TUBE WORKING DEVICE IN FORM OF A TUBE CUTTER OR A TUBE-END WORKING DEVICE

The present invention relates to a tube working device - thereinafter pipe-processing equipment - in the form of a pipe cutter or a pipe-end machining device, as claimed in the preamble of claim 1.

Pipe-processing equipment illustratively is known from the following patent documents: CH 372 202; EP 1 138 425 B1; DE 103 52 890 A1 (= US

2005/0097752 A1).

When using such pipe-processing equipment, in particular when using a pipe cutter, a drawback is incurred in that pipe cutting chips or other pipe particles may enter the clamp of the pipe being processed and/or penetrate between the bearing surfaces of the pipe processing equipment's rotary unit.

Pipe cutting chips and other particles in the clamp may entail improper positioning of the in-process pipe relative to the rotary unit's axis of rotation.

Pipe cutting chips and other particles between the bearing surfaces degrade the mobility and operation of the said equipment. The tool may be shielded at the front by a protective cap able to catch and collect cutting chips and in this manner manually touching said tool may be precluded. Theretofore however it has been impossible to screen the tool at its rear, namely into the pipe receiving aperture.

The objective of the present invention solves the problem of precluding in simple and economic manner pipe cutting chips and particles from moving from the tool rearwards through the pipe receiving aperture to the pipe clamp and/or between the rotary unit bearing surfaces.

This objective is attained by the features of claim 1 of the present invention.

Accordingly claim 1 relates to pipe processing equipment in the form of a pipe cutter or a pipe-end machining device containing a clamp to hold a pipe to be processed, this clamp defining the pipe center axis; further a treatment subassembly that comprises a rotary unit which is supported on the clamp and rotatable by at least 360° and of which the axis of rotation is aligned with the pipe center axis defined by the clamp, and a tool feed receiving a rotatable tool shaft configured parallel to rotary unit's axis of rotation, said tool feed being displaceably affixed on the rotary unit in a manner that the tool affixed to said tool shaft is displaceable transversely to the rotary unit's axis of rotation into the zone of the in-process pipe; a pipe receiving aperture passing axially relative to the rotary unit's axis of rotation completely through the treatment subassembly, characterized in that a shield screening against pipe cutting chips and other pipe particles produced during pipe processing is configured between the tool's position and the rear end facing the clamp of the pipe receiving aperture and runs from the outer circumference of the pipe receiving aperture toward the rotary unit's axis of rotation, in that the radially outer shield end is affixed to the treatment subassembly, in that the shield is spring-loaded in a manner to allow an in-process pipe passing through it in the longitudinal direction of the rotary unit's axis of rotation during this penetration to come to rest against the pipe's outer circumferential surface.

Specific embodiment modes of the present invention are defined in the dependent claims.

In one preferred embodiment mode of the present invention, the shield comprises a plurality of at least axially resilient fingers along the axis of the rotary unit and which extend from or nearly from the outer circumference of the pipe receiving aperture toward the rotary unit's axis of rotation at least as far as into the zone of the in-process pipe and which are configured to be tightly adjoining each other in order to constitute a screening wall allowing manually passing an in-process pipe due to this pipe forcing away said fingers.

In another preferred embodiment mode of the present invention, the shield is affixed to the rotary unit. Other designs affix the shield to the said feed or to an irrotational component affixed to the clamp.

In another preferred embodiment mode of the present invention, the resilient fingers are made up of a large number of bristles configured as an annular brush. Preferably the bristles are synthetic or plastic, through they also may be metallic.

In a further embodiment of the present invention, the fingers are annularly configured transversely to the rotary unit's axis of rotation and are resilient in the longitudinal direction of this axis of rotation.

Another illustrative embodiment mode of the present invention provides a resiliently bending plate which, except for its circumferential zone, is slit into said plurality of resilient fingers.

In particular when said bristles constitute the resilient fingers, the latter may be configured in one or preferably in several planes transverse and preferably orthogonally to the rotary unit's axis of rotation.

Especially when the bristles are configured as brushes, the radially rear finger ends will be arrayed a radial distance away from the rotary unit's axis of rotation so as to constitute a central passageway through the shield, the passageway diameter being less than or at most equal to the least diameter of the in-process pipe in the pipe processing equipment.

The present invention is not restricted to a specific kind of pipe processing equipment. Preferably however it uses such pipe processing equipment where the said feed is a carriage mounted on the rotary unit and radially displaceable relative latter's axis of rotation, or a lever pivotably mounted on said rotary unit.

The present invention is elucidated below by illustrative embodiment modes and in relation to the appended drawings.

Fig. 1 is a pipe processing equipment of the invention seen frontally and obliquely,

Fig. 2 is a front view of the pipe processing equipment of Fig. 1 ,

Fig. 3 is vertical axial section along the plane Ill-Ill of Fig. 2,

Fig. 4 is a cam-guide to move a slide-stub tool feed radially relative to a rotary unit's axis of rotation,

Fig. 5 is a front view of the pipe processing equipment shown in Figs. 1 through 4 together with a shield shown in axial section in Fig. 3,

Fig. 6 is a schematic end view of said shield absent an in-process pipe passing through it,

Fig. 7 is an end view of the shield of Fig. 6 when a pipe passes through it,

Fig. 8 is a side view of the configuration of Fig. 7,

Fig. 9 is a schematic front view of another embodiment mode of a shield of the invention,

Fig. 10 schematically shows a front view of still another embodiment mode of the invention, and

Fig. 11 schematically shows a front view of a further embodiment mode of a pipe processing equipment of the invention.

The pipe processing equipment 1 shown in Figs. 1 through 5, for instance a pipe cutter, contains a clamp 2 for instance a parallel-jaws vise or the like clamping an-process pipe being cut, and a processor 4 to process a pipe held in the clamp 2. The processor 4 is fitted with a guide ring linked immovably to a base 8 of the clamp 2 and defining an axis of rotation 10 (Fig. 3), a rotary

unit 12 of the processor 4 rotatably supported at the guide ring 6 being pivotable at least by 360° about said axis. This axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12 coincides with the center axis defined by the clamp 2 of the pipe being cut.

The rotary unit 12 contains a tool feed in the form of a slide stub 14 guided in easily displaceable manner within said unit radially to its axis of rotation 10. A tool shaft 20 acted on by a motor 16 through a gearing 18 is rotatably supported at the slide stub 14. A tool 24 is affixable to said shaft and accordingly rotates with it. The axis of rotation 22 of the tool shaft 20 runs parallel to the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12. The motor 16 per se or in combination with the gearing 18 may constitute a detachable sub-assembly affixed to the slide stub 14.

Preferably the tool 24 shall be planar, for instance being a circular saw wheel or a cutting grinder wheel to cut a pipe. Also the tool 24 the may be another grinding wheel or another rotary tool to chamfer or to plane a pipe end face.

The drawings show the processor 4 in a zero position of rotation. The tool 24 is removed radially downward from the pipe to be cut.

In the nulled position of the slide stub 14, its extension 26 - which contains the motor 16 and a gearing 18 or is constituted at least in part by a motor casing - runs downward like a lever. The extension 26 may be designed as a grip and/or be fitted with two grips 28 and 30 to manually rotate the rotary unit 12 together with the slide stub 14 about the axis of rotation 10. The extension 26 may run tangentially or transversely, preferably radially relative to the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12. Also, in addition to an extension 26 or a grip 28 and 30, an illustratively electric motor, or a motor connecting element such as a gear or a coupling, may be provided to motor-drive the rotary unit 12 about the axis of rotation 10.

In the null position of the direction of rotation shown in the drawings, the slide stub 14 by means of a guide bolt 32 affixed to it is suspended from a cam notch 34 of a guide track 36 covering 360° or more. This feature is shown schematically in Figs. 3 and 4. The guide bolt 32 is affixed to the slide stub 14.

The guide track 36 is constituted at the guide ring 6 or at a cam disk irrotationally affixed to the guide ring 6. Preferably the portion 37 of the guide track 36 is circular on both sides of the cam notch 34 with its center in the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12.

When the rotary unit 12 is rotated out of its rotational null point about its axis of rotation 10, the guide bolt 32 is lifted out of the cam notch 34 onto the guide track portion 37 as indicated in the dashed-lined position 32-2 of the guide bolt 32. The radius of the guide track portion 37 with respect to the axis of rotation 10 is larger than the shaft trough of the cam notch 34. On account of the said lifting of the guide bolt 32 out of the cam notch 34 to the radially higher guide track portion 37, the slide stub 14 is commensurately raised and hence also the tool into an in-process pipe being cut. Upon further rotation about the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12, illustratively in the direction of rotation 38, of the rotary unit 12, the slide stub 14 and the cutting tool 24, the cutting tool

24 remains in the wall of the pipe being cut. When a 360° rotation of the rotary unit 12 has been completed, the guide bolt 32 relapses, from the zone of the pipe into the cam notch 24 and thereby also the tool 24 with the slide stub 14. Next the processor 4 together with the rotary unit 12 and the tool 24 either may rotated farther in the direction of rotation or be rotated oppositely (back).

The possible features of the present invention described in relation to

Fig. 4 and regarding the feed motions of the tool 24 radially to the in-process pipe (being cut) and away again from this pipe are only a few of many. Other embodiment modes from the state of the art also are applicable.

The joint direction of rotation 38 of the rotary unit 12, of the slide stub 14 and the tool 24, preferably shall be opposite the direction of rotation 40 of the tool 24 as illustratively indicated in Fig. 2 by the arrows 38 and 40. Illustratively therein the direction of rotation 38 of the rotary unit 12 is clockwise and the direction of rotation 40 of the tool 24 is counter-clockwise as seen in the front view of the cutter 4.

A protective cap 42 may be configured in front of the tool 24 so that, when pipe processing equipment is running, accidental human contact of the tool 24 shall be precluded and to catch cutting chips removed and flung away from the pipe by the tool 24.

The protective cap 42 is supported at the slide stub 14 in pivotable manner about a pivot axis 54 parallel to the axis of rotation 22 of the tool shaft 20 and against the force exerted by an omitted spring in a direction away from the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12.

When, as illustratively discussed above, the slide stub 14 is radially moved jointly with the tool 24, then said tool shall rest against the pipe and be moved into the pipe wall. In the process the pipe radially moves away from the protective cap 42 and is pivoted about its pivot axis 54.

A pipe receiving aperture 60 runs axially with the rotary unit's axis of rotation 10 through the entire treatment subassembly 4. Said aperture runs both through the rotary unit 12 and the region of the slide stub 14 which is configured within the rotary unit 12. As shown by Figs. 3 and 5, a shield 62 screening pipe cutting chips is configured in the pipe receiving aperture 60 between the position of the tool 24 and the rear end of the said aperture facing the clamp 2. The shield 62 runs from the outer circumference 60 toward the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12.

The radially outer end 64 of the shield 62 is affixed to the treatment subassembly 4. The shield 62 is preferably configured within the rotary unit 12 and is affixed to it.

The shield 62 contains or consists of a plurality of fingers 66 which are resilient at least in the axial direction of the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit

12 and run from, or nearly from, the outer circumference of the pipe receiving aperture 60 toward said axis of rotation at least as far as into the region of the in-process pipe, being arranged tightly against each other so as to constitute a screening wall allowing manually passing an in-process pipe through them, said fingers being deflected axially and radially from the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12. After the pipe has passed, the fingers 66 - on account of their resiliency - return on their own into their initial positions wherein they substantially run radially to said axis of rotation of said rotary unit.

In other embodiment modes, the shield 62 may be configured in the portion of the pipe receiving aperture 60 passing through the slide stub 14. In yet another embodiment mode of the invention, the shield 62 may be configured at the rear end of the pipe receiving aperture 60 opposite the clamp 2 and may be affixed irrotationally to an element itself irrotationally affixed to the clamp 2.

The radially outer end 64 of the shield 62 may be affixed in various ways to the outer circumference of the pipe receiving aperture 60, preferably to the rotary unit 12, for instance by means of screws or being clamped between two annular elements or be inserted into an inner circumferential groove 68 of the treatment subassembly 4 as shown in Fig. 3.

According to a preferred embodiment mode of the present invention, the resilient fingers 66 are made up of a large number of bristles which are situated from, or nearly so, the outer circumference of the pipe receiving aperture 60 toward the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12, as a result of which they subtend something like an annular brush. The radially outer ends of said

bristles may be affixed either directly on the treatment subassembly 4, preferably on the rotary unit 12, or they may be linked to each other by a ring 70 which is affixed on the treatment subassembly 4, preferably on the rotary unit, for instance in the inside peripheral groove 68.

Like brush bristles, those of the present invention may be metallic or preferably plastic or natural ones. They may be configured in one plane, preferably however in a plurality of planes running transversely, preferably orthogonally, to the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12.

One embodiment of a shield 62 fitted with bristle fingers 68 is shown in front view in Fig. 6 which is devoid of an in-process pipe and in front view in Fig.

7 with an in-process pipe 72 passing through it and in Fig. 8 in sideview with a pipe 72 also passing through it.

In the preferred embodiment mode regarding said bristles, the radially inner ends 73 of the resilient fingers 66, i.e. the bristle arrays, preferably are radially spaced apart about the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12 in a way that they constitute a central passageway 74 (Fig. 3) of which the diameter at most is equal but preferably is less than the smallest pipe diameter of the pipe 72 processed by the processing equipment.

Fig. 9 shows a front view of another embodiment mode of a shield 162 of the present invention and made of a resilient plate 163 or fitted with it. Except for its outer peripheral zone, the plate 163 is divided by a plurality of cuts 165 into a plurality of resilient fingers 166. The slits 165 cross each other at the center of the resilient plate 163, hence in the region of the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 12. The radially outer end, i.e. the outer circumference 164 of the plate 163 may be directly affixed to the treatment subassembly 4, preferably to the rotary unit 12, for instance being inserted into an inner circumferential groove 68 (Fig. 3), or it may be fitted with an annular element 170 enclosing the plate 163 and affixed to it, said annular element being mounted on the treatment

subassembly 4, preferably on the rotary unit 12. Illustratively the plate 163 may be made of rubber and/or plastic.

The further embodiment of the invention of a shield 262 shown in Fig. 10 is identical with that of the shield 162 of Fig. 9 except that a small passageway

74 corresponding to the passageway 74 as in the embodiment of the shield 62 of Fig. 6 is used because the ends 173 if the fingers 166 are radially spaced away from the axis of rotation 10.

In another embodiment of the present invention the fingers are fingers of a material configured annularly and transversely to the axis of rotation (10) of the rotary unit (12) and resiliently bending in the longitudinal direction of said axis. Illustratively they may be made of or contain rubber or another natural material or be a plastic or similar material.

Fig. 11 schematically shows the front view of another embodiment of a pipe processing equipment 301 of the present invention fitted with a shield 62

(or 162 or 262) of the kind discussed above that is configured in a pipe receiving aperture 360 as already described above regarding the pipe receiving aperture 60 of the other Figures. Again the pipe processing equipment 301 is preferably a pipe cutter, through it also may be a pipe-end machining device.

A casing 306 is irrotationally affixed to the base 8 of a clamp 2 clamping the in-process pipe. A rotary unit 312 is rotatably supported to pivot about an axis of rotation 10 in the casing 306 in which is constituted the pipe receiving aperture 360.

A lever 314 is used as the tool feed and is affixed so as to be pivotable about the pivot axis 380 to the rotary unit 312. The pivot axis 380 is configured parallel to the axis of rotation 10 of the rotary unit 312. The shaft 20 of the tool

24 is supported at the lever 314 in a manner to be rotatable about this axis of rotation 22 which runs parallel to the axis of rotation 10. An electric motor 16 is configured within the lever 314 or may be connected to it and by means of a

gearing 18 drives the tool shaft 20. The rotary unit 312 and the lever 314 together constitute a treatment subassembly 304.

The lever 314 may pivot about of pivot axis 380 between two stops 381 and 382 fitted on the rotary unit 312 to engage/disengage the tool 24, preferably a circular saw wheel, to/from an in-process pipe. The stops 381 and 382 constrain the lever 314 to pivoting by only a fraction of 360° relative to the rotary unit 312 without rotating said unit, for instance only within a range from 3 to 20°, just enough to engage/disengage the tool 24 with/from the in-process pipe that for this purpose passes through the pipe receiving aperture 62. In the initial position the lever 314 hangs down and rests against the said stop 381. In this configuration the tool 24 is disengaged from the in-process pipe. By pivoting the lever 314 to the other stop 382 and then is rotated up to 360°, in the same direction of rotation 384, the tool is made to engage the in-process pipe and will completely penetrate the pipe wall. When the lever 314 rests against the other stop 382, the rotary unit 312 is rotated jointly with the lever 314 in this direction of rotation 384 until said lever once again hangs down as indicated in Fig. 11. In the process the pipe is cut over a path of 360°.

The rotation of the lever 314 about its pivot axis 380 from its stop 381 to the other stop 382 and then jointly with the rotary unit 312 about the pivot axis

10 by 360° is manually carried out by seizing the lever 314 radially away from its pivot axis 380. The lever 314 moreover may be fitted with an additional grip or be designed per se as a grip.