Female quick-connect coupling element, and a quick-connect coupling incorporating such an element

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9752713-B2
Application number	US-201314084117-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 19, 2013
Priority date	Nov 23, 2012
Publication date	Sep 5, 2017
Grant date	Sep 5, 2017

Abstract

This female quick-connect coupling element comprises balls for locking a male element in a coupled configuration, positioned in radial housings of a body and able to protrude radially in an insertion channel, and an actuating member mobile between a first position, in which the male element is locked in the female element in coupled configuration, and a second position, in which the male and female elements are in uncoupled configuration. The female quick-connect coupling element comprises an intermediate locking ring, mobile in translation between a rear position, in which an internal wall of the intermediate ring maintains the locking balls protruding in the insertion channel, and a front position of the front side of the female element, in which the locking balls are free to be pushed back opposite the longitudinal axis of the female element under the action of the actuating member.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A female quick-connect coupling element receives for the detachable connection of two pressurised fluid pipes, the female element by fitting, along a longitudinal axis of the female element and in an insertion channel located on a front side of the female element, a male coupling element, the female element comprising:
a body through which passes a conduit for the circulation of fluid;
balls for locking the male element in a coupled configuration, with these locking balls being positioned in radial housings of the body and able to protrude radially in the insertion channel; and
an actuating member mobile in translation along the longitudinal axis between a first front position, in which the male element is locked in the female element in a coupled configuration, and a second rear position, in which the male element and the female element are in an uncoupled configuration, during a disconnection maneuver of the male element and the female element,
wherein the female quick-connect coupling element includes an intermediate locking ring mobile in axial translation between a rear position, in which an internal wall of the intermediate ring maintains the locking balls protruding in the insertion channel in a coupled configuration of the coupling, and a front position of the front side of the female element, in which the locking balls are free to be pushed back opposite the longitudinal axis of the female element in order to no longer protrude in the insertion channel,
wherein the intermediate ring is pushed back to its front position under the action of the actuating member during the disconnection maneuver, and
wherein the female element further comprises means of locking in rear position of the intermediate ring in the coupled configuration of the coupling, wherein the unlocking of the intermediate ring towards its front position is triggered by the clearing of the actuating member towards its second rear position.

2. The female quick-connect coupling element according to claim 1 , further comprising an inner sleeve mounted in the conduit for the circulation of fluid, with the inner sleeve being mobile in translation according to the longitudinal axis of the female element and adapted to drive the intermediate ring towards the rear during the coupling of the female element with the male element under the action of the male element during its insertion, with the driving of the intermediate ring being carried out by at least one drive ball mobile in translation in a hole of a wall of the body and protruding on either side of the wall in such a way that, during the translation towards the rear of the inner sleeve, one side of the ball is in contact with a shoulder of the inner sleeve while another side of the ball is in contact with a shoulder of the intermediate ring.

3. The female quick-connect coupling element according to claim 1 , further comprising an inner sleeve mounted in the conduit for the circulation of fluid, with the inner sleeve being mobile in translation according to the longitudinal axis of the female element and adapted to drive the intermediate ring towards the rear during the coupling of the female element with the male element under the action of the male element during its insertion, with the driving of the intermediate ring being carried out by a portion of the inner sleeve, extending radially through a space of the body of the female element and able to exert an axial force on a shoulder of the intermediate ring.

4. The female quick-connect coupling element according to claim 1 , wherein the actuating member is an outer actuating ring mobile in relation to the body between the first front position thereof and the second rear position thereof, in which it is able to be locked, during the disconnection maneuver,
wherein the female quick-connect coupling element comprises means for locking in rear position of the intermediate ring in the coupled configuration of the coupling,
wherein the locking in the second rear position of the outer actuating ring triggers the unlocking of the intermediate ring towards its front position during the disconnection maneuver of the coupling, and
wherein the female element comprises a spring able to push back the intermediate ring towards its front position.

5. The female quick-connect coupling element according to claim 4 , wherein when the outer actuating ring is maneuvered to its second rear position, locking balls located in housings of the body are retracted partially outside of the body in order to maintain the outer actuating ring locked in its second rear position during the disconnection maneuver of the coupling.

6. The female quick-connect coupling element according to claim 5 , wherein the unlocking of the actuating ring is triggered by the arrival of the intermediate ring in its rear position, and
wherein the female element comprises a spring able to push back the actuating ring towards its first front position.

7. The female quick-connect coupling element according to claim 5 , wherein the balls for locking in the second rear position of the outer actuating ring also form the means for locking in rear position of the intermediate ring.

8. The female quick-connect coupling element according to claim 1 , wherein the actuating member is a slide mobile according to an axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the female element and mobile between a first retracted position, in which the intermediate ring is maintained locked in rear position using means for locking such as a pin of the slide protruding against a shoulder of the intermediate ring, and a second extended position, in which the intermediate ring is no longer maintained locked in rear position, during the disconnection maneuver of the coupling.

9. The female quick-connect coupling element according to claim 1 , further comprising guiding balls for guiding the male element adapted to protrude radially in the insertion channel and mounted in housings arranged in a wall of the body of the female element, wherein the guiding balls are supplementary to the locking balls.

10. The female quick-connect coupling element according to claim 9 , wherein the housings in which the guiding balls are mounted are delimited by an internal surface of the intermediate locking ring and movement of the intermediate locking ring towards its front position releases the guiding balls such that the guiding balls can be pushed back in a groove of the intermediate locking ring and no longer protrude in the insertion channel.

11. The female quick-connect coupling element according to claim 4 , further comprising guiding balls for guiding the male element adapted to protrude radially in the insertion channel and mounted in housings arranged in a wall of the body of the female element,
wherein the guiding balls are supplementary to the locking balls, and
wherein the housings in which the guiding balls are mounted are delimited by a wall of the outer actuating ring and movement of the outer actuating ring towards its second rear position releases the guiding balls such that the guiding balls can be pushed back in their housings and no longer protrude in the insertion channel.

12. The female quick-connect coupling element according to claim 1 , wherein the internal wall of the intermediate ring, delimiting the housings of the locking balls, has a tapered surface diverging towards the rear of the female element.

13. A quick-connect coupling for the detachable connection of two pressurised fluid pipes, this coupling comprising two elements respectively male and female, receiving the male, wherein the female element is according to claim 1 .

Assignees

• Staubli Sa Ets

Inventors

• Tiberghien Alain-Christophe
• Durieux Christophe

Classifications

• F16L37/42

  the valve having an axial bore communicating with lateral apertures · CPC title

• F16L37/23 Primary

  by means of balls · CPC title

• F16L37/086 Primary

  by means of latching members pushed radially by spring-like elements {(radially moved latching members forming a ring F16L37/0841)} · CPC title

• F16L37/46

  with a gate valve or sliding valve · CPC title