1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a connector comprised of a connecting element and of a mated connecting element able to be coupled. In particular, it can be considered that the connecting element is a male element and the mated connecting element is a female element with the understanding that the inverse can be considered.
2. Brief Discussion of the Related Art
By way of example, the invention has for application a fluidic connector for large passages of which the diameter is greater than 20 mm. A potential application is for example a filling connector for a coolant.
It is known that for connectors with large passages, as the seals have a large diameter, the forces due to the friction during the phases of coupling and uncoupling are substantial forces. Springs built into the connector are then sized to accompany the recalling of the parts subjected to these friction forces such as the relief valve in closed position. This results in that, during the coupling phase, the operator must exert substantial effort in order to, on the one hand, compensate the friction forces linked to the seals and, on the other hand, compress the springs.
Moreover, US-A-2009/0224534 discloses a connector for the passage of compressed air. This connector comprises a connecting element intended to be connected with a mated connecting element. The connecting element comprises a frame, a sleeve which is screwed inside the frame, a sealing ring which is arranged coaxially inside the sleeve and a piston. A body of the connecting element formed by the frame and the sleeve is defined. The sealing ring is provided with recesses for the passage of the compressed air. In uncoupled configuration, the sealing ring is in a closed-off position wherein the recesses are plugged by the sleeve so well that there is no passage of air in the connector. During the coupling, the sealing ring is displaced axially towards an open position wherein the air can flow in the recesses. In closed-off position, the sealing ring is coupled to the body of the connecting element by the intermediary of balls which are housed, on the one hand, in through-holes of the sealing ring and, on the other hand, in oblong holes of the sleeve. Around the sleeve is arranged a locking ring which is mobile around the body and subjected to an elastic load force in the direction of the front end of the connecting element. In closed-off position of the sealing ring, the locking ring maintains the balls for the axial attaching between the sleeve and the sealing ring. This ring is able to cover the balls and block them in cooperation with the mated connecting element, in order to axially attach the body of the mated connecting element with the sealing ring during coupling and uncoupling.
Blocking the coupling balls by the locking ring does not render reliable the axial attaching of the sealing ring with the body of the mated connecting element during coupling and uncoupling. For this reason, the connector uses a return spring for the sealing ring towards a closed-off configuration of the connector, which complicates the mounting of the connector and increases the coupling forces. This spring is arranged in the fluidic channel and its operation risks being altered by the pressure of the compressed air flowing in the connector.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds