Hydraulic Rope Tube and Pipe Bender

A device used to bend metal tube and pipe past 180 degrees in one stroke of a cylinder with rope or cable. The hydraulic tube and pipe bender comprises a main body having two openings on each end with a hydraulic cylinder in the middle. A swivel device is attached at one end of the cylinder to control the force of each rope or cable and acts as a safety device always keeping one rope or cable attached. A magnet is used to place over a degree indicator to get the exact bend you want in a tube by means of a limit switch that triggers when the magnet trips it. Plates are parallel with each other on top of the main tube to hold the dies. Two leverage wheels are used to hold the ropes or cables to get the designed force to bend the tube or pipe.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates generally to tube and pipe bending devices for bending metal tubes or bar to any degree up to 180 degrees and past all in one stroke of the hydraulic cylinder, by placing a magnet at the degree you choose and pushing a button to activate the hydraulic cylinder the device will activate and bend the tube in a controlled manor.

2. Description of Related Art

Tube and pipe benders are commonly used in fabrication shops or the do it yourself home shop to build anything from race car roll cages to simple bent pieces of tube to hold up a coffee table. Many of the conventional tube and pipe benders or the lower cost tube and pipe benders have features where you have to re pin the die to continue the bend and get more degrees bent in the tube, this is time consuming and you can end up with a mark in the tube when you restart the bending. Some of the higher cost benders can bend a full 180 degrees without stopping to re pin the die, those are usually made with heavy duty gears and servo motors all digitally controlled.

One of the most commonly used Tube and pipe bender is the rotor draw tube bender it's basically two dies with the tube in between them that you will be bending. The top die which is usually a full circle or slightly over 180 degree has half of the tubes size and shape cut out into it and the bottom smaller die has the other half of the tubes size.

Together these two dies fit perfect around the tube. The tube is attached to the top or the bigger die in a few different ways depending on the design. Then the top die is rotated to the degree you want to get in the bent tube. There are many different designs to get the top die to turn and start bending the tube, some are gears powered by a motor or servo, some of the simplest ones are just a hydraulic jack placed right on the side of the die with a linkage.

There are a few tube benders that will bend a tube 180 degrees in one stroke and to any degree with one push of a button. These benders are most of the time, the top of the line benders with the highest price tag. Therefore there will always be a market for someone looking for a more affordable bender with a unique way of turning the die.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a device for bending metal tube and pipe to any degree you want with one push of a button. The tube or pipe you want to bend is placed in between the top die and the bottom die. The tube is locked onto the top die with a metal strap and a pin. The device is powered by a hydraulic pump that is powered by batteries for mobility or your standard US 120 volt wall outlet. Two leverage wheels are locked together with the top die with a pin that goes through them, the pin is locked in with two clamping shaft collars on each side. The leverage wheels are linked to a hydraulic cylinder by a rope, chain or cable and a pulley in the middle with a counter balance swivel device at the extending end of the cylinder that connects with two ropes or cables. When you place a magnet on the degree indicator and press the button for the hydraulic pump the cylinder extends and pulls the rope which pulls the leverage wheels which is connected to the die which bends the tubing or pipe. The bending of the tube stops when the magnet you placed on the degree indicator stops from a limit switch that's electrically connected to the hydraulic pump. The device is mainly made of metal but could be made of a strong composite or plastic. There is large tube that holds the cylinder and is pined and locked on one side. On the other side of the extending cylinder is a counter balance that connects the two ropes and keeps each leverage wheel pulling at the exact same force. Above the main tube that holds the cylinder is two almost vertical plates that hold the bottom and top die with by two pins. The top dies pin also holds the two leverage wheels.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As illustrated inFIGS.1-6the present invention is a tube and pipe bender indicated generally at10for use to bend metal tube and pipe and or solid bar. There is a main body12that holds the hydraulic cylinder60by means of a pin64that goes through a cylinder attachment63. The metal tube34is placed in between the top die48and the bottom die50and locked in place with a U strap52and a pin54. The tube and pipe bender device10can also be used to bend square tube, solid bar, round bar, or rectangular bar. Once the tube34is inserted into the top die48and bottom die50and locked into the top die48with the U strap52and pin54that goes through an opening42in the leverage wheels16a magnet5is placed on the degree indicator6to the exact degree you want to bend. The hydraulic controller6is pressed, then the hydraulic pump2is activated which extends the hydraulic ram61which is attached to a counter balance swivel22at the end. The counter balance swivel22connects two ropes or cables28with two pins24and keeps even pressure on them. As the two ropes or cables28are being pulled they run along the idler pully58which is connected to the main body12and a inside plate62by a pin32that goes though them. The rope cable or chain28then goes through one or two holes15then wrap around one or more leverage wheels16then are connected by two pins26. The wheel roller58is positioned in place to roll with the rope28and to keep the hydraulic cylinder60pushing in a horizontal direction, also it keeps the rope in the center of the two openings15and in line with the two leverage wheels16. As the two leverage wheels16turn counter clockwise if viewing fromFIG.1, it will turn the top die48counter clockwise as well, if viewing fromFIG.1The top die48turns along with the leverage wheels16with a pin38that goes through opening40, the leverage wheel16and the top die48. The tube34is then pulled into both the top die48and bottom die50while it is attached to the top die48with the U strap52. It then begins making the bend in the tube34. The bend degree in the tube34you choose can be manually stopped by un pressing the hydraulic controller button6or continue until it automatically stops when the magnet5reaches the limit switch stick3. The limit switch stick3then cuts off the power going to the hydraulic pump2, which finishes the bend in the tube34to the degree you want.