Pipe Gasket Including Annular Reinforcing/Stiffening Ring Encapsulated Within Flexible Gasket Body

Abstract

A reinforced gasket for use in a Rieber joint can include a flexible annular gasket body and a reinforcing/stiffening ring. The flexible annular gasket body can include a leading nose section, a trailing tail section, and a radial tip section. The reinforcing/stiffening ring can include an inner diameter cylindrical wall having a leading edge and a trailing edge, and an annular angled front wall extending from the leading edge of the inner diameter cylindrical wall. The flexible annular gasket body can be molded around and encapsulates the reinforcing/stiffening ring. The leading edge of the inner diameter cylindrical wall can extend into the leading nose section, the annular angled front wall can extend into the radial tip section, and the trailing edge of the inner diameter cylindrical wall can extend into the trailing tail section. Preferably, the reinforced gasket includes stiffening ribs extending between the cylindrical wall and angled front wall.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.