Universal joint connector
AssigneeBadger Meter, Inc.
InventorJoseph B. Coel
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A connector construction employs a tail piece having a ball end, a socket element having a distendable end adapted to be snapped over said ball end and a coupling nut adapted to house the ball end and socket while threadedly engaging a pipe distal end to be connected thereto. The nut, when threaded into engagement with the pipe element, urges the socket element into fluid sealing engagement with the ball end and nut regardless of the angular disposition of the tail piece relative to the pipe element. The provided connector is particularly adapted for use with water meters or in similar applications in which spaced pipe ends or conduits to be interconnected by an interposed meter or the like are misaligned.
Claims18
A plumbing connector assembly for providing a sealed universal joint connection with one end of a fluid conduit, comprising:
- a tubular tail piece having an end section formed with a rounded exterior surface, and a further portion of substantially lesser diameter than said end section and which extends from said end section;
- a socket member formed with an internal passage therethrough and which is of a configuration to receive said rounded end section of said tail piece within said socket member through one end of said passage;
- said socket member including means for preventing passage of said rounded end section through the other end of said member, an annular end disposed axially outward of said means at said other end thereof, and a body portion extending from said annular end and including an annular flexible sealing portion axially located to be circumjacent a portion of said rounded section between the outermost diameter portion of said rounded section and said further portion of said tail piece when said rounded section is seated in said socket member against said means, said body portion being of sufficient rigidity to transmit axial compressive forces from said sealing portion to said annular end;
- sealing means on said annular end of said socket member for sealing abutment engagement with the end surface of such a fluid conduit;
- and a connector element adapted to encompass and be moved axially of said socket member toward said other end and to engage an adjacent end portion of such a fluid conduit;
- said connector and said socket member being of internal diameters at said one end of said socket member substantially greater than the diameter of said further portion of said tail piece;
- said connector including a radially inwardly extending portion positioned to engage said socket member over said sealing portion as said connector is moved axially along said socket member toward said other end, and said engaging portions of said connector and said socket member being of configurations providing a cam engagement therebetween oriented to urge said socket member axially toward a connected fluid conduit at said other end and thereby to effect sealing engagement of said sealing means with such a fluid conduit and simultaneously to compress said annular sealing portion of said socket member radially inward into sealing engagement with said rounded section in the course of engagement of said connector on such a fluid conduit, whereby sealed joints are formed between said socket member and both said fluid conduit and said rounded section to provide a fluid-tight connection between said tail piece and said conduit in any of various angular positions of said tail piece relative to such a connected conduit and said connector member does not engage said rounded end section in forming said sealed joint.
In combination with a first fluid conduit having a male threaded end, a sealed connector joint assembly providing universal movement comprising a tubular tail piece having one end adapted to be connected to a second fluid conduit and having a rounded section at the opposite end, a hollow cylindrical socket member having a distensible portion adjacent one end through which said rounded section is received into said socket member, said socket member having a constricted neck defining the end portion opposite to said distensible portion and providing axial abutment support for said rounded section for preventing passage of said rounded section through said opposite end of said socket member, said end portion including an annular end disposed axially outward of said constricted neck toward the respective end of such a first conduit, sealing means on said annular end for sealing abutment engagement with an end surface of such a first conduit, said distensible portion being axially located to be disposed circumjacent a portion of said tail piece rounded section which is on the remote side of the outermost diameter portion thereof relative to such first conduit when said rounded section is seated in said socket member, said socket member being of sufficient rigidity to transmit axial compressive forces from said distensible portion to said annular end, a connector nut for encompassing said socket member and having a cam portion adapted to engage said distensible portion of said socket member, said nut having female threads spaced from said cam portion and which are engageable with threads of such a first conduit, whereby axial movement of said connector nut upon engagement of said threads thereof with such a conduit applies force through said cam portion to said distensible portion and thereby urges said sealing means at said opposite end of said socket member axially into sealing relationship against said first conduit engaged by said connector nut while simultaneously squeezing said socket member distensible portion into fluid-sealing engagement with the surface portion of said tail piece rounded section circumscribed thereby, and said distensible portion and the surrounding portion of said nut being of substantially greater internal diameter than the portion of said tail piece joined to said rounded section, whereby such sealing relationships may be obtained and maintained in a variety of angular positions of said tail piece relative to such a connected first conduit and said connector member does not engage said rounded end section in forming said sealed joint.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.