Multi-Wall Corrugated Pipe Coupling With Tapered Spigot
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing coupling methods for three-wall corrugated pipes are complex, require additional reinforcement, and often result in joint failure and inability to form a water-tight seal due to the expansion of pipe bells, which increases weight, expense, and installation difficulties.
Innovation Solution
A water-tight, in-line bell and spigot coupling system for three-wall corrugated pipes, featuring a bell portion with a reduced corrugation height and a spigot portion with a tapered outer wall, both integrally formed with the pipe, along with a gasket for sealing, allowing for a consistent diameter and enhanced structural integrity without additional reinforcement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If pipe bells are radially expanded to form coupling structures, then adjacent pipe sections can be assembled, but the pipe bells are weakened and require additional reinforcement means
Solution Approach 1:
A gasket is introduced as an intermediary component between the bell and spigot portions. The gasket includes a bell engagement portion that interfaces with the bell and a spigot engagement portion that interfaces with the spigot, creating a separate coupling mechanism that does not compromise the structural integrity of the pipe bells themselves.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling system is divided into distinct functional components: the bell portion, the spigot portion, and the gasket. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function - the bell and spigot maintain their structural strength while the gasket provides the coupling and sealing function.
2Ease of manufacture
If pipe bells are expanded to larger diameters, then coupling of adjacent pipe sections is enabled, but trenches must be larger and installation becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the dimensional parameters of the coupling system by using a gasket that allows the bell and spigot to maintain their original pipe diameters. This eliminates the need for expanded bell diameters and corresponding larger trenches, while still enabling effective coupling through the gasket's engagement mechanism.
3Reliability
If precise and careful excavation and installation are performed, then misalignment between pipe sections can be avoided, but the installation process becomes time-consuming and complex
Solution Approach 1:
The gasket is made from elastomeric material that provides flexibility and tolerance for alignment variations. This flexible gasket can accommodate minor misalignments between bell and spigot portions, reducing the need for precise excavation and careful installation while maintaining reliable joint alignment.
4Strength
If three-wall corrugated pipe is used, then structural strength is enhanced, but forming bell-shaped ends becomes more difficult and expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the bell-forming operation from the three-wall pipe manufacturing process. Instead of forming complex bell-shaped ends on the rigid three-wall pipe, the design uses a simple cylindrical bell portion combined with a flexible gasket to achieve coupling, eliminating the difficult bell-forming step while maintaining structural strength.
Data Source
AI summary
A coupling for multi-wall, corrugated pipe, the pipe including a corrugated wall having a plurality of primary corrugations, is disclosed. The coupling includes a first pipe section having disposed at one end a bell portion, the bell portion having a portion of the corrugated wall and an outer wall; a second pipe section having disposed at one end a spigot portion, the spigot portion having a portion of the corrugated wall between an inner wall and an outer wall; and a gasket engaged between the corrugated wall of the bell portion and the outer wall of the spigot portion. A multi-wall, corrugated pipe section, and method for assembling a plurality of multi-wall, corrugated pipe sections, are also disclosed.