Patent Application
20130000073
The present invention relates to a pipe sleeve for various uses such as plumbing purposes.
Conventionally, a pipe sleeve is generally a protective element used to fill a gap between a pipe and another surface or as a covering to create a barrier between a pipe and its surroundings. Pipe sleeves are used during the construction of a building or pipe system. Pipe sleeves may be used to fill in the gaps where pipes may penetrate walls. This creates a barrier between the two sides through which air cannot pass. This type of sleeve may be made of many different materials such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC), sheet metal or of a fire-resistant type material. The pipe sleeve is often put on during construction to protect and/or insulate the pipe from the environment or vice versa.
There may be several problems associated with conventional pipe sleeves. For example, one problem is that a sealing component of the pipe sleeve may become easily separated from the body of the sleeve or not installed, thereby creating air or water leakage problems.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide pipe sleeve which provides sufficient support to accommodate the size of a pipe entering the pipe sleeve and which prevents the above-mentioned problems associated with conventional pipe sleeves.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a pipe sleeve for housing a portion of a pipe is provided. The pipe sleeve includes a body portion having a hollow interior and first and second end portions for receiving and housing the portion of the pipe therein, and a flexible gasket portion (i.e., a boot) formed at the first end of the body portion opposite the second end receiving the portion of the pipe, wherein the flexible gasket portion extends into the hollow interior of the body portion at the first end thereof a predetermined distance, and conforms to a size of the portion of the pipe and applies pressure thereto.
Additional features and advantages are realized through the techniques of the present invention. Other embodiments and aspects of the invention are described in detail herein and are considered a part of the claimed invention. For a better understanding of the invention with the advantages and the features, refer to the description and to the drawings.
The subject matter which is regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at the conclusion of the specification. The forgoing and other features, and advantages of the invention are apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
With reference now to
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the body portion 101 includes a hollow interior 102 and a first end portion 103 and a second end portion 104 for receiving and housing the portion of the pipe 1 therein. A diameter of the body portion 101 may be of approximately 1½ inches to 20 inches for example. The diameter of the body portion 101 may be two sizes larger than that of the pipe 1 penetrating through the pipe sleeve 100, for example, however the present invention is not limited hereto and may vary accordingly. That is, the pipe sleeve 100 may be of any diameter, length or size to meet building international and domestic, and plumbing codes.
As further shown in
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the flexible gasket portion 200 is formed in a step-wise manner as shown in
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the flexible gasket portion 200 may be combined with the body portion 101 by a melting or threading process, for example, or any other suitable combining means. As shown in
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the flexible gasket portion 200 may be inserted into the hollow interior 102 of the body portion 101 and remain there during installation of the pipe sleeve 100, and released from the hollow interior 102 upon insertion of the pipe 1.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, as shown in
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, as further shown in
According to other embodiments of the present invention, in addition to serving as protection to a pipe servicing plumbing, electrical, HVAC, gas and any other pipes penetrating walls (e.g., concrete walls), flooring, ceilings and etc., the pipe sleeve 100 may be used as plumbing testing equipment for drain waste and vent (“DWV”) and for servicing as a DWV pipe or emergency pipe for use when an existing pipe is broken. The pipe sleeve 100 is capable of solving the problem of a broken pipe based upon the implementation of the flexible gasket portion 200 attached to the body portion 101 of the pipe sleeve 100. Since the body portion 101 is made of PVC material, the pipe sleeve 100 may be used to catch the broken pipe and the flexible gasket portion 200 may be used to properly sleeve and seal the broken pipe. In this case, the body portion 101 may be cut to a desired length suitable for sealing the broken pipe. If used for plumbing testing equipment, since the pipe sleeve 100 includes the body portion 101 made of PVC pipe material, for example, and the flexible gasket portion 200, it is permitted to be used under ground and above ground in the plumbing industry for example, and in new industrial, commercial and residential buildings where plumbing DWV pipe is required to lay underground and the pipe exits the ground above concrete. The flexible gasket portion 200 may be used as a plug or cap for testing purposes, and at a later stage, the flexible gasket portion 200 may be cut and separated from the body portion 101 and the body portion 101 may serve as a plumbing DWV pipe. This technique may be applied to main drain testing where a service main drain exists a building, for example.
The pipe sleeve of the present invention provides the advantage of being able to accommodate pipes of various sizes which decreases costs associated with providing pipe sleeves for plumbing systems, and also provides an air-tight and water-proof seal between the pipe without the need for an additional sealant or sealing ring, and protects the pipe from the environment and vice versa. The use of the pipe sleeve also saves a lot of time, labor and associated expenses.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one ore more other features, integers, steps, operations, element components, and/or groups thereof.
The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of all means or step plus function elements in the claims below are intended to include any structure, material, or act for performing the function in combination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. The description of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated
The flow diagrams depicted herein are just one example. There may be many variations to this diagram or the steps (or operations) described therein without departing from the spirit of the invention. For instance, the steps may be performed in a differing order or steps may be added, deleted or modified. All of these variations are considered a part of the claimed invention.
While the preferred embodiment to the invention had been described, it will be understood that those skilled in the art, both now and in the future, may make various improvements and enhancements which fall within the scope of the claims which follow. These claims should be construed to maintain the proper protection for the invention first described.
