Exterior tubing monitoring devices
AssigneeAmazon Technologies, Inc.
InventorsTheodore Lee, Felipe Enrique Ortega Gutierrez, Dominic Lebaron, Robert Mulyono
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Abstract
Systems, devices, and methods for monitoring flexible tubing connections are described. An example flexible tube device may include a pair of ends and an opening disposed at one of the ends. The opening may define a receiving section to receive a male fitting. The flexible tube may also include a sensing device extending around an exterior portion of the flexible tube at the receiving section. The sensing device may be configured to sense an expansion or a contraction of the flexible tube at the receiving section.
Claims20
A system, comprising:
- a tube fitting comprising an exterior tube surface;
- a flexible tube comprising an inside and an outside, the inside of the flexible tube coupled to the exterior tube surface of the tube fitting at an overlapping region;
- a strain sensing device comprising a partial ring and a strain gauge, the partial ring extending around at least a portion of the outside of the flexible tube at the overlapping region and defining a gap between ends of the partial ring, the strain gauge extending between the ends of the partial ring;
- a condition sensing device configured to sense a condition associated with the flexible tube;
- and
- a computing device in communication with the strain sensing device and the condition sensing device, the computing device configured to:
- receive first sensor data from the condition sensing device indicating occurrence of a failure condition of the flexible tube at a first time during a first time period;
- receive second sensor data from the strain sensing device, the second sensor data representative of expansion of the flexible tube within the overlapping region as sensed by the strain gauge and occurring during the first time period;
- and
- associate the second sensor data with the failure condition.
A flexible tube, comprising:
- a first end and a second end;
- an opening at the first end, the opening defining a receiving section to receive a male fitting;
- and
- a sensing device extending around an exterior portion of the flexible tube adjacent to the receiving section, wherein the sensing device is configured to sense an expansion or a contraction of the flexible tube at the receiving section by expanding responsive to the expansion of the flexible tube or contracting responsive to the contraction of the flexible tube.
A system, comprising:
- a network component comprising a fitting;
- a liquid circulation system comprising a flexible tube attached to the fitting to form a connection between the flexible tube and the fitting, the liquid circulation system configured to circulate a liquid to the network component via the connection;
- a sensing device extending about an exterior surface of the flexible tube within an overlapping region where a portion of the flexible tube extends over at least a portion of the fitting to form the connection, wherein the sensing device is configured to sense an expansion or a contraction of the flexible tube at the overlapping region by expanding responsive to the expansion of the flexible tube or contracting responsive to the contraction of the flexible tube;
- and
- a computing device in communication with the sensing device, the computing device configured to:
- receive sensor data from the sensing device, the sensor data representative of the expansion or the contraction of the flexible tube within the overlapping region;
- identify fulfillment of an alarm condition based on the sensor data;
- and
- generate an alarm based on identifying fulfillment of the alarm condition.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.