The present invention is intended to be used, for example, in food processing and pharmaceutical processing facilities to improve the inspectability and cleanability of pipe, conduit, and tube installations. Currently, these facilities are forced to use conventional mounting systems to install pipe, conduit, and tube. The conventional mounting systems are inherently dirty. Also, the conventional mounting systems are exceedingly difficult to inspect and clean.
The invention is directed to a system for mounting pipe, conduit, and tube in, for example, food grade or pharmaceutical grade installations. The invention is designed such that it resists contamination, is easy to inspect, and is easy to clean.
A first aspect of the invention is directed to a trapeze type support assembly for mounting to an overhead support. The trapeze type support assembly includes a strut, a support bracket assembly and a supported element fastener assembly. The strut has a base, the base having an upper surface and a lower surface. The strut also has first and second legs extending downwardly and outwardly from the lower surface of the base. The support bracket assembly is secured to the base and comprises a bracket, engageable with an overhead support, and a hangar element, supported by the bracket and extending from the bracket to the base with the hangar element secured to the base. The supported element fastener assembly is securable to the base so to secure a supported element to the upper surface of the base of the strut. The support assembly enhances sanitation by effectively eliminating any upwardly-facing, contaminant-collecting trough in the strut. According to some embodiments, the support bracket assembly may comprise a seismic adapter securing the hangar element to the base and first and second lateral support members secured to the seismic adapter at an acute angle to horizontal. The lateral support members have distal ends secured to a building support member so to provide seismic stability to the strut, the lateral support members also having smooth outer surfaces to enhance sanitation.
A second aspect of the invention is directed to a method for mounting a supported element to an overhead support. The method includes selecting a trapeze type support assembly comprising a strut, a support bracket assembly in a supported element fastener assembly. The strut has a base, the base having an upper surface and a lower surface, the strut also having first and second legs extending downwardly and outwardly from the lower surface of the base. The support bracket assembly is secured to the base and comprises a bracket, engageable with an overhead support, and a hangar element, supported by the bracket and extending from the bracket to the base with the hangar element secured to the base. The supported element fastener assembly is securable to the base so to secure a supported element to the upper surface of the base of the strut. The strut is suspended from the overhead support with the bracket secured to the overhead support and the hangar rod connecting the strut to the bracket. The supported element is secured to the upper surface of the base of the strut using the supported element fastener assembly. Sanitation is enhanced by effectively eliminating any upwardly-facing, contaminant-collecting trough in the strut. Sanitation may also, in some embodiments, be enhanced by eliminating any unused holes in the strut. According to some embodiments, the support assembly selecting step may comprise selecting a support bracket assembly comprising a seismic adapter securing the hangar element to the base and first and second lateral support members secured to the seismic adapter at acute angles to horizontal, the lateral support members having distal ends, the lateral support members also having smooth outer surfaces to enhance sanitation. The strut is seismically supported in such embodiments by securing the distal ends of the lateral support members to a building support member.
Various features and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description in which the preferred embodiments have been set forth in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
The following description of the invention will typically be with reference to specific structural embodiments and methods. It is to be understood that there is no intention to limit the invention to the specifically disclosed embodiments but that the invention may be practiced using other features, elements, methods and embodiments.
The invention is directed to wall-mounted type of mounting system and a trapeze type of mounting system typically used to sanitarily mount pipes, conduits, and tubes to vertical and horizontal surfaces in locations that require a high degree of cleanliness. These mounting systems would typically be employed in, for example, food processing and pharmaceutical installations.
In the past, these facilities have had only conventional strut systems to mount their pipes, conduit, and tubes. This has been a major food and drug safety problem, as conventional strut systems are easily soiled, harbor contaminants, are difficult to inspect, and difficult to clean.
Mounting systems made according to the invention are typically configured for two general applications. When mounting pipes, conduits, or tubes to a wall 10 (or other vertical or generally vertical surface), the wall-mounted type of support strut assembly 12 (shown in
An important aspect of the invention is that the cross section of the strut 14 has no horizontal surfaces (see
Strut 14 includes a central section 13 and end parts 15. The end parts 15 preferably extend from the central section at angles 17, 19 of between about 100° and 130°, and more preferably about 115°. Central section 13 preferably extends at an angle to the horizontal of about 10° to 40°, and more preferably about 25°. End parts 15 each comprise a main portion 21 and a secondary, outer portion 23, the outer portions preferably extending from the main portion at an angle of between about 30° and 60°, and more preferably about 45°.
To mount pipes 22, conduits, or tubes below a ceiling (or other horizontal surfaces), the trapeze type of support strut assembly 40 (shown in
Assembly 40 is better than conventional strut systems, in that the legs 47 of trapeze mount strut 42 are open, not hemmed, and point downward, thus allowing easy inspection, cleaning, and eliminates the upward facing troughs of conventional trapeze mount struts that collect and hold contaminants. Conversely, conventional trapeze mount installations have upward facing channels that trough to hold falling debris, and wash down water. Their design is so enclosed as to require disassembly for cleaning in some cases to achieve an adequate level of sanitation.
The smooth hanger rods 44 are preferably fabricated from T304 stainless steel schedule 80 pipe. They are tapped in each end for ⅜″ national coarse threads, and the outer surface is polished to a #4 sanitary finish. Conventional trapeze struts are typically mounted with continuously threaded rod. Trapeze type of support strut assembly 40 is better than conventional strut assemblies because the smooth hanger rods 44 are easy to clean, where as the outer surfaces of the conventional strut's continuously threaded rods are so convoluted, that they are extremely difficult to satisfactorily clean. The pipes, conduits and tube are attached to the trapeze mount strut with the same stainless steel, minimum thread U-bolts 28 used for wall mount strut 14. The entire trapeze type of support strut assembly 40 is typically attached to the ceiling, such as to ceiling member 52, with L-brackets 50.
Overall, stainless steel strut assemblies 12, 40 provide a means by which one can attach pipes, conduits, and tubes to horizontal and vertical surfaces in a sanitary way. This level of inspectability and cleanability is not provided by conventional struts currently on the market.
The distal end adapter assembly 66 comprises a vertical adapter 74 and two lateral adapters 76. Vertical adapter 74 has a main, generally cynical body 78 having an open bore 80 therethrough. Open bore 80 has a threaded end 82 adjacent to strut 62 and a pipe threaded end 84. A bolt 85, see
Lateral adapters 76 are mounted to laterally extending lugs 86 of vertical adapter 74 by nut and bolt assemblies 88. Assemblies 88 act as pivots to permit lateral support pipes 70, 72 to extend at appropriate angles from adapter assembly 66. Lateral adapters 76 have pipe threaded openings 90 to which lateral support pipes 70, 72 are mounted. As shown in
Other modification and variation can be made to the disclosed embodiments without departing from the subject of the invention as defined in following claims.
Any and all patents, patent applications and printed publications referred to above are incorporated by reference.
The present application is a divisional patent application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/249,131, filed 12 Oct. 2005, entitled Support Assemblies for Pipes, Conduits and Tubes, Attorney Docket number PDI 1001-2; which is a continuation-in-part patent application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/053,216, filed 8 Feb. 2005, entitled Sanitary Pipe Mounting System, Attorney Docket number PDI 1001-1; each of which is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 11249131 | Oct 2005 | US |
Child | 12333208 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 11053216 | Feb 2005 | US |
Child | 11249131 | US |