Patent ID: 7997628

Claim:
A pipe restraint system comprising a pipe having a pipe end and an pipe outer surface; a fitting having a bell sized to receive the pipe end, the bell having an inner bell surface, an outer bell surface, an outer bell end, and a centerline traversing therethrough, the fitting further having a restraint mechanism integral to the bell to form a monolithic structure, the restraint mechanism comprising a plurality of housings, each housing having internal wall surfaces defining a wedge pocket along the inner bell surface, the housing having a threaded hole opening with an axis extending away from the centerline, the threaded hole extending from the housing to the outer bell surface; a wedge shaped to be received within each housing, the wedge having a bottom surface with a protuberance extending therefrom for gripping engagement with the outer pipe surface at the pipe end; a tightening bolt sized for threaded insertion into the threaded hole from the outer bell surface, the tightening bolt having an inner end and an outer end, the inner end adapted to engage the wedge when the tightening bolt is advanced into the housing from the outer bell surface, the outer end having a head for engagement with a tool to allow rotational force exerted by the tool to advance the tightening bolt towards the centerline and thereby force the protuberance into the pipe outer surface so as to prevent pressure exerted by a liquid flowing through the pipe from forcing the pipe out of the bell; and a gasket for insertion within a circumferential groove about the inner bell surface, the gasket sized to maintain snug contact with the outer pipe surface of the pipe end to prevent the liquid passing through the pipe and the fitting from escaping through the junction between the outer pipe surface and the inner bell surface.