CHANNEL CONNECTION DEVICE

Description

[0001] The invention falls within the field of fluidic connection devices for conduits, in particular air intake conduits for motor vehicles.

[0002] It is known to produce fluidic connection devices according to the figure 1 for which a male end 200 of a fluidic conduit is received in a female end 201 of a fitting or fluidic conduit, the connection device comprising a male termination 201 of the male end received in a female termination 101 of the female end and a locking device with a spring tab 102 and a pin 202 for which the spring tab is disposed at a distal end of the female termination and the pin is disposed in recess from the male termination of the male end.

[0003] In this known solution, the locking device extends the connection area, thus lengthening the connection. Document WO 2017 / 194850 A1 further describes the use of a spring tab at the distal end of one of the fittings, requiring an additional peripheral ring to allow locking between the two fittings. This solution makes assembly more complex.

[0004] In view of the prior art, the present application proposes a more compact fluidic connection device in which the connection area is separated from the locking area and is protected.

[0005] More specifically, this application proposes a fluidic connection device, by connecting a first end of a first tubing element or a first piece of equipment such as a filtration device and a second end of a second tubing element or a second piece of equipment, the device comprising the first end and the second end, wherein the first end constitutes a female end having a first tubular termination whose external face has at least one locking lug or pin and whose internal face is smooth, wherein the second end constitutes a male end having a second tubular termination forming a coupling part with the first tubular termination and whose external face is smooth for creating a leak-proof connection with the smooth internal face of the first tubular termination, the second end further comprising: a skirt intended to at least partially surround said coupling part; and, a spring tab provided with a housing for receiving said pin for locking together the first and second ends, and for which said skirt is connected to a rear part of the second tubular termination by an annular ring forming, between the second tubular termination and said skirt, a stop for the introduction of the first tubular termination.

[0006] This connection device configuration protects the connection area, ensuring a watertight connection, and allows for shorter connection ends. Furthermore, the connection device of the invention, although shortened, has the advantage of not requiring a seal such as an O-ring. The number of parts can be minimized.

[0007] The features described in the following paragraphs may optionally be implemented. They may be implemented independently or in combination with each other:

[0008] The skirt can be at least partially interrupted at the level of the spring tab.

[0009] The spring tab may comprise two arms attached at one end to the annular ring and connected at the other end by a plate having a snap-fit ​​wall with the locking pin, said housing being delimited by the annular ring, the arms and said snap-fit ​​wall.

[0010] The plate may carry an operating button.

[0011] The skirt may carry a hoop forming a protective bridge for the spring tab and the operating push button.

[0012] The external face of the first tubular termination may have at the coupling part at least one axial angular keying rib, intended to cooperate with a complementary axial groove made at the level of the skirt and forming an advance of said skirt towards the free end of the second end piece, so that the axial rib engages the axial groove from the beginning of the coupling of the end pieces.

[0013] Advantageously, the first nozzle and the second nozzle are each made from a single piece.

[0014] This application also concerns a connection between a first pipe or piece of equipment on the one hand, and a second pipe on the other hand, comprising: the male end formed by the second end of the connection device as described above, said second end being formed as the first end of the fitting to make the connection with the first tubing or equipment, and for which said first tubing or equipment includes the female end formed by the first end of said connection device.

[0015] According to a first embodiment, the fitting may include a second end, preferably opposite the first end, the second end having a connection device for connection to a second pipe or piece of equipment, of the opposite type to the connection device of this application. The fitting is such that the second end of the fitting has a female connection termination extending at its free end by a first retaining and keying portion, while said second pipe has a male insertion tip provided with a second retaining and keying portion, complementary to said first retaining and keying portion, extending towards the end of the male insertion tip by means of a male connection termination.Of course, the term "reversed type," for the connection device at the second end of the fitting, simply means that this second end receives a fitting similar or identical to the one received at the first end: it is indeed a reversed orientation compared to the first end. The fitting thus has a spring tab at each end. This may allow the fitting to be positioned in either direction, in order to create two different connection devices with the same fitting.

[0016] In this case, the fitting can be a male-female fitting.

[0017] The fitting may be provided at both ends with spring-loaded tab latching means intended to cooperate with latching stops arranged on an external face of tubular connection terminations of pipes or equipment.

[0018] The fitting may be provided at both ends with at least one internal keying groove intended to cooperate with at least one corresponding external keying rib of a tubular connection termination of a pipe or equipment.

[0019] According to a second embodiment, a second end of the fitting has a male-terminated end of a connection device according to this application, said second tubing or equipment has a female-terminated end of said connection device according to this application, the fitting constituting a male-male fitting provided with a protective skirt at each of its ends.

[0020] The connection can be made from a single piece.

[0021] The fitting may include a bent portion (elbow) located between two opposite ends of the fitting.

[0022] Each of the two ends of the fitting can be cylindrical and extend to an annular junction line with the angled part.

[0023] Each of the two cylindrical ends of the fitting may have a cylinder length less than an internal diameter delimited by the first end.

[0024] The invention and its variants can generally allow for shortening the connection tips of equipment, standardizing the production of pipe or equipment tips, and producing simple elbow fittings equipped with spring-loaded snap-on tabs. Brief description of the drawings

[0025] Other features, details, and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the detailed description below and analyzing the accompanying drawings, in which: there figure 1 shows a cross-section of a previous art connection device; the figure 2 shows a device for connecting demand in perspective cut; the figure 3 shows a male part of the demand connection device in three-quarter perspective; the figure 4 shows a perspective view of a fitting according to one aspect of the demand, equipment and tubing. Description of implementation methods

[0026] The drawings and description below contain, for the most part, elements of a definite nature. They can therefore not only serve to better explain the present invention, but also contribute to its definition, if necessary.

[0027] The device of the invention is particularly applicable to air filtration systems for motor vehicles.

[0028] As seen above, the fluidic connection device of the prior art, visible on the figure 1, comprises a connecting portion and a locking portion which follow one another, the locking portion being behind the connecting portion.

[0029] The invention of the present application relates to a fluidic connection device of the quick-connect type between a portion of conduit bearing a male end 2 and a portion of conduit bearing a female end 1, as shown in figure 2 The locking of the two portions into each other is achieved by the engagement of retaining tabs, formed as spring-loaded tabs 4 of the conduit carrying the male end, on the rear walls 52 of pins 5 of the conduit carrying the female end. Axial retention is thus obtained, typically allowing the pin 5 to be placed in a front section adjacent to a leading edge of the female end 1.

[0030] The spring tab 4 has a housing for receiving the pin 5. This housing is for example delimited by the annular ring 6, by two arms 42 fixed at one end to the annular ring 6 and connected at a second end, and by a plate 45 provided with a snap-fit ​​wall with the locking pin 5.

[0031] A coupling portion (here cylindrical) defining an annular contact zone is formed by overlapping cylindrical bearing surfaces distributed between the female end 1 and the male end 2. Axial retention of the two conduit portions is achieved by the abutment of the end of the female end 1 against the annular wall or ring 6 and the engagement of the wall / latching end carried by the plate 45 of the spring tabs 4 against the rear wall 52, which forms a locking stop for the pin 5. The pin 5 further includes a ramp 51 allowing the spring tab 4 to ascend onto the pin 5 during coupling of the ends. Preferably, the device includes two locking devices arranged 180° apart. The spring tabs 4 of the retaining tabs are sufficiently flexible to prevent breakage during repeated use.

[0032] The plate 45 carries an operating button 43 which allows the plate to be disengaged from the pin. Although each spring tab 4 is shown here as actuated by an operating button 43 provided on the male end 2 and actuated by a longitudinal push substantially parallel to the central axis of the female end 1 (an axis which defines the insertion direction of the male end 2), other actuation methods may be provided. Optionally, actuation could be achieved by pressing on or applying pressure to an elastically deformable actuating portion that is integral with the female end 1.

[0033] According to the invention, the fluidic connection device comprises an external skirt 3 intended to at least partially surround the coupling portion. This external skirt 3, more particularly represented in figure 3, frames the spring tabs 4 of the retaining lugs which interrupt it and further includes an arch 44 forming a bridge to protect the spring tab 4 and the operating pusher 43.

[0034] The outer skirt 3 also has grooves 8 for receiving the ribs 7 for orienting the female end 1. In the example shown, the grooves 8 on the inside of the skirt 3 are two in number and arranged at 180° to each other. Each groove 8 communicates directly with the annular space for receiving one end of the female end bearing the ribs 7 (the end then sandwiched between the male end insertion section and the skirt 3).

[0035] To allow the keying to take place from the beginning of the coupling, the skirt 3 has extensions towards the front of the coupling part which carry the grooves 8.

[0036] The groove(s) 8, made in an advance or extension of the skirt 3 towards the free end of the male end 2, are configured to allow the axial rib(s) 7, which start at the coupling end of the female end 1, to engage from the beginning of the coupling of the connecting terminations of the connection device.

[0037] The outer skirt 3 forms an annular receiving space, closed at one end, for receiving a tubular termination that here forms the female connection portion (female end 1). This annular space is internally delimited by a section of tube forming the inner face for fluid passage. The tube section is an insertion portion for insertion into the female end 1, extending between a free annular edge and the annular region where the ring 6 connects, externally. This section is thus rigidified externally at the peripheral connection / junction with the ring 6. The inner face of the insertion section can be smooth, without asperities and / or without an internal shoulder.More generally, the internal face of the conduit section including the male fitting 2 can be kept smooth for a distance greater than the longitudinal extension of the insertion section (i.e., both at the insertion section and in a subsequent section). As will be described later, the male fitting 2 can be part of a two-ended connection, possibly in the form of an elbow fitting. The absence of any roughness or stiffening element on the internal face of the male fitting 2 with external skirt 3 (the male fitting 2, which is typically more complex than the female fitting 1) can then, if necessary, extend the effective sealing length in the coupling section. The coupling section can consist of the insertion section of the male fitting 2 and the corresponding end portion of the female fitting 1, which overlap when coupled.

[0038] The components of the fluidic connection device are plastic parts, and according to this application, the plastic-to-plastic seal on the inner wall of the male part 1 and the outer wall of the female part 2 is achieved on smooth surfaces without joints. The seal obtained in an application of the invention to air circuits is a seal compatible with an engine air intake circuit or a vehicle cabin air circuit.

[0039] As seen above, the coupling portion is separated from the locking area because the snap-on / locking device is located on the outer skirt 3. This allows for particularly compact embodiments. Thus, the ratio between the effective sealing length obtained in this coupling portion and the total overlap length can be greater than 80:100, preferably greater than or equal to 89:100. For example, in the case of the figure 4The female end 1 can represent a sealing surface with a length of approximately 30 or 35 mm, without the corresponding male end 2 necessarily being significantly longer. There is no added gasket (no technical gasket), thus eliminating the need for assembly. The surface is essentially cylindrical in the non-limiting examples shown. This type of overlap between the mating portion and the locking area can advantageously contribute to improving compactness, given that the aforementioned ratio generally does not exceed 40:100 with an arrangement of the type shown in figure 1 , one of the tips (bearing the actuation lugs in the example of the figure 1 ) being much longer than the useful span to achieve the seal.

[0040] The invention notably allows for the creation of RC connections between two pipes or between a pipe and a piece of equipment. figure 4represents an RC fitting, the first part of which connects to equipment 60, for example an air filter, provided with a connection termination A, and the second part of which connects to a pipe C. The invention can be applied to the case where the equipment 60 is replaced by a pipe, as well as to the case where the pipe C is replaced by equipment.

[0041] A first end RC1 of the fitting includes the male end 2 of a connection device of the invention while the termination A of said first tubing or equipment 60 includes the female end 1 of said connection device of the invention.

[0042] However, in this embodiment, the second end RC2 of the RC fitting comprises a connection device, on a second pipe or piece of equipment C, of ​​the opposite type to the connection device of the invention, that is to say, the second end of the fitting comprises a female connection termination or end piece 101 extended at its free end by a first retention portion 102 and a directional control portion 103, while said second pipe C comprises a male end piece, called the male insertion end piece, provided with a second retention portion 202 and a directional control portion 203, complementary to said first retention and directional control portion, which is followed towards the end of the male insertion end piece by a male connection termination 201 (here with the type of pins 5 similar to those described with reference to the figure 2 ).

[0043] More generally, this second RC2 end of the RC fitting allows the RC fitting to be connected to another type of nozzle, for example a nozzle such as the one illustrated on the figure 1 .

[0044] This RC fitting, in this case, constitutes a male-female fitting equipped at both ends with spring-loaded tab locking means 4 designed to cooperate with locking stops, here in the form of pins 5, arranged on an external face of tubular connection terminations of pipes or equipment. Similarly, this male-female fitting is equipped at both ends with internal keying grooves 8, 103 designed to cooperate with external keying ribs 7, 203 of a tubular connection termination of a pipe or equipment.

[0045] Depending on the layout of the fluidic circuit, the keying means and the snap-fit ​​means may have different angular positions between the first end and the second end of the fitting.

[0046] The RC connector can be made from a single piece. It includes, as illustrated here on the figure 4 A PC elbow is located between two opposite ends of the RC fitting. Each of the two ends, which are cylindrical in this case, can be designed to extend (with approximately the same cylindrical cross-section, for example) to a respective annular junction line with the PC elbow. For compactness, each of the two cylindrical ends can have a length, measured to the junction line with the elbow, that is less than an internal diameter defined by the first end.

[0047] The RC fitting shown is an elbow fitting with an elbow part PC but can also be a straight fitting if necessary.

[0048] An alternative embodiment is that both the first and second ends of the fitting are fitted with the male end of the connection device of the application, the fitting constituting a male-male connection with a protective skirt 3 at each end. In this case, the end of pipe C will also be identical to the end A of the figure 2 The connection device for the fitting and the pipes or equipment is then identical to that of the figure 2 on both sides of the fitting. This design allows for the shortening of the ends carried by the pipes and equipment on both sides of the RC fitting.

[0049] On the figure 4Equipment 60, for example, is an air filter, optionally for internal combustion engines. The female fitting 1, formed directly onto a housing, can provide a seal over a length exceeding 20 or 25 mm, without the tubing carrying the female fitting 1 protruding more than 30 or 35 mm from the rest of the equipment 60 housing. Here, the female fitting protrudes in a direction parallel to a length of the housing and / or to a plane of a support frame for an air filtration element mounted in the housing. The filtered airflow passes perpendicularly to this plane from an inlet to an outlet of the air filter. The female fitting 1 forms the externally projecting part of either the inlet or outlet of the air filter in this non-limiting example. Industrial application

[0050] The invention can be applied in particular to the connection of air distribution ducts to each other, to the connection of an air intake duct and an engine or cabin air filter housing of a motor vehicle or an air conditioning system.

[0051] The invention is not limited to the examples described above, which are only by way of example, but encompasses all the variants that a person skilled in the art may consider within the framework of the protection sought.

Claims

1. Fluidic connection device, by connection between a first end piece (A) of a first pipework element or of a first piece of equipment, such as a filtration device, and a second end piece (B) of a second pipework element or a of second piece of equipment, the device comprising both the first end piece (A) and the second end piece (B), characterised in that the first end piece (A) constitutes a female end piece that includes a first tubular termination (1) the external face of which carries at least one locking lug or pin (5) and the internal surface of which is smooth, in that the second end piece (B) constitutes a male end piece that includes a second tubular termination (2) forming, with the first tubular termination (1), a coupling part, and the external face of which is a smooth face designed to create, with the smooth internal face of the first tubular termination, an impervious bond for the connection, said second end piece (B) further including: - a skirt (3) intended to at least partially surround said coupling part; and - a spring tab (4) fitted with a housing for receiving said lug or pin (5) for locking said first and second end pieces (A, B) together, and in that the said skirt (3) is connected to a rear part of the second tubular termination (2) by an annular ring (6) forming, between the second tubular termination (2) and the said skirt (3), a stop for introduction of the first tubular termination (1).

2. Fluidic connection device according to claim 1, wherein the skirt (3) is at least partially interrupted at the spring tab (4).

3. Fluidic connection device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the spring tab (4) includes two arms (42) secured at a first of their ends to the annular ring (6) and connected at a second of their ends by a plate (45) provided with a wall for snapping onto the locking lug or pin (5), said housing being delimited by the annular ring (6), the arms and said snapping-on wall.

4. Fluidic connection device according to claim 3, wherein the plate (45) carries a manoeuvring pusher (43) and wherein the skirt carries an arch (44) forming a bridge protecting the spring tab (4) and the manoeuvring pusher (43).

5. Fluidic connection device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the external face of the first tubular termination (1) carries at least one axial angular alignment rib (7) at the coupling section, designed to cooperate with a complementary axial groove (8) formed in the skirt (3) and extending the skirt towards the free end of the second end piece, such that the axial rib engages the axial groove from the outset of the coupling of the end-piece terminations.

6. Fluidic connection device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the first end piece (A) and the second end piece (B) are each formed from a single piece.

7. Fluidic connection device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the female end piece formed by the first end piece (A) of said fluidic connection device belongs to first pipework or equipment (60), the device comprising a connector (RC) between this first pipework or equipment (60) on the one hand and second pipework (C) on the other hand, and wherein the male end piece formed by the second end piece (B) is part of the connector (RC), said connector (RC) comprising: - a first end (RC1) formed by said second end piece (B) to establish the connection with the first pipework or equipment (60) in the form of a connection with said first end piece (A); and - a second end (RC2), opposite the first end (RC1).

8. Fluidic connection device according to claim 7, wherein the connector (RC) is made of a single piece and comprises a bent part (PC) located between the first end (RC1) and the second end (RC2).

9. Fluidic connection device according to claim 8, wherein each of the two ends (RC1, RC2) is cylindrical and extends to an annular junction line with the bent part (PC), each of the two cylindrical ends having a cylinder length that is less than an inside diameter delimited by the first end (RC1).

10. System comprising the fluidic connection device according to claim 7, 8 or 9 as well as the second pipework (C), wherein the second end (RC2) of the connector (RC) includes a female connection termination allowing the connection by insertion of a male end piece of the second pipework (C), and wherein said female connection termination (101) is extended at its free end by a first retention and foolproof part (102, 103) while the male insertion end piece provided in said second pipe work (C) is provided with a second retention and foolproof part (202, 203), complementary to said first retention and foolproof part, extending toward the end of the male insertion end by a male connection termination (201).

11. System according to claim 10, wherein the connector (RC) is a male-female connector and is equipped at both ends with spring-tongue snapping-on means (102) designed to cooperate with snapping-on stops (202) located on the external face of the tubular connection terminations of the pipework or equipment (60, C).

12. System according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the connector (RC) constitutes a male-female connector and is provided at both ends thereof with at least one internal alignment groove (103) intended to cooperate with at least one complementary external alignment rib (203) for a tubular connection termination of pipework or equipment.

13. Assembly with two fluidic connections, comprising a first fluidic connection device as defined in any one of claims 1 to 6 and comprising a second fluidic connection device as defined in any one of claims 1 to 6, said assembly comprising a connector (RC) between first pipework or equipment (60) on the one hand and second pipework (C) on the other hand, wherein the two male end pieces respectively provided in the first fluidic connection device and in the second fluidic connection device form: - in one case, a first end (RC1) of the connector, which is thus an end formed by said second end piece (B) of the first fluidic connection device to establish the connection with the first pipework or equipment (60), said first pipework or equipment (60) including the female end piece formed by the first end piece (A) of said first fluidic connection device; - in the other case, a second end (RC2) of the connector, which is thus an end formed by said second end piece (B) of the second fluidic connection device to establish the connection with the second pipework (C), said second pipework (C) including the female end piece formed by the first end piece (A) of said second fluidic connection device; the connector (RC) constituting a male-male connector equipped with a protective skirt (3) at each of its ends (RC1, RC2).