Push-Fit Pipe Coupling With Snap-Fit Retainer for Easy Release
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing pipe fittings for fluidically coupling pipes in DWV systems often require solvent cement, adhesives, or complex mechanical procedures for connection and disconnection, making them inconvenient and less adaptable to varying environmental conditions.
Innovation Solution
A pipe fitting with a coupling body and pipe engagement assembly featuring a retainer ring and grip ring, utilizing inwardly extending projections and slots for secure engagement, along with a snap fit mechanism and elastomeric gasket for fluid sealing, allowing for easy connection and disconnection without permanent bonding techniques.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If solvent cement or adhesive bonding techniques are used to connect pipes with pipe fittings, then the connection strength and reliability are improved, but the ease of disconnection and reconnection deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The connection system is divided into separate functional components: a pipe engagement assembly with gripping members for mechanical attachment, and a separate elastomeric gasket for sealing. This segmentation allows the mechanical connection to be made and broken independently from the sealing function, enabling easy disconnection while maintaining reliable connection strength during use.
Solution Approach 2:
An elastomeric gasket is introduced as an intermediary element between the pipe and pipe fitting. The gasket provides the fluid seal while the rigid mechanical engagement structure provides connection strength. This intermediary allows the sealing function to be decoupled from the mechanical attachment, enabling easy disconnection without compromising either sealing reliability or connection strength during operation.
2Ease of operation
If mechanical gripping members with teeth are used to hold the pipe, then the ease of installation and removal is improved, but the potential for pipe damage deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The gripping members are designed with resilient or flexible properties, allowing them to deform elastically during engagement. This parameter change in rigidity enables the gripping teeth to conform to the pipe surface and distribute contact pressure, reducing the risk of pipe damage while maintaining easy installation and removal capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The design incorporates resilient gripping members that inherently cushion the interaction between the mechanical engagement structure and the pipe. This beforehand cushioning through material selection and structural design protects the pipe from excessive localized stresses that could cause damage, while still providing sufficient gripping force for easy installation and removal.
3Reliability
If a retainer ring with multiple components is used to secure the pipe engagement assembly, then the reliability of the connection is improved, but the device complexity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The retainer ring is designed to combine multiple functions into a single integrated component: it provides mechanical retention of the pipe engagement assembly, locates the elastomeric gasket, and secures the grip ring. By merging these functions into one component, the design achieves reliable multi-functional performance while reducing the total number of parts and simplifying assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The retainer ring is designed as a multi-functional element that simultaneously performs retention, location, and sealing support functions. This universal design approach allows a single component to fulfill multiple roles that would otherwise require separate parts, thereby improving connection reliability without increasing device complexity.
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 convenient and secure fluid connections between pipes, facilitating easy disconnection and reconnection without complex tools, while maintaining a reliable fluid seal across varying conditions.
Implementation Method 1
an elastomeric gasket for fluid sealing
Implementation Method 2
snap fit mechanism
Data Source
AI summary
In a preferred embodiment, there is provided a pipe coupling comprising a coupling body having two or more open ends and a pipe engagement assembly for attachment to the open end for engagement of a pipe thereto, the pipe engagement assembly comprising a retainer ring and a grip ring, and the coupling body comprising a sidewall defining an internal bore sized for receiving at least a portion of the pipe and the retainer ring, the retainer ring being dimensioned to be received at least partially by the grip ring and to receive the pipe therethrough, wherein the grip ring comprises a plurality of first projections extending inwardly towards the bore to engage the pipe, and the retainer ring comprises one or more second projections extending outwardly to releasably engage the sidewall, the retainer ring defining a plurality of slots sized to receive the first projections therethrough, wherein the slots are positioned to retain the first projections with the grip ring engaging the pipe and the second projections engaging the sidewall, thereby retaining the grip ring and the pipe to the open end.