AUSTRALIA Patents Act COMPLETE SPECIFICATION (ORIGINAL) Class Int. Class Application Number: Lodged: Complete Specification Lodged: Accepted: Published: Priority Related Art: Name of Applicant: Protechna S.A. Actual Inventor(s): Udo Schutz Address for Service and Correspondence: PHILLIPS ORMONDE & FITZPATRICK Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys 367 Collins Street Melbourne 3000 AUSTRALIA Invention Title: SLEEVE NUT FROM PLASTIC MATERIAL Our Ref: 827433 POF Code: 20412/106282 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to applicant(s): - 1- 1A Sleeve Nut from Plastic Material The present application is a divisional application from Australian Patent Application No. 2005203612, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated 5 herein by reference. The invention relates to a sleeve nut from plastic material. A reference herein to a patent document or other matter which is given as prior 10 art is not to be taken as an admission that that document or matter was, in Australia, known or that the information contains was part of the common general knowledge as at the priority date of the claim. DE 103 01 517 B3 discloses a transport and storage container for liquids with 15 a plastic inside container standing on a pallet-like base and an outer lattice cage. The draining fitting of the inside container is screwed onto the outlet socket of the inside container by means of a plastic sleeve nut of the generic type undetachably provided on the inlet socket of the fitting, said sleeve nut welded together from two-halves on the inlet socket. When producing the 20 sleeve nut from aluminium, the two nut-halves are riveted together on the inlet socket of the draining fitting. Such an undetachable arrangement of a sleeve nut on the inlet socket of a draining fitting is complicated and time-consuming and results in an increase of the manufacturing costs. 25 US 4,923,349 describes a quickly engageable - quickly releasable two-part threaded split-slip nut and a pair of clamps. Each clamp has a body with two clamping webs having a generally C-shape configuration. The split-slip nut is divided in half as two members and the two adjacent faces at one dividing junction and the two faces at the other junction are placed together in face to 30 face contact. The two clamps are positioned over respective two gripping modules on the body of the two halves of the split-slip nut to secure the two halves together. It would be desirable to provide a sleeve nut which has a simplified assembly. PASandIaDeaA2008\749613 Div 1 18 Apni 08doc 2 According to the present invention, there is provided a plastic sleeve nut comprising two nut halves, being a first half and a second half, on a first component and captively held on the first component, the nut halves each having an internally threaded segment and an inwardly directed annular 5 shoulder segment for engaging on a corresponding collar of the first component, which is to be screwed together with a second component wherein the two nut halves include abutting strips formed on the ends, two clamping pieces with a first groove which is formed by two clamping legs and a joining web for pushing onto splines of the two nut halves, wherein each spline is 10 formed by two abutting strips when the first and second halves of the sleeve nut are assembled, and a securing mechanism for preventing the clamping pieces from detaching, in which thin webs are formed on inner edges of the clamping legs of the clamping pieces, such that when the clamping pieces are pushed onto the splines formed by the abutting strips of the two assembled 15 halves of the sleeve nut, the thin webs fit into a second groove and a third groove in outer edges of the abutting strips, and wherein the thin webs are discontinued at a leading end of the clamping pieces to form a stop which co operates with an opposing stop formed on the end of the second and the third grooves in the abutting strips of the two halves of the assembled sleeve nut to 20 allow accurate positioning of the clamping pieces when they are pushed onto the splines of the assembled halves of the sleeve nut and to secure the clamping pieces. The sleeve nut according to the present invention can preferably be used for screwing a valve body of a tapping valve on an externally threaded outlet 25 connection of a plastic or metal shipping and storage tank for liquids and loose bulk material. The sleeve nut according to the invention is explained in the following based on drawings, illustrating the following in: Fig. 1 a longitudinal section of a butterfly valve, that is screwed 30 onto the outlet socket of a container for liquids by means of a sleeve nut illustrated in Figs. 2 to 4, Figs. 2 and 3 perspective illustrations of the separated as well as of the combined halves of the sleeve nut and Fig. 4 a section along line IV-IV of Fig. 3. Y:\BEH827433\Sp Amendt-Juldoc 3 The valve housing 2 of the butterfly valve 1 according to Fig. 1, manufactured from high density polyethylene (PEHD), accommodates a butterfly disk 3 to open and close the central flow-through opening 5 of the housing chamber 5, that is connected with the inlet conduit 6 of the inlet socket 7 and the outlet 5 conduit 8 of the outlet socket 9 of the valve housing 2. The butterfly disk 3 is fastened off centre on a rotating spindle 10, both ends 10a, 10b of which are rotatably mounted in bearing lugs 11, 12 of the valve housing 2, while the upper end 10b of the rotating spindle 10 protrudes from the valve housing 2 past the bearing lug 12. The rotating spindle 10 is sealed in the bearing lug 12 10 to the outside by means of sealing rings 13. To that end 10b of the rotating spindle 10 of the butterfly disk 3, which protrudes from the valve housing 2, a handle 14 is fitted to open and close the butterfly valve 1. The butterfly valve 1 is fastened on the outlet socket 16 of a container 17 for 15 liquids, for example a plastic inside container of a pallet container, by means of a sleeve nut 15, while the container 17 for liquids is manufactured by blow moulding integrally with the outlet socket 16 that has an outside thread 18. The sleeve nut 15 is held in an undetachable manner between a collar 19 of 20 the inlet socket 7 and the bearing lugs 11, 12 of the valve housing 2 for the rotating spindle 10 of the butterfly disk 3 and displaceable on the inlet socket of the valve housing 2. When the inlet socket 7 of the valve housing 2 is pulled into the outlet socket 25 16 of the container 17 for liquids by screwing on the sleeve nut 15 undetachably held on the inlet socket 7 of the valve housing 2, said sleeve nut engaging with an annular shoulder 20 of the collar 19 of the inlet socket 7, a sealing ring 21, sitting on the inlet socket 7, will be clamped against the outlet socket 16 between the collar 19 and the external end 16a of the outlet socket 30 16 of the container 17 for liquids and consequently the housing 2 of the butterfly valve 1 will be sealed relative to the container 17 for liquids. The sleeve nut 58, illustrated in Figs. 2-4, comprises two nut-halves 58a, 58b with an inner thread segment 22a, 22b, an inwardly directed annular shoulder PAS ra ea\2008\74913 Div 10 AprI 08.doc 4 segment 20a, 20b and with abutting strips 59, 60; 61, 62 moulded on the ends, as well as two clamping pieces 63 having a groove 67 formed by two clamping legs 64, 65 and a joining web 66, to be pushed onto the splines 68, 69, which are formed by two abutting strips 59, 61 and 60, 62 each of the combined nut 5 halves 58a, 58b. To secure the clamping pieces 63 against detachment, thin webs 72, 73 are moulded on the inner edges 70, 71 of the clamping legs 64, 65 of the clamping pieces 63, said webs engaging the grooves 74, 75 in the outside edges 76 of 10 the abutting strips 59, 60; 61, 62 when the clamping pieces 63 are pushed onto the splines 68, 69 formed by the abutting strips 59, 60; 61, 62 of the two nut-halves 58a, 58b. The webs 72, 73 are discontinued at the leading end 63a of the clamping 15 pieces 63 to form a stop 77, that co-operates (or interacts) with a counter stop 78 formed at the end of the grooves 74, 75 in the abutting strips 59, 60; 61, 62 of the nut-halves 58a, 58b for the purpose of accurate positioning of the clamping pieces 63 during the pushing on the splines 68, 69 of the assembled nut-halves 58a, 58b and the securing of the clamping pieces 63. 20 The sleeve nut 58 is provided on the circumference with grasping ribs 96 to facilitate the assembly. The invention described herein is susceptible to variations, modifications 25 and/or additions other than those specifically described and it is to be understood that the invention includes all variations, modifications and/or additions which fall within the spirit and scope of the above description. Throughout the description and the claims of this specification the word 30 "comprise" and variations of that word, such as "comprises" and "comprising", are not intended to exclude other additives or components or integers. Y \BEH827433\SpcAmendtsJWl doc