Patent Publication Number: US-9889546-B1

Title: Pipe coupling impact tool

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to the general art of impact tools, and more particularly, to an impact tool for delivering a force to couple two or more aligned pipes to form a system of aligned pipes. 
     2. Brief Description of the Prior Art 
     Couplings and fittings of various types are used for joining pipes and conduits. Examples include threaded fittings; couplings that are secured with solvent adhesives; weldments; and various push-type couplings. The performance criteria for pipe coupling mechanisms are generally determined by such factors as the pipe materials, design pressures, temperature ranges, fluid-tight requirements, pull-out resistance requirements, and environmental conditions. 
     For example, the nationwide, fiber-optic telecommunications networks consist largely of buried fiber-optic cables. The cables are commonly protected from groundwater and other subsurface conditions by enclosing them within plastic conduits. A common fiber-optic cable installation procedure involves placing the empty conduits below grade with special trenching and tunnel-boring equipment, where after the fiber-optic cables are blown through the conduits with high-pressure air. The plastic conduits and the connecting fittings used in such installations must be impervious to groundwater, resistant to the corrosive effects of soil, and capable of maintaining relatively high internal air pressures. Therefore, the connecting fittings or couplings used for joining two or more conduit sections together require sufficient pull-out resistance to withstand internal air pressures, and to resist tensile forces which tend to separate the conduit sections by pulling apart their connections. 
     Conduit coupling systems are commonly used in adverse field and environmental conditions where only minimal equipment is available and speed is relatively important. Therefore, machining and other preparations of the ends of the conduit sections on sight should be eliminated or minimized. Manually-operated hand tools are generally preferred due to their portability and independence from external power sources. Moreover, the couplings and other fittings should be relatively simple, inexpensive, strong, and reliable. Still further, the bores of the aligned conduit sections should be free from obstructions after the conduit sections are coupled. 
     When hitting PVC conduit sections together, in general, one workman has to stand and hold both conduit sections, while a second workman hits the conduit sections together. A further current practice for joining two or more conduit sections together is to first align the conduit sections in a trench. A workman then places a plank measuring approximately 2 inches by 4 inches against one end of the proximal conduit and then uses a sledge hammer to hit against the plank, which, in turn delivers enough force to the proximal conduit to join the aligned conduits together. It is apparent that the current day methods for joining two or more conduit sections together to form an aligned conduit system can be dangerous to the workmen, notwithstanding the fact that these current day practices can be tedious and time consuming. 
     There is therefore a need in the art for an improved method and an improved tool for use in joining two or more coupling conduit members, such as plastic conduits or pipe members, together. 
     There is a further need in the art to provide a pipe coupling impact tool which facilitates the safe joining of one or more conduits or pipes and their respective fittings together without the need for a workman to stand and hold both conduit sections together. 
     There is a further need in the art to provide an impact tool which may eliminate the need for a sledge hammer or similar device and/or to lessen the number of workmen needed in present-day practice for coupling two or more aligned pipes 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention has met these needs. The invention provides an impact tool for coupling a system of pipes or conduits together. The system of pipes comprises two or more pipes or conduits, such as PVC pipes or conduits. The impact tool is placed against the end of a proximal pipe or conduit, and a workman then holds this impact tool and strikes the impact tool against the end of the proximal pipe to deliver one or more forces against the end of the proximal pipe or conduit such that the conduits and their fittings are joined together. The impact tool is capable of physically driving two or more 6 inch PVC conduits together with the use of the workman&#39;s arms. That is, the impact tool of the invention is heavy and strong enough for a workman to directly use the impact tool to apply a sufficient force to the proximal pipe such that the aligned pipes are driven together and coupled. This operation can be done without the use of a sledge hammer or similar device. The impact tool has a large footprint that is used for hitting and driving the impact tool against at least one conduit which is in alignment with one or more additional conduits. Through the operation of the impact tool via a workman, the impact tool provides enough force to push small or large diameter PVC conduits together. As a result, the impact tool of the invention aids in eliminating the use of a sledge hammer and/or a wooden plank which in present day practice are necessary and which if used may injure the workmen. The impact tool of the invention allows the workman who is directly employing the impact tool to back away from the conduits or pipes once they are aligned in place thereby lessening the chances of the workman from being injured. 
     The impact tool of the invention is constructed to deliver one or more impacts or forces to couple two or more aligned pipes to form a system of aligned pipes. The impact tool comprises a strut having a first end and a second end; an impact-delivering plate mounted on the first end of the strut, and an impact-absorbing plate mounted on the second end of the strut. The impact tool is positioned to have the impact-delivering plate located adjacent to the end of a first pipe and the impact-absorbing plate spaced away from the end of the first pipe so that the force applied to the impact-absorbing plate is transferred through the strut to the impact-delivering plate and to the first pipe to force the aligned pipes together. Both the impact-absorbing plate and impact-delivering plate comprise a rubber cover which is co-extensive with the outer surface of each plate. The strut is comprised of two co-extensive elongated members extending between the impact-delivering plate and the impact-absorbing plate. A shoe is mounted on the first end and the second end of the strut for securing the impact-absorbing plate and impact-delivering plate to the strut. 
     These and other features and advantages of the present invention will be better appreciated and understood when the following description is read in light of the accompany drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an impact tool of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is an end view of the impact tool of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view illustrating the use of the impact tool of  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
    
     The components in the figures are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention. Moreover, in the figures, like referenced numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the different views. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , an impact tool  10  comprises a strut  20  that has a first end plate  30  on first end  32  of strut  20  and a second end plate  40  on the second end  42  of strut  20 , which is opposite to first end  32  of strut  20 . In general, first end plate  30  is the impact-absorbing plate and second end plate  40  is the impact-delivering plate, more of which is explained herein below. The end plates  30 ,  40  are affixed to strut  20  by a shoe  60  that is unitary with end plate  30 ,  40  and which shoe  60  is attached to strut  20  by a plurality of bolts, one of which is indicated at numeral  70 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , a flat rubber cover  80  is overlaid and secured through suitable means, such as, for example, bolts on an outer surface  90  of each end plate  30 ,  40 . In an embodiment of the invention, the flat rubber cover  80  is about one-half inch thick and is attached to the outer surface  90  of each end plate  30 ,  40  via bolts located at each corner of end plate  30 ,  40 , two of which are indicated by numeral  84  in  FIG. 1 . In an embodiment of the invention, flat rubber cover  80  extends co-extensively with outer surface  90  of end plate  30 ,  40 . 
     Referring again to  FIG. 1 , strut  20  is comprised of two co-extensive elongated members  92  and  94 , the ends of which extend into shoe  60 . Each co-extensive elongated member  92  and  94  is made of a hollow extruded metal having a cross-sectional rectangular shape and a wall thickness of about ⅛ inch. As will be understood, end plate  40  serves as an impact-delivering plate in that it delivers an impact to the end of a first pipe, and end plate  30  acts as an impact-absorbing plate in that it absorbs an impact and distributes this force or impact through strut  20  and into end plate  40  when impact tool  10  is used to cause two or more aligned pipes to be joined together to form a system of coupled pipes. It is to be appreciated that impact tool  10  is heavy enough to join the pipes together without the need of a sledge hammer or similar device. 
     Still referring to  FIG. 1 , each shoe  60  is affixed through suitable means, such as, for example, welding to an inner surface  96  of end plates  30 ,  40 . 
     In an embodiment of the invention, end plate  30  may measure approximately 12 inches wide and 12 inches long, and end plate  40  may measure approximately 8 inches wide by 8 inches long. These plates  30 ,  40  may be different sizes due to the space in a duct bank comprising the conduits. It is to be appreciated that in some instances these measurements may vary. The total weight of impact tool  10  may be approximately from about 15 pounds to about 25 pounds, with each end plate  30 ,  40  weighing from about 5 pounds to about 7 pounds. The overall measurement of strut  20  may be approximately three feet long and about four to six inches thick. 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 , it can be understood that in use of impact tool  10 , pipe P 1  and P 2  are aligned so that longitudinal axis  100  of pipe P 1  is aligned with longitudinal axis  102  of pipe P 2 . In general, P 1  and P 2  are supported by the earth in a trench. End  104  of pipe P 1  is inserted into end  106  of pipe P 2 , such that end  104  of pipe P 1  is accommodated inside pipe P 2 . Impact tool  10  is manually positioned by a workman with end plate  40 , which is the impact-delivering end abutting a free end  110  of pipe P 1 , and impact tool  10  is struck against the free end  110  of pipe P 1  by the workman. This operation may be done by only one workman since impact tool  10  is heavy enough and powerful enough to exert a sufficient force to couple the aligned pipes together without the additional workmen which generally are needed to hold the pipe ends together. Impact tool  10  transmits a force to the free end  110  of first pipe P 1  thus driving its end  104  into end  106  of second pipe P 2  thereby coupling pipe P 1  and pipe P 2  together. It is to be appreciated that a workman may manually apply impact tool  10  against the proximal pipe for this coupling of aligned pipes, and that the use of a sledge hammer or auxiliary device against impact tool  10  may be eliminated in that impact tool  10  is heavy and strong enough to exert a sufficient force against the pipes for their connection. 
     While the present invention has been described in connection with the preferred embodiments of the various figures, it is to be understood that other similar embodiments may be used or modifications and additions may be made to the described embodiment for performing the same function of the present invention without deviating there from. Accordingly, it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications as come within the spirit and scope of the invention.