Locking nut with a directional coupling mechanism

• US 10,047,571 B2
• Filed: 01/21/2014
• Issued: 08/14/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services Incorporated (Halliburton Company)
• Original Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services Incorporated (Halliburton Company)
• Inventors: Demissie, Mesfin Ayele, D'Silva, Alben
• Primary Examiner(s): Delisle, Roberta S
• Application Number:
  US15/106,114
• Publication Number:
  US 20170030148A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,666 Days
• Field of Search: 411259, 411297, 411302
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 17/043 with locking means
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 7/062 the tool shaft rotating inside a non-rotating guide travelling with the shaft E21B7/067 and E21B7/068 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 2/005 Means to increase the friction-coefficient
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 37/145 Sleeve nuts, e.g. combined with bolts
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 39/22 in which the locking takes place during screwing down or tightening F16B39/01 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 39/28 by special members on, or shape of, the nut or bolt F16B39/26 takes precedence; locknuts F16B39/12
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 39/32 Locking by means of a pawl or pawl-like tongue
• CPC Class Codes: F16L 15/08 with supplementary elements F16L15/04, F16L41/00 and F16L43/02 take precedence

Abstract

A locking nut for installation on a cylinder, including a nut body defining a nut engagement surface and a directional coupling mechanism associated with the nut body, for locking the nut body with the cylinder in response to relative rotation between the nut body and the cylinder in a locking direction. The directional coupling mechanism may include a plurality of recesses, a plurality of rolling members contained within the recesses, and a retaining device for retaining the rolling members in the recesses. A method of installing the locking nut on the cylinder, including engaging the nut engagement surface with a cylinder engagement surface, inserting the rolling members in the recesses, threadably connecting the nut body with the cylinder in order to install the locking nut on the cylinder, and connecting the retaining device with the nut body in order to retain the rolling members within the recesses.

Claims

1. A locking nut for installation on a cylinder, wherein the cylinder is comprised of a cylinder engagement surface comprising a threaded cylinder section, the locking nut comprising:

(a) a nut body having a first nut end, a second nut end, and defining a nut engagement surface extending between the first nut end and the second nut end, wherein the nut engagement surface is engageable with the cylinder engagement surface;

(b) the nut engagement surface comprising a threaded nut section, wherein the threaded nut section is threadably connectable with the threaded cylinder section; and

(c) a directional coupling mechanism associated with the nut body, for locking the nut body with the cylinder in response to relative rotation between the nut body and the cylinder in a locking direction when the locking nut is installed on the cylinder wherein the directional coupling mechanism is comprised of;

(i) a plurality of rolling members spaced around a circumference of the nut engagement surface, wherein the rolling members lock the nut body with the cylinder in response to relative rotation between the nut body and the cylinder in the locking direction when the locking nut is installed on the cylinder, and wherein the rolling members are interposed between the nut engagement surface and the cylinder engagement surface when the locking nut is installed on the cylinder; and

(ii) a plurality of recesses defined in the nut engagement surface and spaced around the circumference of the nut engagement surface, wherein the plurality of rolling members is contained within the plurality of recesses so that the rolling members are spaced around the circumference of the nut engagement surface, wherein the recesses are located adjacent to the second nut end, and wherein the rolling members can be inserted into the recesses from the second nut end and can be removed from the recesses from the second nut end when the nut engagement surface is engaged with the cylinder engagement surface.

2. The locking nut as claimed in claim 1 wherein the recesses are wedge-shaped recesses, wherein each of the recesses has a deep recess depth at a deep recess end, a shallow recess depth at a shallow recess end, and a recess surface between the deep recess end and the shallow recess end, wherein each of the rolling members has a rolling diameter, and wherein the rolling diameter is larger than the shallow recess depth.

3. The locking nut as claimed in claim 2 wherein each of the rolling members is comprised of a round rolling surface.

4. The locking nut as claimed in claim 3 wherein the rolling members are cylindrical rollers.

5. The locking nut as claimed in claim 2 wherein each of the recess surfaces is a sloped recess surface.

6. The locking nut as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a retaining device for retaining the rolling members within the recesses when the locking nut is installed on the cylinder.

7. The locking nut as claimed in claim 6 wherein the retaining device is comprised of a retaining ring, wherein the retaining ring is selectively connectable with the nut body in order to retain the rolling members within the recesses, and wherein the retaining ring can be disconnected from the nut body when the nut engagement surface is engaged with the cylinder engagement surface.

8. The locking nut as claimed in claim 7 wherein the retaining device is further comprised of a retaining ring groove defined by the nut body adjacent to the second nut end for selectively connecting the retaining ring with the nut body, and wherein the retaining ring groove permits the retaining ring to be inserted within the retaining ring groove from the second nut end and permits the retaining ring to be removed from the retaining ring groove from the second nut end when the nut engagement surface is engaged with the cylinder engagement surface.

9. The locking nut as claimed in claim 1 wherein the threaded nut section extends along the nut engagement surface from the first nut end toward the second nut end.

10. The locking nut as claimed in claim 1 wherein the nut engagement surface is comprised of an unthreaded nut section and wherein the recesses are defined in the unthreaded nut section.

11. The locking nut as claimed in claim 10 wherein the unthreaded nut section extends along the nut engagement surface from the second nut end toward the first nut end.

12. The locking nut as claimed in claim 1 wherein each of the rolling members is comprised of a rolling member tool surface which is accessible from the second nut end, for engaging with a tool to facilitate removal of the rolling members from the recesses.

13. The locking nut as claimed in claim 1 wherein the recesses are spaced evenly around the circumference of the nut engagement surface.

14. The locking nut as claimed in claim 1 wherein the cylinder is a shaft.

15. The locking nut as claimed in claim 14 wherein the shaft defines a shaft bore extending through the shaft.

16. The locking nut as claimed in claim 14 wherein the shaft is a component of an apparatus for use in drilling a borehole.

17. The locking nut as claimed in claim 14 wherein the shaft is a component of a rotary steerable drilling apparatus.

18. The locking nut as claimed in claim 1 wherein the nut body defines a nut bore and wherein the nut engagement surface is comprised of the nut bore.

19. A method of installing a locking nut on a cylinder, wherein the cylinder is comprised of a cylinder engagement surface comprising a threaded cylinder section, the method comprising:

(a) providing a locking nut, wherein the locking nut comprises;

(i) a nut body having a first nut end, a second nut end, and defining a nut engagement surface extending between the first nut end and the second nut end, wherein the nut engagement surface comprises a threaded nut section; and

(ii) a directional coupling mechanism associated with the nut body, wherein the directional coupling mechanism is comprised of a plurality of recesses spaced around a circumference of the nut engagement surface, and wherein the recesses are located adjacent to the second nut end;

(b) engaging the nut engagement surface with the cylinder engagement surface;

(c) inserting a plurality of rolling members into the recesses from the second nut end when the nut engagement surface is engaged with the cylinder engagement surface; and

(d) threadably connecting the threaded nut section with the threaded cylinder section in order to install the locking nut on the cylinder.

20. The method as claimed in claim 19, wherein the locking nut is further comprised of a retaining device for retaining the rolling members within the recesses when the locking nut is installed on the cylinder, further comprising connecting the retaining device with the nut body in order to retain the rolling members within the recesses.

21. The method as claimed in claim 20 wherein the retaining device is comprised of a retaining ring and a retaining ring groove defined by the nut body and wherein connecting the retaining device with the nut body is comprised of inserting the retaining ring within the retaining ring groove.

22. The method as claimed in claim 21 wherein the retaining ring groove is defined by the nut body adjacent to the second nut end, further comprising inserting the retaining ring within the retaining ring groove from the second nut end when the nut engagement surface is engaged with the cylinder engagement surface.

23. The method as claimed in claim 21 wherein the retaining ring groove is defined by the nut body adjacent to the second nut end, further comprising removing the retaining ring from the retaining ring groove from the second nut end when the nut engagement surface is engaged with the cylinder engagement surface, and further comprising removing the rolling members from the recesses from the second nut end when the nut engagement surface is engaged with the cylinder engagement surface.

24. The method as claimed in claim 19 wherein the recesses are wedge-shaped recesses, wherein each of the recesses has a deep recess depth at a deep recess end, a shallow recess depth at a shallow recess end, and a recess surface between the deep recess end and the shallow recess end, wherein each of the rolling members has a rolling diameter, and wherein the rolling diameter is larger than the shallow recess depth.

25. The method as claimed in claim 24 wherein each of the rolling members is comprised of a round rolling surface.

26. The method as claimed in claim 19 wherein the nut body defines a nut bore and wherein the nut engagement surface is comprised of the nut bore.