Push-To-Connect Pipe Fitting With Grip Ring Seal Retention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing push-to-connect fittings struggle to maintain a secure seal and prevent translational and rotational movement between the fitting and the piping element, especially under varying fluid pressures.
Innovation Solution
The push-to-connect fitting assembly incorporates a grip ring with angled teeth, a spacer ring, and a retainer ring to securely engage the piping element, preventing axial translation and rotational movement while maintaining a seal under pressure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a simple push-to-connect structure is used, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability of seal and connection stability deteriorates under varying fluid pressures
Solution Approach 1:
The fitting is divided into multiple functional components: a grip ring with teeth for mechanical engagement, a sealing element for fluid tightness, and a retaining mechanism. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function optimally while maintaining overall reliability under pressure variations.
Solution Approach 2:
The grip ring with angled teeth provides dynamic engagement with the pipe, allowing the connection to adapt to pressure variations. The teeth can flex and adjust under load, maintaining both ease of installation and reliable sealing under varying fluid pressures.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a grip ring with angled teeth is added, then connection stability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The grip ring combines multiple functions in a single component: mechanical gripping through angled teeth, sealing support, and positional alignment. This merging reduces the need for separate components while maintaining connection stability, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The grip ring serves multiple purposes: it provides mechanical engagement with the pipe through angled teeth, supports the sealing element, and maintains proper alignment. This multi-functionality achieves connection stability without proportionally increasing structural complexity.
3Reliability
If multiple rings (grip ring, spacer ring, retainer ring) are incorporated, then reliability under pressure is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fitting is segmented into specialized rings (grip ring, spacer ring, retainer ring), each manufactured for its specific function. This allows for optimized manufacturing processes for each component while maintaining high reliability through proper functional distribution.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple rings are combined in a compact arrangement within the fitting body, allowing for efficient assembly and manufacturing. The standardized interfaces between rings simplify the manufacturing process while maintaining connection reliability under pressure.
Data Source
AI summary
A pipe fitting assembly to allow for connecting of piping elements by inserting into the pipe fitting, and without the necessity of glued, soldered, or threaded connections. The fitting assembly can include a body element having an inlet and an outlet along a longitudinal axis. The body element can include a sealing recession and a retention recession. The fitting assembly can include a scaling ring to be inserted in the sealing recession, a spacer ring to also be inserted in the sealing recession, a grip ring to be inserted in the retention recession, or a retainer ring to be inserted in the retention recession and fixed to the body element.