Undersea hydraulic coupling with bleed port
AssigneeNational Coupling Company, Inc.
InventorRobert E. Smith, III
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An undersea hydraulic coupling has a bleed port for seawater external to the coupling to enter the bore of the female coupling member when the male member is partially withdrawn from the female member. A ring-shaped radial seal positioned between the coupling members allows fluid to enter through the bleed port and flow into the bore, while sealing against the flow of hydraulic fluid out of the coupling. The bleed port and ring-shaped radial seal provide for seawater to fill the vacuum between the coupling members when they are separated, thereby decreasing the separation force required.
Claims19
An undersea hydraulic coupling comprising:
- (a) a male member having a cylindrical probe and a bore extending therethrough:
- (b) a female member having an outer surface, a stepped internal bore and a receiving chamber for slidably receiving the probe, the receiving chamber having an internal shoulder, a first ring-shaped seal positioned on the shoulder, and a seal retainer for holding the first ring-shaped seal on the shoulder, the seal retainer having an outer diameter smaller than the internal diameter of the receiving chamber to provide an annulus therebetween;
- and
- (c) a radial bleed passage extending between the receiving chamber and the outer surface of the female member, and a second ring-shaped seal positioned in the annulus between the seal retainer and the receiving chamber at a position axially spaced between the radial passage and the internal shoulder, the second ring-shaped seal configured to allow fluid outside the coupling to enter the radial passage and then flow through the annulus into the receiving chamber when the probe is partially withdrawn from the receiving chamber.
An undersea hydraulic coupling comprising:
- (a) a female member having an outer circumference, a central bore and an internal shoulder in the central bore;
- (b) a first radial seal positioned on the internal shoulder and a seal retainer engaging the female member for retaining the radial seal on the internal shoulder, the seal retainer insertable into the central bore to form an annulus between the seal retainer and central bore;
- (c) a radial bleed port between the outer circumference of the female member and the central bore;
- and
- (d) a second radial seal positioned in the annulus and engageable with the seal retainer, the second radial seal configured to block fluid flow from the central bore to the bleed port.
An undersea hydraulic coupling comprising:
- (a) a male member having a valved central bore and a cylindrical probe;
- (b) a female member having a valved central bore with a plurality of steps therein, at least part of the central bore dimensioned to slidingly receive the cylindrical probe;
- (c) a first radial seal positioned on one of the steps in the central bore, the radial seal engaging the cylindrical probe of the male member when the male member is fully inserted into the central bore, a seal retaining member insertable into the central bore to abut one of the steps in the central bore and to hold the first radial seal in the central bore, and a retainer locking member engaged to the female member to hold the seal retainer in place;
- and
- (d) a bleed port to allow fluid outside the female member to flow into the central bore, and a second radial seal allowing fluid entering through the bleed port to flow into the central bore when the cylindrical probe disengages the first radial seal as the male member is partially withdrawn from the female member.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.