Quick-Install Pipe Gasket With Flexible Sealing Arms
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Solution Overview
Problem
Gasket installation in pipe fittings is difficult and time-consuming due to the need for stretching the gasket over the pipe end, which complicates alignment and increases installation time.
Innovation Solution
A gasket design featuring an annular base with a central flange and arms that allow the gasket to be easily pushed onto a pipe without stretching, incorporating radii and sealing surfaces for alignment and sealing, and protrusions for increased sealing force, facilitating quick installation and removal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the gasket is stretched over the pipe end during installation, then the gasket can be installed, but the installation process becomes difficult and time consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The gasket is divided into a central flange and multiple arms that can flex independently. This segmentation allows the arms to bend and adapt to the pipe end geometry without requiring the entire gasket to be stretched, enabling easier and faster installation.
Solution Approach 2:
The gasket incorporates flexible arms with sealing portions that can dynamically adjust their position and orientation during installation. The arms can bend and flex to accommodate the pipe end shape, eliminating the need for difficult stretching operations and reducing installation time.
2Ease of operation
If the gasket is stretched over the pipe end, then the gasket can be installed, but alignment of pipe ends and fitting becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing portions of the arms are designed with curved surfaces that match the curvature of the pipe end. This curvature design allows the sealing portions to naturally align with the pipe end geometry, improving both alignment ease and alignment precision without requiring stretching.
Solution Approach 2:
The gasket design changes the geometric parameters of the sealing surfaces to match the pipe end dimensions. By designing the sealing portions with specific radii and angles that correspond to the pipe end geometry, the gasket achieves precise alignment automatically during installation without difficult stretching or manual alignment.
3Reliability
If the gasket design includes arms extending radially inwardly with sealing surfaces, then sealing performance is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gasket is segmented into a central flange and multiple arms, each with its own sealing portion. This segmentation allows each arm to independently contact and seal against the pipe end surface, improving sealing performance while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure that is easier to manufacture than a monolithic complex gasket.
Data Source
AI summary
A gasket has an annular gasket base extending circumferentially about a gasket axis. A central flange extends inwardly away from the gasket base toward the gasket axis. The central flange has an apex positioned at a first distance from the gasket axis. A first arm is spaced apart from the central flange and extends radially and inwardly away from the gasket base toward the gasket axis. The first arm includes a first sealing portion. The first sealing portion defines a first sealing surface spaced apart from the gasket axis by a second distance which is greater than the first distance. A second arm is spaced apart from the central flange and extends radially and inwardly away from the gasket base toward the gasket axis. The second arm includes a second sealing portion defining a second sealing surface.