Abstract:
An apparatus to connect two portions of at least one cable together comprising a male member, a female member and an actuation means. The actuation means is adapted to radially displace the first or second portions of the cables to engage each other. The actuation means typically comprises a tapered rod, and the male member is normally inserted into the female member and the rod is moved along its central axis so that engaging portions abutting against the rod move radially outwards causing the attached cable portions to move radially outward. Secondary portions or the cables are typically positioned around the female member and form a connection with the cables pushed radially outwards

Description:
TITLE OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    This invention relates to a coupler for joining connections and particularly to a multiway coupler for joining a number of connections, particularly but not exclusively, for use in hostile environments, for example, subsea environments.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    Umbilicals used underwater typically comprise a number of internal cables, hoses or wires carrying, for example electrical wires, hydraulic lines, pneumatic lines, fibre optic cables or other types of wires, lines or cables used for transmitting, for example, power, signals, data, etc. At the point where the umbilical connects to a host facility or structure with corresponding cables, it may be necessary to connect each cable within the umbilical separately. Such connections may be difficult and time consuming to effect.  
           [0003]    This problem has been tackled by connecting and locking two parallel plates, each plate comprising mating connector halves mounted on their mating face. However, these plates are difficult to align and connect, and are prone to damage and to dirt ingress. The problems associated with these plates are exacerbated in subsea or other difficult environments.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided an apparatus to connect first portions of as least two cables to respective second portions or the at least two cables, the apparatus comprising;  
           [0005]    a male member coupled to the first portions of the cables;  
           [0006]    a female member coupled to the second portions of the cables;  
           [0007]    an actuation mechanism;  
           [0008]    wherein the actuation mechanism is adapted to displace at least part or at least one of the first and second portions of the cables radially to engage with the other portions of the cables.  
           [0009]    Typically, the female member comprises a bore and is adapted to receive the male member in the bore.  
           [0010]    Preferably, the first and second portions of the cables each comprise mating faces. Typically, the first and second portions of the cables engage at their respective mating faces.  
           [0011]    Preferably, movement of the actuation mechanism results in the radial displacement of the said at least one of the first and second portions of the cables.  
           [0012]    Preferably, the female member is adapted to engage at least a portion of the male member and movement of the actuation mechanism in the direction of engagement of the male and female members results in the radial displacement of the said at least one of the first and second portions of the cables.  
           [0013]    Preferably, movement of the actuation mechanism results in the radial displacement of the first portion of the cables radially to engage with the second portion of the cables.  
           [0014]    Preferably, the first portions of the cables are displaced radially outwards from the male member.  
           [0015]    Preferably, the actuation mechanism comprises a tapered member having a tapered surface.  
           [0016]    Preferably, the first portions of the cables comprise an engaging member which is adapted to engage the tapered surface of the tapered member.  
           [0017]    Preferably, movement of the tapered member to cause a wider portion of the tapered member to engage with each engaging member causes radial displacement of each engaging member and the first portions of the cables coupled thereto.  
           [0018]    Preferably, the race of each engaging member engaging the tapered member is a curved face with a smaller radius of curvature than the face of the tapered member which it engages.  
           [0019]    Preferably, each engaging member hag at least one slot.  
           [0020]    Preferably, a guidance mechanism is provided between the male and female members.  
           [0021]    Preferably, the guidance mechanism comprises a first substantially hollow cone-shaped member attached to one of the male and female members and a second cone-shaped member attached to the other of the male and female members wherein the first cone-shaped member is adapted to receive the second cone-shaped member.  
           [0022]    Preferably, the male member has a protection mechanism to cover the mating faces of the first portions of the cables.  
           [0023]    Preferably, the protection mechanism comprises a tubular member and a biasing device.  
           [0024]    Preferably, the biasing device deforms on entry of the male member into the female member to uncover the mating faces of the cables and reforms when the male member is withdrawn from the female member to cover the mating faces of the cables with the tubular member.  
           [0025]    Preferably, the male member further comprises an end plate member.  
           [0026]    Preferably, each first portion of cable further comprises a supporting member.  
           [0027]    Preferably, each supporting member extends from the end plate member to an engaging member.  
           [0028]    Preferably, a biasing mechanism is provided to resist radial movement of the supporting members.  
           [0029]    Preferably, the apparatus further comprises a rotation alignment mechanism to rotationally align the male and female members with respect to each other.  
           [0030]    Preferably, the apparatus further comprises an axial alignment mechanism to axially align the male and female members with respect to each other.  
           [0031]    According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided an apparatus to connect a first portion of a cable to a second portion of the cable, the apparatus comprising:  
           [0032]    a male member coupled to the first portion or the cable;  
           [0033]    a female member coupled to the second portion of the cable;  
           [0034]    an actuation mechanism;  
           [0035]    wherein the actuation mechanism is adapted to displace at least part one of the first and second portions of the cable radially to engage with the other portion of the cable.  
           [0036]    Preferably, the apparatus according to the second aspect of the invention is substantially similar to the apparatus according to the first aspect or the invention.  
           [0037]    According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a method to connect first portions of at least two cables to second portions of at least two cables, the method comprising the steps of:  
           [0038]    providing a male member coupled to the first portions of the cables;  
           [0039]    providing a female member coupled to the second portions of the cables;  
           [0040]    providing an actuation mechanism; and moving the actuation mechanism such that at least a part of the first or second portions of the cables are radially displaced to engage with the other portions of the cables.  
           [0041]    According to a fourth aspect of the invention there is provided a method to connect a first portion of a cable to a second portion of a cable, the method comprising the steps of:  
           [0042]    providing a male member coupled to the first portion of the cable;  
           [0043]    providing a female member coupled to the second portion of the cable;  
           [0044]    providing an actuation mechanism; and  
           [0045]    moving the actuation mechanism so that at least a part of one of the first and second portions of the cable is radially displaced to engage with the other portion of the cable.  
           [0046]    According to a fifth aspect of the invention there is provided an apparatus comprising a female receptacle with at least one individual connector halve(s) and a male coupler with at least one individual mating connector halve(s), that connect and lock with the individual connector halve(s) of the female receptacle when the male multiway coupler is inserted into the female multiway receptacle and is actuated, wherein, the connector actuation mechanism, within the male coupler, consists of a tapered mandrel whose axial travel forces the connector halve(s) radially outwards through holes in the body of the male coupler and into connection with the mating connector halve(s) housed within the female receptacle.  
           [0047]    According to a sixth aspect of the invention there is provided an apparatus to connect a plurality of first conduits to respective second conduits, the apparatus comprising:  
           [0048]    a male member coupled to the first conduits;  
           [0049]    a female member coupled to the second conduits;  
           [0050]    an actuation mechanism; and  
           [0051]    a radially movable portion capable of moving at least one of the conduits;  
           [0052]    wherein the actuation mechanism is adapted to move the radially movable portion in a radial direction to connect the first and second conduits.  
           [0053]    Preferably, the conduits are cables. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0054]    An embodiment of the invention according to the first aspect of the invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:  
         [0055]    [0055]FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the apparatus according to the first aspect of the invention;  
         [0056]    [0056]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a female member of the apparatus of FIG. 1;  
         [0057]    [0057]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a nose cone of the apparatus of FIG. 1;  
         [0058]    [0058]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a casing of the apparatus of FIG. 1;  
         [0059]    [0059]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of part of a male member of the apparatus of FIG. 1;  
         [0060]    [0060]FIG. 6 a  is an enlarged perspective view of a block of the male member of FIG. 5, also showing a portion of cable from the female member;  
         [0061]    [0061]FIG. 6 b  is a side view of the block of FIG. 6 a  (not showing the cables); and,  
         [0062]    [0062]FIG. 6 c  is a side view of the block of FIG. 6 b  in use. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0063]    Referring to the drawings there is shown a coupler  30  in accordance with the first aspect of the invention, comprising a female member or receptacle  31  and a male member  32 .  
         [0064]    The male member  32  comprises a casing  9 , a sleeve  36 , an end plate  12 , supporting members  15 , a nose cone  7  and a tapered locking rod  14 .  
         [0065]    The supporting members  15  are provided radially around the end plate  12 , and extend axially therefrom, and are coupled to blocks  16  which they support. The supporting members  15  are flexible and may be displaced radially. An o-ring  23  is provided around the supporting members  15 . After the supporting members  15  have been displaced radially as described below, the o-ring  22  aids their return, and in particular the blocks&#39;  16  return, to their start position as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 5.  
         [0066]    Individual cables/hoses (not shown) of a host facility/umbilical (not shown) are attached to bulkhead connectors  20  on the rear side of the end plate  12 . Each cable (not shown) on the male member  32  extends from bulkhead connectors  20  through the end plate  12 , through a supporting member  15 , then through the blocks  16  and out through an aperture  18  in the casing  9 . A connector half  13  is provided at the end of the cable to engage a complementary connector half  6  on the cable portion of the female member  31 .  
         [0067]    The rod  14  extends co-axially through the centre of the end plate  12 . Normally, only the second end  33  of the rod  14  is tapered, wherein the taper runs substantially linearly from a smaller diameter at the outer most portion of the second end  33  to a greater diameter at an inner portion of the second end  33 . The male member  32  is arranged such that a radially innermost face of each block  16  rests on the tapered portion of the rod  14 . To allow for manufacturing tolerances and to keep the individual connectors  6 ,  13  firmly held together with a constant holding force, the radially innermost face of each block  16  engaging the tapered portion of the rod is curved with a smaller radius of curvature than the tapered portion of the rod upon which it rests. The blocks  16  have two opposite slots  21 , as shown in FIGS. 6 a - 6   c  (but nor shown in the other FIGS.), which allow the blocks  16  to resiliently deform.  
         [0068]    The blocks  16 , supporting members  15 , end plate  12  and cables are inserted as a unit into a first end  34  of the casing  9 . Each block  16  engages a slot  17  in the casing  9  to rotationally align the blocks  16 /supporting members  15  etc with respect to the casing  9 . The connector halves  13  of each cable extend through the apertures  18  in the casing  9 . An outwardly extending peg  8  is provided on the outer face of the casing  9  opposite to its first end  34  and proximate to its second end  35 .  
         [0069]    The nose cone  7  comprises a frusto-conical portion  39  and a cylindrical portion  40 , wherein the outermost end of the cylindrical portion  40  is attached to the second (opposite) end  35  of the casing  9 , and the frusto-conical portion  39  aids location of the male member  32  into the female receptacle  31 , as will be described.  
         [0070]    The sleeve  36  comprises a solid tubular portion  10  and a tubular spring portion  11 . The sleeve  36  is placed around the casing  9  between the peg  8  and the end plate  12  so that the tubular portion  10  covers and protects the connectors  13  provided in the apertures  18  of the casing  9 , at least when the male member  22  and female receptacle  21  are not connected  
         [0071]    The female receptacle  31 , shown in greater detail in FIG. 2, comprises a tubular portion  1  and a frusto-conically shaped receptacle  2 . Four cable connectors  6  are equi-spaced around the outer face of the tubular portion  1 . The individual cables/hoses (not shown) of the host facility/umbilical (not shown) not attached to the bulkhead connectors  20  are attached to the connectors  6 . The inner bore of the tube  1  has a diameter large enough to allow entry of the casing  9  but small enough to resist insertion of the sleeve  36 . The frusto-conical receptacle  2  is adapted to engage with the nose cone  7  to guide the male member  32  into the inner bore of the female receptacle  31 . A slot  3  extends the entire length along the inner face of the tubular portion  1  of the female receptacle  31 , and is adapted to engage the peg  8  of the casing  9 , as described below.  
         [0072]    In use, the male member  22  is inserted into the female receptacle  31 . The nose cone  7  guides the male member  32  into the female receptacle  31 . The peg  8  on the male member  32  engages with the slot  3  in the female receptacle  31  and so resist rotational movement between the male member  32  and female receptacle  31 . The slot  3  in the tubular portion  1  of the female receptacle  31  has an inwardly extending stop peg  4  provided at the opposite end of the tube from the conical member  2 .  
         [0073]    Therefore, the engagement of the slot  3  and of the peg  8  rotationally aligns the connectors  6  and  13 . The sleeve  36 , being of wider diameter than the tube  1 , abuts the tube&#39;s first end  37  and so the insertion of the casing  9  into the tube  1  results in the sleeve  36 , and particularly the spring  11 , being compressed between the end plate  12  and the first end  37  of the tube  1 , insodoing exposing the apertures  18  of the casing  9 .  
         [0074]    The casing  9  continues into the tube  1  until the peg  8  on the casing  9  abuts against the stop peg  4  in the slot  3  of the tube  1 . Continued movement of the casing  9  is thereby resisted.  
         [0075]    At this point the connectors  13  in the apertures  18  of the casing  9  are axially and rotationally aligned with the connectors  6  in the apertures  5 .  
         [0076]    The first end of the rod  14  (the end extending from the rear side of the end plate  12 ) is gripped by any suitable means such as a hydraulic cylinder or lead screw mechanism (not shown), and the rod  14  is pushed further into the female receptacle  31 . As the casing  9  is held by the pegs  4 ,  8  abutting against each other, the rod  14  now moves independently of the casing  9 . The blocks  16  resting on the rod  14  contact a wider (greater diameter) portion of the tapered rod  14  and are pushed radially outwards. The supporting members is are also displaced radially outwards against the biasing action of the o-ring  23 . The blocks  16  in turn push the connectors  13  further outwardly, through respective apertures  18  in the casing  9 , such that the connectors  13  mate with the respective connectors  6  of the female receptacle  31 .  
         [0077]    The connection between the cables/hoses attached to the connectors  6  and the cables/hoses attached to the connectors  13  is thus formed. The rod  14  may be locked in position by any suitable means (not shown). Internal pressure or other environmental forces which may affect the connection are resisted by the blocks  16  abutting with the tapered rod  14  thereby enhancing the integrity of the connection between the connectors  6  and  13 .  
         [0078]    To disengage the connection, the procedure is generally reversed, that is, the rod  14  is retracted.  
         [0079]    The blocks  16  can then rest on a thinner (smaller diameter) portion of the tapered rod  14 , and the o-ring  23  around the supporting members  15  aids this return of the blocks  16 . The connection is broken by the connectors  13  retracting back into the casing  9 , The male member  32  is then free to be retracted back out of the female receptacle  31 . The spring  11  of the sleeve  36  reforms and the connectors  13  in the apertures  18  are once again covered and protected by the tubular portion  10  of the sleeve  36 .  
         [0080]    The coupler  30  may be used to connect cables conveying any type of signals or power whatsoever including but not limited to pneumatic, electrical, hydraulic or optical signals or power.  
         [0081]    It will be understood that although the embodiment described herein relates to a coupler connecting four cables, the scope of the invention is not limited to such a coupler, as any number of cables may be connected with a coupler according to the first, second, third, fourth, fifth or sixth aspects of the present invention with simple modifications being made to the embodiment.  
         [0082]    Improvements and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention.