Joint for an engine exhaust system component

• US 7,779,624 B2
• Filed: 09/08/2005
• Issued: 08/24/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Donaldson Company Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Donaldson Company Incorporated
• Inventors: Belisle, John I., Hansmann, John T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Denion; Thomas E
• Assistant Examiner(s): TRAN, DIEM T
• Application Number:
  US11/222,674
• Publication Number:
  US 20060053779A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,811 Days
• Field of Search: 602/97, 603/11, 285/334.4, 285/334.5
• US Class Current: 60/299
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 13/009 having two or more separate purifying devices arranged in series
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 13/14 having thermal insulation exhaust manifolds F01N13/102
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 13/141 Double-walled exhaust pipes or housings
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 13/143 with air filling the space between both walls
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 13/1805 Fixing exhaust manifolds, exhaust pipes or pipe sections to each other, to engine or to vehicle body pipe joints in general F16L; fixing auxiliaries in motor vehicles in general B60K
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 3/0211 Arrangements for mounting filtering elements in housing, e.g. with means for compensating thermal expansion or vibration
• CPC Class Codes: F01N 3/035 with catalytic reactors , e.g. catalysed diesel particulate filters
• CPC Class Codes: F16L 23/08 connection by tangentially arranged pin and nut

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to an access joint for an engine exhaust system. The access joint includes first and second exhaust conduits each having a conduit body and a flange unitary with the conduit body. The flanges have first surfaces that face toward one another and second surfaces that face away from one another. The joint also includes a clamp having a channel that receives the flanges and that compresses the flanges toward one another when the clamp is tightened.

Claims

1. An access joint for an engine exhaust system, the access joint comprising:

first and second exhaust conduits each having a double wall construction, the double wall construction including an inner wall and an outer wall, the outer wall of each of the first and second exhaust conduits forming a flange that is unitary with the outer wall, the inner wall of the first exhaust conduit forming a pilot portion that extends toward an inner surface of the outer wall of the first exhaust conduit and beyond the flange of the first exhaust conduit, the pilot portion contacting an inner surface of the outer wall of the second exhaust conduit for aligning the first and second exhaust conduits;

the flanges having first surfaces that face toward one another and second surfaces that face away from one another;

reinforcing collars mounted around the outer walls of the first and second exhaust conduits, wherein the reinforcing collars are adjacent to the second surfaces of the flanges; and

a clamp having a channel that receives the flanges and the reinforcing collars, wherein the clamp compresses the flanges toward one another when the clamp is tightened.

2. The access joint of claim 1, wherein the first surfaces of the flanges make metal-to-metal contact when the clamp is tightened.

3. The access joint of claim 1, wherein the reinforcing collars include clamp engaging surfaces that face away from the flanges, the clamp engaging surfaces converging as the clamping surfaces extend away from a center axis defined by the first and second exhaust conduits.

4. The access joint of claim 1, further comprising retaining projections that project outwardly from the outer walls of the first and second exhaust conduits, the retaining projections being integral with the outer walls of the first and second exhaust conduits, the reinforcing collars being captured between the flanges and the retaining projections.

5. The access joint of claim 1, wherein the reinforcing collars include clamp engaging surfaces that face away from the flanges and inner surfaces that engage the outer walls of the first and second exhaust conduits, and wherein the reinforcing collars include inner rounded corners that extend from the clamp engaging surfaces to the inner surfaces.

6. The access joint of claim 1, wherein the reinforcing collars include stabilizing extensions that extend axially outwardly from clamp engaging surfaces in a direction along the outer walls of the first and second exhaust conduits.

7. The access joint of claim 1, wherein the first surface of one of the flanges is curved and generally tangentially engages the first surface of the other of the flanges.

8. The access joint of claim 1, wherein the first surfaces of the flanges have complementing curved portions that engage one other when the clamp is tightened.

9. The access joint of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first surfaces of the flanges has a convex curvature.

10. The access joint of claim 1, wherein the flanges define nesting tapered shapes.

11. The access joint of claim 1, wherein a gasket is positioned between the first surfaces of the flanges.

13. The access joint of claim 1, wherein the retaining projections include annular ridges formed in the outer walls of the first and second exhaust conduits.

14. The access joint of claim 13, wherein the flanges and annular ridges are formed by rolling portions of the outer walls with the reinforcing collars in place such that the reinforcing collars are captured between the annular ridges and the flanges.

15. The access joint of claim 1, wherein an exhaust aftertreatment device is mounted within at least one of the exhaust conduits.

16. The access joint of claim 15, wherein the exhaust aftertreatment device includes a diesel particulate filter.

17. The access joint of claim 1, wherein the inner and outer walls of the first and second exhaust conduits are separated by annular insulating gaps.

18. The access joint of claim 17, further comprising a spacer that extends radially between the inner and outer walls, an outer portion of the spacer being secured to the outer wall and an inner end of the spacer being integral with the inner wall, wherein the spacer includes the pilot portion.

12. The access joint of clam 11, wherein the reinforcing collars have positive stops to prevent the gasket from being over-compressed.

19. An exhaust system component comprising:

first and second component sections defining an axis of the exhaust system component, each of the first and second component sections having a double wall configuration including an inner wall and an outer wall, wherein flanges are unitarily formed at ends of the outer walls of the first and second component sections, the inner wall of the first exhaust conduit forming a pilot portion that tapers toward an inner surface of the outer wall of the first exhaust conduit and extends beyond the flange of the first exhaust conduit, the pilot portion contacting an inner surface of the outer wall of the second exhaust conduit for aligning the first and second exhaust conduits;

an aftertreatment device mounted within the second component section;

the flanges having first surfaces that face axially toward one another and second surfaces that face axially away from one another;

reinforcing collars mounted around the first and second component sections adjacent the second surfaces of the flanges, the reinforcing collars having taper surfaces that converge toward one another as the taper surfaces extend away from the axis of the exhaust system component; and

a clamp for coupling the first and second component sections together, the clamp including;

a strap having an outer surface and an inner surface;

a plurality of channel segments secured to the inner surface of the strap, the plurality of channel segments defining a channel that receives the flanges and the reinforcing collars, the channel being configured to compress the flanges and the reinforcing collars together when the clamp is tightened.

20. The exhaust system component of claim 19, wherein the taper surfaces and the channel of the clamp define taper angles that generally match one another.

21. The exhaust system component of claim 19, wherein the reinforcing collars have rounded inner corners for facilitating inserting the reinforcing collars over the component sections during assembly.

22. The exhaust system component of claim 19, wherein the flanges flex away from their corresponding reinforcing collars when the component sections are disconnected from one another.

23. An exhaust system component comprising:

a first component section having a double wall configuration including an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner and outer walls being separated by a first annular gap, the first component section having a first flange formed at one end of one of the inner and outer walls;

a second component section having a double wall configuration including an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner and outer walls being separated by a second annular gap, the second component section having a second flange formed at one end of one of the inner and outer walls;

a pilot portion formed at an end of one of the first and second component sections for aligning the first and second component sections;

the first and second flanges having first surfaces that face axially toward one another and second surfaces that face axially away from one another;

reinforcing collars mounted around the first and second component sections adjacent the second surfaces of the first and second flanges, wherein the first surfaces of the first and second flanges are angled outwardly from their corresponding reinforcing collars in a disconnected orientation so as to form oblique angles with central longitudinal axes of the first and second component sections; and

a clamp for coupling the first and second component sections together, the clamp having a channel that receives the flanges and the reinforcing collars, the channel being configured to compress the flanges and the reinforcing collars together when the clamp is tightened.

24. The exhaust system component of claim 23, wherein the second surfaces of the first and second flanges are angled outwardly from their corresponding reinforcing collars in a disconnected orientation so as to form oblique angles with the central longitudinal axes of the first and second component sections.