Back to results
US 2026/0275983 A1Published application
Packing seal locking assembly for pumps and associated methods
AssigneeVulcan Industrial Holdings, LLC
InventorsAkhil Alex, Steven Zachary Newberg, Kyle Matthew Ellisor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A pump including a fluid end having at least one plunger that reciprocates along a plunger bore includes a packing seal received along the plunger bore between the plunger and another component of the fluid end to provide a fluid seal between the plunger and additional component of the fluid end. A locking system, assembly, apparatus is provided to secure the packing seal within the plunger bore, and includes a retainer that can be coupled to the fluid end and an anti-rotation.
Claims40
A fluid end for a pump comprising:
- a housing having at least one plunger bore defined therein;
- at least one plunger received along the at least one plunger bore, the at least one plunger being reciprocated along the at least one plunger bore for pumping a liquid media through the fluid end;
- a packing seal received within the at least one plunger bore between an outer surface of the at least one plunger and a surface of the at least one plunger bore;
- wherein the packing seal is configured to create a fluid seal between the at least one plunger and the surface of the at least one plunger bore;
- a packing nut received within the at least one plunger bore, the packing nut configured to couple to the housing so as to secure the packing seal within the at least one plunger bore and including a flange portion defined thereabout;
- and
- a packing seal locking assembly configured to secure the packing seal within the at least one plunger bore, the packing seal locking assembly comprising:
- a locking mechanism positioned along an external surface of the housing and configured to releasably engage the flange portion of the packing nut to secure the packing nut in a locked position and against rotation;
- wherein the locking mechanism is configured to be substantially manually engaged with the packing nut and disengaged from the packing nut without a tool.
6 more elements
A pump comprising:
- a fluid end including a housing having a cavity and at least one plunger bore extending toward the cavity;
- a packing seal received within the at least one plunger bore;
- a plunger positioned within the at least one plunger bore, the plunger being configured to reciprocate along the at least one plunger bore;
- a retainer coupled to the housing and positioned to block axial movement of the packing seal along the at least one plunger bore, the retainer having an internal passage defined therethrough with internal threads formed along the internal passage, and external threads along a body that engage internal threads of the housing;
- a packing nut coupled to the retainer;
- and
- a packing seal locking assembly configured to engage and secure the packing nut in a locked position to secure the packing seal within the at least one plunger bore and substantial block access thereto;
- and
- wherein the packing seal locking assembly is configured to be engaged with the packing nut and disengaged from the packing nut to enable removal of the packing nut from the housing without a tool.
6 more elements
A method for securing a packing seal within a fluid end of a pump, the method comprising:
- positioning one or more packing seal elements within a plunger bore extending through a housing of the fluid end;
- inserting a retainer into the plunger bore and securing the retainer within the plunger bore and in engagement with the one or more packing seal elements;
- inserting a first section of a packing nut into the plunger bore, with the first section of the packing nut being coupled to the retainer and with a flange portion of the packing nut being seated against the housing;
- rotating the packing nut in a first direction towards a locked position, with the first section of the packing nut engaging the retainer so as to urge the retainer along the plunger bore and into compressive engagement with the packing seal;
- and
- engaging the packing nut with a manually operable locking mechanism, wherein the packing nut is substantially prevented from rotating in at least one direction to secure the packing seal within the plunger bore.
3 more elements
A packing seal locking assembly for a pump, comprising:
- a locking mechanism positioned along an external surface of a housing of the pump and configured to releasably engage a flange portion of a packing nut to secure the packing nut in a locked position and against rotation;
- wherein the locking mechanism comprises at least one of a spring biased bolt, ratchet and pawl mechanism, detent locking mechanism or cable lock;
- and
- wherein the locking mechanism is configured to be substantially manually engaged with the packing nut and disengaged from the packing nut without a tool.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.