Fitting for corrugated plastic pipe

Claim 2

A plastic pipe fitting characterized in that the end portions thereof have great flexibility for facilitating manual connection of corrugated pipes thereto, even though the corrugated pipes vary somewhat in external diameter, said fitting comprising a corrugated tubular body portion having a wall thickness over at least the major area thereof not exceeding about .080 inch and having couplings integrally formed with said body portion and defining the ends of the fitting to which other corrugated pipes are to be connected, each of said couplings comprising a relatively thin-walled flexible annular sleeve having a wall thickness over at least the major area thereof of no more than about one-fourth that of the body portion and having a substantially uniform inside diameter along the entire axial length of the annular sleeve adapted for receiving therein an end portion of a corrugated plastic pipe to be connected thereto, a plurality of spaced wedge-shaped latching members integrally formed with each flexible annular sleeve and extending radially inwardly around the interior of the sleeve, said latching members having a relatively rigid camming surface thereon and thereby avoiding deformation when a pipe is inserted in said sleeve, said thin-walled annular sleeve permitting ready flexing thereof so as to permit independent movement of the latching members relative to each other for facilitating positioning the end of a corrugated plastic pipe within the sleeve in latching engagement with said latching members.

Claim 3

A plastic pipe fitting according to claim 1 wherein said fitting is an elbow fitting and said corrugated tubular body portion comprises corrugations of alternating ribs and valleys wherein alternate ribs are relatively narrow and intervening ribs are relatively wide, said valleys and said relatively narrow ribs being of about the same width and said relatively wide ribs being at least twice the width of said narrow ribs and said valleys.

Claim 4

A plastic pipe fitting according to claim 2 wherein said alternating ribs and valleys extend partially around the circumference of said body portion and have tapered opposite ends convergingly arranged and terminating adjacent the inside curvature of the elbow.

Claim 5

A plastic pipe fitting according to claim 1 wherein said fitting is a tee fitting and said corrugated tubular body portion comprises relatively wide corrugations of alternating ribs and valleys, the width of said ribs and valleys being at least three times the height of said ribS.

Claim 6

A plastic pipe fitting characterized in that the end portions thereof have great flexibility for facilitating manual connection of corrugated pipes thereto, even though the corrugated pipes vary somewhat in external diameter, said fitting being formed from polyethylene having a density within the range of about 0.954 to 0.957 gm/cm3 and comprising a corrugated tubular body portion having a wall thickness over at least the major area thereof within the range of about 0.060 to 0.080 inch and having couplings integrally formed with said body portion and defining the ends of the fitting to which other corrugated pipes are to be connected, each of said couplings comprising a relatively thin-walled flexible annular sleeve having a wall thickness over at least the major area thereof of no more than about one-fourth that of the body portion and having a substantially uniform inside diameter along the entire axial length of the annular sleeve adapted for receiving therein an end portion of a corrugated plastic pipe to be connected thereto, a series of arcuately spaced wedge-shaped latching members to hollow construction positioned axially inwardly from the open end of each flexible sleeve between the midpoint and the open end thereof, said latching members having a relatively rigid camming surface thereon and thereby avoiding deformation when a pipe is inserted in said sleeve, said latching members being of relatively thin-wall construction the same as the sleeve and integrally formed therewith and being arranged in opposing pairs spaced substantially equally apart and projecting radially inwardly around the interior of each sleeve, said thin-walled annular sleeve permitting ready flexing thereof so as to permit independent movement of the latching members relative to each other for facilitating positioning the end of a corrugated plastic pipe within the sleeve in latching engagement with said latching members.

Claim 7

A plastic pipe fitting characterized in that the end portions thereof have great flexibility for facilitating manual connection of corrugated pipes thereto, even though the corrugated pipes vary somewhat in external diameter, said fitting being formed from polyethylene having a density within the range of about 0.954 to 0.957 gm/cm3 and comprising a corrugated tubular body portion having a wall thickness over at least the major area thereof within the range of about 0.060 to 0.080 inch and having couplings integrally formed with said body portion and defining the ends of the fitting to which other corrugated pipes are to be connected, each of said couplings comprising a relatively thin-walled flexible annular sleeve having a wall thickness over at least the major area thereof of no more than about one-fourth that of the body portion and having a substantially uniform inside diameter along the entire axial length of the annular sleeve adapted for receiving therein an end portion of a corrugated plastic pipe to be connected thereto, a series of arcuately spaced wedge-shaped latching members to hollow construction positioned axially inwardly from the open end of each flexible sleeve between the midpoint and the open end thereof, said latching members having a relatively rigid camming surface thereon and thereby avoiding deformation when a pipe is inserted in said sleeve, said latching members being of relatively thin-wall construction the same as the sleeve and integrally formed therewith and being arranged in opposing pairs spaced substantially equally apart and projecting radially inwardly around the interior of each sleeve, said thin-walled annular sleeve permitting ready flexing thereof so as to permit independent movement of the latching members relative to each other for facilitating positioning the end of a corrugated plastic pipe within the sleeve in latching engagement with said latching members.

Claim 8

A plastic pipe fitting according to claim 5 wherein said series of arcuately spaced latching members comprise four latching members arcuately spaced about 90* apart around the interior of the sleeve.

Claim 9

A plastic pipe fitting according to claim 5 wherein said relatively thin-walled flexible annular sleeve has a wall thickness over the major area thereof within the range of about 0.015 to 0.020 inch.