Earless clamps are known as such in the prior art. They are used in applications where space conditions do not permit the use of projecting parts, such as so-called "Oetiker" ears to tighten the clamp about an object to be fastened thereby. My prior U.S. Pat. No. 4,492,004 discloses a stepless, earless clamp which has proved highly successful. However, the prior art earless clamps entail certain disadvantages compared to clamps provided with so-called "Oetiker" ears. This is so as clamps provided with "Oetiker" ears provide for elastic compensation in the clamp to compensate for tolerances in the external dimensions of the hose and/or for changes in temperature and/or pressure of the medium flowing through the hose. The inherent elasticity in such clamp structures after plastic deformation of a socalled "Oetiker" ear is a significant advantage of their use under changing conditions.
By contrast, earless clamps of the type described in my U.S. Pat. No. 4,492,004 which are devoid of any elastic stretchability of the band material in its longitudinal direction have to be made accurately for predetermined hose dimensions and thus offer little latitude in their exacting design requirements and in practice provide compensation for dimensional tolerances of the hose only at the expense of the tightness of the installed clamp. Moreover, once installed over a hose, they provided no elastic compensation for changes in temperature and/or pressure.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds