ANGLE COCKS WITH VENT VALVES

• US 3,714,968 A
• Filed: 09/29/1971
• Issued: 02/06/1973
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/1971
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Henry R. Billeter
• Original Assignee: Henry R. Billeter
• Inventors: Billeter, Henry R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Klinksiek, Henry T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Miller, Robert J.
• Application Number:
  US05/184,838
• Time in Patent Office: 496 Days
• Field of Search: 137/596.2,636.2,315,623.21,625.22 251/174,315
• US Class Current: 137/596.2
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 17/043 Brake line couplings, air hoses and stopcocks
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 24/02 the enclosure being itself a valve, tap, or cock
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/6038 Particular valve seat or interface seal
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/87072 Rotation about either of two pivotal axes
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/87241 Biased closed

Abstract

A railroad car angle cock having a vent valve incorporated therein for manually bleeding the interior of the angle cock to atmosphere so that the air hoses between the railroad cars can be easily disconnected and without danger.

Claims

1. In an angle cock, a body having an inlet and an outlet flow passage therethrough, a ball valve member in said body for controlling said flow passage, a bonnet on top of said body having a bonnet portion extending down into a bore formed in said body, said ball valve member being supported by and attached to the lower end of said bonnet portion, an operating handle attached to said bonnet for rotating said ball valve into open and closed positions in said flow passage, cooperating means on said body and operating handle for locking it in either the valve open and valve closed positions, said operating handle adapted to be tilted up from either of its locked positions to unlock the same and permit it to be rotated, a vent valve for bleeding air from said flow passage, and means on said operating handle for actuating said vent valve when tilted upwardly.

2. In an angle cock, a body having an inlet and an outlet flow passage therethrough, a ball valve in said body for controlling said flow passage, a bonnet on top of said body having a portion extending into a bore formed in said body, said ball valve being supported by said bonnet portion, an operating handle attached to said bonnet for rotating said bonnet and said ball valve to either open or close said flow passage, a vent valve supported in said bonnet for venting said flow passage, and means on said operating handle for manually actuating said vent valve.

3. In an angle cock, a body having an inlet and an outlet passage therethrough, a ball valve in said body for controlling said flow passage, a bonnet on top of said body having a portion extending into a bore formed in said body and attached to said ball valve, an operating handle attached to the top of said bonnet for rotating said bonnet and said ball valve to open or close said flow passage, said bonnet and said ball valve being hollow, a vent valve extending through said bonnet into its hollow portion for venting said flow passage, and a push button on said handle for actuating said vent valve in the closed position of said ball valve.

4. In an angle cock, a body having an inlet and an outlet flow passage therethrough, a ball valve in said body controlling said flow passage, a rotatable bonnet on top of said body having a portion extending into a bore formed in said body, said ball valve being attached to said bonnet portion and rotatable therewith, an operating handle attached to the top of said bonnet for rotating said bonnet and said ball valve to open and close said flow passage, said bonnet and said ball valve both being hollow, a vent valve extending outward through said bonnet from its hollow portion for venting said flow passage, an abutment on said operating handle, said operating handle adapted to be tilted upwardly to engage said abutment with said vent valve to operate said vent valve and thereby vent said flow Passage, said abutment being effective to operate said vent valve in both the open and closed positions of said ball valve when rotated to those positions.

5. In an angle cock, a body having an inlet and an outlet passage therethrough, a ball valve in said body for controlling said flow passage, a bonnet on top of said body connected to said ball valve, an operating handle on said bonnet for rotating said bonnet and with it said ball valve to open and close said flow passage, cooperating locking means on said body and said handle for locking said handle in either of its positions, said handle being unlocked for rotation from said locking means by first being tilted upwardly, a vent valve in said bonnet controlling a vent passage from the interior of said ball valve and bonnet, and means on said operating handle for operating said vent valve to vent said flow passage whenever said operating handle is tilted to unlock the same for rotation.

6. The angle cock as claimed in claim 5 in which the vent valve is adapted to be operated by the operating handle in both the open and closed passage positions of the ball valve.

7. The angle cock as claimed in claim 5 in which the bonnet and ball valve are hollow and the vent valve controls the vent passage extending from the hollow interior of the bonnet and ball valve to atmosphere.

8. The angle cock as claimed in claim 5 wherein the vent valve is supported in the bonnet and consists of a valve stem extending through said bonnet having a valve member normally seated to close the vent passage between the flow passage and the atmosphere, and in which the operating handle has an abutment engageable with the vent valve stem to open the vent passage in either the open or closed positions of the ball valve.

9. In an angle cock for railroad cars for controlling the air passage between the cars, a body having a ball valve rotatable therein for opening or closing the air passage, a bonnet on said body attached to said ball valve, a handle on said bonnet for rotating the same and therefore said ball valve, said handle being locked for rotation in both the open and closed positions of said ball valve, said handle also being pivoted to said bonnet for upward movement to release it and enable the handle to rotate the ball valve, a vent valve for venting the air passage through said angle cock, said vent valve extending through said bonnet and being normally closed, and a manually operated push button on said handle adapted to be depressed when the handle is moved upwardly and rotated to open said vent valve and vent the air passage in either position of said ball valve.

10. In an angle cock as claimed in claim 9 in which the bonnet and ball valve are hollow and the vent valve is supported in and extends through the bonnet.

11. In an angle cock as claimed in claim 9 in which the push button for operating the vent valve is spring restored and supported in the angle cock handle, and in which the stem of the push button is arranged in axial alignment with the vent valve in all positions of the ball valve.

12. The angle cock as claimed in claim 11 in which the push button can only operate the vent valve when the handle is in either the open or closed position of the ball valve, and not during the time the ball valve is being rotated.