JP7499314B2 - Pipe support and its manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a pipe support used to support various pipes in the form of a hanging band or standing band, and a method for manufacturing the same.

In air conditioning and sanitary equipment construction, various types of piping are used depending on the application and purpose, and when classified by material, they can be broadly divided into metal pipes and plastic pipes.

For example, water supply pipes are made of steel pipes lined with polyethylene or rigid polyvinyl chloride, or plastic pipes such as rigid polyvinyl chloride pipes and polyethylene pipes, while hot water pipes are made of stainless steel pipes or heat-resistant rigid polyvinyl chloride-lined steel pipes.

These pipes are installed inside a building by hanging them from the ceiling or upper floor slab with hanging bands if they are horizontal pipes, or by fixing them to the wall with vertical bands if they are rising pipes. These pipe supports, such as hanging bands or vertical bands, are made up of a pipe insertion section made of strip-shaped steel material that is curved into a ring shape in the out-of-plane direction so that the pipe can be inserted inside it, and a pair of connecting sections that extend radially from each end of the pipe insertion section so that they face each other.

The pipe support is designed so that the lower end of a connector fixed to the ceiling surface or the underside of the upper floor slab, or the tip of a connector fixed to the wall surface, is sandwiched between the pair of connecting parts described above, and the pipe is inserted through the pipe insertion parts, and bolts are inserted through the pair of connecting parts and tightened, allowing the pipe to be suspended from the ceiling or upper floor slab, or fixed to the wall.

JP 2012-57737 A

The weight of the pipe acts constantly as a vertical load on the pipe insertion section made of strip-shaped steel, and the inertial force during an earthquake acts as a horizontal load, while these reaction forces act on the circumference of the pipe. However, in order to keep the manufacturing costs of the pipe supports down, the width of the steel must be limited to around 25 mm.

As a result, the reaction force from the pipe insertion section is concentrated in a small area of the pipe, which creates the problem that if the strength of the pipe has decreased due to corrosion or other reasons, the pipe may break.

In addition, because the pipe insertion section is made by bending a strip of steel material out of its plane, the pipe insertion section is provided with stiffening ribs in the circumferential direction to prevent so-called springback. However, these irregularities appear as ridges on the outer periphery and as grooves on the inner periphery, further reducing the surface area on which the load acts, and the above-mentioned stress concentration becomes even more pronounced.

When the piping is a metal pipe, the pipe insertion section is made of steel material coated with an electrical insulating material to prevent electrolytic corrosion. Conventionally, however, the electrical insulating material has been coated mainly by dipping, so the stiffening rib is only coated with electrical insulating material along its irregularities, and the grooves remain visible on the inner circumference, so the problem of the reduction in the load acting surface due to the grooves is not solved.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a pipe support that can reduce the stress concentration of the load acting on the pipe, and a method for manufacturing the same.

In order to achieve the above object, as described in claim 1, the pipe support of the present invention is a pipe support to be installed inside a building, comprising a metal body consisting of a pipe insertion portion curved in an out-of-plane direction and annularly, with stiffening ribs for preventing springback provided along the circumferential direction and on the curved portion, and a pair of opposing connecting portions extending radially from opposing ends of the pipe insertion portion, and the pair of connecting portions are connected to a ceiling surface or an underside of an upper floor floor slab or a wall surface via a predetermined connecting device, thereby making it possible to support a pipe inserted into the inner space of the pipe insertion portion.
a load transmission means made of an elastomer arranged between the pipe insertion portion and the pipe so that load transmission is performed in a distributed state between them, the load transmission means being formed so that irregularities are not apparent on its inner periphery in a cross section including the material axis of the pipe, and the cross-sectional shape of the load transmission means is such that grooves apparent on the inner periphery of the stiffening rib are filled;
The load transmission means is configured as a load transmission section so as to surround the periphery of the pipe insertion section in a buried form .

In the pipe support according to the present invention, a cross-sectional cutout portion is provided in the metal body at a position opposite to the pair of connecting portions.

In the pipe support according to the present invention, the load transmitting portion is disposed over the entire length of the pipe insertion portion.

In the pipe support according to the present invention, the load transmitting portion is disposed over the entire pipe insertion portion except for a portion located on the opposite side of the pair of connecting portions.

In the pipe support according to the present invention, the load transfer portion is formed so that no irregularities are apparent on the inner periphery thereof in a cross section perpendicular to the material axis of the pipe.

The pipe support according to the present invention is configured as a load transmission part in which the load transmission means is embedded in the pipe insertion part.

The pipe support according to the present invention is configured such that the load transmission means is a load transmission member that can be attached to and detached from the pipe insertion portion.

Furthermore, as set forth in claim 6 , a method for manufacturing a pipe support according to the present invention is a method for manufacturing a pipe support as set forth in claim 1 , in which the load transmission portion is formed by injection molding of the metal body with the pipe insertion portion as an embedded object.

The pipe support of the present invention, as in the conventional art, comprises a metal body consisting of a pipe insertion portion which is curved out of the plane and annularly and has stiffening ribs curved along the circumferential direction and provided at the curved portion to prevent springback, and a pair of opposing connecting portions which extend radially from opposite ends of the pipe insertion portion, but the pipe insertion portion is provided with a load transmission means made of an elastomer so that load is transmitted between the pipe insertion portion and the pipe, and the load transmission means is formed on its inner side so that no unevenness is apparent in a cross section including the material axis of the pipe (hereinafter referred to as a longitudinal cross section), in other words so as to be flat when viewed in longitudinal cross section, and has a cross-sectional shape which fills in grooves that appear on the inner side of the stiffening ribs.

In this way, even if a stiffening rib is provided at the pipe insertion portion, the load transmission means will have a sufficient operating area to abut against the peripheral surface of the pipe on its inner side, and the force from the load transmission means, i.e., the reaction force to the weight of the pipe and the inertial force of the pipe during an earthquake, will act on the pipe in a dispersed state, thus reducing the shear stress generated in the pipe and preventing stress concentration on the pipe and, ultimately, the resulting breakage.

The load transmission means need only be positioned so that load can be transmitted between the pipe and the load transmission means, and it is sufficient that it is positioned at least on the inner circumference, but a typical example is a configuration in which it is positioned on both the inner and outer circumferences.

The load transmitting means may not be disposed along the entire length of the pipe insertion portion, and may be disposed discretely or discontinuously. However, the load transmitting means may have the following configuration, i.e.,
(a) A configuration in which the load transmission means is disposed over the entire length of the pipe insertion portion.
(b) A typical example is a configuration in which the load transmitting means is disposed over the entire pipe insertion portion except for a portion located on the opposite side of the pair of connecting portions.

Here, since the load transmission means is made of an elastomer, when the piping is a metal pipe, contact between the piping and the metal body can be avoided, thereby preventing electrolytic corrosion. (a) is a configuration that can more reliably prevent such electrolytic corrosion, and (b) is a configuration that not only makes opening and closing operations easier, since the load transmission means is not present in the area where bending is prominent during opening and closing operations, but also eliminates the need to worry about cracks, since there is no load transmission means in the first place.

In addition, to facilitate the opening and closing of the pipe insertion section, the metal body is assumed to have a cross-sectional defect such as an opening or notch on the opposite side of the pair of connecting sections, or to have a hinge section. In the case of (b), the metal body will be exposed at the locations where the cross-sectional defect or hinge section is provided. However, by appropriately setting the inner peripheral thickness of the load transmission means, it is possible to reliably avoid contact between the metal body and the pipe at the locations where the cross-sectional defect or hinge section is provided.

It is sufficient that the load transmission means is formed so that no unevenness is apparent on its inner circumference in a longitudinal section, but it is acceptable for unevenness to be apparent on the inner circumference in a section perpendicular to the axis of the pipe (hereafter referred to as a transverse section).

In other words, in conventional pipe supports in which stiffening ribs are provided on a metal body, the unevenness of the stiffening ribs appears as grooves on the inner circumference, and the area of the pipe insertion portion that can abut against the pipe is narrowed by the amount of the groove. As can be seen from this, grooves along the circumferential direction, that is, recesses that appear on the inner circumference side in a vertical section, tend to be long because they are along the circumferential direction, and have a large impact on the reduction in the area of the load-applied surface, and therefore a configuration in which unevenness appears on the inner circumference side in a vertical section is not permitted in this invention, but recesses that appear on the inner circumference side in a cross section are short because they are along the axial direction of the pipe material, and therefore have only a small impact on the reduction in the area of the load-applied surface, and this is permitted in this invention.

A typical example here is a configuration in which no unevenness is apparent on the inner side even in cross section.In such a case, the area of the region surrounded by the contour line (periphery) when the load transmission means is expanded in the circumferential direction coincides with the actual area abutting the peripheral surface of the pipe, thereby maximizing the load acting area and minimizing the shear stress generated in the pipe.In contrast, if a notch extending along the axial direction of the pipe is provided on the inner side of the load transmission means, at a location opposite a pair of connecting parts, it is possible to easily open and close the pipe insertion part while avoiding exposure of the metal body at the cross-sectional defect part or the location where the hinge part is provided (Reference Invention) .

As already mentioned, the load transmission means can prevent stress concentration on the pipe and, ultimately, the resulting breakage, by forming the inner periphery of the load transmission means so that no unevenness is apparent in the cross section including the material axis of the pipe. However, if the load transmission means is configured with flaps extending in the material axis direction of the pipe, it is possible to further reduce stress concentration on the pipe (reference invention).

The load transmission means can be configured as a load transmission part so that the pipe insertion part is embedded, or as a load transmission member that can be attached and detached to the pipe insertion part. In the former case, it can be configured by injecting elastomer during insert molding with the pipe insertion part as an embedded part.

1A and 1B are diagrams of a pipe support 1 according to the present embodiment, in which (a) is an overall perspective view, and (b) is an overall perspective view showing only the metal body embedded in the load transmission portion, with the load transmission portion omitted. 3A is a side view of the pipe support 1 according to the present embodiment, FIG. 3B is a front view taken from the direction of line AA, and FIG. 3C is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB. 3A and 3B are views of the pipe support 1 according to the present embodiment, where (a) is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC, and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line DD. 5A to 5C are schematic diagrams illustrating the function of the pipe support 1 according to the embodiment. 1A and 1B are cross-sectional views showing the load transmission state acting on the pipe from the pipe support, where (a) and (b) are cross-sectional views showing the operation of the pipe support 1 of this embodiment, and (c) and (d) are cross-sectional views showing the operation of a pipe support of a conventional configuration. 1A and 1B are front views showing pipe supports 1a and 1b according to modified examples. FIG. 13 is an overall perspective view showing a pipe support 1c according to a modified example. FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing a pipe support according to another modified example. 11A and 11B are cross-sectional views taken along line E-E showing the state before and after detachment of a pipe support device according to another modified example. FIG. 11A and 11B are cross-sectional views taken along line F-F showing the state before and after detachment of a pipe support device according to another modified example. FIG.

The following describes an embodiment of the pipe support according to the present invention with reference to the attached drawings.

Figure 1 is an overall perspective view of the pipe support according to this embodiment, Figures 2(a)-(c) are a side view, an arrow view along line A-A (front view), and a cross-sectional view along line B-B, respectively, of the pipe support according to this embodiment, and Figures 3(a) and (b) are cross-sectional views along line C-C and line D-D, respectively, of the pipe support according to this embodiment. As can be seen from these figures, the pipe support 1 according to this embodiment is what is called a suspension band, and is designed to suspend a pipe 6 that is to be placed as a horizontal pipe below the ceiling or upper floor floor slab, and is equipped with a metal body 2 and a load transfer part 3 made of a resin material in which the metal body is embedded.

The metal body 2 is constructed using a strip-shaped steel material, and is composed of a pipe insertion section 4 curved outwardly and in a circular shape, and a pair of opposing connecting sections 5, 5 extending radially from the opposing ends of the pipe insertion section. The pair of connecting sections are connected to the ceiling surface or the underside of the upper floor floor slab via connecting devices such as hanging bolts (not shown) using the bolt insertion holes 7, 7 formed in the connecting sections, so that the pipe 6 inserted into the inner space of the pipe insertion section 4 can be suspended.

The pipe insertion portion 4 of the metal body 2 is provided with stiffening ribs 8 in the circumferential direction to prevent so-called springback, and the unevenness appears as ridges 9 on the outer periphery and grooves 10 on the inner periphery.

In addition, a cross-sectional cutout 11 consisting of an opening is provided in the portion of the pipe insertion section 4 located on the opposite side of the pair of connecting sections 5, 5, i.e., in the vicinity of the lowest end, so that the pipe insertion section 4 can be easily opened and closed in the direction of the arrow shown in Figure 2(b).

As can be seen clearly in Figure 3, the load transfer section 3 is embedded in the pipe insertion section 4 and is provided to surround it, with the load being transferred between the pipe insertion section 4 and the pipe 6 in the range (inner circumference side) that extends between them. In addition, a circumferential convex portion 32 is provided on the outer circumference side of the load transfer section 3 to cover the protrusion 9 of the stiffening rib 8, except for the area corresponding to the position where the cross-sectional defect portion 11 is provided.

As can be clearly seen in Figures 1(a) and 3, the load transfer section 3 is formed so that the reinforcing rib 8 is not visible on the inner circumference side as a groove 10 in a cross section including the material axis 31 of the pipe 6, i.e., the cross section shown in the same figure (hereafter referred to as the longitudinal cross section), and as shown in Figure 2(c), no other irregularities are visible on the inner circumference side in a cross section perpendicular to the material axis 31 (hereafter referred to as the transverse cross section), in other words, the inner circumference side is flat in both the longitudinal and transverse cross sections.

Here, forming the inner circumferential side of the load transmission part 3 so as to be flat or so as to have no unevenness in the longitudinal and transverse sections can be defined as forming the area S of the inner circumferential surface of the load transmission part 3 that abuts against the circumferential surface of the pipe 6, which is surrounded by the periphery as shown in FIG. 4, in this embodiment, so as to match the area _S0 of the rectangular strip surrounded by the periphery. If there are no unevenness in both directions and the surface is flat, S= _S0 as shown in FIG. 4(a). However, if there are unevenness, the abutment area decreases accordingly, and so S< _S0 as shown in FIG. 4(b).

In addition, as a result of forming the inner circumferential side of the load transmission portion 3 so that no unevenness is apparent in the longitudinal section, as shown in Figure 3(a), in the range of the load transmission portion 3 where the reinforcing rib 8 is provided (excluding the portion where the cross-sectional missing portion 11 is provided), the inner circumferential thickness _d2 at the portion where the reinforcing rib 8 is provided is greater than the inner circumferential thickness _d1 at the portion where the reinforcing rib is not provided.

The pipe support 1 according to this embodiment can be manufactured by insert molding using synthetic resin or elastomer as the injection material, with the pipe insertion portion 4 as an embedded object (insert). The type of synthetic resin or elastomer can be selected appropriately depending on the temperature of the fluid flowing through the pipe 6, the support load, etc.

The pipe support 1 according to this embodiment, like the conventional one, has a metal body 2 consisting of a pipe insertion portion 4 curved in an out-of-plane direction and annularly formed, and a pair of opposing connecting portions 5, 5 extending radially from the opposing ends of the pipe insertion portion, but the pipe insertion portion 4 has a load transmission portion 3 made of a resin material disposed therein so that load is transmitted between the pipe insertion portion and the pipe 6, and the inner peripheral side of the load transmission portion is formed so that no irregularities are apparent in the longitudinal and transverse sections.

Figures 5(a) and (b) show the reaction force loading state acting on the pipe 6 from the pipe insertion part 4 via the load transmission part 3, with (a) in the vicinity of the lowest end position and (b) in a position slightly above the lowest end position. For comparison, (c) and (d) show a conventional configuration in which the pipe insertion part 4 is covered with a covering material 51 made of PVC by dipping in a similar position.

As can be seen from these figures, in the conventional configuration, the reinforcing rib 8 appears directly on the inner circumference of the pipe insertion portion 4 in the form of a groove 10, so the area over which the load acts on the pipe 6 is reduced by the area of the groove. However, in the pipe support 1 according to the present invention, the load transfer portion 3 expands to fill the groove 10, and its inner circumference is formed flat in both directions, so the area over which the load acts on the pipe 6 is increased.

As described above, with the pipe support 1 according to this embodiment, the load transmission part 3 abuts against the peripheral surface of the pipe 6 on its inner side with a sufficient acting area regardless of the cross-sectional shape of the pipe insertion part 4, and the force from the load transmission part, i.e., the reaction force against the weight of the pipe 6 and the inertial force of the pipe 6 during an earthquake, acts on the pipe 6 in a dispersed state.

As a result, the shear stress generated in the pipe 6 is reduced, preventing stress concentration in the pipe 6 and, ultimately, the resulting breakage.

In addition, by constructing the load transmission section 3 from an electrically insulating material, when the piping 6 is a metal pipe, contact between the piping and the metal body 2 can be avoided, thereby preventing electrolytic corrosion.

In addition, according to the pipe support 1 of this embodiment, the load transmission part 3 is configured so that no unevenness is apparent on the longitudinal and transverse sections on its inner periphery, so that the area of the region surrounded by the contour line (periphery) when the load transmission part 3 is deployed in the circumferential direction is equal to the actual area in contact with the circumferential surface of the pipe 6.

Therefore, the load acting area is maximized, and the shear stress generated in the pipe 6 can be minimized.

In this embodiment, the load transmission section 6 is used as the load transmission means, but the load transmission means of the present invention only needs to be arranged so that the load can be transmitted between the load transmission means and the piping, and it is sufficient that the load transmission means is arranged at least on the inner circumference side, and the piping insertion section 4 may be exposed on the outer circumference side.

In addition, in this embodiment, the load transmission parts 6 are arranged along the entire length of the pipe insertion part 4, but instead, they may be arranged discretely or discontinuously along the length of the pipe insertion part 4.

Figure 6(a) shows such a modified example, in which the load transmission means is constituted by a load transmission section 3a that is arranged over the entire pipe insertion section 4 except for the section located on the opposite side of the pair of connecting sections 5, 5.

With this configuration, as shown in the figure, when opening and closing the pipe support 1a, the load transmission part 3a is not present in the area where bending is predominant, so not only is the opening and closing operation easy, but since the load transmission part 3a does not exist in the first place, there is no need to worry about cracks occurring in the load transmission part.

In the above modified example, the vicinity of the cross-sectional defect 11 is exposed, but by appropriately setting the inner peripheral thickness of the load transmission portion 3a, it is possible to reliably avoid contact between the metal body 2 and the pipe 6 at the location where the cross-sectional defect 11 is provided.

In Figure 6(b), instead of the metal body 2, a metal body 2b is used that has a hinge portion 61 near the bottom end, and the load transmission portion 3b is arranged over the entire pipe insertion portion 4b that constitutes the metal body, except for the hinge portion 61.

Even with this configuration, the pipe support 1b can be opened and closed easily, and since the load transmission part 3b is not present in the area where bending is predominant during opening and closing, there is no risk of cracking in the load transmission part. Although the area near the hinge part 61 is exposed, by appropriately setting the inner thickness of the load transmission part 3b, it is possible to reliably avoid contact between the metal body 2b and the pipe 6 at the location where the hinge part 61 is provided.

In addition, in this embodiment, the load transmission section 3 is configured so that no unevenness is apparent on the inner circumference side in the longitudinal section and cross section. However, it is sufficient for the load transmission means of the present invention to be formed so that no unevenness is apparent on the inner circumference side in the longitudinal section, and it is acceptable for unevenness to be apparent on the inner circumference side in the cross section.

Figure 7 is an overall perspective view of a pipe support 1c according to a modified example, in which the load transmission means of the present invention is constituted by a load transmission part 3c having a notch 71 on the inner periphery at a portion located on the opposite side of a pair of connecting parts 5, 5, which extends along the material axis direction of the pipe 6.

This configuration makes it possible to easily open and close the pipe insertion portion 4 while avoiding exposure of the metal body 2 at the location where the cross-sectional defect portion 11 is provided.

In this modified example, the unevenness appears on the inner circumference side in cross section as notches 71, but because it is aligned with the axial direction of the piping material and therefore the length is short, the effect on the reduction in the area of the load acting surface is minimal.

In addition, in this embodiment, the pipe insertion portion of the present invention is configured with a pipe insertion portion 4 provided with a stiffening rib 8, but if springback of the metal body can be prevented, for example, by the rigidity of the load transmission means, the pipe insertion portion of the present invention may instead be configured with a flat pipe insertion portion 4d without a stiffening rib, as shown in Figure 8(a).

Although not specifically mentioned in this embodiment, the load transmission means of the present invention may be constituted by a load transmission section 3e having a flap 81 extending in the material axis direction of the pipe 6, as shown in FIG. 8(b).

This modified example improves the load distribution effect described above, making it possible to further reduce stress concentration on the pipe 6.

In addition, in this embodiment, the load transmission means of the present invention is constituted by the load transmission section 3 in which the pipe insertion section 4 is embedded. However, instead, as shown in FIG. 9, the load transmission means of the present invention can be constituted by a load transmission member 91 that can be attached and detached to the pipe insertion section 4d. In such a configuration, the load transmission member can be attached to the pipe insertion section 4d by engaging the claws 92, 92 provided on each edge in the width direction of the load transmission member 91 with each edge in the width direction of the pipe insertion section 4d.

In addition, instead of the pipe insertion portion 4d, it is also possible to configure the pipe insertion portion 4 with a stiffening rib 8 so that it can be attached and detached. In this case, it is preferable to use a load transmission member 101 with a protrusion 102 that fits into the groove 10 of the stiffening rib 8 provided on the pipe insertion portion 4, as shown in Figure 10, so that the load transmission is reliable.

In addition, in this embodiment, the pipe support according to the present invention has been described as being applied to a hanging band, but it goes without saying that it can also be applied to a standing band instead.

1, 1a, 1b, 1c Pipe insertion portion 2, 2b Metal body 3, 3a, 3b, 3c, 3e Load transmission portion (load transmission means)
Reference Signs List 4, 4d Pipe insertion portion 5, 5 Pair of connecting portions 6 Pipe 8 Stiffening rib 10 Groove 11 Cross-sectionally missing portion 31 Material axis of pipe 6 71 Notch 91, 101 Load transmission member (load transmission means)

Claims (6)

A pipe support to be installed in a building, the pipe support comprising a metal body including a pipe insertion portion curved in an out-of-plane direction and annularly, with stiffening ribs for preventing springback provided along the circumferential direction and on the curved portion, and a pair of opposing connecting portions extending radially from opposing ends of the pipe insertion portion, the pair of connecting portions being connected to a ceiling surface or an upper floor floor slab underside or a wall surface via a predetermined connecting device, thereby enabling the pipe inserted into the inner space of the pipe insertion portion to be supported.
a load transmission means made of an elastomer arranged between the pipe insertion portion and the pipe so that load transmission is performed in a distributed state between them, the load transmission means being formed so that irregularities are not apparent on its inner periphery in a cross section including the material axis of the pipe, and the cross-sectional shape of the load transmission means is such that grooves apparent on the inner periphery of the stiffening rib are filled;
A pipe support fixture , characterized in that the load transmission means is configured as a load transmission portion so as to surround the periphery of the pipe insertion portion in a buried form . The pipe support according to claim 1, in which a cross-sectional cutout is provided in the metal body at a position opposite the pair of connecting portions. 3. The pipe support according to claim 1, wherein the load transmitting portion is disposed over the entire length of the pipe insertion portion. 3. The pipe support according to claim 1, wherein the load transmitting portion is disposed over the entire pipe insertion portion except for a portion located on an opposite side of the pair of connecting portions. 3. A pipe support according to claim 1 , wherein the load transfer portion is formed so that no irregularities are apparent on the inner periphery thereof in a cross section perpendicular to the axis of the pipe. 2. A method for manufacturing a pipe support according to claim 1 , wherein the load transmission portion is formed by injection molding the metal body with the pipe insertion portion as an embedded part.

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