Flange adaptor

Claim 2

In combination: a pipe having a peripheral external groove adjacent to but spaced from an end of the pipe, a retaining ring in said groove, dimensioned to project beyond said groove, an annular adaptor having an interior profile which includes a first portion snugly but slidably receivable over said pipe, a substantially cylindrical second portion dimensioned to receive the retaining ring snugly but slidably, a step between said first and second portions, and a third portion adjacent said second portion and diverging from said second portion in the direction remote from said first portion, and an annular gasket of resilient material, the gasket having a substantially cyliNdrical inner face, a diverging outer face substantially complementary to said third portion of the annular adaptor, and an end face spanning between said inner and outer faces remote from said retaining ring, the axial extent of the inner face being greater than the axial extent of said third portion of the annular adaptor.

Claim 3

The combination claimed in claim 1, further including an annular flange member having a flat sealing surface and a bore with which the pipe is in sealed communication, the flat sealing surface being in compressive contact with said end face of said gasket, thereby compressing the latter within the annular space defined by the pipe, said third portion of the adaptor and the sealing surface of the flange member.

Claim 4

The combination claimed in claim 2, in which the annular adaptor has a contact face adjacent said third portion and spaced from said step by a distance sufficient to cause the contact face to be situated slightly beyond the end of the pipe when the step is tight against the retaining ring in said peripheral groove, the contact face of the adaptor being in contact with the sealing surface of the flange member, the combination further including means for securing said annular adaptor against said flange member.

Claim 5

The combination claimed in claim 1, in which said end face converges sharply in the direction opposite the divergence direction of said outer face when the annular gasket is unstressed and uncompressed.

Claim 6

The invention claimed in claim 1, in which the gasket has a radial face between the cylindrical inner face and the first diverging outer face, the radial extent of said radial face being substantially the same as the radial projection of said retaining ring beyond the peripheral groove.

Claim 7

The combination claimed in claim 3, in which said means includes an outward flange integral with the annular adaptor and having bolt holes aligned with bolt holes in said flange member, and threaded bolts through said aligned bolt holes securing said annular adaptor and said flange member together.

Claim 8

In combination: a pipe having a peripheral groove adjacent but spaced from its end, a retaining ring in said groove and projecting radially out of the groove, an annular adaptor with a cylindrical inner wall for snugly receiving said retaining ring, an inward flange at one end of the cylindrical inner wall, the inward flange receiving the pipe but having mechanical interference with the retaining ring, and a diverging inner wall at the other end of the cylindrical inner wall, the diverging inner wall diverging in the direction away from the inward flange and terminating at a location spaced axially from the inward flange which is greater than the distance from the pipe end to the remote part of the retaining ring, and an annular gasket of resilient material having first and second faces complementary to the pipe''s outer surface and said diverging inner wall respectively, and a third face which, when unstressed, converges in the axial direction away from the inward flange to meet the first face at a location which causes the axial extent of the first face to be greater than the axial extent of said diverging inner wall.

Claim 9

In combination: a pipe having a peripheral groove adjacent but spaced from its end, a retaining ring in said groove and projecting radially out of the groove, an annular adaptor with a cylindrical inner wall for snugly receiving said retaining ring, an inward flange at one end of the cylindrical inner wall, the inward flange receiving the pipe but having mechanical interference with the retaining ring, and a diverging inner wall at the other end of the cylindrical inner wall, the diverging inner wall diverging in the direction away from the inward flange and terminating at a location spaced axially from the inward flange which is greater than the distance from the pipe end to the remote part of the retaining ring, and an annular gasket of resilient material having first and second faces complementary to the pipe''s outer surface and said diverging inner wall respectively, and a third face which, when unstressed, converges in the axial direction away from the inward flange to meet the first face at a location which causes the axial extent of the first face to be greater than the axial extent of said diverging inner wall.

Claim 10

The invention claimed in claim 7, in which the annular adaptor has an outward flange for securing purposes.

Claim 11

The invention claimed in claim 7, in which the gasket has a further face normal to said first face and extending between the latter and the second face, the radial extent of said further face being substantially the same as the radial projection of said retaining ring beyond the peripheral groove.

Claim 12

The combination claimed in claim 3, in which said end face converges sharply in the direction opposite the divergence direction of said outer face when the annular gasket is unstressed and uncompressed, and in which the gasket has a radial face between the cylindrical inner face and the first diverging outer face, the radial extent of said radial face being substantially the samE as the radial projection of said retaining ring beyond the peripheral groove.