Pneumatic swivel assembly

Claim 1

A swivel assembly for joining a plurality of fluid conduits comprising: a. housing assembly means having first and second openings therein and including means adapted to movably engage and retain said conduits in adjacent relationship; b. a first conduit including an inner fluid passageway diameter and including a first end comprising a partially spherical shape flared radially from an axis of said first conduit, said first spherically shaped end further comprising an annular edge, said first end selectively movably mounted within said housing assembly means; c. a second conduit including an inner fluid passageway diameter and including a second end comprising a partially spherical shape flared radially from an axis of said second conduit, said second spherically shaped end further comprising an annular edge, said second end selectively movably mounted within said housing assembly means; d. a ball-rotator comprising a concentric surface spherically complemental to a surface of said first and said second spherically shaped flared ends and in engagement therewith, said ball-rotator further including two annular lips having a diameter substantially larger than said inner diameter of and adjacent of said conduits, each of said lips disposed in movable, fluid sealing contact with a respective flared end of said first and said second conduits said ball-rotator having a bore therethrough with a minimum diameter at least as large as said passageway diameters, said annular lips and said bore defining a passageway in pneumatic coupling relationship with said first conduit and said second conduit; e. said ball-rotator having an annular ring including an axis, and being mounted on said spherical surface engageable with the annular edge of said first flared end and of said second flared end; and f. said annular edge of said first flared end, said annular ring and one of said annular lips having a predetermined angular relation when the axes of said first conduit and of said annular ring are coincidental, the angular relation being that the angular distance from said annular ring to the said first spherically shaped end annular edge substantially equaling the angular distance from said first spherically shaped end annular edge to said annular lip disposed in contact with said first conduit flared End, and further substantially equaling the angular distance from saId annular lip to the end of said first conduit inner diameter whereby upon maximum misalignment of either conduit relative to said ball-rotator, the inner diameter of said conduit is not constricted by said ballrotator.