MALE PUSH LOCK PIPE CONNECTION SYSTEM

• US 20100194104A1
• Filed: 06/29/2009
• Published: 08/05/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aqseptence Group, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Aqseptence Group, Inc.
• Inventors: Saul, Garth H., Hennemann, Thomas L.
• Granted Patent: US 9,810,358 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 285/330
• CPC Class Codes: F16L 37/0842 by means of a ring which is split into a plurality of component parts which are held in place by means of a resilient ring member
• CPC Class Codes: F16L 37/088 by means of a split elastic ring
• CPC Class Codes: F16L 37/091 by means of a ring provided with teeth or fingers
• CPC Class Codes: F16L 37/098 by means of flexible hooks

Abstract

A pipe for connecting to a similar adjacent pipe. The pipe has a male end with a plurality of rigid fingers extending from within and out of at least one exterior circumferential groove disposed on its exterior surface. On the female end is at least one interior circumferential groove sized and positioned to receive the plurality of rigid fingers from a corresponding exterior circumferential groove on the male end of an adjacent pipe. The number of exterior circumferential grooves on the male end typically corresponds to the number of interior circumferential grooves on the female end. When the male end of the pipe inserts into the female end of a similar adjacent pipe, the plurality of rigid fingers is received within a corresponding interior circumferential groove on the female end, thereby preventing the male end of the pipe from being withdrawn from the female end of the similar adjacent pipe.

Claims

1. A single piece of pipe connectable to a similar adjacent pipe, said single piece of pipe comprising:

a female end with an interior surface and a female leading edge terminating said female end, said interior surface of said female end defining a male end receiving chamber;

a male end with a male leading edge and an exterior surface, said exterior surface having a circumference smaller in diameter than the diameter of said male end receiving chamber of said female end;

an intermediate length between said female end and said male end;

at least one exterior circumferential groove on the exterior surface of said male end;

a plurality of rigid fingers extending from within and out of said exterior circumferential groove, said plurality of rigid fingers being displaceable;

at least one interior circumferential groove on the interior surface of said female end being sized and positioned to receive therein a plurality of rigid fingers extending from a corresponding at least one exterior circumferential groove on the male end of said similar adjacent pipe.

2. The pipe as recited in claim 1 further comprising a stop member disposed on said pipe.

3. The pipe as recited in claim 2 wherein said stop member is a circumferential shoulder around the interior circumference of said female end positioned at the inner end of the male end receiving chamber, opposite the female leading edge.

4. The pipe as recited in claim 1 wherein said plurality of rigid fingers have distal ends which abut a sidewall of at least one interior circumferential groove on the interior surface of the female end of said similar adjacent pipe.

5. The pipe as recited in claim 1 wherein said plurality of rigid fingers extend from at least one band seated within said at least one exterior circumferential groove on said male end.

6. The pipe as recited in claim 5 wherein said at least one exterior circumferential groove has a substantially rectangular cross section.

7. The pipe as recited in claim 6 wherein said at least one exterior circumferential groove further comprises a shoulder positioned within said groove, said shoulder having a top surface and a side surface, and wherein said ring is positioned at least partially between said side surface of said shoulder and a sidewall of said at least one exterior circumferential groove.

8. The pipe as recited in claim 5 wherein said band is made from a continuous length of material.

9. The pipe as recited in claim 8 wherein said band is made from a material that is selected from the group consisting of metals, polymers, and fiberglass.

10. The pipe as recited in claim 9 wherein said band is elastic.

11. The pipe as recited in claim 8 wherein said band is a ring.

12. The pipe as recited in claim 10 wherein said continuous length of material is a polymer.

13. The pipe as recited in claim 12 wherein said polymer is an elastomer.

14. The pipe as recited in claim 13 wherein said ring is sized to exert a radially compressive force on the bottom of said at least one exterior circumferential groove when said plurality of fingers is not displaced.

15. The pipe as recited in claim 1 wherein said at least one interior circumferential groove has a substantially trapezoidal cross section.

16. The pipe as recited in claim 1 wherein said at least one interior circumferential groove is a plurality of interior circumferential grooves and said at least one exterior circumferential groove is a plurality of exterior circumferential grooves.

17. The pipe as recited in claim 1 wherein said diameter of said male end receiving chamber is larger than the interior diameter of said intermediate length.

18. The pipe as recited in claim 1 wherein said female leading edge of said female end is beveled.

19. The pipe as recited in claim 18 wherein said female leading edge is beveled at its outside diameter.

20. The pipe as recited in claim 1 wherein said male end further comprises at least one exterior circumferential sealing groove with an o-ring seated therein, said at least one exterior circumferential sealing groove being positioned on said exterior surface of said male end.

21. The pipe as recited in claim 1 wherein said male leading edge of said male end is beveled.

22. A method of connecting a male end of a pipe to a female end of a similar adjacent pipe comprising:

extending a plurality of rigid fingers from within and out of at least one exterior circumferential groove on the exterior surface of said male end of said pipe;

receiving a portion of said male end of said pipe within a male end receiving chamber on said female end of said similar adjacent pipe;

engaging said plurality of rigid fingers with said female end of said similar adjacent pipe;

displacing said plurality of rigid fingers toward the exterior surface of said male end of said pipe;

positioning at least one interior circumferential groove on said female end with respect to said plurality of rigid fingers;

receiving said plurality of rigid fingers into said at least one interior circumferential groove on said female end;

preventing said male end of said pipe from inserting further into said similar adjacent pipe; and

,

preventing said male end of said pipe from being withdrawn from said female end of said similar adjacent pipe.

23. A method of connecting a male end of a pipe to a female end of a similar adjacent pipe as recited in claim 22 wherein said step of preventing said male end of said pipe from inserting further into said pipe further comprises engaging said male end of said pipe with a stop member positioned on the interior surface of said female end of said similar adjacent pipe.

24. A method of connecting a male end of a pipe to a female end of a similar adjacent pipe as recited in claim 22 wherein said step of preventing said male end of said pipe from being withdrawn from said female end of said similar adjacent pipe further comprises engaging distal ends of said plurality of rigid fingers against a sidewall of said at least one interior circumferential groove of said female end.

25. A method of connecting a male end of a pipe to a female end of a similar adjacent pipe as recited in claim 22 wherein said step of extending said plurality of rigid fingers from within and out of at least one exterior circumferential groove on the exterior surface of said male end of said pipe further comprises:

extending said plurality of fingers from an elastic ring; and

, seating said ring within said exterior circumferential groove of said male end.

26. A method of connecting a male end of a pipe to a female end of a similar adjacent pipe as recited in claim 25 wherein said step of engaging said plurality of rigid fingers with said female end of said similar adjacent pipe further comprises:

contacting said plurality of rigid fingers with a female leading edge of said female end of said similar adjacent pipe; and

, orienting the distal end of said plurality of rigid fingers away from a male leading edge of said male end of said pipe.

27. A method of connecting a male end of a pipe to a female end of a similar adjacent pipe as recited in claim 25 wherein said step of displacing said plurality of rigid fingers toward the exterior surface of said male end of said pipe further comprises:

leveraging said plurality of rigid fingers against a shoulder positioned within said at least one exterior circumferential groove; and

,

elastically deforming said elastic ring.

28. A method of connecting a male end of a pipe to a female end of a similar adjacent pipe as recited in claim 27 wherein said step of receiving said plurality of rigid fingers into said at least one interior circumferential groove on said female end further comprises:

returning said elastic ring close to, if not completely to, its resting size within said at least one exterior circumferential groove on said male end.

29. A method of connecting a female end of a pipe to a male end of a similar adjacent pipe as recited in claim 22 wherein said step of extending said plurality of rigid fingers from at least one interior circumferential groove on the interior surface of said female end of said pipe into a male end receiving chamber of said female end further comprises:

extending said plurality of fingers from a band; and

,

seating said band within said interior circumferential groove of said female end.

30. A single piece of pipe connectable to a similar adjacent pipe, said single piece of pipe comprising:

a female end with an inner surface and at least one receiving groove disposed on said inner surface;

a male end with an outer surface and at least one locking groove disposed on said outer surface, said at least one locking groove being alignable with said at least one receiving groove of said female end when said pipe is connected to said similar adjacent pipe;

a middle length between said female end and said male end; and

,

at least one set of rigid fingers extending out of said at least one locking groove, said rigid fingers each being displaceable and receveivable within said at least one receiving groove of said female end when said pipe and said similar adjacent pipe are connected.

31. The pipe as recited in claim 30 wherein said set of rigid fingers extends from at least one strip of material positioned within said at least one locking groove of said male end.

32. The pipe as recited in claim 31 wherein said at least one strip of material fully encircles said male end within said at least one locking groove in which said band is positioned.

33. The pipe as recited in claim 32 wherein said strip of material is elastic.

34. The pipe as recited in claim 30 wherein said at least one receiving groove of said female end is a plurality of receiving grooves and said at least one locking groove of said male end is a plurality of locking grooves.