Pipe Connector for Tightly Connecting Two Pipe Ends, Use Thereof and Method

Abstract

A pipe connector for tightly connecting a first pipe end to a second pipe end, with a sleeve-like base body which has a first receptacle for inserting a first pipe end and a second receptacle for inserting a second pipe end, with first retaining elements in the area of the first receptacle, which are designed to fixate a first pipe end inserted into the first receptacle in the first receptacle after the pipe connector has been pressed. The second retaining elements in the area of the second receptacle, which are designed to fixate a second pipe end inserted into the first receptacle after the pipe connector has been pressed. One or more bridge retaining elements are provided, wherein a bridge retaining element extends in each case from the area of the first receptacle to the area of the second receptacle and forms at least one of the first retaining elements and at least one of the second retaining elements. The invention further relates to a use of the pipe connector and to a method for tightly connecting a first pipe end to a second pipe end.

Claims

1. A pipe connector for tightly connecting a first pipe end to a second pipe end, with a sleeve-like base body, which has a first receptacle for inserting a first pipe end and a second receptacle for inserting a second pipe end, with first retaining elements in the area of the first receptacle, which are designed to fixate a first pipe end inserted into the first receptacle in the first receptacle after the pipe connector has been pressed, and with second retaining elements in the area of the second receptacle, which are designed to fixate a second pipe end inserted into the second receptacle in the second receptacle after the pipe connector has been pressed, wherein one or more bridge retaining elements are provided, wherein a bridge retaining element extends in each case from the area of the first receptacle to the area of the second receptacle and forms at least one of the first retaining elements and at least one of the second retaining elements.

2. The pipe connector according to claim 1, wherein the base body is formed from a plurality of base body segments arranged next to one another in the circumferential direction.

3. The pipe connector according to claim 2, wherein one or more of the base body segments have alignment means for aligning adjacent base body segments with respect to one another.

4. The pipe connector according to claim 2, wherein one or more of the base body segments have one or more receptacles for a respective bridge retaining element.

5. The pipe connector according to claim 1, wherein the pipe connector has a, preferably sleeve-like, housing which at least partially surrounds the base body, the housing having a first housing opening for inserting a first pipe end into the first receptacle and a second housing opening for inserting a second pipe end into the second receptacle.

6. The pipe connector according to claim 5, wherein the housing has a plurality of housing parts which have sliding surfaces corresponding to respective pressing surfaces of the base body, so that an axial pressing force exerted on the housing parts by means of a pressing tool causes a radial pressing force on the base body.

7. The pipe connector according to claim 6, wherein the housing parts among each other and/or the housing parts and the base body have latching means corresponding to one another in order to latch the housing parts in the non-pressed and/or pressed state.

8. The pipe connector according to claim 6, wherein a pressed marking is provided which indicates the pressed state of the pipe connector, in particular a coloured marking on one of the housing parts in the area of the corresponding latching means.

9. The pipe connector according to claim 1, wherein the one or more bridge retaining elements have a higher tensile strength and/or higher yield strength than the base body.

10. The pipe connector according to claim 1, wherein the one or more bridge retaining elements are formed in one piece.

11. The pipe connector according to claim 1, wherein the one or more bridge retaining elements have respective cutting edges as first and second retaining elements, wherein the cutting surface of the cutting edges pointing towards the axial center of the pipe connector preferably has a steeper angle to the axial axis than the cutting surface pointing away from the axial center of the pipe connector.

12. The pipe connector according to claim 1, wherein the pipe connector has a sleeve-shaped sealing element which extends between the first retaining elements and the second retaining elements from the area of the first receptacle to the area of the second receptacle and is arranged further inwards in the radial direction of the base body than the one or more bridge retaining elements.

13. The pipe connector of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first pipe end and the second pipe end is made of a flexible material.

14. The pipe connector of claim 13, wherein the flexible material is plastic.

15. A method for tightly connecting a first pipe end to a second pipe end, in which a first pipe end is inserted into the first receptacle of a pipe connector according to claim 1, in which a second pipe end is inserted into the second receptacle of the pipe connector, and in which the pipe connector is pressed in such a way that the first pipe end is fixated in the first receptacle by the first retaining elements and the second pipe end is fixated in the second receptacle by the second retaining elements.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0083] Further features and advantages of the pipe connector, the use and the method are shown in the following description of embodiments, with reference being made to the attached drawing.

[0084] In the drawing

[0085] FIG. 1a-b show a pipe connector in the unpressed and pressed state,

[0086] FIG. 2a-e show a first exemplary embodiment of the pipe connector in various views and its use,

[0087] FIG. 3a-e show a second exemplary embodiment of the pipe connector in various views and its use,

[0088] FIG. 4 shows an example of the use and of the method.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0089] FIGS. 1a-b show a schematic cross-sectional partial view of a pipe connector 10 designed as a press connector for connecting two pipe ends 4, 6 of two pipes 5, 7 from the prior art. FIG. 1a shows the pipe connector 10 in the unpressed state and FIG. 1b shows the pipe connector 10 in the pressed state.

[0090] The pipe connector 10 has a sleeve-shaped base body 12 with a first receptacle 14 for the first pipe end 4 and a second receptacle 16 for the second pipe end 6. In the first and second receptacles 14, 16, respective retaining elements 18, 20 are arranged in the form of metal rings 23 provided with cutting edges 22, wherein the cutting edges 22 are embedded into the respective outer surface of the pipe ends 4, 6 when the pipe connector 10 is pressed with the pipe ends 4, 6 (see FIG. 1b) and in this way fixate the pipe ends 4, 6 in the receptacles 14, 16.

[0091] The pipe connector also has a sealing element 24 with sealing lips 26 to seal the transition from the first pipe end 4 to the second pipe end 6.

[0092] If axial forces act on the pipe connector 10 via one of the pipe ends 4, 6 in the pressed state (FIG. 1b), these must be absorbed by the base body 12 in order to be transferred to the respective other pipe end. In order for the base body 12 to be able to absorb the forces that typically occur during underground installation, for example, it must be designed with a relatively thick wall thickness. This results in a high amount of material required for the base body 12 and further in very high pressing forces being required to press the base body 12 with the large wall thickness. For this reason, a pipe connector as shown in FIG. 1a-b is not particularly suitable for large pipe cross-sections or for installation situations with potentially high axial forces.

[0093] FIGS. 2a-e show a first exemplary embodiment of the pipe connector for tightly connecting a first pipe end to a second pipe end in various views, namely in the unpressed state (FIGS. 2a-d) and in the pressed state (FIG. 2e).

[0094] FIG. 2a shows a schematic sectional view of the pipe connector 100 in the unpressed state. FIG. 2b shows the view from FIG. 2a with pipe ends 4, 6 inserted into the pipe connector 100. FIG. 2c shows a schematic, perspective exploded view of the pipe connector 100. FIG. 2d shows a perspective detail view of a base body segment 108 and two bridge retaining elements 114. FIG. 2e shows the view from FIG. 2b in the pressed state.

[0095] The pipe connector 100 has a sleeve-like base body 102 made of plastic, which has a first receptacle 104 for inserting a first pipe end 4 of a first pipe 5 and a second receptacle 106 opposite the first receptacle 104 for inserting a second pipe end 6 of a second pipe 7.

[0096] The base body 102 is formed from several base body segments 108 of the same kind, in the present exemplary embodiment for example from eight base body segments 108, which are arranged next to one another in the circumferential direction.

[0097] FIG. 2d shows such a base body segment 108 in perspective view. The base body segment 108 has two receptacles 112 on the inner side 110 for a respective bridge retaining element 114, which are also shown in FIG. 2d. Each of the bridge retaining elements 114 extends from the area of the first receptacle 104 to the area of the second receptacle 106 and forms first retaining elements 116 in the form of a plurality of cutting edges 118 in the area of the first receptacle 104 and second retaining elements 120 in the form of a plurality of cutting edges 122 in the area of the second receptacle 106. The bridge retaining elements 114 may, for example, be formed from metal or fibre-reinforced plastic and preferably have a higher tensile strength R.sub.m and/or a higher yield strength R.sub.p0,2 than the base body segment 108 or the base body 102, respectively.

[0098] In the present case, the bridge retaining elements 114 are each formed in one piece and can transmit tensile forces acting on one of the retaining elements 116, 120 to the respective other retaining element 120, 116. The bridge retaining elements 114 thus extend from the area of the first receptacle 104 to the area of the second receptacle 106 in a tensile force transmitting manner.

[0099] The base body segments 108 have alignment means 124 on their mutually facing sides in the form of a respective groove 126 and a respective corresponding tongue 128, wherein the tongue 128 of a base body segment 108 engages in the groove 126 of an adjacent base body segment 108 and thus aligns their position relative to one another.

[0100] The pipe connector 100 further comprises a housing 130 consisting of two housing parts 134, 136 axially offset from one another, wherein the first housing part 134 surrounds the base body 102 in the area of the first receptacle 104 and the second housing part 136 surrounds the base body 102 in the area of the second receptacle 106 in the manner of a shell. The housing 130 may, for example, be made of metal or plastic, in particular fibre-reinforced plastic.

[0101] The housing parts 134, 136 are each formed in a sleeve-like manner with a respective housing opening 138, 140 for inserting a respective pipe end 4, 6 into the first or second receptacle 104, 106.

[0102] Furthermore, the housing parts 134, 136 have respective inclined, frustoconical sliding surfaces 142, 144, which correspond to respective inclined, frustoconical pressing surfaces 146, 148 on the outside of the base body 102.

[0103] Furthermore, the housing parts 134, 136 and the base body 102 have corresponding first latching means 150 in the form of latching hooks 152 and corresponding undercuts 154 in order to hold the housing parts 134, 136 in an initial position in the unpressed state (FIG. 2a). In this way, the housing parts 134, 136 are held captive on the base body 102 and the individual base body segments 108 of the base body 102 are held together.

[0104] In addition, the housing parts 134, 136 and the base body 102 have corresponding second latching means 160 in the form of latching hooks 162 and corresponding undercuts 164 in order to hold the housing parts 134, 136 in a pressed position in the pressed state (FIG. 2e).

[0105] The housing parts 134, 136 are also provided with respective attachments 166 for pressing jaws 170 of a pressing tool 172 (indicated by dashed lines in FIG. 2b).

[0106] The pipe connector 100 further comprises a sleeve-shaped sealing element 180, which extends between the first retaining elements 116 and the second retaining elements 120 of the bridge retaining elements 114 from the area of the first receptacle 104 to the area of the second receptacle 106 and is arranged, with respect to the base body 102, radially inside the bridge retaining elements 114. In the exploded view in FIG. 2c, the sealing element 180 is displaced axially out of the base body 102 for better visualization. outer diameter of d25 (outer diameter of 25 mm) or more, for example d25-225 (outer diameter of 25-225 mm), in particular d32 (outer diameter of 32 mm) or more, for example d32-225 (outer diameter of 32-225 mm). In the area of the first receptacle 104 and in the area of the second receptacle 106, the sealing element 180 has inwardly directed sealing lips 182 for sealing against the outer surface of the corresponding pipe end 4, 6 in the pressed state.

[0107] The use of the pipe connector 100 for tightly connecting two pipe ends 4, 6 is described below.

[0108] In order to connect two pipe ends 4, 6 to each other with the pipe connector 100, the pipe ends 4, 6 are inserted through the respective housing opening 138, 140 into the respective receptacle 104, 106 of the pipe connector 100 as shown in FIG. 2b. The pressing jaws 170 of a pressing tool 172 are then applied to the attachments 166 of the housing parts 134, 136 of the pipe connector 100 as indicated in FIG. 2b.

[0109] The pressing jaws 170 of the pressing tool 170 can be moved axially towards each other (see arrows 176 in FIG. 2b) mechanically or also hydraulically by means of a pressing jaw actuator (see reference sign 374 in FIG. 4) of the pressing tool 170, so that the two housing parts 134, 136 are moved towards each other. During this movement, the inclined sliding surfaces 142, 144 slide over the corresponding pressing surfaces 146, 148 of the base body 102, whereby the axial pressing forces exerted by the pressing jaws 170 on the housing parts 134, 136 are partially redirected into radial pressing forces on the base body 102, whereby the latter is pressed in the radial direction.

[0110] When the base body 102 is pressed, the base body segments 108 are cold-formed, whereby any gaps between the individual base body segments 108 in the unpressed state close and the base body is deformed radially inwards, whereby the cutting edges 118, 122 of the bridge retaining elements 114 are embedded into the outer surface of the pipe ends 4, 6 and thus fixate them positively in the respective receptacle 104, 106.

[0111] The cutting edges 118, 122 of the bridge retaining elements 114 are asymmetrical with a steeper angle of the cutting surface 123 facing the center of the pipe connector 100 to increase the pull-out force that would be required to pull the pipe ends 4, 6 out of the receptacles 104, 106.

[0112] Furthermore, the sealing element 180 is pressed with the sealing lips 182 against the outer surface of the pipe ends 4, 6 and seals the connection between the pipe ends gas-tight and/or liquid-tight.

[0113] At the end of the pressing process, the latching hooks 162 of the housing parts 134, 136 latch into the corresponding undercuts 164 of the base body 102, so that the housing parts 134, 136 are fixed in the pressed position and prevent the base body 102 from being deformed back from the pressed state.

[0114] The pressed state of the pipe connector 100 is shown in FIG. 2e.

[0115] The finally pressed pipe connector 100 ensures a durable and tight pipe connection 190 of the two pipe ends 4, 6, even when axial forces act on the pipe connection. If, for example, an axial force (arrow 192) acts on the first pipe end 4, for example due to assembly work in the further course of the pipe or sudden media pressure surges during operation, this axial force is introduced into the bridge retaining elements 114 via the first retaining elements 116 and transmitted to the second pipe end 6 via the second retaining elements 120. In this way, the axial force is prevented from weakening the pipe connection 190 or causing it to leak. Since the axial forces that occur are transmitted via the bridge retaining elements 114, the wall thickness of the base body 102 can be reduced (for example compared to the pipe connector 10), which saves material and weight and makes it possible to provide a more compact press connector 100 overall.

[0116] FIGS. 3a-e show a second exemplary embodiment of the pipe connector for tightly connecting a first pipe end to a second pipe end in various views, namely in the unpressed state (FIGS. 3a-d) and in the pressed state (FIG. 3e).

[0117] FIG. 3a shows a schematic sectional view of the pipe connector 200 in the unpressed state. FIG. 3b shows the view from FIG. 3a with pipe ends 4, 6 inserted into the pipe connector 200. FIG. 3c shows a schematic, perspective exploded view of the pipe connector 200. FIG. 3d shows a perspective detail view of a base body segment 208 and a bridge retaining element 214 of the pipe connector 200. FIG. 3e shows the view from FIG. 3b in the pressed state.

[0118] The pipe connector 200 basically has a similar structure to the pipe connector 100.

[0119] In particular, the pipe connector 200 also comprises a sleeve-like base body 202, which is formed from a plurality of base body segments 208, in the present example twelve base body segments 208, and has a first receptacle 204 for a first pipe end 4 and an opposite second receptacle 206 for a second pipe end 6. The base body segments 208 each have a receptacle 212 with latching hooks 213 on the inside, into which a bridge retaining element 214 is inserted in each case and is fixated by the latching hooks 213. The bridge retaining elements 214 each extend from the area of the first receptacle 204 to the area of the second receptacle 206 and have first and second retaining elements 216, 220 in the form of cutting edges 218, 222 provided on the bridge retaining element 214.

[0120] The pipe connector 200 further has a housing 230 with two axially offset, sleeve-shaped housing parts 234, 236, which surround the base body 202 in the area of the first receptacle 204 and the second receptacle 206 respectively and have respective housing openings 238, 240 for inserting a pipe end 4, 6 into the receptacles 204, 206. The housing parts 234, 236 are made of plastic with a respective insert 237 made of metal for reinforcement.

[0121] The housing parts 234, 236 each have inclined sliding surfaces 242, 244 in the form of conical segments, which correspond to respective inclined pressing surfaces 246, 248 in the form of conical segments on the outside of the base body 202. Furthermore, the housing parts 234, 236 have corresponding first latching means 250 in the form of latching hooks 252 and corresponding undercuts 254 in order to hold the housing parts 234, 236 in an initial position in the unpressed state (FIG. 3a). Furthermore, the housing parts 234, 236 have corresponding second latching means 260 in the form of the latching hooks 252 and further corresponding undercuts 264 in order to hold the housing parts 234, 236 in a pressed position in the pressed state (FIG. 3e). Furthermore, the housing parts 234, 236 have respective attachments 266 for pressing jaws 270 of a pressing tool 272 (indicated by dashed lines in FIG. 2b).

[0122] The pipe connector 200 further comprises a sealing element 280 extending between the retaining elements 216, 220 of the bridge retaining elements 214 and radially, which is arranged radially further inwards than the bridge retaining elements 214 and comprises sealing lips 282 in the area of the first and second receptacles 204, 206.

[0123] The pressing process is similar to the pipe connector 100. After inserting the pipe ends 4, 6 into the receptacles 204, 206, an axial pressing force (arrows 276) is exerted on the housing parts 234, 236 by the pressing jaws 270 of the pressing tool 272, so that they are moved towards each other. Due to the interaction of the sliding surfaces 242, 244 with the pressing surfaces 246, 248, the axial pressing force is partially diverted into a radial pressing force on the base body 202, so that the base body segments 208 are cold formed, whereby any gaps between the individual base body segments 208 in the unpressed state close and the base body 202 is deformed radially inwards, whereby the cutting edges 218, 222 of the bridge retaining elements 214 are embedded into the outer surfaces of the pipe ends 4, 6 and thus fixate them in the respective receptacle 204, 206. The sealing lips 282 of the sealing element 280 pressed against the outer surfaces of the pipe ends 4, 6 during the pressing process seal the connection of the pipe ends 4, 6. At the end of the pressing process, the latching hooks 252 engage behind the undercuts 264 and fixate the housing parts 234, 236 in the pressed position.

[0124] A pressed marking 265 may be provided, which indicates the pressed state of the housing parts 234, 236. In this way, it is possible to check that the pressed position 265 has been reached. For example, the housing part 234 may be provided with a colored marking as a pressed marking in the area of the pressing means 250, 260 between the undercuts 254 and 264, which, in the unpressed position shown in FIG. 3a, is visible from the outside and, in the pressed position shown in FIG. 3e, is covered by the latching hooks 252 of the housing part 236 and is therefore not visible from the outside.

[0125] The finally pressed pipe connector 200 produces a durable and tight pipe connection 290 of the two pipe ends 4, 6, even when axial forces act on the pipe connection. For example, if an axial force (arrow 292) acts on the first pipe end 4, this axial force is introduced into the bridge retaining elements 214 via the first retaining elements 216 and transmitted to the second pipe end 6 via the second retaining elements 220. In this way, the axial force is prevented from weakening the pipe connection 290 or causing it to leak. Since the axial forces that occur are transmitted via the bridge retaining elements 214, the wall thickness of the base body 202 can be reduced (for example compared to the pipe connector 10), thereby saving material and weight and providing an overall more compact press connector 200.

[0126] FIG. 4 shows an exemplary assembly situation when connecting the pipe ends 4, 6 of two buried pipes 5, 7 with a pipe connector 300, which may be designed, for example, like the pipe connector 100 or like the pipe connector 200, in a pit 302.

[0127] To produce the press connection, the pipe ends 4, 6 (analogous to FIGS. 2b and 3b) are inserted into the pipe connector 200 and the pressing jaws 370 of a pressing tool 372 (see pressing jaws 170 in FIG. 2b and pressing jaws 270 in FIG. 3b) are applied to the corresponding attachments (see attachments 166 in FIG. 2b and attachments 266 in FIG. 3b) of the pipe connector 200. A pressing force (see arrows 176 in FIGS. 1b and 2b) may be exerted on the pipe connector 200 via a pressing jaw actuator 374, which in FIG. 4 is connected to the pressing jaws 370 via a hydraulic line 378, in order to press the pipe connector 200. The hydraulic line 378 enables convenient actuation of the pressing jaw actuator 374 from outside the pit 302.

LIST OF REFERENCE SYMBOLS

[0128] 5 first pipe [0129] 6 second pipe end [0130] 7 second pipe [0131] 10 pipe connector [0132] 12 base body [0133] 14 first receptacle [0134] 16 second receptacle [0135] 18, 20 retaining elements [0136] 22 cutting edge [0137] 23 metal ring [0138] 24 sealing element [0139] 26 sealing lips [0140] 100, 200, 300 pipe connector [0141] 102, 202 base body [0142] 104, 204 first receptacle [0143] 106, 206 second receptacle [0144] 108, 208 base body segment [0145] 110 inner side [0146] 112, 212 receptacle for a bridge retaining element [0147] 114, 214 bridge retaining element [0148] 116, 216 first retaining element [0149] 118, 122, 218, 222 cutting edges [0150] 120, 220 second retaining element [0151] 123 cutting surface [0152] 124 alignment means [0153] 126 groove [0154] 128 tongue [0155] 130, 230 housing [0156] 134, 234 first housing part [0157] 136, 236 second housing part [0158] 138, 238 first housing opening [0159] 140, 240 second housing opening [0160] 142, 144, 242, 244 sliding surfaces [0161] 146, 148, 246, 248 pressing surfaces [0162] 150, 250 first latching means [0163] 152, 162, 252 latching hook [0164] 154, 164, 254, 264 undercuts [0165] 160, 260 second latching means [0166] 166, 266 attachments for pressing jaws [0167] 170, 270, 370 pressing jaws [0168] 172, 272, 372 pressing tool [0169] 176, 276 axial pressing force [0170] 180, 280 sealing element [0171] 182, 282 sealing lips [0172] 190, 290 pipe connection [0173] 192, 292 axial force [0174] 213 latching hook [0175] 237 insert [0176] 265 pressed marking [0177] 302 pit [0178] 374 pressing jaw actuator [0179] 378 line