Apparatus and method for heating pipes made of thermoplastic material
AssigneeSica S.P.A.
InventorGiorgio TABANELLI
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Abstract
An apparatus for internal heating of end portions of pipes made of thermoplastic material having a central axis including a heating element, designed to be inserted at least partially inside an end portion of a pipe made of thermoplastic material for heating an inner cylindrical surface of the portion, the heating element including an infra-red radiation unit designed to face at least partially the inner cylindrical surface.
Claims9
An apparatus for internal heating of end portions of pipes made of thermoplastic material having a central axis, comprising
- a heating element, designed to be inserted at least partially inside an end portion of a pipe made of thermoplastic material for heating an inner cylindrical surface of the portion, the heating element comprising an infra-red radiation unit designed to face at least partially the inner cylindrical surface, the radiating element having a longitudinal axis of extension,
- movement means configured for moving the radiating element inside the pipe according to a motion consisting of a movement of revolution with a trajectory which is concentric relative to the central axis of the pipe and a movement of rotation of the radiating element about its axis of longitudinal extension, wherein the radiating element has a non-circular transversal cross section having a predetermined axis of symmetry at right angles to the axis of longitudinal extension, and also wherein the movement of rotation of the radiating element is such that the axis of symmetry always remains parallel with itself during the movement of revolution.
A method for internal heating of end portions of pipes made of thermoplastic material having a central axis, comprising the following steps:
- preparing a heating element equipped with at least one infra-red ray radiation unit having an axis of longitudinal extension and a non-circular transversal cross section having a predetermined axis of symmetry, at right angles to the axis of longitudinal extension,
- inserting at least partially the heating element inside an end portion of a pipe made of thermoplastic material for heating an inner cylindrical surface of the portion,
- moving the radiating element inside the pipe according to a motion consisting of a movement of revolution with a trajectory which is concentric relative to the central axis of the pipe and a movement of rotation of the radiating element about its axis of longitudinal extension, wherein in the step of moving the radiating element the movement of rotation of the radiating element about its axis of longitudinal extension is such that its predetermined axis of symmetry always remains parallel with itself during the movement of revolution.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.