Sealing assembly with improved gasket

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11585472-B2
Application number	US-202017138564-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 30, 2020
Priority date	Dec 30, 2020
Publication date	Feb 21, 2023
Grant date	Feb 21, 2023

Abstract

Example embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an assembly for sealing a rigid pipe, a furnace, and a gasket for use in an HVAC fluid conduit. Some embodiments include a furnace with an inducer blower drawing combustion air through the furnace, and the assembly is used to connect one or more flue conduit(s) and an exhaust pipe. In one embodiment, the gasket used in the assembly includes a tubular body, at least a portion of which is engaged along an inner surface of the fluid conduit, a rim extending outwardly from a tubular body end, and two or more ears extending from the rim, wherein the ears are spaced apart from the tubular body and extend in substantially the same direction as the tubular body. The ears further include a first rib located proximate a distal end of the ear.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A sealing apparatus, comprising:
a fluid conduit comprising a first fluid conduit end and a second fluid conduit end;
a gasket engaged with the first fluid conduit end, the gasket comprising:
a tubular body, at least a portion of which is engaged along an inner surface of the fluid conduit;
a rim extending outwardly from a first tubular body end, wherein a portion of the rim abuts the first fluid conduit end; and
two or more ears extending from the rim in the same direction as the tubular body and spaced therefrom;
wherein each of the ears further comprises a first rib located proximate a distal end of the ear; and

a pipe clamp engaged with an outer surface of the ears to secure the gasket to the fluid conduit.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the fluid conduit is an exhaust conduit configured to be used in a furnace.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the exhaust conduit is configured to be coupled to an inducer blower within the furnace.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the rim extends substantially perpendicularly outwardly from the tubular body, the ears extend substantially perpendicularly from the rim and substantially parallel to the tubular body, and the first rib of each ear extends substantially perpendicularly outwardly from the ear.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the ears extend substantially the same distance from the rim as the tubular body.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the ears are tapered such that the width of each ear continuously narrows from the rim to the distal end of the ear.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the tubular body comprises an inner lip extending inwardly from a second tubular body end of the tubular body.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the gasket comprises a deformable elastic material rated for temperatures at least as great as 135° C.

9. A furnace, comprising:
a burner,
a heat exchanger,
a blower configured to move combustion air through the heat exchanger; and
an exhaust assembly in fluid communication with, and downstream of, the blower, the exhaust assembly comprising:
a flue pipe comprising a flue pipe inlet end and a flue pipe outlet end;
an exhaust conduit comprising an exhaust conduit inlet end and an exhaust conduit outlet end, the exhaust conduit formed from a substantially rigid material suitable for supporting the weight of the flue pipe;
a gasket engaged proximate to the exhaust conduit outlet end of the exhaust conduit and configured to form a seal between the exhaust conduit and the flue pipe, and
a pipe clamp configured to secure the exhaust conduit around the flue pipe, wherein the gasket further comprises:
a tubular body, wherein at least a portion of the tubular body is engaged with an inner surface of the exhaust conduit and a portion of the tubular body is engaged with an outer surface of the flue pipe;
a rim extending outwardly from a first tubular body end, wherein a portion of the rim surface abuts the exhaust conduit outlet end; and
two or more ears extending from the rim along an outer surface of the exhaust conduit, wherein each of the ears further comprises a first rib located proximate a distal end of the ear; and wherein the pipe clamp is engaged with an outer surface of the ears to secure the gasket to the exhaust conduit.

10. The furnace of claim 9 , wherein an inner surface of the tubular body comprises an inner lip extending inwardly from a second tubular body end of the tubular body.

11. The furnace of claim 9 , wherein the rim extends substantially perpendicularly outwardly from the tubular body, the ears extend substantially perpendicularly from the rim and substantially parallel to the tubular body, and the first rib of each ear extends substantially perpendicularly outwardly from the ear.

12. The furnace of claim 9 , wherein the ears extend substantially the same distance from the rim as the tubular body.

13. The furnace of claim 9 , wherein the ears are tapered such that the width of each ear continuously narrows from the rim to the distal end of the ear.

14. The furnace of claim 9 , wherein the pipe clamp applies a first force to retain the gasket on the exhaust conduit and the pipe clamp applies a second force to maintain the seal between exhaust conduit and the flue pipe, the second force being greater than the first force.

15. The furnace of claim 14 , wherein the pipe clamp comprises a visual indictor that provides an indication of the force applied by the pipe clamp.

16. The furnace of claim 9 , wherein the exhaust conduit further comprises:
a first conduit protrusion extending from the outer surface of the exhaust conduit, wherein the first conduit protrusion is located a first distance from the exhaust conduit outlet end, and
wherein the ears extend a second distance from the rim and the second distance is equal to or greater than the first distance, and wherein at least one ear is engaged with the first conduit protrusion.

17. The furnace of claim 16 , wherein the first conduit protrusion extends circumferentially around the outer surface of the fluid conduit.

18. The furnace of claim 17 , further comprising a second conduit protrusion extending from the outer surface of the fluid conduit and aligned axially with the first conduit protrusion, wherein the second conduit protrusion is located proximate to the exhaust conduit outlet end.

Assignees

• Trane Int Inc

Inventors

• Shultz Jr Gary L
• Hansen Travis

Classifications

• F24H3/06

  the air being kept separate from the heating medium, e.g. using forced circulation of air over radiators · CPC title

• F16L21/065

  tightened by tangentially-arranged threaded pins · CPC title

• F16L21/005 Primary

  made of elastic material, e.g. partly or completely surrounded by clamping devices (comprising packing adapted to sealing by fluid pressure F16L17/04) · CPC title

• F24D19/1084 Primary

  for air heating systems · CPC title