| US 7,509,724 B2 | ||
| Snap fit sealing gasket with precisely located internal retainer ring for square pipe grooves | ||
| Bradford G. Corbett, Jr., Fort Worth, Tex. (US); and Guido Quesada, San Jose (Costa Rica) | ||
| Assigned to S & B Technical Products, Inc., Fort Worth, Tex. (US) | ||
| Filed on Dec. 05, 2005, as Appl. No. 11/294,139. | ||
| Claims priority of provisional application 60/633889, filed on Dec. 07, 2004. | ||
| Claims priority of provisional application 60/633943, filed on Dec. 07, 2004. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2006/0125193 A1, Jun. 15, 2006 | ||
| This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer. | ||
| Int. Cl. B23P 11/02 (2006.01); F16L 17/06 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 29—451 [29/450; 29/453; 277/608; 277/626] | 8 Claims |
| 1. A method for installing a gasket within a square gasket receiving groove provided within the bell end of a pipe section,
the bell end having a mouth opening which is engageable with a spigot end of a mating pipe section to form a pipe joint, the
method comprising the steps of:
providing a pipe section having a bell end opening;
orienting the pipe section having the bell end along a longitudinal work axis;
providing a sealing gasket formed at least in part of a flexible material, the gasket having a relatively rigid internal retainer
ring which circumscribes the gasket interior at one circumferential location;
temporarily transforming the sealing gasket from a generally cylindrical shape to a generally elliptical shape;
inserting the gasket within the mouth opening of the bell end, the annular gasket being oriented at an oblique angle with
respect to the longitudinal work axis such that a trailing edge of the gasket engages the annular groove, and a leading edge
of the annular gasket is moved past the annular groove provided in the bell end;
exerting a retracting force on the annular gasket by pulling the leading edge thereof backwards in the direction of the mouth
opening of the bell end until the gasket again assumes a generally cylindrical shape and snaps into a locked-in position within
the annular groove; and
wherein the location at which the relatively rigid ring circumscribes the gasket interior is selected according to the following
formula:
 where when Rib is less than 1 gasket installation is possible, and when Rib is greater than 1 gasket installation is not possible; and
where DR=retainer ring diameter;
LD=distance from the bottom of the annular groove to the edge of the groove on the opposite side where the groove is formed
by fillets and the distance is drawn along a line that passes through the approximate centers of the corresponding fillets;
DG=diameter of the annular groove;
EG=distance to the groove wall; and
wherein the optimum ring location is determined by the intersection of the lines which represent DR and EG.
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