GB2468282A

GB2468282A - Direction indicating hose couplings

Info

Publication number: GB2468282A
Application number: GB0903464A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Joseph Dunn
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2009-03-02
Filing date: 2009-03-02
Publication date: 2010-09-08
Anticipated expiration: 2029-03-02
Also published as: GB0903464D0; GB2468282B

Abstract

A hose coupling (10) comprising: a main body (16) comprising means (18) for releasably engaging a complimentary hose coupling (20), a spigot (32) extending axially from the main body (16) insertable into the end of a hose (14); securing means (38, 40) for securing the hose (14) to the spigot (32); a sheath (42) arranged to overlie the securing means (38, 40); and tactile indicia means (46) interposed between the hose (14) and the sheath (42), wherein the sheath (42) comprises a tube that conforms to the outer profile of the hose (14) and indicia means (46).

Description

Title: Direction indicating hose couplings

Description:

This invention relates to direction indicating hose couplings, and in particular, but without limitation to tactile direction of escape indicators for fire hoses.

Fire fighters routinely use water from water hoses to extinguish fires.

Often, when fighting fires, a fire fighter will need to enter a room that is dark or in which visibility is reduced to zero by smoke.

In many cases, a fire fighter will enter a room to tackle a fire and will work in a methodical manner to extinguish the flames. However, if the fire spreads, or gets out of control, a fire fighter may need to turn to fight the fire in different directions. In zero-visibility conditions, this can be extremely dangerous as it is easy for a fire fighter to become disorientated. If that happens, it can take time for the fire fighter to locate the exit in the event of the fire getting out of control.

Fire fighters are trained to work in pairs and to maintain hand contact with the fire hose since the fire hose is always connected to a fire appliance or hydrant located in a safely away from the blaze. Thus, in the event of disorientation, the fire fighter is trained to feel his/her way along the hose towards the source of water, and hence to safety.

In the event, however, that the fire fighter loses hand contact with the hose, or if he/she becomes disoriented, it is possible that the fire fighter will re-locate the hose and follow it in the wrong direction, i.e. towards the fire, which can be extremely dangerous.

Direction of escape indicators have been employed by fire fighters in the past to alleviate this issue. One example of a known direction of escape indicator comprises a safety cord that the fire fighter attaches to himself and trails into the building from a reel that is located in a safe place. The cord is fitted with spaced apart strobe lights that are timed flash in a sequence that gives the appearance of a light moving towards the reel/escape route.

However, under zero visibility conditions, it is sometimes difficult, if not impossible, to see the strobe lights, and moreover, if the cord becomes coiled or slack, the direction of escape is not always immediately apparent. In addition, the cord can become tangled and can hinder the movement of the fire fighter.

This invention aims to provide a solution to one or more of the above problems.

According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided hose coupling comprising: a main body comprising means for releasably engaging a complimentary hose coupling, a spigot extending axially from the main body insertable into the end of a hose; securing means for securing the hose to the spigot; a sheath arranged to overlie the securing means; and tactile indicia means interposed between the hose and the sheath, wherein the sheath comprises a tube that conforms to the outer profile of the hose and indicia means..

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a direction of escape indicator for attachment to a hose coupling comprising: a sheath locatable over the spigot; one or more indicia means locatable between the spigot and the sheath, wherein the sheath comprises a tube that in use, conforms to the outer profile of the hose and indicia means.

By providing a tactile direction indicator, if a fire fighter loses, and then regains, contact with the hose, he/she can follow the hose in any direction until he/she finds a coupling. The direction of escape can then be determined by feeling the coupling and following the hose in the appropriate direction.

Thus, there is no reliance on visual interpretation to determine the direction of escape, which addresses the problems encountered in zero visibility conditions. Moreover, the distance a fire fighter can travel in the wrong direction is limited to the length of the hose segments, which limits the amount of travel in the wrong direction.

Whilst it might be possible for a fire fighter to determine the direction of escape by feeling the connectors of existing fire hoses (the female coupling always being upstream), in practice, this is extremely difficult to do when the hose segments are connected to one another, especially whilst wearing fire fighting gloves. The invention, by providing a tactile indicator on just one of the two types of coupling (e.g. only on the female coupling), determination by touch of which coupling is male and which is female is greatly facilitated.

The tactile indicia means may comprise a body interposed between the spigot and sheath. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, a pair or other plurality of axially spaced-apart rings are provided to reduce the likelihood of confusing a single ring with a flange of the coupling. The outer diameter of the or each ring is preferably more than 20mm larger than its internal diameter to facilitate feeling the ring whilst wearing fire fighting gloves/gauntlets.

The sheath may comprise a tube that conforms to the outer profile of the hose and indicia means to enable the rings to be felt through the sheath.

The sheath may serve to protect the rings and/or clamping means from abrasion/damage. The sheath may comprise a length of heat-shrink tubing that is placed over, and then shrunk onto the spigot of the coupling. Heat-shrink tubing is particularly suitable as it conforms to the profile of the underlying spigot/rings, does not have any joins that might rupture in use and does not slide off the spigot.

The sheath may be substantially transparent to permit a label interposed between the hose and the sheath to be visually inspected. The label could display information such as a serial number for the hose section, manufacturing information, ownership data, test data and/or a certification number.

Grip means is preferably provided to facilitate securing the hose to the spigot. The grip means may comprise one or more outwardly projecting radial ribs and the securing means may comprise one or more wires tightly wrapped around the hose to secure it to the spigot. The wires, where provided, may be axially located relative to the spigot at positions adjacent the ridge or ridges in the direction towards the main body.

The hose coupling comprising the tactile indicia means is preferably a female hose coupling.

A hose may be provided that comprises a length of flexible tube and a hose coupling located at each end of the tube, wherein one of the hose couplings comprises hose coupling comprising a tactile direction of escape indicator as described above.

A preferred embodiment of the invention shall now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawing which is a longitudinal partial cross-section through disconnected male and female fire hose couplings, the female coupling being in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 1 shows a known male hose coupling 10 and a female hose coupling 44 in accordance with the invention. In use, the two couplings 10, 44 are sealingly connectable to one another to provide an uninterrupted conduit for water flowing through flexible hoses 12 and 14, respectively, connected, thereto.

The male coupling 10 comprises a generally tubular, cast aluminium, main body portion 16. An integrally-formed connector 18 and a hose-engaging 32 spigot extend axially outwardly from the main body portion 16 in opposite directions. In use, the connector spigot 18 is sealingly insertable into a receiving sleeve 22 of the female connector 44.

The connector spigot 18 comprises a circumferential groove 20 into which radially-displaceable locking pins (not shown) of the female coupling 44 seat, in use, to retain it in situ. The locking pins can be slid into and out of engagement with the circumferential groove 20 by pulling on a pair of unlocking handles 24 that extend radially outwardly from the main body portion 46 of the female connector.

At its free end, the connector spigot 18 comprises a circumferential lip 26 whose edge 28 is chamfered such that it urges the locking pins into an unlocked position during insertion of the connector spigot 18 into the receiving sleeve 22 of the female coupling 44. The unlocking handles 24, however, are spring-biased into a locking position such that once the connector spigot 18 has been inserted past a certain point, the locking pins move inwardly and engage the groove 20 of the connector spigot 18. Thus, the male coupling 10 automatically locks into the female coupling upon insertion.

In addition, the end face 30 or chamfer 28 of the circumferential lip 26 seats against an 0-ring seal (not shown) located within the receiving sleeve 22 of the female coupling 44 to form a watertight seal between the couplings 10, 44.

A first length of flexible hose 12 is semi-permanently affixed to the hose-engaging spigot 32 of the male coupling 10. The hose-engaging spigot 32 comprises a tapered end portion 34 that extends axially away from the main body portion 16 of the female coupling 10. At its widest point, the outer diameter of the tapered portion 34 is slightly greater than the inner diameter of the flexible hose 12, whereas at its narrowest point, its outer diameter is slightly smaller than the internal diameter of the flexible hose 12. Extending axially from the tapered portion 34 is a tubular portion 36 of substantially constant diameter.

Integrally formed with the outer surface of the tubular portion are a series of four, axially spaced apart grip ribs 38. The outer diameter of grip ribs 38 is slightly greater than the internal diameter of the flexible hose 12, such that the hose 12 must be circumferentially stretched to fit over them. In addition, the outer edges of the grip ribs 38 are chamfered in such a way that they inhibit removal of the flexible hose 12 from the hose-engaging spigot 32.

Stainless steel locking wires 40 are tightly bound around the outside of the hose 12 at positions corresponding to grooves between the grip ribs 38. The combination of stretch-fitting of the hose 12, the chamfered edges of the grip ribs 38 and the locking wires 40 enables the hose to be semi-permanently, and sealingly, affixed to the hose-engaging spigot 32. (Removal of the hose 12 from the coupling 10, e.g. for servicing/repair, can be effected by cutting the locking wires 40 and, optionally, by slitting the end of the hose longitudinally.) To complete the connection of the hose 12 to the coupling, a short length of protective plastics tube is heat-shrunk over the locking wires to protect them from damage, e.g. abrasion and impact damage.

A second length of flexible hose 14 is similarly semi-permanently affixed to the hose-engaging spigot 32 of the female coupling 10. Identical reference signs have been used to identify identical features of the female coupling 44.

The connection of the second length of flexible hose 14 to the hose-engaging spigot 32 of the female coupling 50 differs from the foregoing by the following: The female coupling 44 additionally comprises a pair of axially spaced-apart, outwardly-projecting indicator rings 46 that are placed over the hose 14 and locking wires 40 prior to the addition of the protective sleeve 42. Since the protective sleeve 42 comprises a length of heat-shrink plastics tubing, it can be shrunk so as to reveal the outer profile of the female coupling 44.

In one embodiment, the indicator rings 46 comprise rubber 0-rings whose inner diameters correspond substantially to the outer diameter of the grip ribs 38 and whose outer diameter is somewhat larger than the outer diameter of the grip ribs 38. In practice, a balance must be struck between making the outer diameter of the indicator rings 46 sufficiently large that they can be readily felt by users wearing fire-fighting gloves, but sufficiently small that the female coupling 44 is not made too bulky, incompatible with existing hose storage systems, etc. In practice, the outer diameter of the indicia rings should be more than 5mm to 30mm larger than their internal diameter. In a preferred embodiment, the outer diameter of the or each indicia ring is 10mm larger than its internal diameter.

Finally, it can be seen in Figure 1 that an identification/certification label 48 is interposed between the hose 14 and the protective sheath 42. By locating the label thus, it automatically separates from the hose segment during removal of the hose 14 from the coupling 44, thereby reducing the likelihood of incorrect/false certification of the hose segment.

The invention is not limited to the details of the foregoing embodiment.

For example, any number of indicator rings may be provided and the indicator rings need not be of equal sizes, nor evenly spaced-apart. It may also be advantageous to combine the tactile indicia of the invention with visual indicia, such as a reflective, retro reflective, fluorescent and/or luminescent indicator, for example a band of such material located beneath the protective sheath.

Claims

Claims: 1. A hose coupling comprising: a main body comprising means for releasably engaging a complimentary a hose coupling, a spigot extending axially from the main body insertable into the end of a hose; securing means for securing the hose to the spigot; a sheath arranged to overlie the securing means; and tactile indicia means interposed between the hose and the sheath, wherein the sheath comprises a tube that conforms to the outer profile of the hose and indicia means.
2. A hose coupling as claimed in claim 1, wherein the tactile indicia means project outwardly.
3. A hose coupling as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the tactile indicia means comprises a body interposed between the spigot and sheath.
4. A hose coupling as claimed in any of claims 1, 2 or 3, wherein the tactile indicia means comprises a ring surrounding the spigot.
5. A hose coupling as claimed in claim 4, wherein the ring is placed over the end of the hose and/or the securing means.
6. A hose coupling as claimed in claim 4 or claim 5, comprising a pair or other plurality of axially spaced-apart rings.
7. A hose coupling as claimed in any of claims 4, 5 or 6, wherein the outer diameter of the or each ring is more than 10mm larger than its internal diameter.
8. A hose coupling as claimed in claim 7, wherein the sheath comprises heat-shrink tubing.
9. A hose coupling as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the securing means comprises one or more wires tightly wrapped around the hose to secure it to the spigot.
10.A hose coupling as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising grip means disposed on the outer surface of the spigot for engaging the interior surface of the hose.
11. A hose coupling as claimed in claim 10, wherein the grip means comprises one or more outwardly projecting radial ribs.
12.A hose coupling as claimed in claim 11, when dependent on claim 9, wherein the wires are axially located relative to the spigot at positions adjacent the rib or ribs in the direction towards the main body.
13. A female hose coupling according to any prededing claim.
14. A hose comprising a length of flexible tube and a hose coupling located at each end of the tube, wherein one of the hose couplings S comprises hose coupling according to any preceding claim.
15.A direction of escape indicator for attachment to a hose coupling comprising: a sheath locatable over the spigot; one or more tactile indicia means locatable between the spigot and the sheath, wherein the sheath comprises a tube that, in use, conforms to the outer profile of the hose and indicia means.
16. A direction of escape indicator as claimed in claim 15, wherein the tactile indicia means projects outwardly.
17.A direction of escape indicator as claimed in claim 15 or claim 16 wherein the indicia means comprises a body interposed between the spigot and sheath.
18.A direction of escape indicator as claimed in claim 17, wherein the or each body comprises a ring.
19.A direction of escape indicator as claimed in claim 18, wherein the outer diameter of the or each ring is more than 10 mm larger than its internal diameter.
20.A direction of escape indicator as claimed in any of claims 15 to 19, wherein the sheath comprises heat-shrink tubing.
21.A hose coupling, hose or direction of escape indicator according to any preceding claim, wherein the sheath is substantially transparent.
22.A hose coupling, hose or direction of escape indicator according to claim 21, further comprising a label interposed between the hose and the sheath.
23.A hose coupling, hose or direction of escape indicator substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawing.