WO1994013994A1

WO1994013994A1 - Improved hose fitting

Info

Publication number: WO1994013994A1
Application number: PCT/US1993/011771
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jeffrey C. Shiery; James W. Briggs
Original assignee: Aeroquip Corporation
Priority date: 1992-12-17
Filing date: 1993-12-03
Publication date: 1994-06-23

Abstract

A hose fitting (10) is disclosed. The hose fitting (10) includes a body or nipple (11) having a central opening (12), a socket (26) surrounds the body (11) and together with the body (11) defines an opening (29) for receiving a hose (30). One or more inverted knurl bands (35) are provided on the body (11). The hose (30) is positioned tightly against the inverted knurl bands (35).

Description

DESCRIPTION

IMPROVED HOSE FITTING

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to an improved hose retention member and, more particularly to an improved hose fitting where the fitting receives and holds a hose constructed of polymer material.

Hose fittings are well known in the art. One example of a hose fitting is shown in U.S. Patent No. 4,366,841 . Normally the hose end is inserted between a socket component of the hose fitting and the exterior of the fitting body. The socket is crimped onto the hose and the hose is held between the socket member and the exterior of the fitting body. It is also known in the art to provide projections on both the interior of the socket and on the exterior of the fitting body or nipple adjacent the hose.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The hose fitting according to the present invention includes a fitting body having a central opening extending therethrough. The body has a connector end and a hose end. The body includes a raised portion on the body exterior which defines a plurality of wrench flats adjacent the connector end. The body exterior also defines at least one serrated portion between the body raised portion and the hose end. The serrated portion comprises one or more inverted knurl bands. The inverted knurl band does not have any sharp surfaces to damage a hose positioned adjacent the knurl band. Because the inverted knurl is preferably cold formed, the fitting body is not weakened due to forming projections by removing material from the body as was true in many prior art hose fittings.

The inverted knurl band defines a plurality of small facets which help impede fluid flow. In addition, the inverted knurl band increases the friction between the exterior surface of the fitting body and the tube. This restricts undesired relative movement between the hose and the fitting body.

A cylindrical socket surrounds the fitting body from adjacent the raised portion and extends towards the hose end. The cylindrical socket and the body define a cylindrical opening for receiving the hose. The hose is positioned tightly adjacent the inverted knurl.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is an elevation view of a hose fitting, according to the present invention, with the connector nut removed for clarity;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the circled portion in Fig. 1 ; Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view taken along the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is an elevational view of another embodiment of a hose fitting, according to the present invention, with the connector nut removed for clarity;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged elevational view of the Fig. 1 and Fig. 5 embodiments, with the top portion shown in cross section; and,

Fig. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the circled portion in Fig. 6. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to Figs. 1 -4, an improved hose fitting, according to the present invention is generally indicated by the reference number

10. The hose fitting 10 is normally constructed of steel, but can be constructed of numerous metals.

The hose fitting 10 includes a fitting body 1 1 having a central opening 12 extending therethrough. The body or nipple 1 1 includes a connector end 13 and a hose end 14. The nipple or body 1 1 has an exterior 1 6. The exterior 16 has a raised portion 1 7 which defines a plurality of wrench flats 18. Referring to Figs. 1 and 6, a groove 20 is defined in the exterior 16 adjacent the connector end 13. In both embodiments shown, a rotatable connector nut 21 is rotatably mounted on the connector end 13 of the hose fitting 10. The connector nut 21 includes internal threads 22 and a cylindrical lip 23 which is positioned within the groove 20.

The exterior 16 defines a second groove 25 adjacent the raised portion 17 in opposed relationship to the groove 20. A cylindrical socket 26 having an in-turned flange 27 surrounds the fitting body

1 1 . The in-turned flange 27 is received in the second groove 25 located adjacent the raised portion 17. The socket 26 extends toward the hose end 14 of the body 1 1 . The cylindrical socket 26 and the body 1 1 define a generally cylindrical opening 29 for receiving a hose 30, as shown in Fig. 6. In the drawings, the hose 30 is shown as a polymer reinforced hose. Many different polymers can be utilized with the hose fittings 10 and 40, according to the present invention.

Referring to Fig. 6, in the present embodiment, a plurality of spaced circular projections 31 extend inwardly from an interior surface 32 of the socket 26. The projections 31 can be of differing structural configurations and still fall within the scope of the present invention. Referring to Fig. 1 , the body 1 1 of the hose fitting 10 includes a serrated portion comprising an inverted knurl band 35 which is positioned on the exterior 1 6 between the hose end 14 and the connector end 13. The inverted knurl band 35 is an important feature of the present invention. As shown in Fig. 3, the inverted knurl band 35 includes a plurality of points 36 which have their upper ends either at or, preferably, slightly below the level of the exterior surface 1 6 of the body 1 1 . It has been found that the nipple or body 1 1 is not weakened when the inverted knurl band 35 is provided because the inverted knurling is cold formed as opposed to machined. Furthermore, because the inverted knurl band 35 has its points

36 located at or below the level of the exterior surface 16 the problems of inner tube splits resulting from sharp surfaces is reduced.

A plurality of facets 37 are found in the inverted knurl band 35. The knurl facets 37 tend to impede fluid flow up the nipple or body sealing surface which enhances the hose/fitting performance. The inverted knurl band 35 also increases the degree of friction between the fitting body 1 1 and the hose 30. As shown in Fig. 6, the socket 26 is crimped so that the circular projections 31 press inwardly into the hose 30 and urge the interior of the hose 30 against the inverted knurl band 35. The hose 30 is thereby positioned tightly adjacent the inverted knurl band 35 (see Fig. 7).

A preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in Fig. 5. A hose fitting 40 has a construction generally identical with that of fitting 10, with the exception that the hose fitting 40 includes a plurality of inverted knurl bands 41 defined on the exterior surface 1 6 of the nipple or body 1 1 . It has been found that the hose fitting 40 which includes the plurality of inverted knurl bands 41 is preferable in impeding fluid flow and also in increasing friction between the body 1 1 and the hose 30 to prevent relative motion of these components after assembly is completed. Many revisions may be made to the hose fittings 10 and 40 described above, without departing from the scope of the invention or from the following claims.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A hose fitting comprising, in combination, a fitting body having a central opening extending therethrough, said body having a connector end and a hose end, said body having an exterior, a raised portion on said body exterior defining a plurality of wrench flats adjacent said connector end, said body exterior defining at least one serrated portion between said raised portion and said hose end, said serrated portion comprising at least one inverted knurl bands and a cylindrical socket surrounding said body from adjacent said raised portion and extending toward said hose end, said cylindrical socket and said body defining a cylindrical opening for receiving a hose, whereby said hose is positioned tightly adjacent said inverted knurl band.

2. A hose fitting, according to claim 1 , including a connector nut mounted on said connector end.

3. A hose fitting, according to claim 1 , including a groove defined by said exterior adjacent said connector end and a connector nut rotatably mounted on said connector end, said connector nut including a cylindrical lip positioned within said groove.

4. A hose fitting, according to claim 2, wherein said socket includes an interior surface and a plurality of spaced projections extending inwardly from said interior surface of said socket. 5. A hose fitting, according to claim 1 , including a plurality of spaced inverted knurl bands on said exterior of said body.

6. A hose fitting comprising, in combination, a fitting body having a connector end and a hose end, said body having an exterior, a raised portion on said body exterior defining a plurality of wrench flats, a plurality of inverted knurl bands on said body exterior, said inverted knurl bands having a surface at or below the adjacent body exterior and a cylindrical socket surrounding said body from adjacent said raised portion and extending toward said hose end, said cylindrical socket and said body exterior defining an opening for receiving a hose, whereby said hose is positioned tightly adjacent said plurality of inverted knurl bands.

AMENDED CLAIMS

[received by the International Bureau on 15 Apri l 1994 ( 15.04.94) ; original claims 1 and 6 amended ; remaining claims unchanged (2 pages ) ]

CLAIMS:

1 . A hose fitting comprising, in combination, a fitting body having a central opening extending therethrough, said body having a connector end and a hose end, said body having an exterior, a raised portion on said body exterior defining a plurality of wrench flats adjacent said connector end, said body exterior defining at least one serrated portion between said raised portion and said hose end, said serrated portion comprising at least one inverted knurl band, said inverted knurl band having a plurality of points and facets that are at or below the level of said exterior of said body, and a cylindrical socket surrounding said body from adjacent said raised portion and extending toward said hose end, said cylindrical socket and said body defining a cylindrical opening for receiving a hose, whereby said hose is positioned tightly adjacent said points of said inverted knurl band and said facets impede fluid flow along said body to enhance hose fitting performance.

4. A hose fitting, according to claim 2, wherein said socket includes an interior surface and a plurality of spaced projections extending inwardly from said interior surface of said socket. STATEMENT UNDER ARTICLE 19

Independent claims 1 and 6 have been amended to better define the invention in view of the art of record. Claims 1 and 6 recite a limitation that the knurl band includes a plurality of points and facets that are at or below the level of the exterior of the body of the hose fitting.

The claimed invention provides a superior hose fitting in which the inverted knurl on the body of the hose fitting eliminates a problem of inner tube disintegration resulting from sharp surfaces due to the positioning of the points of the knurl. The knurl facets of the claimed invention tend to impede fluid flow along the body sealing surface. The art of record disclose a nipple fitting which is knurled (Macleod) or roughened (Paini), however, they do not disclose or teach the inverted knurled configuration of the claimed invention in combination with the other elements of the claimed invention. As such, the claimed invention should be considered novel and involving an inventive step in view of the art of record.

5. A hose fitting, according to claim 1 , including a plurality of spaced inverted knurl bands on said exterior of said body.

6. A hose fitting comprising, in combination, a fitting body having a connector end and a hose end, said body having an exterior, a raised portion on said body exterior defining a plurality of wrench flats, a plurality of inverted knurl bands on said body exterior, said inverted knurl bands each having a plurality of points and facets that are at or below the level of said exterior of said body, and a cylindrical socket surrounding said body from adjacent said raised portion and extending toward said hose end, said cylindrical socket and said body exterior defining an opening for receiving a hose, whereby said hose is positioned tightly adjacent said points of said plurality of inverted knurl bands and said facets impede fluid flow along said body to enhance hose fitting performance.

AMENDED SHΞ I (ARTICLE 19)