JP2002276875A - Hose clamp - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To avoid stress concentration in a diameter expanding deformation. SOLUTION: An opening part 3 is provided in a first domain 1. A second domain 2 is formed in a shape inserted in the opening part 3 to construct a same circumference surface when whole body is bent in a ring shape. Width dimension of the opening part 3 continuously changes as it goes from a start end side toward a tip and the second domain 2 side is formed to gradually reduce width at a same changing rate as the changing rate of the width dimension of the first domain 1 side. A part suddenly changing width dimension, thereby is eliminated to eliminate stress concentration. Consequently, uniform fastening force can act on hose or the like.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a hose clamp for tightening a connecting portion of a pipe such as a hose or a tube.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventionally used hose clamp is a band-shaped leaf spring material 1 in an expanded state as shown in FIG.
From 00, it is formed by bending the whole into a ring shape as shown in FIG. Hose clamp 101 at both ends
First and second knobs 102, 10 for expanding the whole diameter
3 are provided to stand radially outward.

[0003] A cutout hole 104 is opened at one end of the unfolded state. The cutout 104 is bent from the middle of the cutout hole 104 to form a first knob 102. On the other end side, a gradually changing portion 105 whose width dimension changes is formed. When the annular portion is bent from the expanded state into an annular shape, the gradually changing portion 105 intersects the circumference through the hole 104. Thus, the second knob 103 is bent and raised so as to face the first knob 102.

Further, a pair of triangular windows 106 is opened at a portion between the gradually changing portion 105 and the hole 104 so that the vertexes of the windows face each other. The triangular window 106 has a known structure, and can make the tightening force relatively uniform along the circumferential direction.

[0005]

By the way, it is easier to insert the hose clamp 101 into a hose or the like if the hose clamp 101 is transported to the site with its inner diameter expanded in advance. For this reason,
Conventionally, after the two knobs 102 and 103 are brought close to each other to make the entire hose clamp 101 into an expanded state, the two knobs 10
It has been proposed that a holder (not shown) is engaged with each of the holders 2 and 103 so that the tabs are held close to each other and the entire hose clamp is held in an expanded state.

However, the conventional hose clamp has the following problems to be solved when the hose clamp is set in such an expanded state. That is, a portion between one triangular window 106 and the hole 104 (portion A shown in FIG. 7) and a portion from the other triangular window 106 to the gradually changing portion 105 (portion B shown in FIG. 7). In this case, the entire width dimension (the width dimension of the portion having the meat) changes rapidly. For this reason, when the hose clamp is deformed to the expanded state, the above-mentioned A, B
Stress concentrates on the part. Then, there is a possibility that such a portion may be "skewed" and the roundness may not be maintained when the diameter is reduced and tightened.

The present invention has been completed in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a hose clamp capable of avoiding concentration of stress when expanded and deformed. That is.

[0008]

As means for achieving the above object, the present invention is directed to a clamp body formed by bending a strip-shaped leaf spring material in an expanded state into an annular shape. And a first and a second knob operating piece erected radially outward from both ends in the longitudinal direction of the clamp body, and the length of the hose clamp in the deployed state. The one side area in the direction is a first area for forming the first knob operation piece, and the other one side area is the second area.
A second region for forming a picking operation piece is formed, and the first region is symmetrical with respect to a central axis in a longitudinal direction, and is substantially continuously from a periphery of a boundary with the second region to a tip. While opening to increase the opening width is opened,
The second region has a symmetrical shape with respect to the central axis along the length direction and is continuously narrowed from the periphery of the boundary with the first region toward the tip, and the clamp body is bent in an annular shape. When the inside of the opening is formed so as to be able to intersect while forming the same peripheral surface, and the rate of change of the width of the second region is the sum of the widths of both sides sandwiching the opening in the first region. Is set to be substantially equal to the change rate.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the starting end position of the opening near the second region and the starting position of the narrow portion in the second region are determined by the clamp body. Along with being set at a position substantially equal to the center position in the longitudinal direction when in the unfolded state, the corner at the base position of the narrow portion has an arc-shaped portion formed at the opening edge of the opening end of the opening. The connecting portion is formed with a curvature substantially equal to the curvature.

[0010]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the width of the first and second regions is changed continuously from the center in the longitudinal direction to both ends of the clamp body. In addition, a place where the width dimension changes suddenly as in the related art is not provided. For this reason, when the clamp main body is deformed to an expanded state, stress does not concentrate on a specific portion.
Therefore, there is no problem of deviation and the maintainability of the roundness in the clamp body is high, so that the tightening force can be made uniform in the circumferential direction.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, if the starting end of the opening is formed in an arc shape, the opening can be easily formed by punching with a press. Also in this case, the base of the narrow portion is set at a symmetrical position in the length direction with respect to the arc-shaped portion, and in this portion, the connecting portion is formed with substantially the same curvature as the arc-shaped portion, Stress concentration can be avoided to contribute to uniform tightening force.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First, in order to help the understanding of the present invention, the one shown in FIG. 1 will be described first as a simple example of the present invention. FIG. 1 shows an expanded state of the hose clamp according to the first embodiment. The hose clamp is made of a band-shaped leaf spring material, and is bent in a substantially annular shape around a central axis (Y axis in FIG. 1) in the length direction. As a result, a clamp body capable of tightening a hose or the like is provided. Further, first and second knob operation pieces as described later are provided at both ends.

For the sake of convenience in the following description, the right side of the drawing from the Y axis in FIG. The space between the outer edges of the entire first region 1 is formed to have uniform dimensions from the Y axis to the tip. Further, the first region 1 is provided with an opening 3 that extends from the Y-axis as a starting end to a range where a part of the leading edge is left. The opening 3 is formed so as to be symmetrical with respect to the central axis (X axis in FIG. 1) in the width direction when the hose clamp is in the deployed state, and the opening width increases linearly from the starting end to the tip end. Is formed.

On the other hand, the second region 2 is also formed so as to be symmetrical with respect to the X axis, and the width dimension is continuously increased from the Y axis to the tip. However, the first area 1
In FIG. 5, only the same dimension 5 as the length dimension of the connecting piece 4 at the front end has a uniform width. In addition, the width dimension at an arbitrary position in the second area 2 is equal to the total width dimension of the portion (the part with the meat) sandwiching the opening at the position equidistant from the Y axis in the first area. . In other words, the first and second regions 1 and 2 have the same rate of change in the width dimension.

In the leaf spring material in the expanded state, the first and second regions 1 and 2 are bent in a ring shape around the Y axis. Then, the front end of the second region 2 is crossed on the substantially same peripheral surface through the opening 3 of the first region 1. Further, the distal ends of the first and second regions 1 and 2 are bent radially outward to form a knob operation piece, thereby completing the hose clamp.

Thus, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, if the two operation members are pinched and brought close to each other, the clamp body of the hose clamp is held in an expanded state. Here, in the first region 1 of the hose clamp, the opening width of the opening 3 continuously changes toward the tip, and there is no place where the width dimension suddenly changes as in the related art. Therefore, stress can be dispersed over the entire length without stress concentration. Further, in the above, the width dimension on the second region 2 side is changed by the total dimension of both sides at an arbitrary position in the opening. That is, the total dimension (Y1 + Y2) of both sides of the opening at a position at an arbitrary distance (distance indicated by X1) from the Y axis in the first area 1 is equidistant from the Y axis in the second area 2. It is equal to the width dimension at the position (Y3 = Y1 + Y2). For this reason,
Since the first and second regions 1 and 2 are symmetrical with respect to the Y axis, the stress distribution is also symmetrical in both regions.
The tightening force can be made uniform over the entire circumference.

<First Embodiment> FIGS. 2 and 3 show a first embodiment of the present invention. In the first embodiment, the starting end of the opening 3 in the first region 1 is set at a location separated from the Y axis by a certain dimension (A dimension). In addition, the starting end is formed in an arc shape so that the opening 3 can be formed by punching with a press. Further, the opening 3 extends at a predetermined inclination angle (θ1) from the start end to a substantially central portion (located at a distance of B from the Y axis), and is formed so that the opening width increases linearly. The range from the section to the end is a slightly smaller tilt angle (θ
2; θ1> θ2).
It is to be noted that the opening 3 is formed symmetrically with respect to the X axis as in the above-described example.

On the other hand, in the second region 2, an arc-shaped step 6 is formed at both outer edges at the same distance as the distance from the Y axis to the start end of the opening 3. The step 6 is formed with the same curvature as the start end of the opening 3, and is formed with a uniform width equal to the width between the outer edges of the first region 1 from the Y axis to the step 6. . Then, from the step 6 to a predetermined position (a position at a distance of B from the Y axis), both outer edges form a predetermined inclination angle (θ1), and thereafter, a slightly smaller inclination angle (θ2;
θ1> θ2). Furthermore, at the tip of the second area, the same width as the connecting piece 4 of the first area 1 is the same width, and after all, the width dimension of the second area 2 is changed in three steps. become. In addition,
As in the example described above, the rate of change of the width between the outer edges in the second area 2 is set to be the same as the rate of change of the total width in the first area 1.

FIG. 3 shows the unfolded state shown in FIG. 2 in an annular shape, and the portion of the second region 2 where the width dimension changes changes into the opening 3 of the first region 1 with substantially the same peripheral surface. The clamp body 7 is formed so as to intersect so as to be configured. Further, the distal end portions of the first and second regions 1 and 2 are once erected outward in the radial direction, and then bent substantially at right angles in the circumferential direction to form the first and second picking operation pieces 8 and 1.
It becomes 9. The clamp body 7 expands and deforms when the two knobs 8 and 9 are operated, and when released, can return to its natural state by its own elasticity. Although not shown, when the clamp body 7 is expanded by using a separate holder, the clamp body 7 is locked in a state in which the clamp body 7 is expanded so as to straddle both the picking operation pieces 8 and 9. It is also possible to keep it as it is.

In the first embodiment configured as described above, the width dimension of both the first and second regions 1 and 2 is changed substantially continuously, and a sudden change in the width dimension causing stress concentration is performed. Not set. Therefore, a substantially uniform tightening force can be applied to the hose and the like along the entire circumference.

<Second Embodiment> FIG. 4 shows a second embodiment of the present invention. The first embodiment has the opening 3
Is changed almost at the middle portion, but in the second embodiment, the opening width changes continuously at a constant inclination angle from the start end to the end. Also, the second
The entire width of the region 2 is also changed correspondingly.

By the way, the comparison of the maximum distortion rate was carried out for the three types of the prior art shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the first embodiment and the second embodiment. explain.

The maximum distortion rate was determined by computer simulation. In the comparison, the conditions such as plate thickness, material and the like are prepared for each embodiment. That is, the thickness 1.2
mm, the maximum plate width was 12 mm, the inner diameter of the clamp body 7 in the natural state was 12.9 mm, and the inner diameter of the clamp body 7 in the expanded state was 17.7 mm. Then, when the maximum strain was calculated at a location (stress concentration location) where the maximum strain rate occurred for each configuration when the diameter was increased, the conventional one was 6.92 (the boundary between the triangular window and the gradually changing portion). Second Embodiment: 4.46 (occurs around the step and around the outer edge corresponding to the beginning of the opening) First Embodiment: 3.85 (a portion where the inclination angle changes) Around)

Thus, both the first and second embodiments were able to obtain better results as compared to the conventional one, and it was found that better stress dispersion was achieved than in the prior art. In addition, it was found that especially the first embodiment provided good results.

<Third Embodiment> FIG. 5 shows a third embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, as in FIGS. 2 and 3, the starting end of the opening 3 is set on the Y axis, but the opening edge is formed in an arc shape at the starting end. The opening 3 is formed so that the width dimension changes continuously from the start end to the end.
However, the overall width is changed correspondingly.

The present embodiment is also effective in the case where the plate width is narrow with respect to the plate thickness, that is, in the case where it is difficult to bend in an annular shape. Similar effects can be obtained.

<Other Embodiments> The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and illustrated in the drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. In addition, various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. (1) In any case, the starting end of the opening 3 is the first
Although set in the area 1, as shown in FIG.
It is also possible to adopt a form that bites into the body. In that case, conversely, the place where the step 6 is provided is set in the first area 1 equidistant from the Y axis. (2) The means for holding the clamp body 7 in the expanded state is
In addition to using a separate holder, it is also possible to integrally form a part that performs the same function as the holder, that is, a part that locks the two pieces together.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a development view for explaining the solution principle of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a development view of the hose clamp according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the same.

FIG. 4 is an expanded view of a hose clamp according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an expanded view of a hose clamp according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a hose clamp according to another embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a development view of a conventional hose clamp.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the same.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... 1st area 2 ... 2nd area 3 ... Opening 6 ... Step 7 ... Clamp main body

Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yuji Ogawa Togo Town, Aichi-gun, Aichi Prefecture, 1F, Haruki, Haruki, F-term (reference) 3H017 EA03

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A clamp body formed by bending a strip-shaped leaf spring material in an expanded state into an annular shape, and standing upright radially outward from both longitudinal ends of the clamp body. A hose clamp including a first and a second picking operation piece, wherein one side area in the length direction when in the deployed state is a first area for forming the first picking operation piece; And the other one side area is a second area for forming the second picking operation piece.
The first region is provided with an opening which is symmetrical with respect to the central axis in the longitudinal direction, and which has a substantially continuous opening width from the periphery of the boundary with the second region toward the tip. On the other hand, the second region has a symmetrical shape with respect to the central axis along the length direction, and is continuously narrowed from the periphery of the boundary with the first region toward the tip, so that the clamp body is circularly rotated. When bent, the inside of the opening is formed so as to be able to cross while forming the same peripheral surface, and the rate of change of the width dimension of the second region is the sum of the two sides sandwiching the opening in the first region. A hose clamp characterized in that it is set substantially equal to the rate of change of the width dimension. 2. A start position of the opening near the second region and a start position of the narrow portion in the second region are substantially equal to a center position in a longitudinal direction when the clamp body is in the unfolded state. The connecting portion is set at an equal position, and a connecting portion is formed at a corner at a root position of the narrow portion with a curvature substantially equal to a curvature of an arc-shaped portion formed at an opening edge at a starting end of the opening. The hose clamp according to claim 1, wherein: