Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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SWIVEL JOINT
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to swivel joints for use
in connection with fluid lines and is particularly
concerned with swivel joints which enable an attachment
fitted to an end of a fluid line to be manually swivelled
with respect to the fluid line and to retain the position
to which it is swivelled.
There are many situations where it is desirable
to have a swivelling or pivoting attachment on the end of
a fixed fluid line, for instance, on the end of a water
pipe. In the domestic environment, such products include
shower heads, laundry faucet arms and kitchen faucet
arms. Many other domestic and industrial situations also
call for similar arrangements but those mentioned are the
most common. Of these products, shower heads have the
most prevalent problems and the present invention arises
out of a desire to overcome those problems. The invention
will therefore be particularly described with respect to
shower heads but it is to be borne in mind that the
invention is not limited to such products but has broader
ramifications and applications. Such broader
ramifications and applications will be readily apparent
to the skilled addressee.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
The most common type of shower head arrangement
on the Australian market is the "all directional" shower
head. This comprises an oval tablet-shaped shower head
fitted to the end of a relatively long arm. The arm is
pivotable through an arc with respect to a fixed water
outlet protruding from the shower wall, and the head is
pivotable through an arc with respect to a perpendicular
housing on the opposite end of the arm. The head is also
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rotatable through 360' at a position adjacent to where it
pivots - hence the name "all directional" shower head.
A problem with such shower head arrangements is
that following repeated swivelling, either the washers
between the swivelling sections wear to such an extent
that leakage occurs, or the connections work loose and
either leakage occurs or the shower head hangs down
limply. Furthermore, the design of such connections make
it difficult to tighten the joints sufficiently to
prevent leakage and to also orientate the shower head in
the desired position.
In an attempt to address these problems, various
improvements have been devised, with the result that
leakage is now reduced to some extent. However the
connections have not fully addressed the tendency of the
head to droop after continued use or ease of adjustment.
A partial solution has been to provide a winged hex key
for tightening the hinge connection nut however this has
a tendency to get mislaid. A recent proposal has been to
form a key integral with the connection however from
aesthetic considerations the key has to be small and
making it small makes it difficult for women, children
and the infirm to properly tighten.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present
invention to provide a new form of swivel joint which
fully addresses the aforementioned problem and which
provides an aesthetically pleasing product which can be
economically produced.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to one aspect of the invention there
is provided a swivel joint for connecting to a fluid line
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comprising a first member having a tapered externally
milled barrel and a second member having an internally
milled barrel with a taper complementary to that of the
first member, wherein said second member accommodates
said first member in a leak-proof yet relatively
rotatable relationship, and wherein the first and second
members are held together by a collar.
According to a second aspect of the invention
there is provided a swivel joint for connecting to a
fluid line comprising a first element having a tapered
barrel with an externally projected milled face, and a
second element also having a barrel with a taper
complementary to that of the first element, and an
externally projected milled face, wherein a resiliently
deformable sealing member is accommodated in one of the
faces, and the first and second elements are held
together in face-to-face relatively rotatable
relationship by means of a collar. Preferably, the
resiliently deformable sealing member is an o-ring.
The fluid line typically comprises a pipe with a
rotatable attachment on one end thereof, such as the
aforementioned "all directional" shower head.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The milling of the barrels is perfected to a
very fine tolerance to ensure that there is no
possibility of leakage of fluid between them. However, to
avoid the possibility of "lock up" between the surfaces
due to the temperature or composition of the materials in
the passaging fluid, a polymeric (for instance teflon
660) or hydrocarbon (for instance high viscosity grease)
coating can be applied to one or both of the surfaces.
Such "lock up" can also be addressed in the first
mentioned embodiment by including an o-ring in a recess
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formed in the externally milled barrel. An o-ring is
however, primarily useful for providing a secondary
water-tight seal as well as enabling the joint to be
disassembled or "cracked" if such an occasion should
arise. Preferably, both a coating and an o-ring are used
when the barrels are milled from metal, such as brass.
However an o-ring can be useful alone in the case where
one or both of the barrels are moulded from high density
plastics material such as polytetrafluoroethylene, nylon
66 , or the like.
The barrel milled on the first member in the
first of the two embodiments defined above, can be either
of a cylindrical or tapered form, preferably the later.
A tapered form facilitates assembly and also enables
reseating of the barrel if necessary. The barrel milled
on the end of the second member will obviously have a
complementary shape to that of the first member. A major
advantage of the tapered barrel is the mechanical
advantage this gives to enable the joint to be tightened
up to a stage where it holds the arm and shower head in
any position required with relatively light forces
required to tighten the collar.
The barrel milled on the first member or first
element can be formed either integrally with the fluid
line/attachment or it can be fitted thereto such as by
means of a screw threaded connection. Preferably, it is
screw threaded to the fluid line/attachment by virtue of
an external screw thread on the end of the barrel which
mates with an internal screw thread formed in the fluid
line/attachment.
The complementary shaped barrel on the second
member or second element can likewise be either formed
integrally with the second member or element or it can be
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fitted thereto by a screw threaded or like connection.
Preferably it is formed integrally with the second member
or element.
5 The collar is suitably a cylindrically shaped
housing which holds the first and second members
together. Preferably it is a thumb-screw housing enabling
the two members to be tightened together to the required
relative configuration by an almost effortless finger
action. However, it can be fitted in the factory in such
a manner that finger tightening is not necessary. The
former arrangement is preferred as it enables disassembly
of the joint and also enables service of the joint if
this should ever be necessary during the life of the
product.
In a preferred form of the invention, the collar
includes an internal wall, offset from one end thereof,
and an internal screw-thread to one side of the wall. The
internal wall has an opening through which an externally
threaded stem on the end of the first member can extend
to enable the first member to be screwed into the fluid
line and retain the wall of the collar therebetween. If
necessary, a fibre or plastics material washer can be
accommodated between the opening in the collar wall and
the stem on the first member. Alternatively, or in
addition, a coil spring can be located over the stem of
the first member.
The internal screw-threaded region of the collar
is adapted to connect with an external screw-threaded
region on the second barrel of the second member, thereby
enabling the two sections of the joint to be held
together and tightened or loosened as appropriate.
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The swivel joint according to the invention
provides a leak-proof joint which can pivot and maintain
any desired position which it is pivoted to. Further, in
one preferred arrangement, it can be tightened by a
simple finger action, thereby meeting the objects of the
invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 is an exploded cross-sectional view of a first
swivel joint according to one aspect of the present
invention,
Figure 2 is an assembled cross-sectional view of the
swivel joint of Figure 1,
Figure 3 is an assembled exterior view of the swivel
joint of Figure 1,
Figure 4 is an exploded cross-sectional view of a second
swivel joint according to a first aspect of the present
invention,
Figure 5 is an assembled cross-sectional view of the
swivel joint of Figure 4,
Figure 6 is an assembled exterior view of the swivel
joint of Figure 4,
Figure 7 is an exploded cross-sectional view of a third
swivel joint according to a first aspect of the present
invention,
Figure 8 is an assembled cross-sectional view of the
swivel joint of Figure 7,
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Figure 9 is an assembled exterior view of the swivel
joint of Figure 7,
Figure 10 is an exploded cross-sectional view of a first
swivel joint according to a second aspect of the present
invention,
Figure 11 is an assembled cross-sectional view of the
swivel joint of Figure 10,
Figure 12 is an assembled exterior view of the swivel
joint of Figure 11,
Figure 13 is an exploded cross-sectional view of a second
swivel joint according to a second aspect of the present
invention,
Figure 14 is an assembled cross-sectional view of the
swivel joint of Figure 13,
Figure 15 is an assembled exterior view of the swivel
joint of Figure 13,
Figure 16 is a side on view of two swivel joints in a
water line, and
Figure 17 is a plan view of the arrangement depicted in
Figure 16.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Preferred embodiments of the invention will now
be described with reference to the accompanying drawings
in all of which like reference numerals refer to like
parts.
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Referring firstly to Figure 1, the first swivel
joint comprises a first member 10, a second member 11 and
a collar 12.
The first member 10 includes an externally
tapered brass barrel 13 and an externally screw-threaded
stem 14 of reduced diameter. A groove 15 is formed in the
lower tapered end of the brass barrel and an o-ring 16 is
seated therein. The screw-threaded stem 14 screws into a
complementary screw-threaded housing 26 formed on the end
of an attachment 27, such as a shower head, in the water
line via internal thread 27a. The taper on the barrel 13
is approximately 7* inclusive.
The second member 11 includes an internally
tapered surface 17 which is complementary in shape to the
taper on the barrel 13. A screw thread 18 is formed on
the external wall of the second member 11, and an inlet
19 is formed integrally therewith. The internally tapered
surface 17 is preferably coated with a suitable grease to
prevent the first and second members locking up.
The collar 12 comprises a cylindrical walled
housing 20 with an internal transverse wall 21 towards one
end thereof. The internal transverse wall 21 includes an
opening 22 and there is an internal screw thread 23 on the
casting which matches the external screw thread 18 on the
second member. Collar 12 has a grooved outer surface 29
(see Figure 3) to facilitate rotation by hand.
A plastic washer 24 locates between the collar
12 and a ledge 25 formed on the first member 10.
Figure 2 shows how the components of Figure 1
are fitted together in use. The arrangement permits
rotational movement of the attachment 27 relative to the
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inlet 19 without loosening of the collar 12. Should,
however, the attachment 27 become loose due to continued
pivoting over a period of time, it can readily be
tightened by simply rotating the collar 12 by slight
finger pressure.
Figure 3 shows the external view of the swivel
joint and illustrates the pleasing aesthetic appearance as
well as the easily manipulable grooved outer surface of
collar 12.
Figures 4, 5 and 6 illustrate an embodiment
which is very similar to Figures 1, 2 and 3 but which
differs in that a spring 30 is located between the tapered
brass barrel 31 and the internal wall 21 of the collar. It
will also be noted that the ledge 32 on which the spring
seats is lower than in the former embodiment, and there is
an internal washer.
The purpose of the spring is to apply a
predetermined pressure on the tapered plug/seat sufficient
to maintain a continuous tightness to the joint without
the need to adjust the tension via the threaded collar 20.
It is envisaged that this embodiment will not require the
need for any adjustment at all, as this will be achieved
by the spring. It can be seen that this in turn can do
away with the need for the thread 23 on the collar and the
thread 18 as long as the collar provides a means of
anchoring the collar 12 to the barrel 11 and still allow
for rotation.
Figures 7, 8 and 9 illustrate a modified version
of the Figures 1, 2 and 3 embodiment in which the barrel
and the second member 41 are not tapered but are of a
35 uniform cylindrical dimension. Thrust washers 42, 45 are
included to prevent abrasive action respectively between
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the barrel lip 43 and the inner wall 44 of the collar and
between the barrel lip 43 and the seat of the barrel 41.
Figures 10, 11 and 12 illustrate the second
5 aspect of the invention wherein rotation occurs about the
milled end faces 50, 51 of the respective first element 52
and second element 53. An o-ring 54 located in a groove 55
is formed in the end face 51 ensures that an integral seal
is formed between the end faces when they are clamped
10 together by the collar 12 as shown in Figure 11. A thrust
washer is shown at 56.
Figures 13, 14 and 15 illustrate a modification
of the embodiment shown in Figures 10, 11 and 12 wherein
the o-ring 60 is now located in a groove 61 formed in the
end face 62 of the first element 63 rather than in the end
face 64 of the second element 66. A thrust washer is shown
at 67.
Figures 16 and 17 illustrate a typical pivoting
shower head arrangement incorporating two swivel joints of
one of the types previously described. The arrangement
consists of a shower head 70 which is rotatable through
360* adjacent its head by a conventional pivoting joint
71. A first swivel joint 72 is provided adjacent the head
70 and a second swivel joint 73 is provided at the wall
inlet 74. Both joints are separated by a conventional
rigid arm 75 of approximately 20-30cm in length.
Such an arrangement enables all directional
movement of the shower head without leakage at the joints
or drooping of the head. Any slight loosening which occurs
following repeated and continual adjustment by the shower
heads can be readily corrected by rotating the knurled
collars 76 and 77 in the appropriate direction by hand.
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Whilst the above has been given by way of
illustrative example of the invention, many modifications
and variations may be made thereto by persons skilled in
the art without departing from the broad scope and ambit
of the invention as herein set forth.
