JP2019199924A - Pipe joint and joint member thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a joint member in which it can be easily confirmed that a locking operation member is located at a fixed position and surely connected.SOLUTION: A socket (joint member) 10 comprises: a cylindrical socket main body 16; a U-shaped locking member 18; a locking operation member 20 attached so as to be turnable at an upper part of the socket main body 16; and a connection confirmation member 52 slidably attached to the socket main body 16. When the locking operation member 20 is in a release position, the connection confirmation member 52 interferes with a protrusion 38 of the locking operation member 20 and rides thereon, and when the locking operation member 20 is in a fixed position, the protrusion 38 of the locking operation member 20 is accepted into a recess 60 and sags downward. By this constitution, the connection confirmation member 52 is brought into a connection confirmation position, and a contact sensor 62 comes into contact with the socket main body 16 and issues a detection signal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 16

Description

  The present invention relates to a pipe joint and a joint member thereof, and more particularly, to a joint member including a connection confirmation member for confirming that the connection is appropriately performed.

  For example, in a pipe joint composed of a socket (female joint member) and a plug (corresponding male joint member) shown in Patent Document 1, the substantially U-shaped locking member of the plug is inserted into the socket. The plug is held by the socket by engaging with a locking portion formed on the outer peripheral surface. Even in this state, the connected state is temporarily maintained. However, if a large force is applied in a direction in which the socket and the plug are pulled apart, the locking member may be opened and the connection may be released. Therefore, this pipe joint is provided with a locking operation member for preventing the locking member from being deformed in the opening direction, and the locking member is not opened by making the locking operation member a fixed position in the connected state. The connection is more reliably prevented from being released.

JP 2014-142011 A

  The above-mentioned pipe joints are mainly used in food pipes, but food pipes need to be cleaned in a relatively short cycle, so the pipe joints used there are frequently attached and detached. It will be. When connecting the pipe joint, it is required to make sure that the locking operation member is in a fixed position every time, but the locking operation member is not properly operated due to carelessness of the operator. There may be a case where a completely connected state is left. In particular, when the attachment / detachment is frequently performed, such a situation is likely to occur. It is possible to prevent such a situation to some extent by checking the pipe joints one by one and checking whether the lock operation members are in the fixed position before flowing the fluid into the pipe. Since it is not always easy to confirm whether or not it is in the position, there is a possibility of being overlooked even by visual confirmation.

  Accordingly, the present invention provides a joint member that can more easily confirm that the locking operation member is fixedly connected to the fixed position, and the joint member and the joint member are detachably connected to the joint member. It aims at providing a pipe joint provided with a corresponding joint member.

That is, the present invention
A joint member for detachably connecting a corresponding joint member,
A tubular joint body having a passage for receiving a corresponding joint member;
A locked state in which the corresponding joint member is held in the passage by being engaged with a corresponding joint member that is attached to the joint body and received in the passage, and an unlocked state in which the holding of the corresponding joint member is released. A locking member having,
It was attached to the joint body, and was displaceable between a fixed position that prevents the locking member from being in the unlocked state and a release position that allows the locking member to be in the unlocked state. A locking operation member;
It is displaceable with respect to the joint body, and when the locking operation member is in the fixed position, it can be displaced to a connected display position where a predetermined display indicating that the locking operation member is in the fixed position is made, A connection confirmation member that is prevented from being displaced to the connection display position when the locking operation member is in the release position;
There is provided a joint member comprising:

  The joint member includes a connection confirmation member that can be displaced to a connection display position where a predetermined display indicating that the lock operation member is in the fixed position is made when the lock operation member is in the fixed position. Therefore, it can be easily confirmed based on the predetermined display that the locking operation member is in the fixed position and the corresponding joint member is securely connected. Note that the predetermined display includes various displays such as a display based on a detection signal of a sensor, a light emission display using an LED or the like, a display based on sound, and a display based on the appearance or hiding of a predetermined character or colored portion.

In particular,
The joint body has two openings that penetrate in the radial direction;
The locking member is located on the outer periphery of the joint body and is opposed to each other in the circumferential direction and is opposed to each other, and the passage extends from the first and second ends and through the opening. An outer peripheral surface of the corresponding joint member having first and second locking portions partially entering the first and second locking portions, and in the locked state, the first and second locking portions are received in the passage of the joint member. And the corresponding joint member is held, and in the unlocked state, the first and second locking portions are displaced radially outward of the joint body, and the engagement with the outer peripheral surface is released. Was
The locking operation member is rotatable with respect to the joint body around a rotation axis extending in a radial direction of the joint body, and in the fixed position, the first and second locking members in the locked state. It is possible to prevent the first and second locking portions from being displaced radially outward by engaging with the second end portion.

More specifically,
The locking operation member has a protrusion protruding in a direction away from the joint body in the direction of the rotation axis;
The connection confirmation member has an engagement surface that engages with the locking operation member, and a recess that is recessed outward from the engagement surface,
When the locking operation member is in the release position, the protrusion of the locking operation member is prevented from interfering with the engagement surface of the connection confirmation member and the connection confirmation member being displaced to the connection display position. When the locking operation member is in the fixed position, the protrusion is aligned with the recess and is received in the recess so that the connection confirmation member can be displaced to the connection display position. Can be.

  Preferably, when the locking operation member is rotated from the fixed position toward the release position in a state where the connection confirmation member is in the connection display position, the protrusion is engaged with the side surface of the recess. Thus, the locking operation member can be prevented from rotating to the release position.

  With such a configuration, it is possible to more reliably prevent the locking operation member from being erroneously set to the release position in the connected state.

  Specifically, the connection confirmation member includes a central portion having the engagement surface and leg portions extending substantially parallel to each other in the direction of the rotation axis from both sides of the central portion. It can be slidably held with respect to the joint body so that the connection confirmation member can be displaced with respect to the joint body in the direction of the rotation axis.

  Preferably, when the locking member is in the unlocked state, the leg portion of the connection confirmation member can interfere with the locking member so that the connection confirmation member cannot be attached to the joint body. .

  Specifically, a sensor attached to the connection confirmation member and detecting that the connection confirmation member has reached the connection display position is further provided so that the predetermined display is a detection signal of the sensor. Can do.

  More specifically, the sensor is a contact sensor, and when the connection confirmation member is in the connection display position, the sensor comes into contact with at least one of the joint body and the locking operation member. The detection signal can be issued.

Furthermore, the present invention provides
Any of the above-described joint members;
And a corresponding joint member that is received in the passage of the joint member and is detachably coupled to the joint member.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of a pipe joint according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

It is a side view in the unconnected state of the pipe joint concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is a side view in the temporary connection state of the pipe joint of FIG. It is sectional drawing of the socket in the position of the AA line of FIG. It is sectional drawing of the pipe joint in the position of the AA line of FIG. 2, and is a figure of the state which has a locking member in the unlocking state in the middle of a plug being inserted in a socket. It is a perspective view in the temporary connection state of the pipe joint of FIG. It is sectional drawing of the pipe joint in the position of the AA line of FIG. 2, and is a figure when a pipe joint exists in the temporary connection state of FIG. It is a top view which shows the positional relationship of the locking operation member in the temporary connection state of FIG. 5, and the 1st and 2nd edge part of a locking member. It is a perspective view in the connection completion state of the pipe joint of FIG. It is sectional drawing of the pipe joint in the position of the AA line of FIG. 2, and is a figure when a pipe joint exists in the connection completion state of FIG. It is a top view which shows the positional relationship of the locking operation member in the connection completion state of FIG. 8, and the 1st and 2nd edge part of a locking member. It is a top view which shows the positional relationship of the locking operation member and the 1st and 2nd edge part of a locking member when a locking operation member is made into an open position. It is a perspective view of a connection confirmation member. It is a perspective view of a pipe joint when a connection confirmation member is attached to a socket in a temporary connection state. It is sectional drawing of the pipe joint of FIG. 13 in the position of the AA line of FIG. It is a perspective view of a pipe joint when a connection confirmation member is attached to a socket in a connection completion state. It is sectional drawing of the pipe joint of FIG. 15 in the position of the AA line of FIG. It is sectional drawing of the pipe joint in the position of the AA line | wire of FIG. 2, and is a figure which shows the relationship between the connection confirmation member and locking member in the state which has a locking member in an unlocked state.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the pipe joint 1 according to the present invention includes a socket (joint member) 10 and a plug (corresponding joint member) 12. As will be described later, the socket 10 receives the plug 12 and detachably connects the plug 12.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the socket 10 includes a cylindrical socket body (joint body) 16 having a passage 14 (FIG. 3) for receiving the plug 12, and a substantially U-shape attached to the socket body 16. A locking member 18 and a locking operation member 20 attached to the socket body 16 are provided. The socket body 16 has two openings 22 penetrating in the radial direction. As shown in FIG. 3, the locking member 18 includes a first end portion 24 and a second end portion 26, and a first locking portion 28 and a second locking portion 30 extending from the first end portion 24 and the second end portion 26, respectively. And a connecting portion 31 that connects the first locking portion 28 and the second locking portion 30. The first end portion 24 and the second end portion 26 are located on the outer periphery of the socket body 16 and are spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction. The first locking portion 28 and the second locking portion 30 are positioned so as to partially enter the passage 14 of the socket body 16 from the first end portion 24 and the second end portion 26 through the opening 22, respectively. The locking member 18 is detachably fixed by a mounting pin 34 to a mounting projection 32 provided at a lower portion of the socket body 16 in the connecting portion 31. The locking operation member 20 is attached to an attachment protrusion 36 provided on the upper portion of the socket body 16 so as to be rotatable with respect to the socket body 16 about a rotation axis R extending in the radial direction of the socket body 16. The locking operation member 20 has a protrusion 38 that protrudes outward in the direction of the rotation axis R from the socket body 16, and is configured to grip and rotate the protrusion 38.

  As can be seen from FIG. 1, the plug 12 has a tapered surface 42 that tapers forward (leftward in the drawing) on the outer peripheral surface 40, and a rear side (rightward in the drawing) of the tapered surface 42. And a stepped locking portion 44 located at the center. A seal member 48 is attached to the front position of the tapered surface 42 so as to sealingly engage with the inner peripheral surface 46 (FIG. 3) of the socket body 16.

  As the plug 12 is inserted into the passage 14 of the socket 10, the tapered surface 42 of the plug 12 engages with the first locking portion 28 and the second locking portion 30 of the locking member 18, and the locking member 18 is shown in FIG. As shown, the first locking portion 28 and the second locking portion 30 are displaced radially outward (unlocked state). When the plug 12 is further inserted and the tapered surface 42 exceeds the locking member 18, the first locking portion 28 and the second locking portion 30 return to the inside in the radial direction by the elastic restoring force of the locking member 18, and the locking member 18 is As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the first locking portion 28 and the second locking portion 30 are engaged with the locking portion 44 of the plug 12 (locked state). When the locking member 18 is engaged with the locking portion 44 of the plug 12, the plug 12 is held in the passage 14 of the socket 10, and the pipe joint 1 is temporarily connected. In this temporarily connected state, since the locking operation member 20 is in the release position and the locking member 18 is allowed to be deformed to the unlocked state, it is deformed to the socket 10 and the plug 12 and pulled apart between the two. When a large force in the direction is applied, the locking member 18 may be disconnected in an unlocked state (FIG. 4).

  When the locking operation member 20 is rotated clockwise as viewed in FIGS. 5 and 7 from the temporarily connected state of FIGS. 5 and 6, the first end 24 and the second end 26 of the locking member 18 are locked. The operation member 20 is pressed inward by the sliding inner peripheral surface 49. When the locking operation member 20 is rotated to the fixed position shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, the first end 24 and the second end 26 of the locking member 18 are locked to the fixing recess 50 of the locking operation member 20. The When the first end 24 and the second end 26 are locked from the outside in the fixed recess 50, the first end 24 and the second end 26 cannot be displaced outward. Thereby, the 1st locking part 28 and the 2nd locking part 30 will also be in the state which cannot be displaced outside. That is, by setting the locking operation member 20 to the fixed position, the locking member 18 is prevented from being unlocked, and the pipe joint 1 is a connection in which the connection between the socket 10 and the plug 12 is securely held. Completed state.

  When releasing the connection, the locking operation member 20 is rotated in the reverse direction (counterclockwise as viewed in FIG. 10). Then, the sliding outer peripheral surface 51 of the locking operation member 20 is engaged with the first end 24 and the second end 26 of the locking member 18, and the first end 24 and the second end 26 are sliding outer peripheral surface 51. It is pushed outward by. When the locking operation member 20 is rotated to the release position of FIG. 11, the locking member 18 is unlocked in which the first locking portion 28 and the second locking portion 30 are displaced to the outside in the radial direction from the tapered surface 42 of the plug 12. It becomes a state. As a result, the holding of the plug 12 by the locking member 18 is released, and the plug 12 can be removed from the socket 10.

  The socket 10 further includes a connection confirmation member 52 (FIG. 12) that is detachably attached to the socket body 16. The connection confirmation member 52 is a substantially U-shaped member that includes a central portion 54 and two leg portions 56 that extend substantially in parallel to each other from both sides of the central portion 54. An engagement surface 58 and a recess 60 that is recessed from the engagement surface 58 are formed on the lower surface of the central portion 54. A contact sensor 62 is fixed to the central portion 54, and a detection portion 64 of the contact sensor 62 extends through the through hole 66 of the central portion 54 and into the recess 60.

  As shown in FIGS. 13 to 16, the connection confirmation member 52 slides the leg portion 56 between the left and right ribs 68 of the socket body 16 and the first locking portion 28 and the second locking portion 30 of the locking member 18. It is attached to the socket body 16 so as to be inserted. The leg portion 56 is slidably held with respect to the socket body 16, and the connection confirmation member 52 can be displaced in the direction of the rotation axis R. When the locking operation member 20 is in the release position, as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the projection 38 of the locking operation member 20 is engaged with the engagement surface 58 of the connection confirmation member 52, and the contact sensor 62 The detection part 64 will be in the state which does not contact anywhere. On the other hand, when the locking operation member 20 is in the fixed position, the protrusion 38 of the locking operation member 20 is aligned with the recess 60 of the connection confirmation member 52 as shown in FIGS. 15 and 16. At this time, the protrusion 38 is received in the recess 60 without interfering with the engagement surface 58, and the connection confirmation member 52 can be displaced to the connection display position closer to the locking operation member 20. When the connection confirmation member 52 is in the connection display position, the detection unit 64 of the contact sensor 62 comes into contact with the head 36a of the mounting projection 36 of the socket body 16. The contact sensor 62 detects that a conductor has contacted the detector 64 and transmits a detection signal to an external device (not shown). In addition, the detection part 64 can also be made to contact other members, such as the locking operation member 20. FIG.

  That is, in the pipe joint 1, when the locking operation member 20 is at the release position, the connection confirmation member 52 is prevented from being displaced to the connection display position, and when the locking operation member 20 is at the fixed position, the connection confirmation member 52 is It can be displaced to the connected display position. Then, when the locking operation member 20 is in the fixed position, the connection confirmation member 52 is displaced to the connection display position, whereby the contact sensor 62 transmits a detection signal, and the locking operation member 20 is fixed based on the detection signal. Thus, it can be confirmed that the socket 10 and the plug 12 are in the connected state.

  In a state where the connection confirmation member 52 is in the connection display position in the connection completion state (FIGS. 15 and 16), if the lock operation member 20 is rotated from the fixed position toward the release position, the lock operation member The 20 protrusions 38 engage with the side surfaces of the recess 60 of the connection confirmation member 52. As a result, the locking operation member 20 is prevented from being rotated to the release position. Therefore, in order to release the connection between the socket 10 and the plug 12, the connection confirmation member 52 is first removed. With such a configuration, the locking operation member 20 can be prevented from being erroneously operated.

  As shown in FIG. 17, when the plug 12 is not sufficiently inserted into the passage 14 of the socket body 16 and the locking member 18 is not in the locked state, the leg portion 56 of the connection confirmation member 52 is fixed to the locking member. The connection confirmation member 52 cannot be attached to the socket body 16 by interfering with the 18 first locking portions 28 and the second locking portions 30. With such a configuration, it can be confirmed whether the plug 12 is firmly inserted into the socket 10 and is in a temporarily connected state.

  The connection confirmation member 52 may be attached to the socket body 16 in a temporarily connected state in which the locking operation member 20 is in the release position after the plug 12 is connected to the socket 10, or the connection completion state with the locking operation member 20 as the fixed position. Then, it may be attached to the socket body 16. When attached in a temporarily connected state, the connection confirmation member 52 is in a state where the engagement surface 58 is engaged with the protrusion 38 of the locking operation member 20 and rides on the locking operation member 20. When the locking operation member 20 is rotated to the fixed position in this state, the engagement surface 58 and the projection do not interfere with each other, and the connection confirmation member 52 is displaced downward toward the socket body 16 by its own weight, and the contact sensor 62 The detection portion 64 is in a connected display position in contact with the mounting projection 36 of the socket body 16.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. The pipe joint 1 is a pipe joint for food piping, and has a structure including a U-shaped locking member 18 as described above and a locking operation member 20 that rotates around the rotation axis R. It can be set as the pipe joint of other shapes. As such a pipe joint of another structure, for example, the locking member is a spherical locking element held so as to be displaceable in the radial direction with respect to the joint body, and the locking operation member is disposed outside the joint body and has a longitudinal axis. And a sleeve that is slidable in the direction and is locked to the locker from the outside in the radial direction. In this case, the pipe joint is in a connection completed state by rotating the sleeve in the circumferential direction with respect to the joint body while the sleeve holds the lock in the locked state, and in this state, the connection confirmation member is attached to the joint body. Then, the connection confirmation member becomes the connection display position, and the detection signal can be generated, for example, when the contact sensor contacts the sleeve.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, the pipe joint 1 is used in the state in which the locking operation member 20 is located on the upper side, and the connection confirmation member 52 is made to ride on the socket main body 16 or the locking operation member 20 by the effect of gravity. ing. Therefore, the pipe joint 1 according to the above-described embodiment can be used only in a state where the locking operation member 20 is positioned on the upper side. However, if a biasing member such as a spring is attached between the connection confirmation member 52 and the socket body 16. , Can be used in any orientation.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the connection confirmation member 52 is in the connection display position and the locking operation member 20 is in the fixed position, which is displayed by the detection signal of the contact sensor 62. You can also. For example, instead of the contact sensor, other sensors such as a proximity sensor and a distance sensor may be used. Or you may make it display to an operator directly, such as a switch operating, LED lighting, or a buzzer sounding. Furthermore, characters and coloring parts hidden by the connection confirmation member appear when the connection confirmation member becomes the connection display position and become visible, or conversely, characters and coloring appear when the connection confirmation member becomes the connection display position. The part can be hidden and not visible.

1 Pipe joint 10 Socket (joint member)
12 Plug (corresponding joint member)
14 Passage 16 Socket body (Fitting body)
18 Locking member 20 Locking operation member 22 Opening 24 First end portion 26 Second end portion 28 First locking portion 30 Second locking portion 31 Connecting portion 32 Mounting projection 34 Mounting pin 36 Mounting projection 36a Head portion 38 Projection portion 40 Outer peripheral surface 42 Tapered surface 44 Locking portion 46 Inner peripheral surface 48 Seal member 49 Sliding inner peripheral surface 50 Fixed concave portion 51 Sliding outer peripheral surface 52 Connection confirmation member 54 Central portion 56 Leg portion 58 Engaging surface 60 Recessed portion 62 Contact sensor 64 Detector 66 Through-hole 68 Rib R Rotation axis

Claims (9)

A joint member for detachably connecting a corresponding joint member,
A tubular joint body having a passage for receiving a corresponding joint member;
A locked state in which the corresponding joint member is held in the passage by being engaged with a corresponding joint member that is attached to the joint body and received in the passage, and an unlocked state in which the holding of the corresponding joint member is released. A locking member having,
It was attached to the joint body, and was displaceable between a fixed position that prevents the locking member from being in the unlocked state and a release position that allows the locking member to be in the unlocked state. A locking operation member;
It is displaceable with respect to the joint body, and when the locking operation member is in the fixed position, it can be displaced to a connected display position where a predetermined display indicating that the locking operation member is in the fixed position is made, A connection confirmation member that is prevented from being displaced to the connection display position when the locking operation member is in the release position;
A joint member comprising The joint body has two openings that penetrate in the radial direction;
The locking member is located on the outer periphery of the joint body and is opposed to each other in the circumferential direction and is opposed to each other, and the passage extends from the first and second ends and through the opening. An outer peripheral surface of the corresponding joint member having first and second locking portions partially entering the first and second locking portions, and in the locked state, the first and second locking portions are received in the passage of the joint member. And the corresponding joint member is held, and in the unlocked state, the first and second locking portions are displaced radially outward of the joint body, and the engagement with the outer peripheral surface is released. Was
The locking operation member is rotatable with respect to the joint body around a rotation axis extending in a radial direction of the joint body, and in the fixed position, the first and second locking members in the locked state. The joint member according to claim 1, wherein the joint member is engaged with the second end portion to prevent the first and second locking portions from being displaced radially outward. The locking operation member has a protrusion protruding in a direction away from the joint body in the direction of the rotation axis;
The connection confirmation member has an engagement surface that engages with the locking operation member, and a recess that is recessed outward from the engagement surface,
When the locking operation member is in the release position, the protrusion of the locking operation member is prevented from interfering with the engagement surface of the connection confirmation member and the connection confirmation member being displaced to the connection display position. When the locking operation member is in the fixed position, the protrusion is aligned with the recess and is received in the recess so that the connection confirmation member can be displaced to the connection display position. The joint member according to claim 2 made.   When the locking operation member is rotated from the fixed position toward the release position in a state where the connection confirmation member is in the connection display position, the protrusion is engaged with the side surface of the recess, The joint member according to claim 3, wherein the locking operation member is prevented from rotating to the release position.   The connection confirmation member has a central portion having the engagement surface and leg portions extending substantially parallel to each other in the direction of the rotation axis from both sides of the central portion, and the leg portions are connected to the joint body. The joint member according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the joint member is slidably held so that the connection confirmation member can be displaced with respect to the joint body in the direction of the rotation axis.   6. When the locking member is in the unlocked state, the leg of the connection confirmation member interferes with the locking member so that the connection confirmation member cannot be attached to the joint body. The joint member according to the description.   The sensor according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising a sensor attached to the connection confirmation member and detecting that the connection confirmation member has reached the connection display position, and the predetermined display is a detection signal of the sensor. The joint member according to one item.   When the sensor is a contact sensor and the connection confirmation member is in the connection display position, the sensor comes into contact with at least one of the joint main body and the locking operation member to generate the detection signal. The joint member according to claim 7 made. The joint member according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
And a corresponding joint member that is received in the passage of the joint member and is detachably coupled to the joint member.

Images