Portable manually controlled hydraulic pipe bending apparatus

A portable hydraulic pipe bending apparatus which is operated manually and comprises:

• a main body with valve and piston systems therein enclosed;
• a control lever pivotable about a pin of said main body;
• and a fork section which is integral with the bottom end of said main body;
• said main body having:
• an upper section wherein a central cavity is provided to be used as a fluid tank, the top open end of which is closed by means of a closure member with a vent-hole, while a sealing, movable cover is provided over the fluid which fills said tank, said valve and piston systems being arranged within said upper section;
• and an elongated lower section the end of which is integral with said fork section of the apparatus, to the legs of which corresponding pins are fastened for guiding pipe supporting elements in rotation about said pins when a pipe bending operation is carried out;
• said valve and piston systems comprising:
• a pair of opposite ball valves for inlet or outlet fluid flow;
• a first cylinder-piston unit, with the piston normally held in its outwards position by a spring to intake the fluid from said tank, and which may be operated manually by means of said lever for a positive stroke which must be limited by the operator up to a predetermined angle of said lever;
• a second piston, to the free end of which an arched member is provided having a peripheral concave groove facing said concave grooves of said pipe supporting elements, so that a pipe to be bent may be held and bent therebetween;
• a third piston which is driven only when the manually controlled rotation of said lever is extended beyond said predetermined angle, to open a passageway to reverse the fluid flow and return said second piston to initial position at the end of a pipe bending operation.