JP2005321034A - Electric fusion type resin tube joint, and method for manufacturing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electric fusion type resin tube joint, which has high connection reliability of a connector pin to a heating wire, and which can be manufactured at low cost. <P>SOLUTION: This electric fusion type resin tube joint is provided with a tube body mainly comprising thermoplastic resin, and having at least two sockets to which piping is connected, the heating wires wound around the sockets, and the connector pins in a pair to which both end parts of the heating wires are connected, and raised on the tube bodies, with the bottom parts exposed. At least one-end parts of the heating wires are connected by their outer circumferential surface to the bottom parts of the connector pins. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an electrofusion type resin pipe joint and a method for manufacturing the same, and particularly to a connection structure between a heating wire and a connector pin incorporated in an electrofusion type resin pipe joint.

  In order to connect a resin pipe for gas or water supply, an electro-fusion type resin pipe joint (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as a joint) is used. The joint generally has a pipe body mainly composed of a thermoplastic resin having a receiving port to which a resin pipe is connected, a heating wire wound around the receiving port, and both ends of the heating wire are connected. And a pair of connector pins erected on the tubular body. According to this joint, the pipe connected to the receiving port and the receiving port are melted and connected to each other by flowing a current through the heating wire through the connector pin and heating the heating wire.

  An example of a connection structure between a heating wire and a connector pin is disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 below. As shown in FIG. 7, the connection structure disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a ring body 84 inserted into both ends of a core 83 that is a core for forming a joint, and a column 82 provided on the ring body 84. A conductive connector pin 85 is attached, and the heating wire 86 is connected to the connector pin 85 after the heating wire 86 is entangled with the support 82, and the heating wire 86 is wound when the heating wire 86 is wound around the core 83. There is an advantage that it is difficult to loosen.

As shown in FIG. 8, the connection structure disclosed in Patent Document 2 press-fits the bottom portion 91 of the connector pin 92 into an annular press-fit ring 94 having a heating wire 93 stretched over the upper surface, Between the connector pin 92 and the heating wire 93 mechanically and easily.
Japanese Patent No. 3130182 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-126381

  However, although the joint of Patent Document 1 has the above advantages, in order to connect the heating wire 86 and the connector pin 85, the ring body 84 is inserted into the core 83, or the heating wire 86 is entangled with the support 82. Therefore, the manufacturing apparatus is complicated and expensive, and, for example, the heating wire 86 entangled when joining to the connector pin 85 may be shifted to cause a contact failure.

  Further, in the case of the joint of Patent Document 2, the heating wire 86 does not come off even when a considerable force is applied, and the press-fitting ring 94 and the connector pin 92 are fitted so that the heating wire 86 is not cut when the connector pin 92 is press-fitted. It is necessary to set an appropriate size. However, since the size of the heating wire 93 varies depending on the size of the joint, it is difficult to set the fit each time in industrial production.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an electrofusion type resin pipe joint that can be manufactured at low cost with high reliability in connection between a connector pin and a heating wire, and a method for manufacturing the same. It is said.

  In one embodiment of the present invention, a tubular body mainly composed of a thermoplastic resin having at least two receiving ports to which piping is connected, a heating wire wound around the receiving port, and both ends of the heating wire are provided. And a pair of connector pins erected on the tube body with a part of the bottom portion exposed, and at least one end of the heating wire has an outer periphery on the exposed part of the bottom of the connector pin This is an electrofusion type resin pipe joint whose surfaces are joined. By connecting the heating wire and the connector pin with such a structure, the heating wire can be attached to the connector pin relatively easily. Note that it is preferable to employ a structure in which both ends of the heating wire are joined to the connector pins as described above, since the cost can be further reduced.

  By making the bottom portion of the connector pin a flat surface, the joining area of the joining portion between the heating wire and the connector pin is increased, so that the strength of the joining portion is improved and variation in electrical resistance is suppressed. As a result, the reliability of the connection between the heating wire and the connector pin becomes higher. Furthermore, if it is set as the structure which joins a connector pin and a heating wire by welding, a heating wire can be attached to a connector pin more simply. As the welding, resistance welding is preferable. In addition, the bottom part of a connector pin can select various aspects, such as a rough surface, an uneven surface, a concave surface, a convex surface, or a curved surface. In particular, the bonding strength can be further increased by using a rough surface having a predetermined roughness.

  The tube may have either a single layer structure or a multilayer structure. However, the single-layer structure is generally easier to obtain materials and is advantageous for industrial production.

  Furthermore, if the fitting groove for fitting the heating wire is formed on the inner surface of the tubular body, the heating wire can be held on the tubular body without applying tension to the heating wire. A member such as a core for winding is unnecessary, and a joint can be manufactured at a lower cost, which is preferable. The heating wire may be either a coated wire coated with a thermoplastic resin similar to the tubular body or a bare wire not coated.

  In addition, if the fitting groove has a structure formed deeper than the size of the heating wire, it is desirable that the pipe inserted into the receiving port is caught by the heating wire and the heating wire is not cut.

  One embodiment of the present invention is a preferred method for manufacturing the joint, wherein the outer peripheral surface of the end of the heating wire is joined to the bottom of the connector pin. The joining is preferably performed by resistance welding.

  According to the joint according to the present invention, a tubular body mainly composed of a thermoplastic resin having at least two receiving ports to which piping is connected, a heating wire wound around the receiving port, and both ends of the heating wire And a pair of connector pins erected on the tubular body with the bottom portion exposed, and at least one end portion of the heating wire has an outer peripheral surface joined to the bottom portion of the connector pin Since it is a structure, the area of the junction part of a connector pin and a heating wire increases, the variation in the electrical resistance in the junction part of a heating wire and a connector pin can be decreased, and joining strength can be strengthened. In addition, since the heating wire is relatively easily joined to the exposed bottom portion of the connector pin, the joint can be manufactured at a low cost.

  The present invention will be described based on embodiments with reference to the drawings. Hereinafter, a socket type joint is described as an example of an embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention can be applied to various types of joints such as an elbow type and a tee type.

[First Embodiment]
The joint according to the first aspect will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of the joint according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a method of manufacturing the joint of FIG. FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a modification of the connector pin of FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a modification of the connection structure between the heating wire and the connector pin in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the joint 1 of the first aspect includes a resin pipe 12 that is a tubular body mainly composed of a thermoplastic resin with two receiving ports 13 and 14 connected to a resin pipe 7 at both ends. , One heating wire 2 wound around the receptacles 13 and 14, and connector pins 11 (11 a and 11 b) standing at the receptacles 13 and 14 and connected to both ends of the heating wire 2. doing.

  The resin pipe 12 which is a tubular body of this embodiment is a single-layer structure mainly composed of medium density polyethylene resin, for example. Fitting grooves 15 into which the heating wires 2 are fitted are formed continuously on the inner surfaces of the receptacles 13 and 14 of the resin pipe 12 at a constant pitch. The width of the fitting groove 15 is slightly smaller than the diameter of the heating wire 2 so that the heating wire 2 can be fixed. The depth of the fitting groove 15 is preferably about 0.2 to 0.3 mm deeper than the diameter of the heating wire 2 so that the heating wire 2 is not exposed inside the inner surface of the resin pipe 12.

  The receiving holes 13 and 14 are formed with insertion holes 121 into which the connector pins 11 can be inserted with the bottom portion (hereinafter also referred to as a joint portion) 112 exposed. The insertion hole 121 is formed with a convex portion 122 corresponding to a flange portion 113 of the connector pin 11 to be described later so that the connector pin 11 is not pushed too much into the insertion hole 121 and does not jump out inward. Yes.

  Here, the start and end portions of the fitting groove 15 are connected to the insertion holes 121 of the receiving ports 13 and 14, respectively. Therefore, if the connector pin 11 is attached to the insertion hole 121 and the heating wire 2 is wound around the fitting groove 15, the one end 21 and the other end 22 of the heating wire 2 are respectively connected to each other. The connector pin 11 can be connected to the joint 112.

  The connector pin 11 is a substantially cylindrical object mainly composed of a conductive metal material such as brass, and a joint 112 where the heating wire 2 is joined to the bottom surface, and a controller that supplies power to the heating wire 2 ( A terminal connection portion 111 to which a terminal (not shown) is connected and a flange portion 113 larger than the joint portion 112 are provided so as not to fall inside the resin pipe 12. The flange 113 is not necessarily required because the connector pin 11 can be easily attached.

A modification of the connector pin 11 described above is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 4A, the joint 112a of the connector pin 11a according to the first modification includes a bottom surface formed on a convex R surface. In this case, it is possible to obtain a bonding strength substantially equal to that of the smooth surface as shown in FIG.

  When it is desired to increase the positioning accuracy of the heating wire 2, for example, as in the joint portions 112 b to d of the connector pins 11 b to d of the second to fourth modifications shown in FIGS. What is necessary is just to form the recessed part which can position the heating wire 2, such as a surface, a semicircle groove | channel, or a square groove, in a bottom face.

  Further, when it is desired to increase the bonding strength of the heating wire 2, the bottom surface is roughened, for example, like a nail head, as in the bonding portion 112e of the connector pin 11e of the fifth modification shown in FIG. Or partly convex in order to reduce the contact area with the heating wire 2 like the joint portions 112f and g of the connector pins 11f and g of the sixth and seventh modified examples shown in FIGS. 4 (f) and 4 (g). What is necessary is just to form a part. According to the connector pins 11e to g of the fifth to seventh modifications, the area of contact between the bottom surfaces of the joints 112e to 112g and the heating wire 2 is reduced, so that the amount of welding current per unit area increases, The calorific value increases. Therefore, the amount of penetration of the heating wire 2 is increased and the bonding strength is improved.

  The heating wire 2 of the first embodiment uses a nichrome wire (so-called bare wire) that is not coated with a resin. The diameter of the heating wire 2 is prepared so that the diameter is about 0.4 to 2.6 mm according to the size of the joint 1. The heating wire 2 is not limited to a bare wire, and a heating wire (covered wire) covered with a resin similar to the resin pipe 12 may be used.

A method for manufacturing the joint 1 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 2A, the resin pipe 12 having the insertion holes 121 and the fitting grooves 15 formed in the receiving ports 13 and 14 is prepared.

  As shown in FIG. 2B, the connector pins 11 (11a, 11b) are pushed into the insertion holes 121 and attached.

  As shown in FIG. 2C, one end 21 of the heating wire 2 is joined to the bottom surface of the connector pin 11a on the receiving port 13 side (one side) by resistance welding, and the heating wire 2 is connected to the connector pin 11a. To do.

Here, the joining method by resistance welding of the connector pin 11a and the heating wire 2 is explained in full detail.
As shown in FIG. 3, one end 21 of the heating wire 2 is positioned with respect to the joint 112 of the connector pin 11a. The upper electrode 31 is pressed and pressed against the upper end surface of the terminal connection portion 111 of the connector pin 11a with an appropriate force. Further, the lower electrode 32 for resistance welding is pressed against the joint 112 via the heating wire 2 while being pressed. If it does in this way, the outer peripheral surface of the one end part 21 of the heating wire 2 will be in the state pressed by the bottom face of the junction part 112. FIG. Thereafter, a current having a predetermined magnitude is passed between the upper electrode 31 and the lower electrode 32, and the heating wire 2 is joined to the bottom surface of the joining portion 112.

  According to resistance welding, since a large current is instantaneously applied to a portion where the connector pin 11a and the heating wire 2 are in contact with each other to generate heat and melt, the joining operation is completed in a very short time. In addition, even if the applied voltage of resistance welding is too high or too low, joint strength will fall. It has been experimentally confirmed that if the applied voltage is 2 to 3 V, good bonding strength can be obtained.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 2 (d), the heating wire 2 is wound around the receiving port 14 while being fitted in the fitting groove 15. After the heating wire 2 reaches below the connector pin 11b on the receiving port 14 side (the other side), the heating wire 2 is cut to a predetermined length.

  As shown in FIG. 2E, the connector pin 11b and the other end 22 of the heating wire 2 are joined in the same manner as in the case of the connector pin 11a and the heating wire 2.

Next, a modified example of the joint structure between the connector pin 11 and the heating wire 2 will be described.
In the first modified example, as shown in a plan view in FIG. 5A, the fitting groove 15 does not stop at the insertion hole 121, and extends to a position through the insertion hole 121 to end the fitting groove 15. 15a is formed. In the case of the first modification, the end of the heating wire 2 fitted in the fitting groove 15 is fitted to the end 15 a of the mounting groove 15. As a result, the end portion of the heating wire 2 is fixed in a state of being locked by the end portion 15a of the mounting groove 15, so that the position of the joining portion of the heating wire 2 is difficult to be displaced, and thus the bonding strength varies. It will be resolved. The end 15a of the mounting groove 15 may be linear as indicated by a solid line, or may be a curved end 15b as indicated by a dotted line.

  As shown in FIG. 5 (b), the second modification has a structure in which the end 15c of the fitting groove 15 is bent in the vertical direction. According to the second modification, when the heating wire 2 is fitted to the end portion 15c of the fitting groove 15, the heating wire 2 is locked and fixed to the end portion 15c. An effect can be obtained.

  As shown in FIG. 5C, the third modified example has a structure in which the bottom surface of the connector pin 11 is roughened in the first or second modified example. According to the third modified example, since the heating wire 2 is engaged and fixed to the bottom surface of the connector pin 11, it is possible to further reduce the variation in connection strength.

  The fourth modified example has a structure in which a nickel foil h is sandwiched between the bottom surface of the connector pin 11 and the heating wire 2 as shown in FIG. According to the fourth modification, the bonding strength is improved by the action of the nickel foil h. A nickel film may be formed on the bottom surface of the connector pin 11 instead of the nickel foil h.

[Second embodiment]
A second aspect of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 6A, the same components as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.
As shown in FIG. 6 (a), the joint 4 according to the second embodiment includes a pipe body 42 mainly composed of a thermoplastic resin having two receiving ports 43 and 44 to which piping is connected at both ends, and a receiving port 43, One heating wire 2 wound around 44, and a connector pin 11 which is erected at the receiving openings 43 and 44 and both ends of the heating wire 2 are connected to the bottom.

  The tubular body 42 of the second aspect is a product obtained by molding a thermoplastic resin by injection molding, and has a single-layer structure like the joint 1 of the first aspect. The heating wire 2 is a covered wire in which a resin similar to the thermoplastic resin used in the tube body 42 is covered with a nichrome wire. The heating wire 2 is wound around a core (core) in advance, and then the tubular body 42 is formed, so that it is embedded in the tubular body 42.

[Third aspect]
A third aspect of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIG. 6 (b), the joint 5 of the third aspect includes a pipe body 52 mainly including a thermoplastic resin having two receiving ports 53 and 54 to which pipes are connected, and a receiving port 53, One heating wire 2 wound around 54, and a connector pin 11 standing at the receiving ports 53 and 54 and having both ends of the heating wire 2 connected to the bottom.

  The tubular body 52 of the third aspect has a multilayer structure including an inner layer 522 called an inner and an outer layer 523 called an outer formed by injection molding a thermoplastic resin. Further, the heating wire 2 is wound around an inner layer 522 injection-molded on the core, and then the outer layer 523 is formed, so that the heating wire 2 is arranged in an embedded state in the tube body 52.

  In addition, in the said 1st-3rd aspect, although the bottom part of the connector pin 11 becomes a structure where the whole is exposed, the one part is exposed and the heating wire 2 is joined to the exposed part. The same effects as described above can be obtained with this structure.

It is sectional drawing of the electrofusion type resin pipe joint of the 1st aspect in this invention. It is a figure which shows the manufacturing process of the electrofusion type resin pipe joint of FIG. FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of FIG. It is a figure which shows the modification of the connector pin of FIG. It is a figure which shows the modification of the connection structure of the connector pin of FIG. 1, and a heating wire. It is sectional drawing of the electrofusion type resin pipe joint of the 2nd and 3rd aspect of this invention. It is a figure explaining an example of the conventional electrofusion type resin pipe joint. It is a figure explaining another example of the conventional electrofusion type resin pipe joint.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Electric fusion-type resin pipe joint 11 Connector pin 12 Resin pipe 13 Receptacle 14 Receptacle 15 Fitting groove 2 Heating wire

Claims (11)

A tubular body mainly composed of a thermoplastic resin having at least two receiving ports to which piping is connected, a heating wire wound around the receiving port, and both ends of the heating wire are connected and a part of the bottom portion A pair of connector pins erected on the tubular body in a state of being exposed, and at least one end of the heating wire has an outer peripheral surface joined to an exposed part of the bottom of the connector pin. Wearable resin pipe fittings. 2. The electrofusion resin pipe joint according to claim 1, wherein outer peripheral surfaces of both ends of the heating wire are joined to a bottom portion of the connector pin. The electrofusion type resin pipe joint according to claim 1, wherein a bottom portion of the connector pin is a flat surface. The electrofusion type resin pipe joint according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the connector pin and the heating wire are joined by welding. The electrofused resin pipe joint according to claim 1, wherein the pipe body has a single-layer structure. The electrofused resin pipe joint according to claim 1, wherein the pipe body has a multilayer structure. The electrofusion type resin pipe joint according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein a fitting groove for fitting the heating wire is formed on an inner surface of the tubular body. The electrofusion type resin pipe joint according to claim 7, wherein the heating wire is a bare wire. The electrofusion type resin pipe joint according to claim 7, wherein the fitting groove is formed deeper than a size of the heating wire. In a state in which a tubular body mainly composed of a thermoplastic resin having at least two receiving ports to which piping is connected, a heating wire wound around the receiving port, and both ends of the heating wire are connected and a bottom portion is exposed. A method for manufacturing an electro-fusion type resin pipe joint comprising a pair of connector pins erected on the pipe body, including a joining step of joining an outer peripheral surface of an end portion of the heating wire to a bottom surface of the connector pin. Production method. The manufacturing method of the electrofusion type resin pipe joint of Claim 10 which joins a heating wire and a connector pin by resistance welding.

Images