A brake union for providing a secure and leak free connection between first and second fluid carrying lines inserted into a female union body having a first and second open ends. Each of the fluid carrying lines exhibits an expanded, typically flared, end form which, upon inserting through the female body, seat against one another. A mating flare nut coaxially surrounds one of the fluid carrying lines and includes exterior threads which inter-engage interior threads of the female body, with tightening to establish a fluid-tight connection between the opposing end forms.

A pipe extending from a first side toward a second side includes a side wall and a spool. The spool formed in the side wall is bent so as to protrude from an outer circumferential surface of the pipe, and extends to surround the outer circumferential surface. The spool includes a first portion located on the first side and a second portion located on the second side. There is a clearance between the first portion and the second portion in a top region of the spool, and the first portion and the second portion substantially abut each other in a base region.

In a hose connector fitting, an outer circumferential surface of a socket is crimped toward a radially inner side thereof within a crimping range along an axis direction of the socket in the state where a hose is inserted into an annular space between an outer circumferential portion of a nipple and an inner circumferential portion of the socket. A shape measuring device includes: a sensor and a rotational moving unit that detect distance data from a reference position to the surface of the socket over a zone including at least the entire crimping range; a shape data generating unit that generates shape data representative the three-dimensional shape of the socket surface based on the detected distance data; and a measurement data calculating unit that calculates measurement data about the crimping state of the socket based on the shape data.

Formed in series along an axial-direction end portion of a large-diameter pipe member, in the following order from the pipe end, are: a large-diameter-pipe pipe-end expanding portion; a large-diameter-pipe reduced-diameter portion; a large-diameter-pipe bulging portion; and a tapered portion. Formed in series along an axial-direction end portion of a small-diameter-pipe member, in the following order from the pipe end, are: a small-diameter-pipe pipe-end expanding portion; a small-diameter-pipe enlarged-diameter portion; and a small-diameter-pipe bulging portion. The outer cylindrical surface of the small-diameter-pipe enlarged-diameter portion is in close contact with the inner circumferential surface of the large-diameter-pipe reduced-diameter portion; the inner cylindrical surface of the large-diameter-pipe bulging portion and the outer circumferential surface of the small-diameter-pipe pipe-end expanding portion are engaged; and the inner circumferential surface of the large-diameter-pipe pipe-end expanding portion and the outer cylindrical surface of the small-diameter-pipe bulging portion are engaged.

Disclosed is a pipe connection apparatus. The pipe connection apparatus may include an outer body having a pipe mount part having a pipe insertion space opened rearward so that a pipe end is inserted into the pipe insertion space, and a swaging ring configured to come into contact with and press at least a part of the pipe mount part while surrounding at least a part of the pipe mount part.

An end-form fitting includes a tube and an auxiliary component disposed around the tube. One of the tube and the auxiliary component is deformed to cause the auxiliary component to engage the tube in order to militate against relative movement between the tube and the auxiliary component. The auxiliary component includes an array of surface irregularities formed therein and configured to engage an outer circumferential surface of the tube to form a corrugated joint therebetween. The auxiliary component is formed to include a radially outwardly extending orientation structure for establishing a rotational orientation of the end-form fitting when being coupled to a complimentary end-form fitting.

A method of joining segments of non-metallic pipe and an apparatus that may be used to form the joint. The pipes may be joined using by melting the ends to form a butt joint, then the joint may be wrapped with one or more sheets of reinforcement material (e.g., pre-impregnated fiberglass, carbon fiber, or aramid fiber). The reinforcement material may be heated using a heating apparatus which allows the material to bond to the pipes to strengthen the joint.

Techniques for implementing and/or operating a system that includes a pipe fitting and a swage machine. The swage machine includes a grab plate having a grab tab that matingly interlocks with a grab notch on the pipe fitting to facilitate securing the swage machine to the pipe fitting and a die plate having a die seat that enables a set of die segments to be used to conformally deform the pipe fitting around the tubing of the pipe segment to be loaded in the swage machine. The die plate and the grab plate include a base plate section, a hinge plate secured to the base plate section via a hinge fastener such that the hinge plate directly abuts the base plate section, and a pivotable plate section secured to the hinge plate via a hinge fastener such that the hinge plate directly abuts the pivotable plate section.

A method and system are described for a refrigerant distributor, and for attaching the distributor tubes to an evaporator coil. A short tube can inserted into the bell end of a tube and the hell end can be crimped around the short tube to lock it into place. The short tube preferably has a bead or widened shaft around which to crimp the bell. The disclosure is particularly beneficial for aluminum based components because aluminum is more susceptible to blockages or leaking due to problems from brazing.

This coupling device for a tubular member is provided with: a base stand for holding an inner member and an outer member in a state in which the outer member is disposed around the inner member; a plurality of pressing members that are supported by the base stand in a movable manner in the radial direction of the inner member and the outer member and have a protruding part on the tip thereof; a pressing member that make contact with the final end of the pressing member and that can press the pressing member radially inward; and a drive mechanism that drives any one among the base stand and the pressing member in a direction perpendicular to the movement direction of the pressing member so that the one member moves relative to the other. The inner member and the outer member are caulked and coupled by driving, by the drive mechanism, any one among the base stand and the pressing member and displacing the pressing member radially inward to thereby expand, radially inward, a portion of a peripheral wall of the outer member by the protruding part.