JP2023012036A - Holding tool for pipe connection - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a holding tool for pipe connection capable of retaining a state in which a head holds a flange part.SOLUTION: In a holding tool 10 for pipe connection, flange parts 74 make projected pipes 71 face each other, and a first head 21 fitting into a flange part of one pipe from an axial-direction outside is made to come close to a second head 31 fitting into a flange part of the other pipe from an axial-direction outside. The holding tool for pipe connection includes a first support member 20 with the first head formed at the tip and having a pivot part 29 at a base end, a second support member 30 with the second head formed at the tip and with a base end pivoted by the pivot part, and a toggle mechanism 60 operated by a lever 40 to linking the first head and the second head in an approachable and separatable manner.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a clamping jig for connecting pipes used when connecting pipes with joints.

Fluoropolymer piping is used for the supply and transfer of raw material fluids, cleaning fluids, fuel fluids, etc. in various equipment such as manufacturing, cleaning, and assembly in the fields of electronics such as semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology. .

As these pipes, pipes with joints provided with joints at their ends have been proposed. Pipes with joints are connected by interposing an annular seal member between the flanges of the joints, and the flanges are clipped from the outer circumference with clips to maintain a connected state (see, for example, Patent Document 1, etc.).

The joint has an annular flange at the rear, and when pipes are connected together, the flange is clamped using a clamping jig and pressed against the seal member, whereby the pipes are connected to each other by the seal member. is adhered to.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-100000 discloses a clamping jig that includes a head that clamps a flange portion from the outside in the axial direction at the ends of a pair of support members that are rotatably supported by a fulcrum. The clamping jig has a lever that presses the head of the lower support member toward the head of the upper support member. Then, by fitting the flange into the clamping groove of the head, gripping the lower support member and the lever and tilting the lever, the upper head approaches the lower head by the principle of leverage to clamp the collar. In this state, the flanges of the joint are clipped together, and after clipping is completed, the support member is operated so as to widen the head interval, and the clamping jig is pulled out.

JP 2019-190495 A

In order to hold the flange while it is sandwiched between the heads, it is necessary for the user to keep pressing the lever against the lower support member, that is, to keep the user gripping it. This is because the tightening force between the heads is loosened when the clamping jig is released. However, it is difficult to attach the clip to the joint while gripping the clamping jig with one hand, and there is a demand for improved workability.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a clamping jig for pipe connection that can hold a flange clamped by a head.

The clamping jig for pipe connection of the present invention includes:
Pipes with protruding flanges are opposed to each other, and a first head that fits into the flange of one pipe from the outside in the axial direction and a second head that fits into the flange of the other pipe from the outside in the axial direction are brought closer to each other. A clamping jig for pipe connection that allows
a first support member having the first head formed at its distal end and a pivot portion at its proximal end;
a second support member having a distal end formed with the second head and a proximal end pivotally supported by the pivot;
a toggle mechanism that is operated by a lever and connects the first head and the second head so that they can approach and separate;
Equipped with

The lever is attached with a removal lever that swings to push the first support member away from the lever.

The toggle mechanism is
a first link plate in which the first support member extends upward beyond the second support member on the distal end side and has a fixed support portion pivotally supporting the lever in the extended portion;
a link piece having one end pivotally supported by the lever and the joint support and the other end pivotally supported by the second support member and the slide support;
with
The fixed support, the joint support and the slide support are arranged in a row when the first head and the second head are closest to each other.

The second support member and the lever are a pair of plates sandwiching the first support member,
The joint support part and the slide support part are movable in a link window opened through the first link plate.

The first head and the second head have U-shaped holding grooves.

The pipe connection clamping jig of the present invention can be held in a state in which the head is brought closer and the collar portion is clamped by the toggle mechanism. Therefore, when attaching the clip to the joint, there is no need to keep gripping the support member, and workability can be improved.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a clamping jig for pipe connection according to an embodiment of the present invention, with the head opened. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the clamping jig for pipe connection of FIG. 1 fitted in a pipe structure. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of FIG. 2 viewed obliquely from below. FIG. 4 is a side view of FIG. 2; FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the center of the first support member in the longitudinal direction of the clamping jig for pipe connection with the head opened. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the pipe connection clamp with the head closed. FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing flanges of a pipe structure held together by the pipe connection holding jig of FIG. 6 . FIG. 8 is a perspective view of FIG. 7 viewed obliquely from below. FIG. 9 is a side view of FIG. 7; FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along the center of the first support member in the longitudinal direction of the clamping jig for pipe connection with the head opened. FIG. 11 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a hand is released from the clamping jig for pipe connection in the head closed state. FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of the pipe connection clamping jig showing a state in which the removal arm is operated to separate the lever from the first support member. FIG. 13 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a pipe connection clamping jig is inserted between pipe structures with a narrow interval to perform connection work. FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing a situation in which a clip is removed from a piping structure using a claw piece. FIG. 15 is a graph comparing the gripping force and the acting clamping force of the clamping jigs of the inventive example and the comparative example.

A clamping jig 10 for pipe connection according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In addition, in order to make the description easier to understand, the upward direction of the paper surface in FIGS. 1 and 4 is referred to as "upper".

1 to 5 show a clamping jig 10 for pipe connection (hereinafter referred to as "clamping jig 10") in a head-open state in which the heads 21 and 31 are separated from each other. 2 to 4 show a state in which the clamping jig 10 is fitted in the piping structure 70. FIG. 6 to 10 show the clamping jig 10 in a head closed state with the heads 21 and 31 approaching each other, and FIGS. It shows a state in which they are sandwiched between them.

First, the piping structure 70 connected by the clamping jig 10 of the present invention will be described. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4 and 6 to 10 , the piping structure 70 uses the clamping jig 10 to abut and connect the pipes 71 , 71 with joints via a sealing member 75 , and a clip 80 . (See FIG. 14) is a structure that holds the connection so that it does not come loose. Each of the pipes 71 has a flange 73 at its tip and a joint 72 with an annular flange 74 protruding from the flange 73 at a position recessed from the flange 73 . The pipes 71, 71 are opposed to each other with an annular sealing member 75 sandwiched between the flanges 73, 73, and the clamping jig 10 presses the flanges 74, 74 so as to draw them together, thereby separating the flange 73 and the sealing member. 75 are brought into close contact with each other. After connection, annular clips are attached to the flanges 73, 73, and the pipe structure 70 is integrally connected without the pipes 71, 71 coming off. The pipe 71 is not limited to a straight pipe, and may be a branch pipe, a pipe provided with a valve or a flow meter, or a pipe extending from various fluid devices.

The piping 71 and joints 72 are made of fluororesin materials, which have excellent heat-meltability and corrosion resistance when used in various devices such as manufacturing, cleaning, and assembly in the fields of electronics such as semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology. materials can be employed. Tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkyl vinyl ether copolymer (PFA) is suitable as this type of fluororesin material, and tetrafluoroethylene-hexafluoropropylene copolymer (FEP), tetrafluoroethylene-hexafluoropropylene -vinylidene fluoride terpolymer and the like can be exemplified. The materials and characteristics of the pipe 71 and joint 72 are not limited to those described above.

The clamping jig 10 has a first head 21 and a second head 31 that are fitted to the body of the pipe 71 from the outside in the axial direction and come into surface contact with the flange 74 . The first head 21 and the second head 31 are provided with U-shaped holding grooves 22 and 32 at their ends, and are used by inserting the body of the pipe 71 .

The clamping jig 10 includes a first support member 20 having the first head 21 at its tip, and a second support member 30 having a second head 31 at its tip. The base ends of the first support member 20 and the second support member 30 are swingably supported by a pivot portion 29, and are linked by a toggle mechanism 60 including a lever 40 and a link piece 50, thereby forming a clamping jig. 10.

Each member constituting the clamping jig 10 is preferably made of stainless steel in order to have predetermined strength and rigidity and to suppress adhesion of rust or the like to the pipe 71 .

The first support member 20 is a member having the first head 21 formed at its distal end, connected to the toggle mechanism 60 , and pivotally supported at its proximal end to the second support member 30 by a pivot portion 29 .

More specifically, the first support member 20 has a first plate 23 with a first head 21 mounted thereon, as best shown in FIG. The first plate 23 has a first link support portion 24 extending upward from the first head 21 , and may have a shape extending rearward from slightly below the first link support portion 24 .

The first link support portion 24 is formed with a link window 25 through which a joint support portion 62 and a slider support portion 63 of a toggle mechanism 60, which will be described later, pass. The link window 25 is, for example, a substantially triangular through hole as shown in FIG. A fixed support portion 61 is provided on the upper portion of the link window 25 to support the lever 40 in a swingable manner.

A pivot portion 29 for pivoting the second support member 30 is formed at the proximal end of the first plate 23, and a first grip 26 to be gripped by the user is attached to the bottom surface.

The second support member 30 has the second head 31 formed at its distal end, and a slider support portion 63 on which the link piece 50 constituting the toggle mechanism 60 is pivotally supported slightly on the proximal side thereof. It is a member that is pivotally supported on the first support member 20 by a support portion 29 .

The second support member 30 can be composed of a second head 31 and a pair of second plates 33, 33 to which the second head 31 is attached. The second plates 33 , 33 are attached to the second head 31 with a gap corresponding to the thickness of the first plate 23 . The first plate 23 is sandwiched between the second plates 33, 33, and the first link support portion 24 penetrates and extends upward from the tip side.

The second plates 33 , 33 are pivotally supported by a slider support portion 63 on the link piece 50 that constitutes the toggle mechanism 60 . 4 (arrow α3), FIG. 5, FIG. 9 (arrow β3), and FIG. 10, the slider support portion 63 can move vertically below the fixed support portion 61. As shown in FIG. By moving the slider support portion 63 in the vertical direction, the second support member 30 swings around the pivotal support portion 29 to bring the second head 31 closer to and away from the first head 21 .

The second plates 33, 33 are linked by a link piece 50 to a lever 40, which will be described below. Specifically, one end of the link piece 50 is pivotally supported by the slider support portion 63 of the second plate 33 , and the other end is pivotally supported by the joint support portion 62 of the lever 40 . In the illustrated embodiment, one link piece 50 is arranged on each outer side of the second plates 33 , 33 . The joint support portion 62 and the slider support portion 63 are formed at an interval corresponding to the interval between the fixed support portion 61 of the lever 40 and the joint support portion 62, which will be described below.

The lever 40 is a member that the user grips together with the first support member 20 and operates to bring the heads 21 and 31 closer together. The lever 40 is pivotally supported on the first support member 20 by the fixed support portion 61 of the first link support portion 24 and is swingable in a plane parallel to the first plate 23 .

More specifically, a lever grip 42 is formed on the upper surface of the lever 40, and the user grips the first grip 26 and the lever grip 42 from the open state of the heads 21, 31 to shift the heads 21, 31 to the closed state.

The lever 40 swings around a fixed support portion 61 with the first link support portion 24 . For example, the lever 40 can be constructed from a pair of lever plates 41, 41 which are attached to the lever grip 42 with a gap corresponding to the thickness of the first plate 23 therebetween. A first link support portion 24 is sandwiched between the lever plates 41, 41 on the distal end side, and a removal arm 44, which will be described later, is pivotally supported on the proximal end side.

The lever 40 is pivotally supported by a link piece 50 linked to the second plate 33 and a joint support portion 62 , and the joint support portion 62 movably penetrates the link window 25 . As shown in FIG. 9, the joint support portion 62 is arranged such that the fixed support portion 61, the joint support portion 62, and the slider support portion 63 are arranged vertically in a row with the heads 21 and 31 approaching each other.

The toggle mechanism 60 has a structure in which the second support member 30 that can swing with respect to the first support member 20 is linked with the lever 40 and the link piece 50 . The lever 40 is swingably supported by the first support member 20 through a fixed support portion 61 , and the link piece 50 is supported by the lever 40 through a joint support portion 62 . The second support member 30 is pivotally supported by the first support member 20 at the pivot portion 29 and supported via the link piece 50 and the slider support portion 63 .

By swinging the lever 40 upward, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the lever 40 swings the second support member 30 so that the heads 21 and 31 are separated from each other (head open state). Specifically, as indicated by an arrow α1 in FIG. 4, when the lever 40 is swung upward with respect to the fixed support portion 61, the joint support portion 62 rotates about the fixed support portion 61 in the direction of the arrow α2. , pulls up the link piece 50 . As a result, the slider support portion 63 slides upward as indicated by the arrow α3, pulling up the second support member 30 . Since the base end of the second support member 30 is supported by the pivotal support portion 29, the second head 31 is lifted by the link piece 50 to move upward away from the first head 21 as indicated by the arrow α4. (head open).

2 to 4, the clamping jig 10 with the head opened is attached to the pipes 71, 71 temporarily connecting the flanges 73, 73 via the seal member 75. The body portions of the pipes 71, 71 are inserted into the pinching grooves 22, 32 of the first head 21 and the second head 31 so as to pinch from the outside. The first head 21 is attached to the plate-like first plate 23, and the second head 31 is attached to the plate-like second plate 33. Therefore, as shown in FIG. Even so, the first head 21 and the second head 31 can be suitably inserted between the piping structures 70, and workability is excellent.

From this state, as shown in FIGS. 6 to 10, the first grip 26 and the lever grip 42 are grasped to apply a gripping force. 9, the lever 40 swings downward with the fixed support portion 61 as a fulcrum by the principle of leverage, and the joint support portion 62 moves in the direction of the arrow β2 around the fixed support portion 61. By rotating, the link piece 50 constituting the toggle mechanism 60 is pushed down. As a result, the slider support portion 63 slides downward as indicated by the arrow β3 and pushes down the second support member 30 . Since the base end of the second support member 30 is supported by the pivotal support portion 29, when the link piece 50 pushes down, the second head 31 moves downward to approach the first head 21 as indicated by the arrow β4 ( head closed). As a result, the pipes 71, 71 are sandwiched so that the flanges 74 are close to each other, and the flanges 73, 73 are completely closely fitted to the seal member 75 to be airtightly connected.

According to the clamping jig 10 of the present invention, the lever 40 uses the fixed support portion 61 as a fulcrum based on the principle of leverage, the base end side of the lever grip 42 where the user's grip force acts as a power point, and the joint support portion 62 as an action point. By doing so, the joint support portion 62 is operated with a small grip force due to the principle of leverage. Further, the toggle mechanism 60 composed of the lever 40 and the link piece 50 reduces the force acting on the joint support 62 as the angle formed by the fixed support 61, the joint support 62 and the slider support 63 approaches 180° Accordingly, it is possible to act on the slider support portion 63 while increasing it. The slider support portion 63 can exert a clamping force between the heads 21 and 31 on the second support member 30 swinging about the pivotal support portion 29 as a fulcrum. Therefore, the user's grip force can be saved, and workability can be improved.

Furthermore, in the present invention, by adopting the toggle mechanism 60, the fixed support portion 61, the joint support portion 62, and the slider support portion 63 are arranged in a vertical line in the head closed state, as best shown in FIG. That is, the fixed support portion 61, the joint support portion 62, and the slider support portion 63 are in a dead center positional relationship. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 11, even if the user's grip force is removed, the heads 21 and 31 are less likely to move in the opening direction, and the closed state of the heads can be maintained without loosening.

Therefore, after the head is closed, the user does not have to keep gripping the grips 26 and 42 and can release the holding jig 10 . In this state, the user can clip the flanges 73, 73 of the joint 72 with the clips 80 (see FIG. 14), and the piping structure 70 is completed. Since the clip can be attached while releasing the holding jig 10, workability is excellent.

After attaching the clip, the heads 21 and 31 are separated by swinging the lever 40 with respect to the first support member 20 in the direction of the arrow α1 in FIG. 70 can be removed.

As described above, by employing the toggle mechanism 60, a force is applied to the first support member 20 to lift the lever 40 in the direction of the arrow α1 in FIG. There is a need. At this time, a skilled user can swing the first support member 20 and the lever 40 apart with one hand. It is necessary to grasp the lever 40 or the lever grip 42 with the other hand and pull the first support member 20 and the lever 40 apart. However, the piping structure 70 is inferior in workability because it may be necessary to work in a narrow space in which both hands cannot access the clamping jig 10 at the same time.

Therefore, in the present invention, as one embodiment, a removal arm 44 is provided to separate the lever 40 from the first support member 20 . Removal arm 44 is supported on lever 40 by arm support 46 between lever plates 41, 41 of lever 40, as best shown in FIGS. The removal arm 44 has an arm operation portion 45 on the base end side of the lever 40 . As shown in FIG. 3, the arm operating portion 45 is expanded to have substantially the same width as the lever grip 42 so that it can be operated by the user. Further, the distal end of the removal arm 44 has a push-out piece 47 that can contact the first support member 20 (specifically, the first plate 23 ) on the far side of the arm support portion 46 .

9 and 10, the arm operating portion 45 is lifted toward the lever grip 42 as indicated by an arrow γ1 in FIG. The pushing piece 47 at the tip pushes the first support member 20 downward (arrow γ2 in FIG. 12). As a result, the lever 40 can be relatively separated from the first support member 20 as indicated by an arrow γ3, so that the clamping jig 10 can be removed from the pipe structure 70 with one hand in the head open state.

The removal arm 44 can exert a large force on the pushing piece 47, which is the point of action, even if the arm operating portion 45, which is the point of effort, is operated with a weak force. It is preferable to place it close to the 47 side. As a result, it is possible to operate the arm operating portion 45 with a thumb or the like while holding the clamping jig 10 with one hand, and workability can be improved.

4 and 5, the removal arm 44 is arranged so that the push-out piece 47 is hidden between the lever plates 41 and 41 when the head is open, and the push-out piece 47 is protruded by the user when the head is closed. It is preferably operated. However, even if the push-out piece 47 remains protruding from the lever 40, the push-out piece 47 abuts against the first plate 23 and is hidden between the lever plates 41, 41 in the process of shifting to the head closed state. No problem. When there is a request to store the pushing piece 47 between the lever plates 41, 41 in the head open state, the tip of the removal arm 44 should be biased so that it can be stored toward the lever plates 41, 41 side. For example, in FIG. 12, first plate 23 and removal arm 44 are provided with mounting portions 28 and 48 (recesses in the drawing) for biasing members (not shown). Then, an urging member (not shown) such as a compression spring may be arranged between them so that the pushing piece 47 is forcibly retracted.

The above description is for the purpose of illustrating the present invention and should not be construed as limiting the invention described in the claims or restricting the scope thereof. Further, the configuration of each part of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and of course various modifications are possible within the technical scope described in the claims.

It should be understood that the illustrated shape and the like of each member is an example, and that various modifications are possible. Also, the pipe 71 is not limited to the illustrated structure as long as it has a structure having a flange portion 74 or a similar structure. For example, the lever 40 and the second support member 30 can be composed of one plate instead of two plates.

In addition, as a modified example, claw pieces 27 and 43 are formed by bending the base ends of the first grip 26 and the lever grip 42 inward, as shown in each drawing. These claw pieces 27 and 43 can be used for final tightening of the clip after the clip is attached, or for removing the clip 80 as shown in FIG.

Also, the heads 21 and 31 can be configured to be parallel to each other when the heads are closed. However, as shown by drawing auxiliary lines L1 and L2 in FIG. 10, the heads 21 and 31 may be configured such that the tip ends thereof are slightly inclined inward when the heads are closed. In FIG. 10, the distance C1 between the auxiliary lines on the distal end side of the clamping jig 10 is smaller than the distance C2 between the auxiliary lines on the proximal side (C1<C2). As a result, when the heads 21 and 31 are brought closer, the flanges 73 and 73 can be clamped without being released from between the heads 21 and 31, and workability can be improved.

FIG. 15 shows gripping force and tightening force acting on the piping structure 70 of the clamping jig 10 of the present invention (invention examples 1 and 2) and the clamping jig disclosed in Patent Document 1 (comparative examples 1 and 2). is a graph comparing Invention Example 1 and Comparative Example 1 are clamping jigs for connecting pipes with an outer diameter of 8 mm, and Invention Example 2 and Comparative Example 2 are for connecting pipes with an outer diameter of 12 mm.

Referring to FIG. 15, it can be seen that invention examples 1 and 2 require about half the grip force required to generate the same tightening force as compared to comparative examples 1 and 2. FIG. That is, it can be seen that a large tightening force can be applied to the piping structure with a small gripping force. The reason for this is that while the clamping jigs of Comparative Examples 1 and 2 employ only one principle of leverage, Invention Examples 1 and 2 include two principles of leverage including the toggle mechanism 60. By being there. Therefore, the clamping jig 10 of the present invention can achieve labor saving, and can improve user's workability.

10 pipe connection clamping jig 20 first support member 21 first head 23 first plate 24 first link support portion 25 link window 29 pivot portion 30 second support member 31 second head 33 second plate 40 lever 41 lever plate 44 Removal arm 50 Link piece 60 Toggle mechanism 61 Fixed support 62 Joint support 63 Slider support 70 Piping structure 71 Piping 72 Joint 73 Flange 74 Flange

Claims (5)

Pipes with protruding flanges are opposed to each other, and a first head that fits into the flange of one pipe from the outside in the axial direction and a second head that fits into the flange of the other pipe from the outside in the axial direction are brought closer to each other. A clamping jig for pipe connection that allows
a first support member having the first head formed at its distal end and a pivot portion at its proximal end;
a second support member having a distal end formed with the second head and a proximal end pivotally supported by the pivot;
a toggle mechanism that is operated by a lever and connects the first head and the second head so that they can approach and separate;
A clamping jig for pipe connection. The lever is pivotally supported by a removal lever that pushes the first support member away from the lever by swinging.
The clamping jig for pipe connection according to claim 1. The toggle mechanism is
a first link plate in which the first support member extends upward beyond the second support member on the distal end side and has a fixed support portion pivotally supporting the lever in the extended portion;
a link piece having one end pivotally supported by the lever and the joint support and the other end pivotally supported by the second support member and the slide support;
with
When the first head and the second head are closest to each other, the fixed support, the joint support and the slide support are arranged in a row,
The clamping jig for pipe connection according to claim 1 or 2. The second support member and the lever are a pair of plates sandwiching the first support member,
The joint support part and the slide support part are movable within a link window opened through the first link plate,
The clamping jig for pipe connection according to claim 3. The first head and the second head have a U-shaped sandwiching groove,
A clamping jig for pipe connection according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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