Abstract:
A pipe coupler interconnects pipes and fittings and sections of pipe end to end for transferring bulk dry and fluid materials. The coupler connects various pipe ends, grooved, smooth, and ground, together. The coupler also connects various fittings such as tees and valves to pipe ends. Two arms clamp upon the two pieces of a gasket to seal the connection of pipes and fittings within the coupler. A plurality of ridges upon both surfaces of the piece grasp and seal the end of a pipe. The gasket removes any gaps in the connection that would have trapped material and contaminated later loads of material.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]     This nonprovisional patent application claims priority to the provisional patent application having Ser. No. 60/565,565, which was filed on Apr. 27, 2005. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The gasket for a coupler upon a rail car, tank trailer, or related means relates to pipe couplers in general and more specifically to a coupler with a two piece gasket. Unique aspects of the present gasket for a rail car coupler are ends having grooves and tongues, and a pin for one way fitting of the gasket into an arm.  
         [0003]     Designs of clamps and couplers that connect pipes or fittings end to end have been available in the art. The clamps regularly connect sections of pipe or hopper tees on railway tank cars, tank trailers, pipelines and other means for conveyance. In dry bulk hauling, such as pellets, powders, and grains, seal integrity at the pipe connection is essential to prevent contamination of the materials later hauled in a tank car. The pellets or powders unload from gravity gate valves or hoppers located on the bottom of a tank car. Tees attached to the bottom of a hopper connect with collection pipes. A vacuum or vibration created in the pipe accelerates the unloading of dry bulk products from a hopper. A hopper must be completely empty of a dry bulk product to prevent contamination with later loads. As an example, if a tank car carries black plastic resin beads, no trace of the black plastic resin beads can remain in the car, the hopper, and the piping to prevent contamination with a subsequent load of white resin beads. A second example shows the need for complete emptying of a product from the entire car: edible white flour. If the tank car or piping system traps the flour and mold develops, later loads of flour will acquire mold. A third example, bulk liquids contaminating bulk dry loads, can render a load useless at great cost in disposal and other losses.  
         [0004]     The prior art has known that contamination occurs where a pipe couples to a hopper tee. Existing clamps have gasket seals that can trap product at a hopper tee. A prior art clamp has two semicircular sides connected by a hinge. A conventional lever with a cam tightens the two sides snugly to surround a joint, at pipe with a tee for example. A ring shaped gasket lines the interior of a clamp and deforms as the two sides tighten upon the joint. The typical gasket has outer walls and a center member that deform as they press against and seal a pipe joint. However, gaps arise between the sides and the center member. The gaps allow dry bulk product to collect. Product that lodges in a gap becomes difficult to remove. Further, a ring shaped gasket must be installed over an end of a pipe. That installation may prove difficult in the cramped quarters adjacent to a railway tank car.  
         [0005]     The present art overcomes the limitations of the prior art. That is, in the art of the present invention, a gasket for a coupler upon a rail car, tank trailer, or related means has two pieces with a centering pin for ready installation.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0006]     A coupler upon a rail car, tank trailer, or related means has a two piece gasket removably encased within two arms. The arms have a semicircular shape and pivot together at one end akin to a clamshell. The arms together define an annular opening to encircle the ends of pipes for connecting. A pivot joins the arms such as at a hinge. The first arm has a lever and an adjustable bail connected to the lever. The second arm has a boss to engage the bail when the second arm clamps about the gasket to the first arm. The arms each have a generally U shaped cross section defined by a bottom wall, and first and second opposed side walls. A piece of the gasket seats in a groove between the side walls. The pin of the gasket and the tapered edges center and seat the gasket in an arm. Tongues and grooves in each piece of gasket interlock as the first arm closes upon the second arm. The closing arms compress the gasket and deflect the center of the gasket as the coupler joins two pipe sections in a fluid and air tight seal. If a gasket leaks or becomes damaged, workers can remove a piece of the gasket from a coupler and replace the piece with the coupler remaining in position. In particular, the inner surface of the gasket pieces has raised ridges with a central ridge to seal the joint between pipes or between a pipe and a fitting. During installation of the coupler, the arms compress the gasket pieces around a pipe at the joint and spread the ridges to provide a greater sealing surface at the pipe joints. When compressed, the gasket pieces have no gaps or recesses to collect material that could contaminate a later load.  
         [0007]     These together with other objects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty that characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there is illustrated a preferred embodiment of the invention 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0008]      FIG. 1  shows an isometric exploded view of a gasket for a coupler upon a rail car, tank trailer or other bulk material transport with arms open in accordance with the principles of the present invention;  
         [0009]      FIG. 1A  shows a sectional view of an arm complementarily receiving a piece of a gasket of the present invention;  
         [0010]      FIG. 2  shows an isometric view of the preferred embodiment of the gasket for a coupler installed to connect two pipes;  
         [0011]      FIG. 2A  shows a detail view of the gasket for a coupler under the load of two connected pipes;  
         [0012]      FIG. 3  shows an isometric view of a piece of the gasket of the preferred embodiment of a gasket for a coupler constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention;  
         [0013]      FIG. 4  illustrates a side view of the present invention; and,  
         [0014]      FIG. 5  illustrates a sectional view of the present invention through the alignment pin. 
     
    
       [0015]     The same reference numerals refer to the same parts throughout the various figures.  
       DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0016]     The present invention overcomes the prior art limitations by providing a two piece gasket having tongue and groove ends within a two arm coupler. The ends mate together to seal the coupler. Turning to  FIG. 1 , the preferred embodiment of the gasket  1  for a coupler  2  upon a rail car, tank trailer, or other related means is shown as two separate pieces  3  inserted into a coupler  2 . The coupler  2  has a first arm  4  and a second arm  5  generally semi-circular in profile. The first arm  4  has a first end  6  and an opposite second end  7 . The first end  6  has an integrally formed pivot  8  with a conventional hole and pin forming a hinge  9 . The second end  7  has an integrally formed mount  10 . The mount  10  has a first wall  11  and a second wall  12  with a gap  13  between them. A central hole  14  in the first wall  11  and a corresponding hole in the second wall  12  admit a pin to form a second hinge  15 .  
         [0017]     A lever  16  pivotally attaches to the mount  10  at the second hinge  15 . The lever  16  has a generally arcuate shape and a handle  17  at one end and a hole (not shown) at the opposite end. A pin extends through the holes in the first and second walls  11 ,  12  and a pin extends through the hole in the opposite end of the lever  16 . The interior curve of the lever  16  has an integral boss  18  that contacts the first arm  4  upon closing the coupler  2 .  
         [0018]     Referring briefly to  FIG. 1A , an arm  4 ,  5  has a generally U shaped cross-section. The arm has a first sidewall  19 , an opposite second sidewall  20 , and a bottom wall  21  joining both the first sidewall  19  and the second sidewall  20 . The first sidewall  19  and the second sidewall  20  extend outwardly from the bottom wall  21 . Then, the first sidewall  19  and the second sidewall  20  have an integral raised rib  23  for the entire length of the sidewall  19 ,  20 . In cooperation, the sidewalls  19 ,  20  define a groove  22  to receive a piece  3  of gasket  1 . The piece  3  has a trapezoidal shaped cross section and seats in the groove  22  with a plurality of ridges  35 ,  38  located towards the wider base of the trapezoidal shape. At the narrower base of the trapezoidal shape, the piece  3  has a pair of ridges  39  upon the outer diameter. The ridges  39  have a generally rectangular cross section and extend partially across the width of the piece  3  with each ridge  39  upon an outer edge of a piece  3 . Upon closing the coupler  1 , the pieces  3  contact the pipe  36  as later described in  FIG. 2  and the ridges  39  rest upon the groove  22 .  
         [0019]     Returning to  FIG. 1 , a bail assembly  24  pivotally attaches to the lever  16 . The bail assembly  24  has a generally U shaped bail with a horizontal base  25  and vertical opposed arms  26 . A rod (not shown) extends through a hole in the lever  16  and joins the arms  26  of the bail. The arms  26  of the bail and the rod have cooperating adjusting nuts. The bail assembly  24  allows adjusting the bail relative to the lever  16 . Adjusting the bail assembly  24  maintains tension on the bail and an airtight fit of the arms  4 ,  5  as wear and tear afflicts the coupler  2  and gasket  1  over time.  
         [0020]     Opposite the first arm  4 , the second arm  5  has a first end  27  and a second end  28 . A conventional pivot  8  on the first end  27  cooperates with the first hinge  9 . The hinge  9  between the first and second arms  4 , 5  allows the first and second arms  4 , 5  to rotate relative to each other to open and to close the coupler  2  upon a pipe  36 . The second end  28  of the second arm  5  has an integral boss  29 . This boss  29  has a groove  30  that accepts the horizontal portion of the bail to close and to lock the arms  4 ,  5  together.  
         [0021]     The gasket  1  has two pieces  3 , one for each arm  4 , 5 . A semi-circular piece  3  seats within the groove  22  of an arm  4 , 5  and takes position when an alignment pin  31  fits an alignment hole  32 . The pieces  3  mate at their ends in a tongue  33  and groove  34  joint when the arms  4 , 5  close together to couple pipes  36 . A piece  3  has a tongue  33  upon one end and a matching groove  34  upon the other end. Between the two ends, raised ridges  35  integrally occupy the inner surface  42  of a piece  3 .  
         [0022]     Turning to  FIG. 2 , the coupler  2  joins two pipes  36  or a pipe  36  and a fitting together. Each pipe  36  has an annular groove  37  incised in the ends of the respective pipe  36  sections. A piece  3  seats in the first and second arms  4 , 5  so that the groove  34  ends of the pieces  3  occupy the first ends  6 , 27  of the first and second arms  4 , 5 . The raised ridges  35  of a piece  3  contact the ends of the pipes  36  to be joined and the central ridge  38  occupies the joint  37   a  of the pipes  36 . The first and second arms  4 , 5  encircle the joint  37   a  of the pipes  36 . The gasket  1  seats in the grooves  22  of the first and second arms  4 , 5 . Closing the first arm  4  upon the second arm  5  brings together the tongue  33  and groove  34  ends of the pieces  3  to seal the pipes  36  in a fluid and an air tight joint  37   a.    
         [0023]     Viewing the pipe to pipe connection more closely,  FIG. 2A  shows the piece  3  of gasket with the coupler  2  closed upon connecting pipes  36 . Upon closing, the coupler  2  generates a compressive force C upon the ends of the pipes  36 . The pipes  36  respond with a reaction force N that compresses and flattens the ridges  35 ,  38  while deflecting the central portion of the piece  3  between the two outer ridges  39  towards the bottom wall  21 . The ridges  35 ,  38  on the inner surface  42  in contact with the pipes  36  form the primary seal of the coupler  2 . Deflecting of the piece  3  between the ridges  39  rotates the ridges  35  towards the pipes  36  and the central ridge  38  towards the groove  22 . The ridges  39  on the outer surface  41  thus, form a secondary seal of the pipes  36 .  
         [0024]     Then in  FIG. 3 , a piece  3  of gasket  1  is made from a deformable, impervious material. Slightly oversized, a piece  3  has a semicircular body  40  with an outer surface  41  and an inner surface  42  with a thickness  43  of material in between. The outer surface  41  has two circumferential ridges  39  at the outer edges, each partially across the width of the piece  3 . The ridges  39  have a generally rectangular cross section akin to a tabletop viewed on edge. Then, the inner surface  42  defines the internal bore that matches an appropriate pipe  36  diameter. The inner surface  42  has five symmetrical ridges  35 , 38 . The central ridge  38  has greater width than the flanking ridges  35 . The central ridge  38  receives the two pipe  36  sections at the joint  37   a . Upon closing the coupler  2 , the ridges  35 ,  38  deform, compress, and flatten to seal the joint  37   a . Compressing and flattening a piece  3  in both the first arm  4  and the second arm  5  causes no gaps to arise in the joint  37   a  between two pipes  36 . Further, compressing a piece  3  deflects the piece  3  beneath the central ridge  38  and between the ridges  39 .  
         [0025]      FIG. 4  shows a piece  3  of gasket  1  from the side. An end has an outwardly extending tongue  33  while the opposite end has a groove  34 . The tongue  33  and groove  34  of one piece  3  form a complementary joint with the tongue  33  and groove  34  of a second piece  3 . Generally midway upon the circumference of a piece  3 , an alignment pin  31  extends perpendicular from the outer surface  41 . This location of the alignment pin  31  permits installation of a piece  3  in two positions and possible mis-fitting of two tongues  33 . The alignment pin  31  has a shape to fit the alignment hole  32  in the first arm  4  and the second arm  5 . In the preferred embodiment, the alignment pin  31  has a round shape. Alternatively, the alignment pin  31  has a square shape. Alternatively, the alignment pin  31  is located off center to restrict installation of a piece  3  to one position and to provide precise fitting of a tongue  33  with a groove  34 . From one end to the other end of the piece  3 , a tapered edge  44  proceeds from the inner surface  42  to the narrower outer surface  41 .  
         [0026]     Turning to  FIG. 5 , at the alignment pin  31 , the piece  3  of gasket  1  has five ridges: a central ridge  38  and four flanking ridges  35  arranged symmetrically. The ridges  35 ,  38  have a triangular cross section. The central ridge  38  has greater width than a flanking ridge  35  and is located upon the inner surface  42  opposite the alignment pin  31 . The central ridge  38  fills the gap between two sections of pipe  36  at a joint  37   a . The flanking ridges  35  have less width than the central ridge  38  and fill the gap  13  between a pipe  36  and an arm  4 , 5 . The alignment pin  31  extends opposite the central ridge  38  and away from the piece  3 . Upon the outer surface  41  and flanking the alignment pin  31 , the piece  3  has two ridges  39 . The ridges  39  have a generally rectangular cross section. Extending partially across the width of the piece  3  and spanning two other ridges  35 , these ridges  39  occupy the circumference of the piece  3 . Pressure upon the central ridge  38  deflects the piece  3  between the ridges  39  towards the alignment pin  31 . The deflection provides a secondary seal of the pipes  36 .  
         [0027]     In use, a worker places a piece  3  of gasket  1  in each arm of the coupler  2 , positions the alignment pins  31  in the alignment holes  32  of the arms  4 , 5  and the tongue  33  ends towards the first ends  6 ,  27  of the arms  4 , 5 , seats the gaskets  1 , positions the coupler  2  upon the pipes  36 , then closes the first arm  4  upon the second arm  5  and secures the bail assembly  24  to lock the coupler  2 .  
         [0028]     From the aforementioned description, a gasket for a coupler upon a rail car, tank trailer, or related means has been described. The gasket for a coupler is uniquely capable of aligning two gasket pieces within the coupler and interlocking the ends of the pieces in an airtight seal. The gasket for a coupler and its various components may be manufactured from many materials including but not limited to acrylonitrile, polymers, silicone, high density polyethylene HDPE, polypropylene PP, polyethylene terephalate ethylene PETE, polyvinyl chloride PVC, nylon, and composites.  
         [0029]     The phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. Therefore, the claims include such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and the scope of the present invention.