surfaces 43 of the extensions 42 into contact with the collet arms 14. As viewed in Fig. 8 this direction is clockwise. Further rotation in that direction results in the cam surfaces 43 moving beneath the arms 14 by virtue of their wedge-shape and forcing the collet arms 14 radially outwards, which movement is accommodated by the apertures 11, so that their grip on the pipe is released.

Rotation of the cap 41 in the opposite direction when a pipe is in the connector 1 does not result in release by virtue of the placement of the stops 44. It is advantageous if the collet arms 14 are provided with chamfers at the inner edges 27 corresponding to the points of contact of the cams 43 to aid in release of the collet arms 14.

Thus it can be seen that the invention provides a releasable and non-releasable connector which is easy to manufacture and provides a secure connection, giving support to a pipe against lateral loads.

The releasable connector requires a positive rotational action for release which guards against accidental operation which may occur for example with releasable connectors requiring an axial action for operation.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. A connector, comprising a body including at least one socket for receiving a pipe, releasable gripping means of the socket for gripping a pipe inserted therein, and rotatable release means to release the gripping means on rotation thereof.
2. A connector according to Claim 1, wherein the release means releases the gripping means by cam means.
3. A connector according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, the releasable gripping means comprising a collet having a plurality of resilient arms extending axially from a ring for gripping a pipe therebetween.
4. A connector according to Claim 3, wherein the release means releases the arms of the collet by moving them radially outward with respect to a tube inserted in the connector.
5. A connector according to Claim 3 or Claim 4, the release means including a cam disposed to interact with a cam surface of each arm of the collet.
6. A connector according to Claim 5, the release means comprising a cap adapted to fit rotatably on the end of the socket and including a through bore having extensions therefrom which carry the cams.
7. A connector, comprising a body including at least one socket for receiving a pipe, a collet in the socket having a plurality of resilient arms extending axially from a ring for gripping a pipe therebetween, the ring being adapted to fit within the socket to provide support to a pipe therein.
8. A connector according to Claim 7, including a plurality of apertures in the body disposed to interact with the collet arms.
9. A connector according to Claim 8, each aperture including an edge substantially perpendicularly disposed relative to the longitudinal axis of the body.
10. A connector according to any of Claims 7 to 9, each collet arm including a nib for cooperation with an edge of its associated aperture.
11. A connector according to Claim 10, the nib including a cam surface.
12. A kit of parts for installation of pipework, including a connector according to any preceding claim.
13. A plumbing installation, including a connector according to any of Claims 1 to 11.
14. A connector substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.