Nitto Kohki Co., Ltd.

Tetsuya Kuwabara

Naoyuki Kotake

A pipe coupling comprises a socket including a valve body, socket body having holes, lock balls stored in the holes for pressing the lock balls radially inward at an advanced position and for releasing the lock balls at a retracted position, and a plug having an engaging groove and being adapted to open the fluid passage when the plug is engaged with the socket. The holes in the socket include first and second holes individually extending in the axial direction, the first holes extending closer to the distal end side than the second holes. The valve body is returned to a position in which the fluid passage is closed, when the lock balls are located on the extreme distal end side of the first holes.

Pipe coupling

A pipe coupling comprises a socket and a plug having front end portions engagable with each other. This socket comprises a plurality of lock balls movable to lock positions where the lock balls partially project into an axial bore of the socket body, and a sleeve for holding the lock balls at the lock position. The socket body has a plurality of engage holes elongated in the axial direction. The sleeve is rotatable on the socket body and has a press portion for pressing the lock balls toward the lock positions, a press release recessed portion circumferentially is adjacent to the press portion for retracting the lock balls from the lock positions, and a large diameter portion. The pipe coupling further comprises sleeve-rotation-restricting convex and recessed portions which restrict the rotation of the sleeve relative to the socket body, to an angle range between a press position where the press portions oppose the lock balls and a release position where the press release recessed portions opposed to the lock balls, a collar movable in the large diameter portion, and a spring for urging the sleeve toward the press position and the collar toward the front end.

The present invention provides a pipe coupling socket having a main body containing a plurality of lock balls for locking a plug accepted in the main body. The main body has a projecting lock portion which projects from the outer circumferential surface and has a top surface in which a groove is formed. The operation sleeve has a stepped portion formed in the circumferential direction on the inner surface thereof, such as to engage with an axial end of the projecting lock portion, thus inhibiting the operation sleeve from transferring to the rear end portion side, a lock releasing recess recessed in the stepped portion such as to house an axial end of the projecting lock portion, thus allowing the operation sleeve to transfer to the rear end portion side, and protruding portions which can be fitted to the groove when the projecting lock portions are placed at a position which matches the lock releasing recess in the axial direction, and at a position which is offset from the lock releasing recess in the circumferential direction. The projecting lock portion can go over the protruding portions when the user moves the operation sleeve in the circumferential direction.

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Tokyo, Japan

Tetsuya Kuwabara