Patents Examined by James E. Bryant, III
  • Patent number: 5439032
    Abstract: An inflatable gas pipeline stopper is provided for stopping gas from flowing through a broken gas pipeline while effecting repairs of the gas pipeline. The invention includes an elongated cylindrical stopper housing for attachment to a gas pipeline in an air tight engagement which may be accomplished through a commercially available drilling and tapping machine and by an air tight clamp assembly. Within the stopper housing extend a pair of moveable bag inserting and retracting plunger assemblies including rigid air pipes which are attached to an air source at the upper ends thereof and to inflatable air bags at the bottom ends thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 1994
    Date of Patent: August 8, 1995
    Inventor: Joseph Petrone
  • Patent number: 5437308
    Abstract: A device for remotely actuating a piece of equipment by varying the flow conditions of a fluid, possibly incompressible, an comprising an actuating piston, a nozzle-needle assembly. One of the nozzle or the needle is mounted for sliding movement into the piston. An arrangement is provided for returning the slidably mounted nozzle or needle to a predetermined position relatively to the piston.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 1993
    Date of Patent: August 1, 1995
    Assignee: Institut Francais du Petrole
    Inventors: Pierre Morin, Christian Bardin, Jean Boulet
  • Patent number: 5437309
    Abstract: A locking cap for securing the open end of a well pipe to prevent contaminants from entering the well comprising a cap member adapted to be disposed over the open end of a well pipe casing to be locked, an outer flange downwardly extending from the cap member and integral therewith, the outer flange adapted to fit over the exterior surface of the well pipe casing to be locked, inner flange downwardly extending from the cap member and integral therewith, the inner flange adapted to fit about the interior surface of the well pipe casing to be locked, the inner flange including a series of parallel slots extending longitudinally inward from the end of the inner flange and towards the cap member to provide a series of radially expandable gripping fingers positioned along the perimeter of the well pipe casing interior surface, a cam disk positioned coaxially adjacent the inner flange, the cam disk being selectively movable against the fingers to radially expand each of the fingers into binding engagement against t
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 1994
    Date of Patent: August 1, 1995
    Inventor: Robert D. Timmons
  • Patent number: 5433251
    Abstract: A method is provided for replacing a length of a branch gas main 1 joined to a spine main 2 with a length of replacement main 7 having an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the branch main. In the method access is gained to the bore of the branch main and one end of the replacement main 7 is fed along the branch main 1 via the access point and towards the spine main 2 until the branch main 1 has been replaced. During and after the feeding step gas is prevented from entering any clearance 20 between the mains 1 and 7 by means of a head 9 attached to the leading end of the main 7. After the feeding step a sealant 25 is injected into the branch main 1 to form a seal within the clearance 20.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 1994
    Date of Patent: July 18, 1995
    Assignee: British Gas plc
    Inventors: Anthony D. Elgar, Brian T. Sales, Adrian S. Parkes
  • Patent number: 5433252
    Abstract: The invention concerns a dimensionally stable, elastically bending plastic coaxial tube for fluids, consisting of an outer tube and of at least one inner tube mounted in said outer tube in hermetically fluid-tight but separate manner, said inner tube being held in position in essentially coaxial manner relative to the said outer tube by means of spacers between, and integral with, the constituent tubes, each spacer being integral with only one of the constituent tubes and being so configured and arrayed that the outer tube and the inner tube are freely axially displaceable relative to each other at least to some limited extent.The coaxial tube is manufactured in that the inner tube is prefabricated, in particular by extrusion, and in that the outer tube is molded in-situ around the cooled inner tube, in particular by coaxial sheath extrusion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 1993
    Date of Patent: July 18, 1995
    Assignee: WOCO Franz-Josef Wolf & Co.
    Inventors: Franz J. Wolf, Uwe Reichert
  • Patent number: 5431191
    Abstract: An all plastic (preferably fluorocarbon) automotive hose has great strength relative to the light weight thereof. The hose is made of an inner layer which has a preferably circumferential grooves on an outer wall and an electrically conductive surface on an inner wall. An outer jacket is extruded over the outer wall with the jacket material filling all grooves to provide a mechanical interlocking between the inner layer and the jacket. The cross section of the grooves is selected on a basis of the amount of mechanical movement desired between the inner layer and jacket. Some grooves provide uniform flexibility, some provide progressively greater resistance to bending, and some provide a differential resistance to bending--more resistance in one direction than in another direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 1993
    Date of Patent: July 11, 1995
    Assignee: Titeflex Corporation
    Inventors: Ryan Neuhauser, Douglas Colby
  • Patent number: 5427152
    Abstract: A hydraulic accumulator has a dividing wall located in a housing and separating the housing into a liquid chamber and a gas chamber. The dividing wall is held by a retaining part connected to a connecting part. The retaining part at least partly surrounds the connecting part for producing the connection.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 1994
    Date of Patent: June 27, 1995
    Assignee: Hydac Technology GmbH
    Inventor: Norbert Weber
  • Patent number: 5427153
    Abstract: The improved drain plug device is formed in accordance with the present method. The device includes an elongated, hollow, flexible, resilient, unitary, self-supporting tubular member having a central passageway extending all the way therethrough to the exits in the opposite ends of the member. The member has a rear bulbous inlet portion, a middle very flexible portion to allow the member to bend around curves in drain lines, and a front bulbous outlet portion. The inlet and outlet portions have the same sidewall thickness while that of the middle portion is preferably somewhat thicker. Preferably, the middle portion is narrower in diameter than the other portions of the member. The outlet portion has a higher Shore hardness than the inlet portion and therefore expands radially under internal fluid pressure more slowly than the inlet portion but collapses, after removal of such pressure, at a faster rate, thus assuring that water in the tubular member during use thereof will not back up and out the inlet exit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 1993
    Date of Patent: June 27, 1995
    Inventor: George Tash
  • Patent number: 5427154
    Abstract: A pumpable cement grout and method for use thereof for grouting annular cavities. The pumpable cement grout is a mixture of a hydraulic cement, water in an amount sufficient so that the water-to-cement ratio of the grout is from about 0.60 to about 1.00 by weight, and pregenerated aqueous foam in an amount sufficient to adjust the wet density of the grout to a value of from about 48 to about 72 pounds per cubic foot. The grout is pumped into an annular cavity formed intermediate a tubular external member and an internal member disposed in the tubular external member, so that the grout fills this cavity by flowing in a generally longitudinal direction therethrough. The tubular external member may be a concrete sewer pipe, and the internal member may be a plastic liner pipe. The pressure at which the grout is injected into the annular cavity is maintained at or below a predetermined maximum pressure, so as to avoid collapsing the plastic liner pipe.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 1993
    Date of Patent: June 27, 1995
    Inventor: Partick J. Stephens
  • Patent number: 5423351
    Abstract: A fastener for fastening together a plurality of members, such as the plurality of members comprising a tube plug, and a method for plugging an opening in a solid member, which may be a tube, for preventing the flow of fluid through the opening in a solid member or through the tube, such as a nuclear steam generator tube, comprises a first member, such as a shell, a second member, such as a bolt, and locking structure. A deformable tab portion of the locking structure may have an undercut positioned so that when the second member is installed within the first member, a first surface of the undercut is bent toward a second surface of the undercut thereby plastically deforming the tab portion into a recess in at least one of the first and the second members for automatically securing together the plurality of members.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 1993
    Date of Patent: June 13, 1995
    Assignee: Westinghouse Electric Corporation
    Inventor: Robert F. Keating
  • Patent number: 5421274
    Abstract: Apparatus for installation in an associated coal pipe for directing pulverized coal to an associated furnace assembly that includes a housing having an inlet, an outlet, and an access port intermediate the inlet and the outlet. The apparatus also includes a generally circular orifice, a tray dimensioned and configured for carrying and engaging the orifice and apparatus. The chamber is generally aligned with the access port and is dimensioned and configured for receiving the tray with the orifice carried thereon. The apparatus in the housing defining a chamber allows sliding movement of the tray with the orifice carried thereon into and out of the chamber through the access port.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 1993
    Date of Patent: June 6, 1995
    Assignee: Combustion Engineering, Inc.
    Inventors: Everton S. Gordon, John A. Mazeika
  • Patent number: 5421370
    Abstract: A flange (33) which can be connected to a length of pipe which is to be renewed (1a) and which comprises a series of separable disc-shaped elements individually constituted by a plurality of parts. Sealing-tight gaskets are interposed with a clamping effect between two element parts and between two adjacent disc-shaped elements. By way of a terminal flange element (33e) it is possible also to place at the end of the flange a monitoring device or a counter-flange (77) for guiding a casing pipe (35). The flange may be dismantled when casing is completed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 1993
    Date of Patent: June 6, 1995
    Assignee: Gaz de France
    Inventors: Alain Marcout, Marcel Teillaud, Yves Berger, Michel Berland
  • Patent number: 5421371
    Abstract: By providing a multi-layered, self-sealing, adhesive system constructed for being laminated directly to a thermoplastic or elastomeric elongated tube, a highly effective, easily employed, closure system for securely sealing the elongated slit of elongated, thermoplastic or elastomeric tubes is obtained. In the preferred embodiment, the multi-layered, self-adhering, sealing system of this invention is manufactured in a substantially continuous elongated strip and incorporates a laminating film layer and a film support layer. In this way, secure, integral bonded affixation of the sealing system to the elongated tube is attained in a unique cost-effective, highly efficient manufacturing process. In addition, by integrally affixing the laminating film layer and the film support layer along both sides of the elongated slit of the tube, an adhesive engaging surface is provided for assuring secure, leak-free sealed closure of the elongated tube.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 1993
    Date of Patent: June 6, 1995
    Assignee: NMC of North America, Inc.
    Inventor: Eduardo Lauer
  • Patent number: 5419371
    Abstract: A throttle device, especially a throttle valve, is a throttle cage which is a composite of at least two or three layers including an engineering ceramic layer and at least one metal sleeve. In a two-layer embodiment the ceramic is provided on the upstream side and the metal sleeve on the downstream side. In a three-layer configuration the ceramic layer is sandwiched between metal sleeves. The throttle device is particularly adapted to take up shock stresses and alternating stresses namely temperature and or pressure stresses, and also provides the requisite resistance to corrosion, abrasive action, cavitation and the like to materially increase the useful life of the throttle body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 1993
    Date of Patent: May 30, 1995
    Assignee: Cerpraecis Anwendungen fur Ingenieurkeramik GmbH
    Inventor: Rutger Berchem
  • Patent number: 5419374
    Abstract: A polyamide-based tube for transporting a gasoline having resistance to permeability therethrough of the gasoline consisting essentially of an outer polyamide layer and an inner polyvinylidene fluoride layer bonded together by an adhesion binder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 1993
    Date of Patent: May 30, 1995
    Assignee: Elf Atochem S. A.
    Inventors: Serge Nawrot, Serge Lorek, Albert Strassel
  • Patent number: 5415203
    Abstract: A pipe, which includes a plurality of transparent sections and a plurality of opaque sections alternatively connected in series, the opaque sections being made in multiple colors, the transparent sections having temperature display chips which change color when the inside temperature of the pipe is changed over a fixed range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 1994
    Date of Patent: May 16, 1995
    Inventor: L. S. Huang
  • Patent number: 5413146
    Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide a hose of low cost, which can be installed very easily, which remains reliable over a long period of time, and in which damage to the inner construction can be easily discovered. An auxiliary pressure cord layer 7 is capable of being deformed by the pressure of a fluid in a chamber 9. A float 10 attached to a hose 1 with a mooring line is also attached to a hose body 2 through a connecting member, and when an amount of deformation of the auxiliary pressure cord layer 7 has reached a predetermined value, the connecting member is fractured and the float 10 is separated from the hose 1.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 1994
    Date of Patent: May 9, 1995
    Assignee: The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masuo Kuroda, Fumihiko Yazaki, Masashi Wakabayashi, Naoyuki Ohoka
  • Patent number: 5413147
    Abstract: A fluid conveying hose, especially a refrigerant conveying hose, that exhibits improved resistance to permeation of the refrigerant while still affording desirable flexibility, and a fitting for such hose and methods of making the hose and the union between the hose and fitting. Also provided is a coupling assembly for a hose and a service fitting that is a considerably less expensive alternative to existing assemblies equipped with relatively expensive shut-off valves or quick connect/disconnect couplers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 1993
    Date of Patent: May 9, 1995
    Assignee: Parker-Hannifin Corporation
    Inventors: Luis Moreiras, Frederick J. Davis, Issac Shilad
  • Patent number: 5413145
    Abstract: A low-cost low-pressure drop critical flow venturi is formed from a single rigid member with mirror image inlet and diffuser sections. The mirror imaging allows the member to be mounted in a flow stream, without regard to the direction of flow, and to still be operative.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 1994
    Date of Patent: May 9, 1995
    Assignee: Texaco Inc.
    Inventors: Lee D. Rhyne, James R. Stoy
  • Patent number: 5409042
    Abstract: An apparatus to control fluid flow to an approximate fixed rate is disclosed. The apparatus includes a housing (12), an orifice (22), a diaphragm (24), and a cage (26). The housing has two ends, an inlet end (18) having an inlet opening and an outlet end (20) having an outlet opening. The ends are arranged and configured to receive piping (14 and 16). The orifice is disposed within the housing. The orifice has an upstream end and a downstream end with a seat (34) formed in the upstream end. The fluid flows over the seat and through the orifice before exiting the outlet end of the housing in normal flow. The diaphragm is disposed within the housing adjacent and upstream of the seat of the orifice. The diaphragm has an upstream side, a downstream side, and sidewalls. The downstream side of the diaphragm is opposite the seat such that a pressure drop across the diaphragm pulls the downstream side of the diaphragm toward the seat. The cage surrounds at least a portion of the sidewalls of the diaphragm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 1993
    Date of Patent: April 25, 1995
    Assignee: Romac Industries, Inc.
    Inventor: Mark Kirchner