Submersible Pump Remotely Controlled Detachable Fitting

Abstract

A remotely controlled submersible pump detachable fitting assembly for disconnecting a pump from an underwater connection and raising the pump above the water for repairs maintenance or replacement. The assembly includes a liquid conduit having one end submerged in a body of water, a vertical guideway secured to the submerged end of the conduit and extending upwardly through the water to a point thereabove, and a pump slidably disposed on the guideway for selective displacement therealong from a point above the water to the submerged end of the conduit. Hoist means are provided for raising and lowering the pump on the guideway. Detachable connecting means for detachably connecting the pump to the submersed end of the conduit in substantially leakproof relation therewith are provided on the pump outlet and on the submerged end of the conduit, whereby the pump may be lowered on the guideway through the water to the submersed end of the conduit and connected thereto to enable the pump to pump water through the conduit to a point exteriorly of the body of water.

Description

This invention relates to submersible pump detachable fittings or couplings, and more particularly to such a coupling that may be connected from a remote location.

In the use of submersible pumps, problems occur when it is necessary to remove the pump from its underwater connection for purposes of repair, maintenance or replacement. In many instances, particularly with large sewage pumps, a diver may have to go down to disconnect the pump from the discharge conduit. What is needed is a submersible pump detachable fitting that may be disconnected from a remote location above the body of water.

Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a submersible pump detachable outlet fitting or coupling that may be connected and disconnected from a remote location.

A further object of the invention is to provide a pump fitting of the above type that will not stick or jam, is self-cleaning, and provides a substantially leakproof connection.

A further object is to provide a detachable conduit fitting that fits standard SAE dimensions thereby avoiding obsolescence of the fitting when pump models change.

A further object of the invention is to provide a pump fitting of the above type that is simple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, and is highly effective in operation.

Briefly the foregoing objects are accomplished by the provision of a remotely controlled submersible pump detachable fitting assembly for disconnecting a pump from an underwater connection and raising the pump above the water for repairs. The assembly includes a liquid conduit having one end submerged in a body of water, a vertical guideway secured to the submerged end of the conduit and extending upwardly through the water to a point thereabove, and a submersible pump slidably disposed on the guideway for selective displacement therealong from a point above the water to the submerged end of the conduit. A hoist is provided for raising and lowering the pump on the guideway. The pump has an outlet tube disposed longitudinally on the pump and detachable connecting means including a flange-type wedge or sealing plate is secured to the pump outlet tube. The wedge has a transverse passageway therethrough connecting with and in alignment with the water passageway in the pump outlet tube. A wedge-receiving receiver is secured to the submerged end of the conduit for receiving the wedge in leakproof coacting relation therein. The receiver has a transverse water passageway therethrough in alignment with and connecting with the conduit, whereby the pump when disposed in the receiver may pump water through its outlet tube, thence through the wedge, thence through the receiver, thence through the conduit to a point exteriorly of the body of water.

The hoist includes a cable which is secured to the pump at a point to one transverse side of the center-of-gravity of the pump, whereby a slight rotational action is effected on the wedge when it is positioned in or removed from the receiver to prevent the wedge from becoming stuck in the receiver. The receiver includes a pair of spaced vertical side walls, a rear vertical face plate wall connected to the side walls, and a pair of elongated spaced guide plates secured to the respective side walls and spaced from the face plate wall. The guide plates are disposed at a slight angle to the vertical away from the face plate wall to guide the wedge into position in the receiver, whereby when the wedge is positioned in the receiver it contacts the face plate wall and the guide plates thereof. The guide plates straddle the pump outlet tube when the wedge is positioned in the receiver.

The wedge has a pair of horizontally spaced abutments on its surface facing the guide bars to provide point contact of the wedge with the guide bars. Also, the surface of the wedge facing the receiver rear face plate wall is formed of stainless steel and the surface of the receiver rear face plate wall facing the wedge is formed of stainless steel. Such abutment and stainless steel structure help prevent the wedge from becoming stuck in the receiver.

In the preferred form of the invention the wedge is a rectangular planar plate of uniform thickness. In a modification, the wedge is tapered vertically.

The lower edge of the wedge that faces the receiver rear face plate wall is a sharply defined edge. The hoist is secured to the pump at a point providing a wiping action effected by such lower edge on the forward surface of the face plate wall to keep such forward surface clean. Also, the pump is disposed in spaced relation with respect to the wedge whereby the cantilevered weight of the pump assists in effecting a substantially leakproof seal between the wedge and the receiver face plate wall when the wedge is positioned in the receiver.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a right front perspective view of a submersible pump having a fitting constructed in accordance with the invention; and showing the pump disconnected from the discharge conduit;

FIG. 2 is a left front perspective view of the structure shown in FIG. 1, and showing the pump connected to the discharge conduit;

FIG. 3 is a left rear perspective view of the structure shown in FIG. 1, but with the pump removed from the wedge;

FIG. 4 is a right front perspective view of the assembly shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view illustrating a modification of the wedge and receiver structure;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of the wedge and receiver structure shown in FIGS. 1 - 4.

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of a further modification of the wedge and receiver structure;

FIG. 8 is a front schematic view of the structure shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a front elevational view of the wedge shown in FIGS. 1 - 4;

FIG. 10 is a right rear perspective view of a modification of the structure shown in FIG. 1, and showing the pump connected to the discharge conduit;

FIG. 11 is a left rear perspective view of the structure shown in FIG. 10, and showing the pump disconnected from the discharge conduit;

FIG. 12 is a front right perspective view of the structure shown in FIG. 11, but with the pump removed from the wedge;

FIG. 13 is a view taken along the line 13--13 of FIG. 10;

FIG. 14 is a side elevational view of the wedge and receiver structure shown in FIGS. 1 - 4;

FIG. 15 is a rear elevational view of the receiver front wall shown in FIG. 14; and

FIG. 16 is a top plan view of the structure shown in FIG. 14.

Although the invention is shown and described herein with respect to submersible pumps, it will be understood that it may be applied to any type of conduit fitting that must be operated from a remote location.

The terms and expressions which have been employed are used as terms of description, and not of limitation and there is no intention, in the use of such terms and expressions, of excluding any equivalents of the features shown or described, or portions thereof, but it is recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention claimed.

Referring first to FIGS. 1 - 4 and 6, there is shown a remotely controlled detachable pump fitting assembly of the invention and including, in its broadest form, the pump P submerged in a body of water and slidably disposed on a vertically disposed guideway G, with a discharge conduit 10 having a wedge receiver R disposed at its lower submerged end 12, the pump P having an outlet tube 14 having a wedge or sealing plate 16 on the end thereof which fits into the receiver R, whereby the pump may be lowered on the guideway through the water to the submersed end of the conduit and connected thereto to enable the pump to pump water through the conduit to a point exteriorly of the body of water. Although the element 16 is sometimes identified herein as a wedge, it is, in effect a sealing plate, and such two terms (i.e., "wedge" or "sealing plate") are intended to be used interchangeably in this specification, as they both refer to the same element 16.

The discharge conduit 10 rests on a stand 18, which, in turn, rests on a base 20, which is disposed on the floor of a body of water.

The guideway G includes a pair of spaced vertically disposed parallel guide bars 22 and 24 which are secured to the base 20 and extend above the body of water.

In one form of the invention, the pump P and its wedge 16 are carried on a guide frame or carrier 25 slidably disposed on the guideway G.

Hoist means for hoisting and lowering the pump on the guideway are provided in the form of a rod or cable 28. The upper end of the cable 28 is attached to a suitable hoist mechanism (not shown) above the body of water. In one form of the invention, the cable 28 is attached to a bracket or connecting rod 30 secured to the pump P and guide frame 25 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. In another form of the invention, the cable is secured directly to the frame 25 as shown in FIG. 3.

The pump P has its outlet tube 14 disposed longitudinally on the pump and the detachable connecting means includes the wedge 16 secured to the pump outlet tube 14 along with the receiver R. The wedge 16 has a transverse passageway 34 (FIG. 3) therethrough connecting with and in alignment with the water passageway in the pump outlet tube 14.

The receiver R is secured to the submerged end 12 of the conduit 10 for receiving the wedge 16 in leakproof coacting relation therein. The receiver R has a transverse water passageway 36 (FIG. 4) therethrough in alignment with and connecting with the conduit 10 whereby the pump P when disposed in the receiver R may pump water through its outlet tube 14, thence through the wedge 16, thence through the receiver R, thence through the conduit 10 to a point exteriorly of the body of water.

Referring now to FIG. 8, it will be noted that the hoist cable 28 is secured to the pump at a point to one transverse side 38 of the center-of-gravity centerline 39 of the pump, whereby a slight rotational action is effected on the wedge 16 when it is positioned in or removed from the receiver R to prevent the wedge from becoming stuck in the receiver.

The receiver R includes a pair of spaced vertical side walls 40, 42, a rear vertical face plate wall 44 connected to the side walls, and a pair of elongated spaced cams or guide plates 46, 48, secured to the respective side walls 40, 42, and spaced from the face plate wall 44. The plates 46, 48 are disposed at a slight angle to the vertical away from the face plate wall 44 to guide the wedge 16 into position in the receiver R, whereby when the wedge is positioned in the receiver it contacts the face plate wall 44 and the guide plates 46, 48, thereof. The guide plates 46, 48, straddle the pump outlet tube 14 when the wedge 16 is positioned in the receiver R.

The wedge 16 (FIG. 9) has a pair of horizontally spaced abutments 50, 52 on its surface 53 facing the guide plates 46, 48 to provide two point contact of such wedge with the guide plates. Also, the surface 54 of the wedge facing the receiver rear face plate wall 44 is formed of stainless steel plate 56 (FIG. 6), and the surface 55 of the receiver rear face plate wall 44 facing the wedge is formed of stainless steel. Such abutments 50, 52 and the stainless steel facings help prevent the wedge from sticking in the receiver.

In the structure shown in FIGS. 1 - 4, and 6, the wedge or sealing plate 16 is a rectangular planar plate of uniform thickness.

In the structure shown in FIGS. 5, 10 and 11, the wedge or sealing plate 60 is tapered in transverse section.

In the FIG. 5 modification, the wedge 60 and the receiver front wall 62 have coacting tapered inclined planes or surfaces 63, 64, respectively, to guide the wedge into the receiver.

In the FIG. 7 modification, the coacting surfaces 67, 68, of the wedge 69 and rear face plate wall 70 of the receiver, respectively, are tapered inclined planes to guide the wedge into the receiver.

The lower edge 80 (FIG. 3) of the wedge 16 that faces the receiver rear face plate wall 44 is a sharply defined edge, and the hoist cable 28 is secured to the pump P at a point providing a wiping action effected by such lower edge 80 on the forward surface 55 (FIG. 1) of the face plate wall 44 to keep such forward surface clean.

As aforementioned the pump P is disposed in spaced relation with respect to the wedge 16 whereby the cantilevered weight of the pump assists in effecting a substantially leakproof seal between the wedge 16 and the receiver face plate wall 44 when the wedge is positioned in the receiver. In connection with this, the pump and wedge are formed to retain the pump off the floor of the body of water whereby the cantilevered weight of the pump assists in effecting such leakproof seal between the wedge and the receiver face plate wall.

The pump outlet tube 14 is secured to the wedge fitting 16 by a standard flange, thus enabling easy pump replacement.

The receiver water passageway 36 is preferably of oval configuration on a vertical axis to maintain a predetermined flow of water therethrough as the wedge abutments 50, 52 wear down through sustained use causing the wedge 16 to rest slightly lower in the receiver.

The features of the invention that are to be particularly noted are the use of the inclined plane, the cantilevered weight of the pump, the non-corroding stainless steel faces, the inherent wiping and cleaning action of the removable wedge portion as it enters the receiver or stationary portion of the "break away" fitting. The two point contact provided by the stainless steel cams and abutments minimizes the problem of corrosion and jamming, and at the same time provides positive matching of the sealing faces, and permits a very small degree of rotational movement around the axis through the cams to facilitate loosening the movable portion of the fitting when the pump is removed after prolonged service.

The design is such that it is adaptable to either casting or fabricated manufacturing and can be used on any pipe sizes for which there is a standard flange. It minimizes space requirements, being extremely compact, and is stressed and strong enough to support the full weight of the pump without any other contact being made, except the bolted flanges and the "break away" fitting. This fitting can be used between any two companion flanges, to facilitate simple removal, as long as there is adequate head clearance to permit separation.

In the preferred form, the abutments 50 and 52 may be formed of solid stainless steel.

It is to be noted that the bottom of the receiver is open, thereby permitting the wedge to self-clean the receiver, and any dirt thus scrapped out falls out of the receiver.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A remotely controlled submersible pump detachable fitting assembly for disconnecting a pump from an underwater connection and raising the pump above the water for repairs comprising, a liquid conduit having one end submerged in a body of water, a vertical guideway secured to the submerged end of the conduit and extending upwardly through the water to a point thereabove, a submersible pump slidably disposed on the guideway for selective displacement therealong from a point above the water to the submerged end of the conduit, hoist means for raising and lowering the pump on the guideway, and coacting detachable connecting means on the pump and conduit submerged end for detachably connecting the pump to the submerged end of the conduit in substantially leakproof relation therewith, whereby the pump may be lowered on the guideway through the water to the submersed end of the conduit and connected thereto to enable the pump to pump water through the conduit to a point exteriorly of the water, the pump having an outlet tube disposed horizontally on the pump and said detachable connecting means includes a sealing plate secured to said pump outlet tube, said sealing plate having a transverse passageway therethrough connecting with and in alignment with the water passageway in the pump outlet tube, and a receiver secured to the submerged end of the conduit for receiving the sealing plate in leakproof coacting relation therein, said receiver having a transverse water passageway therethrough in alignment with and connecting with the conduit, whereby the pump when disposed in the receiver may pump water through its outlet tube, thence through the sealing plate, thence through the receiver, thence through the conduit to a point exteriorly of the body of water, said hoist means being secured to the pump at a point to one transverse side of the center-of-gravity of the pump, whereby a slight rotational action is effected on the sealing plate when it is positioned in or removed from the receiver to prevent the sealing plate from becoming stuck in the receiver.

2. A remotely controlled submersible pump detachable fitting assembly for disconnecting a pump from an underwater connection and raising the pump above the water for repairs comprising, a liquid conduit having one end submerged in a body of water, a vertical guideway secured to the submerged end of the conduit and extending upwardly through the water to a point thereabove, a submersible pump slidably disposed on the guideway for selective displacement therealong from a point above the water to the submerged end of the conduit, hoist means for raising and lowering the pump on the guideway, and coacting detachable connecting means on the pump and conduit submerged end for detachably connecting the pump to the submerged end of the conduit in substantially leakproof relation therewith, whereby the pump may be lowered on the guideway through the water to the submersed end of the conduit and connected thereto to enable the pump to pump water through the conduit to a point exteriorly of the water, the pump having an outlet tube disposed horizontally on the pump and said detachable connecting means includes a sealing plate secured to said pump outlet tube, said sealing plate having a transverse passageway therethrough connecting with and in alignment with the water passageway in the pump outlet tube, and a receiver secured to the submerged end of the conduit for receiving the sealing plate in leakproof coacting relation therein, said receiver having a transverse water passageway therethrough in alignment with and connecting with the conduit, whereby the pump when disposed in the receiver may pump water through its outlet tube, thence through the sealing plate, thence through the receiver, thence through the conduit to a point exteriorly of the body of water, said receiver including a pair of spaced vertical side walls, a rear vertical face plate wall connected to the side walls, and a pair of elongated spaced guide plates secured to the respective side walls and spaced from the face plate wall, said guide plates being disposed at a slight angle to the vertical away from the face plate wall to guide the sealing plate into position in the receiver, whereby when the sealing plate is positioned in the receiver it contacts the face plate wall and the guide plates thereof, said guide plates straddling the pump outlet tube when the sealing plate is positioned in the receiver, said sealing plate having a pair of horizontally spaced abutments on its surface facing said guide plates to provide two-point contact of such sealing plate with such guide plates.

3. The structure of claim 2 wherein the receiver water passageway is of oval configuration on a vertical axis to maintain a predetermined flow of water therethrough as the abutments wear down through sustained use causing the wedge to rest slightly lower in the receiver.

4. A remotely controlled submersible pump detachable fitting assembly for disconnecting a pump from an underwater connection and raising the pump above the water for repairs comprising, a liquid conduit having one end submerged in a body of water, a vertical guideway secured to the submerged end of the conduit and extending upwardly through the water to a point thereabove, a submersible pump slidably disposed on the guideway for selective displacement therealong from a point above the water to the submerged end of the conduit, hoist means for raising and lowering the pump on the guideway, and coacting detachable connecting means on the pump and conduit submerged end for detachably connecting the pump to the submersed end of the conduit in substantially leakproof relation therewith, whereby the pump may be lowered on the guideway through the water to the submersed end of the conduit and connected thereto to enable the pump to pump water through the conduit to a point exteriorly of the water, the pump has an outlet tube disposed horizontally on the pump and said detachable connecting means includes a sealing plate secured to said pump outlet tube, said sealing plate having a transverse passageway therethrough connecting with and in alignment with the water passageway in the pump outlet tube, and a receiver secured to the submerged end of the conduit for receiving the sealing plate in leakproof coacting relation therein, said receiver having a transverse water passageway therethrough in alignment with and connecting with the conduit, whereby the pump when disposed in the receiver may pump water through its outlet tube, thence through the sealing plate, thence through the receiver, thence through the conduit to a point exteriorly of the body of water, said receiver including a pair of spaced vertical side walls, a rear vertical face plate wall connected to the side walls, and a pair of elongated spaced guide plates secured to the respective side walls and spaced from the face plate wall, said guide plates being disposed at a slight angle to the vertical away from the face plate wall to guide the sealing plate into position in the receiver, whereby when the sealing plate is positioned in the receiver it contacts the face plate wall and the guide plates thereof, said guide plates straddling the pump outlet tube when the sealing plate is positioned in the receiver, the lower edge of the sealing plate that faces the receiver rear face plate wall being a sharply defined edge, and the hoist means is secured to the pump at a point providing a wiping action effected by such lower edge on the forward surface of the face plate wall to keep such forward surface clean.