Pipe bending mandrel
AssigneeCRC-Crose International, Inc.
InventorLionel H. Wheeler
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A pipe bending mandrel having a housing assembly of a plurality of interconnected, axially aligned segmented housing subassemblies, each of which has an internal taper, a plurality of spherical members spaced along a tension member and adapted to coact with the internal housing tapers, a plurality of axially extending flexible strips connected to the housing segments, and an actuator connected to the spherical members and the housings to move the spherical members into the internal housing tapers to expand the housings into pipe supporting position within a pipe to be bent. Suitable wheels are provided for moving the mandrel into, through and out of the pipe.
Claims11
A pipe supporting mandrel comprising:
- a plurality of generally tubular shaped housing assemblies connected in end-to-end relationship, each of said housing assemblies comprising a plurality of segments having a tapered interior surface;
- a plurality of members, each of said members positioned within one of said segmented housing assemblies to engage the tapered surface thereof;
- means for interconnecting said members to position each of said members in substantially the same relative position with respect to its respective segmented housing assembly;
- and
- means for simultaneously moving said members relative to their respective segmented housing assemblies between a first position wherein said members force said segments outwardly into a pipe supporting position and a second position wherein said members allow said segments to inwardly retract.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.