Pre-Mounted Collar Seal for Flareless Tube Clamping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing clamping devices for tubes face difficulties in achieving a leak-tight connection without radial flares, particularly in maintaining and positioning seals during tube fitting and tightening, which complicates the process.
Innovation Solution
A clamping device with a collar and pre-mounted seal, where the seal is axially retained within the collar, formed as a rolled band with inclined ends and ramps, allowing elastic deformation to accommodate tube insertion and providing axial retention and sealing through wedging edges and projections, facilitating easy assembly and sealing without radial flares.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a seal is placed at the interface between two tubes and tightened, then sealing is achieved, but fitting and positioning the seal during tightening becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The seal is pre-mounted in the collar at a significant distance from the inner periphery, allowing the outer tube to be engaged first. The seal is positioned in advance within the collar structure, so that when the tube is inserted, the seal automatically moves into the correct sealing position without requiring manual positioning during assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The seal is nested within the collar structure, specifically disposed within the belt of the collar. This nested arrangement allows the seal to be contained and guided by the collar, automatically positioning itself relative to the tube during insertion and tightening operations.
2Ease of operation
If the seal is pre-mounted in the collar at a distance from the inner periphery, then tube engagement is facilitated, but the seal must be retained axially to prevent displacement
Solution Approach 1:
The collar structure incorporates localized axial retention features at specific positions within the belt. These retention elements are strategically placed to engage with corresponding features on the seal, providing axial retention only where needed while maintaining overall simplicity of the device.
Solution Approach 2:
The collar acts as an intermediary structure between the seal and the tube assembly process. The collar's belt structure provides both the mounting location for the seal and the axial retention mechanism, mediating between the seal's need for positioning and the tube's need for engagement.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the seal is formed as a rolled band with ends, then flexibility and elastic deformation are achieved, but the ends must be joined to form a complete seal
Solution Approach 1:
The seal is manufactured as a rolled band with ends that can be joined through various methods. The band configuration allows for parameter changes in terms of seal diameter and positioning, providing flexibility while the joining method can be selected based on manufacturing requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The rolled band structure of the seal may incorporate composite material construction, combining different materials or layers within the band to achieve both flexibility for elastic deformation and ease of joining the ends through welding, bonding, or mechanical connection.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables secure, leak-tight connections between tubes without radial flares by allowing the seal to be pre-mounted in the collar, simplifying the assembly process and ensuring effective sealing through elastic deformation and axial retention mechanisms.
Implementation Method 1
the seal being configured to, while premounted in the belt, be elastically deformed against this constraint to allow the insertion of an annular object between the seal and the belt
Implementation Method 2
the seal has a rear edge which is provided with at least one insertion ramp inclined towards the winding axis of the strip in the direction going away axially from the seal from said rear edge to promote a rapprochement of the ends of the band
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The clamping device comprises a collar (10) having a band (12) that can be tightened by reducing its diameter, and a sealing gasket (20) disposed inside the band (12) and retained axially relative to the collar. The sealing gasket is formed from a strip (22) that is wound upon itself and whose ends are configured to cooperate with each other via a sealing arrangement (24). The sealing gasket is subjected to a stress towards the inner surface of the band and is configured to deform elastically against this stress to allow the insertion of an annular object (1A) between the sealing gasket (20) and the band (12).