Segmented Pipe Coupling Sleeve for Unequal Diameter Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing pipe couplings face challenges in securely sealing and supporting pipes with significantly different diameters, as conventional designs often compromise on flexibility, structural integrity, or manufacturing complexity, and struggle to maintain clamping band grip due to deformation or overlap requirements.
Innovation Solution
A pipe coupling design featuring a support sleeve with contact sections and a compensation section, combined with an elastomeric sleeve and adjustable clamping bands, where circumferential flaps on the elastomeric sleeve securely retain the clamping bands and provide a partially enclosed channel for the support sleeve, along with axial slots of varying widths to accommodate different diameters and enhance shear support.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If an adjustable support sleeve with overlapping plates is provided to accommodate different pipe diameters, then adaptability to different pipe sizes is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The support sleeve is divided into multiple axial segments or plates that can move independently relative to each other. Each segment can deform or shift to accommodate different pipe diameters, providing adaptability without requiring a completely different sleeve for each size. The segments are connected in a way that allows them to flex and adjust while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The support sleeve incorporates dynamic elements that allow it to change its configuration based on the pipe diameter. The axial segments can move, flex, or deform dynamically when the clamping band is tightened, enabling the same sleeve to adapt to various pipe sizes. This dynamic behavior replaces the need for multiple static sleeve designs.
2Adaptability or versatility
If axial slots are extended into the central compensation section to increase flexibility, then adaptability to different pipe diameters is improved, but structural strength and resistance to shear forces deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
Axial slots are provided only in the axial contact sections of the support sleeve, not in the central compensation section. This local application of slots provides the necessary flexibility for diameter adjustment at the contact points while preserving the full structural strength of the central section for withstanding shear forces and axial loads.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of providing slots throughout the entire sleeve including the central section, slots are provided partially only where needed in the axial contact sections. This partial action provides sufficient flexibility for the intended function while avoiding the structural weakening that would result from extending slots into the load-bearing central compensation section.
3Reliability
If clamping bands are tightened to ensure secure seal on smaller pipe section, then sealing reliability is improved, but structural integrity of support sleeve deteriorates due to deformation requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The support sleeve is segmented into axial sections that can deform independently. When the clamping band is tightened, only the axial contact sections undergo deformation to accommodate the smaller pipe diameter, while the central compensation section maintains its structural integrity. This segmentation allows localized deformation without compromising overall structural stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The deformation capability is localized to specific axial contact sections of the support sleeve through the provision of slots only in those regions. The central compensation section retains its full structural properties and does not deform, maintaining the overall stability and integrity of the support sleeve while still achieving reliable sealing at the contact points.
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
The design ensures a secure seal and improved resistance to shear forces across a wider range of pipe diameters while maintaining structural integrity and simplifying manufacturing, by securely retaining clamping bands and allowing for necessary flexibility and deformation to accommodate varying pipe sizes.
Implementation Method 1
a coupling sleeve made of elastomeric material for connecting socketless pipes
Implementation Method 2
When tightened, the clamping band compresses the coupling against the pipe section thereby securing the coupling to the pipe section and forming a seal
Data Source
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AI summary
A pipe coupling 1 comprises an elastomeric sleeve 10, a support sleeve 20 and adjustable clamping bands 31, 32. Each band 31, 32 is provided with adjustment means 33 comprising a bolt allowing the clamping bands 31, 32 to provide a secure fit on the ends of the pipes to be coupled. The support sleeve 20 comprises contact sections 21, 22 at either end and a compensation section 23 therebetween. The first contact section 21 of the support sleeve 20 is for fitting around a larger pipe than the second contact section 22. The second contact portion 22 and the compensation section are comprised of fingers 24 of sheet material, the fingers 24 defined by axial slots 25 therebetween. The elastomeric sleeve 10 comprises a substantially tubular body 13 and end sections 11, 12 provided at each end of the body 13. The end sections 11, 12 can be folded back over the outer surface of the body 13 to provide circumferential flaps 11, 12. Each flap 11, 12 defines a partially enclosed channel 14 within which the contact sections 21, 22 of the support sleeve 20 are provided.