Patent ID: 6749231
Filing Date: 2004-06-15
Classification: F16L,Y10S

Abstract:
A fluid coupling comprising a female half and a male half, said female half having a longitudinal bore extending completely therethrough for the passage of fluid through said female half, a sealing ring peripherally mounted at the inner surface of said bore of said female half, an expandable annular locking member biased to a contracted condition mounted in a peripheral groove in said inner surface of said bore of said female half, the groove longitudinally displaced from said sealing ring, said male half including a longitudinal bore extending completely therethrough in flow communication with said female half bore when said female half and said male half are coupled together, said male half having a nipple at its forward end for insertion into said bore of said female half, said nipple having an outer surface, a peripheral portion of said outer surface being a sealing surface for being peripherally contacted by said sealing ring when said female half and said male half are coupled together, an outwardly extending barb on said outer surface of said nipple, a tapered forward ramp at one end of said barb for expanding said locking member when said nipple is inserted into said bore of said female half to permit said locking member to ride up said forward ramp and over said barb during insertion movement of said nipple into said female half, said barb having a locking shoulder remote from said forward ramp for engagement by said locking member when said locking member has passed over said barb to lock said male half to said female half, said barb having an outer surface between said ramp and said locking shoulder, said outer surface having an initial longitudinal length sufficiently long to maintain locking engagement of said barb with said locking member during conditions of wear which reduces the length of said outer surface of said barb until the seal between said sealing ring and said sealing surface is broken thus permitting leakage of the fluid to provide an indicator of wear while said female half and said male half remain coupled together with said locking member still engaged with said barb.