Patents by Inventor Brent Keil

Brent Keil has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20210041053
    Abstract: A pipe joint has a first pipe having an end portion and a first pipe wall thickness, and a second pipe having an end portion. The end portion of the first pipe is welded to the end portion of the second pipe to seal the joint between the first pipe and the second pipe. The first pipe has an outwardly-extending, buckle-inducing deformation that is spaced apart from the pipe joint. A crest height of the deformation is 500% or less of the first pipe wall thickness.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 1, 2020
    Publication date: February 11, 2021
    Applicant: Northwest Pipe Company
    Inventors: Brent Keil, Spyridon Karamanos
  • Patent number: 10823320
    Abstract: A pipe joint has male and female couplers with interfitting features that join pipe sections together when the male coupler is positioned within the female coupler. The couplers can be separate rings or formed in the ends of lengths of pipe. Typically, a male coupler is at one end of a length of pipe and a female coupler is at the opposite end of the pipe. The interfitting features can include three or more ridges or teeth of a first coupler (a male coupler) and the same number of ridges or teeth of a second coupler (a female coupler) each tooth being positioned in a respective transition region of the coupler. Ramp surfaces of the couplers are positioned at opposite sides of each tooth. The ramp surfaces have respective slopes, and the interfitting features are designed to reduce the forces required to push the couplers together into a locked engagement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 3, 2020
    Assignee: Northwest Pipe Company
    Inventor: Brent Keil
  • Patent number: 10619778
    Abstract: A pipe ram joint includes first and second couplers that can comprise rings for mounting to the ends of respective pipes or formed in the ends of these pipes. The first coupler can comprise a female ring with a first tooth adjacent to a distal end thereof and a first groove spaced from the distal end. The second coupler can comprise a male ring with a respect second tooth and second groove. When the pipes are rammed together, the first tooth is positioned in the second groove and the second tooth is positioned in the first groove. The couplers have features that reduce the force required to ram the pipe sections together.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2020
    Assignee: Northwest Pipe Company
    Inventors: Brent Keil, Frederick Gobler
  • Patent number: 10359137
    Abstract: A pipe gasket is positioned within a pocket in a socket portion of a first end of a first pipe and the end of a spigot pipe is inserted into the socket with the gasket sealing the gap between the pipes. The gasket in one form comprises a blunt rounded nose portion, a central body portion with an insert embedded therein and a rear sealing portion comprising first and second projections, such as fins, that diverge and respectively engage the first pipe and the second pipe.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 6, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2019
    Assignee: Northwest Pipe Company
    Inventors: Brent Keil, Bruce VanderPloeg, Guido Quesada
  • Publication number: 20170321834
    Abstract: A pipe ram joint includes first and second couplers that can comprise rings for mounting to the ends of respective pipes or formed in the ends of these pipes. The first coupler can comprise a female ring with a first tooth adjacent to a distal end thereof and a first groove spaced from the distal end. The second coupler can comprise a male ring with a respect second tooth and second groove. When the pipes are rammed together, the first tooth is positioned in the second groove and the second tooth is positioned in the first groove. The couplers have features that reduce the force required to ram the pipe sections together.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 8, 2017
    Publication date: November 9, 2017
    Applicant: Northwest Pipe Company
    Inventors: Brent Keil, Fritz Gobler