Zuführeinheit für Fügeelemente mit einer Anschlusskupplung und Verfahren zum Verbinden/Trennen von Teilen einer Zuführeinheit für Fügelemente

Abstract

A feeding unit for joining elements includes a connector coupling having a connector plug and a connector socket which may be placed in a connected state or disconnected state with respect to each other. The connector plug has a passage formed around a passage axis Z.sub.S. The connector socket likewise has a passage formed around a passage axis Z.sub.B. In the connected state of the connector plug and connector socket, the axes Z.sub.S and Z.sub.B are aligned with each other along an alignment axis Z.sub.F to allow the flow of joining elements through the connector coupling. When the connector plug and socket are placed in the disconnected state, a locking element of the connector plug moves to a locked position to block joining elements from passing through the disconnected coupling socket.

Claims

1-11. (canceled)

12. A feeding unit for feeding joining elements, the feeding unit including: (a) a connector plug having a plug-in element with a radial widening part and also having a plug passage defined along a plug axis through the connector plug; (b) a connector socket that can be placed alternatively in a connected state and disconnected state with the connector plug, the connector socket having a push-in opening, a locking element, and a latching element, and also having a socket passage defined along a socket axis through the connector socket, the plug axis and the socket axis being aligned with each other along an alignment axis and the plug passage and socket passage being connected to form a continuous passage when the connector plug and connector socket are in the connected state; (c) wherein when the connector plug and the connector socket are in the disconnected state the locking element is operable to reside in a locked position in which the locking element blocks a portion of the socket passage and the connector socket is positioned to receive the plug-in element in an inserted position from a push-in direction in which the plug axis and the socket axis are not aligned with each other; and (d) wherein when the plug-in element is in the inserted position the connector plug is movable through a latching movement to (i) move the locking element from the locked position to an open position in which the socket passage is substantially unblocked by the locking element and to (ii) place the connector plug and connector socket in the connected state with the latching element engaging a rear surface of radial widening part in position to prevent a separation of the connector plug and connector socket along the alignment axis.

13. The feeding unit of claim 12 wherein the joining elements are selected from the group consisting of weld studs, bolts, nuts, balls, nails, and rivets.

14. The feeding unit of claim 12 wherein connector plug and connector socket each have a connecting element for connecting to a respective feed hose of the feeding unit.

15. The feeding unit of claim 12 wherein the plug-in element comprises a plug nipple and the radial widening comprises a ridge extending around at least part of the circumference of the plug nipple.

16. The feeding unit of claim 15 wherein the diameter of the plug nipple is smaller than the diameter of an adjoining part of the connector plug so that the adjoining part of the connector plug provides a stop surface facing in a direction toward an end of the connector plug having the plug nipple.

17. The feeding unit of claim 12 wherein when the plug-in element is in the inserted position from the push-in direction the plug axis and the socket axis are inclined relative to each other.

18. The feeding unit of claim 12 wherein the locking element is spherical or cylindrical.

19. The feeding unit of claim 18 wherein the locking element includes a continuous hole with a receiving opening for receiving the plug-in element.

20. The feeding unit of claim 12 wherein the connector socket has a force element operative to bias the locking element toward the locked position with sufficient force to move the locking element from the open position to the locked position when the connector plug is moved from the connected state with the connector socket to the disconnected state with the connector socket.

21. The feeding unit of claim 12 wherein the connector plug includes a sliding element movable between an extended position and a retracted position relative to the plug-in element, and wherein when the sliding element is in the extended position with the connector plug and the connector socket in the connected state a portion of the sliding element covers the push-in open of the connector socket.

22. A method of operating a coupling comprising a connector plug and a connector socket, the connector plug having a plug passage defined along a plug axis and the connector socket having a socket passage defined along a socket axis, the method including: (a) pushing a plug-in element of the connector plug into a push-in opening of the connector socket to an inserted position in the connector socket in which (i) the plug axis and the socket axis are not aligned with each other and (ii) a locking element of the connector socket is in a locked position in which the locking element blocks a portion of the socket passage; and (b) with the plug-in element in the inserted position, moving the connector plug through a latching movement to (i) move the locking element from the locked position to an open position in which the socket passage is substantially unblocked by the locking element and to (ii) place the connector plug and connector socket in a connected state with a latching element of the connector socket engaging a rear surface of a radial widening part of the plug-in element in position to prevent a separation of the connector plug and connector socket along an alignment axis along which the plug axis and the socket axis are aligned.

23. The method of claim 22 further including: (a) with the connector plug and the connector socket in the connected state, moving the connector plug through an unlatching movement to (i) allow the locking element to move from the open position to the locked position, to (ii) move the latching element out of engagement with the radial widening part, and to (iii) move the plug axis out of alignment with the socket axis; and (b) pulling the plug-in element of the connector plug out of the push-in opening of the connector socket.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0033] FIG. 1 shows a connector coupling that can be used according to the invention in the connected state, to which feed hoses of a feeding unit are attached at both ends.

[0034] FIG. 2 shows a connector plug of a connector coupling that can be used according to the invention.

[0035] FIG. 3 shows a connector socket of a connector coupling that can be used according to the invention.

[0036] FIG. 4 shows a connector coupling that can be used according to the invention in the connected state as in FIG. 1, which additionally has a force element for the locking element.

[0037] FIGS. 5 to 9 show different positions of the connector coupling when carrying out the method according to the invention, with which the connector coupling that can be used according to the invention can be brought from the disconnected state into the connected state.

DESCRIPTION OF REPRESENTATIVE EMBODIMENTS

[0038] FIG. 1 schematically shows a view of a connector coupling 1 that can be used according to the invention in the connected state, to which feed hoses of a feeding unit 2 are attached at both ends. The connector plug 3 has a cylindrical passage 7, through which joining elements can pass. Similarly, in the connected state the connector socket 4 has a cylindrical passage 8, through which joining elements can likewise pass. In the connected state the cylinder axes Z.sub.S and Z.sub.B are aligned along the alignment axis Z.sub.F. The connector plug 3 has a plug-in element 9 formed as a plug nipple, which has a radial widening 10. The connector socket 4/4′ has, at the end facing the push-in opening 11, a spherical locking element 12/12′ inside it with a hole which is located in a concentric position relative to the alignment axis Z.sub.F in the connected state. In the disconnected state the locking element 12′ is in the locked position, in which the hole is arranged eccentric with the result that, in the disconnected state, the cylindrical passage 8 of the connector socket 4′ is blocked and joining elements cannot come out. In order that the plug-in element 9 can be pushed into the connector socket 4′, the connector socket 4′ has a push-in opening 11, through which the plug-in element 9 can be pushed into a receiving opening of the locking element 12 and 12′. The push-in direction 14 of the connector plug 3 is such that the axes Z.sub.B and Z.sub.S are not aligned with each other, and even have to be at an inclined angle relative to each other in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1. After the connector plug 3 has been pushed into the connector socket 4 to an inserted position, connector plug 3 and connector socket 4 are brought, through a latching movement, into the connected state, in which the axes Z.sub.S and Z.sub.B are aligned with each other. It is brought about through the latching movement that the locking element 12′ in a locked position turns into a locking element 12 in an open position. Furthermore, it is brought about through the latching movement that the latching element 13 engages behind the radial widening 10 of the plug-in element 9, whereby the disconnection of connector plug 3 and connector socket 4 in the opposite direction along the axis Z.sub.F is prevented. In FIG. 1, feed hoses of a feeding unit 2 are attached, at the ends of which lying opposite the connector coupling in each case a connector plug 3 and a connector socket 4 are again located.

[0039] FIG. 2 shows a connector plug 3 in the disconnected state with a plug-in element 9 formed as a plug nipple, which has a radially circumferential ridge as radial widening 10. The cylindrical passage 7 guarantees that weld studs can be guided through the connector plug 3 along the axis Z.sub.S. The stop 16 prevents the connector plug 3 from being pushed too far into the push-in opening 11 of the connector socket 4 and 4′. The connector plug 3 in FIG. 2 has a sliding element 15, which is displaceable along the direction of the axis Z.sub.S. The sliding element 15 is formed ring-shaped around the connector plug 3 and can be brought out of a covering (extended) position into an open (retracted) position. In the extended position, the plug-in element 9 is substantially surrounded by the sliding element 15. In the retracted position, the sliding element 15 is in a position in which it does not surround the plug-in element 9. The purpose of the sliding element 15 is that it covers both the push-in opening 11 and latching element 13 in the connected state of connector plug 3 and connector socket 4. In order for it to be held in the extended position, the sliding element can have springs.

[0040] FIG. 3 shows a connector socket 4′ in the disconnected state. The connector socket 4′ has a cylindrical passage 8, through which weld studs can be guided along the axis Z.sub.B in the connected state. In order that the joining elements cannot come out of the connector socket 4′ in the disconnected state, the locking element 12′ is in a locked position. The locking element 12′ is formed spherical here and has a hole, the axis of which is not aligned with the axis Z.sub.B in the disconnected state. The hole has a size which makes it possible for joining elements to be able to pass through the locking element 12 in the connected state. The locking element 12 and 12′ is movable in such a way that it can be brought from a locked position into an open position. In the locked position, the locking element 12′ is arranged such that the axis of the hole points in the direction of the center of the push-in opening 11. The connector plug 3 can be pushed from the push-in direction 14 into the connector socket 4′.

[0041] FIG. 4 shows a connector coupling 1 according to the invention in the connected state as in FIG. 1, which additionally has a force element 17 for the locking element 12/12′. The force element 17 guarantees that during the disconnection of connector plug 3 and connector socket 4 the locking element 12/12′ is brought into the locked position, in which joining elements cannot come out of the connector socket 4′.

[0042] FIG. 59 show the various steps which are carried out when the connector coupling is brought from the disconnected state into the connected state. A feed hose of a feeding unit 2, at the end of which a connector socket 4 is located, is attached to the connector plug 3. The connector plug 3 is covered with a sliding element 15. In FIG. 5 the sliding element 15 is in the extended position, in which it covers the plug-in element 9. In order that the plug-in element 9 can be pushed into the push-in opening 11 of the connector socket 4′, the sliding element 15 must be transferred out of the extended position into the retracted position, in which the plug-in element 9 is no longer concealed by the sliding element 15. The latter position is shown in FIG. 6. With the sliding element 15 in the retracted position, the plug-in element 9 can be pushed into the push-in opening 11 to an inserted position. This is effected from a push-in direction 14, in which the axes Z.sub.S and Z.sub.B are not aligned with each other. FIG. 7 shows the connector plug 3 pushed from the push-in direction 14 into the push-in opening 11 of the connector socket 4 to the inserted position before the latching movement. FIG. 8 shows connector plug 3 and connector socket 4 connected to each other after the latching movement, in which the axes Z.sub.S and Z.sub.B are aligned with each other. In FIG. 8 the sliding element 15 is in the retracted position. FIG. 9 shows the sliding element 15 after transfer from the retracted position into the extended position.

[0043] As used herein, whether in the above description or the following claims, the terms “comprising,” “including,” “carrying,” “having,” “containing,” “involving,” and the like are to be understood to be open-ended, that is, to mean including but not limited to. Also, it should be understood that the terms “about,” “substantially,” and like terms used herein when referring to a dimension or characteristic of a component indicate that the described dimension/characteristic is not a strict boundary or parameter and does not exclude variations therefrom that are functionally similar. At a minimum, such references that include a numerical parameter would include variations that, using mathematical and industrial principles accepted in the art (e.g., rounding, measurement or other systematic errors, manufacturing tolerances, etc.), would not vary the least significant digit.

[0044] Any use of ordinal terms such as “first,” “second,” “third,” etc., in the following claims to modify a claim element does not by itself connote any priority, precedence, or order of one claim element over another, or the temporal order in which acts of a method are performed. Rather, unless specifically stated otherwise, such ordinal terms are used merely as labels to distinguish one claim element having a certain name from another element having a same name (but for use of the ordinal term).

[0045] In the above descriptions and the following claims, terms such as top, bottom, upper, lower, vertical, and the like with reference to a given feature are made with reference to the orientation of the structures shown in the drawings and are not intended to exclude other orientations of the structures.

[0046] The term “each” may be used in the following claims for convenience in describing characteristics or features of multiple elements, and any such use of the term “each” is in the inclusive sense unless specifically stated otherwise. For example, if a claim defines two or more elements as “each” having a characteristic or feature, the use of the term “each” is not intended to exclude from the claim scope a situation having a third one of the elements which does not have the defined characteristic or feature.

[0047] The above-described preferred embodiments are intended to illustrate the principles of the invention, but not to limit the scope of the invention. Various other embodiments and modifications to these preferred embodiments may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, in some instances, one or more features disclosed in connection with one embodiment can be used alone or in combination with one or more features of one or more other embodiments. More generally, the various features described herein may be used in any working combination.

LIST OF REFERENCE CHARACTERS

[0048] 1 connector coupling [0049] 2 feeding unit [0050] 3 connector plug [0051] 4 connector socket (in the connected state) [0052] 4′ connector socket (in the disconnected state) [0053] 5 disconnected state of connector plug and connector socket [0054] 6 connected state of connector plug and connector socket [0055] 7 cylindrical passage of the connector plug [0056] 8 cylindrical passage of the connector socket [0057] 9 plug-in element [0058] 10 radial widening of the plug-in element [0059] 11 push-in opening [0060] 12 locking element (in the open position) [0061] 12′ locking element (in the locked position) [0062] 13 latching element [0063] 14 push-in direction [0064] 15 sliding element [0065] 16 stop [0066] 17 force element [0067] Z.sub.S cylinder axis of the cylindrical passage of the connector plug [0068] Z.sub.B cylinder axis of the cylindrical passage of the connector socket [0069] Z.sub.F alignment axis