US-12624785-B2 - Secure brake fluid coupler

US12624785B2US 12624785 B2US12624785 B2US 12624785B2US-12624785-B2

Abstract

The braking systems of motorized and motor-assisted vehicles can be quickly assembled within a factory with secure connections. Controls of the braking systems are connected to brakes of the braking system using a snap-fit connection without introducing air into the brake fluid line. Once assembled, the controls and the brakes are securely connected until deliberately released, thereby providing a safe and reliable connection during operation of the motorized or motor-assisted vehicles.

Inventors

Sébastien Lafond
Bernard Mouchet

Assignees

DANFOSS A/S

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20211222

Claims (15)

1 . A coupling assembly, comprising: a plug connector including: a plug body extending along a first longitudinal axis between respective first and second ends, the plug body defining a first passage extending therethrough along the first longitudinal axis, the first end of the plug body being configured to receive a respective fluid line, the second end of the plug body defining an interface aperture leading to the first passage; a valve stopper disposed within the first passage to move towards and away from the interface aperture, the valve stopper being biased by a first spring towards the interface aperture to close the first passage at the interface aperture, the valve stopper having a first interface arrangement; and a release sleeve disposed at an exterior of the plug body at an intermediate position along the first longitudinal axis such that the valve stopper is not radially aligned with the release sleeve when closing the first passage; and a socket connector including: a socket body extending along a second longitudinal axis between respective first and second ends, the first end of the socket body being configured to receive a respective fluid line, the socket body defining a cavity at the second end and a second passage extending along the second longitudinal axis from the first end of the socket body and into the cavity, the second end of the socket body defining a port opening leading to the cavity, the cavity being sized to receive the second end of the plug body; and a valve arrangement disposed within the second passage, wherein the valve arrangement includes a valve stem and a valve sleeve, the valve sleeve extending along the second longitudinal axis from a first end of the valve sleeve towards a second end of the valve sleeve, the second end of the valve sleeve abutting the valve stem when the second passage is closed, the valve arrangement being biased by a second spring to close the second passage, the valve arrangement including a second interface arrangement complementary to the first interface arrangement of the valve stopper so that the valve stopper engages the valve arrangement without trapping air therebetween when the plug connector is received at the socket connector, wherein the plug connector and the socket connector are configured such that, when the plug connector is inserted through the second end of the socket connector to couple the plug connector and the socket connector together, the first spring and the second spring begin to compress at different times; wherein the second end of the valve sleeve within the socket body is covered entirely by the valve stem when the valve arrangement is closed; wherein the second spring abuts against a surface of the first end of the valve sleeve, the surface facing the first end of the socket body; wherein the valve sleeve includes a flange extending radially away from the second longitudinal axis; and wherein a length of the valve sleeve from the flange to the second end of the valve sleeve is shorter than a length of the valve sleeve from the flange to the first end of the valve sleeve.
2 . The coupling assembly of claim 1 , wherein the release sleeve has an outermost cross-dimension that is sufficiently small to inhibit manual actuation of the release sleeve.
3 . The coupling assembly of claim 2 , wherein the release sleeve covers the second end of the socket body so that the second end of the socket body is disposed within a pocket of the release sleeve.
4 . The coupling assembly of claim 1 , wherein the release sleeve extends along part of the exterior of the plug body and along part of an exterior of the socket body when the plug connector is received at the socket connector.
5 . The coupling assembly of claim 1 , wherein the plug connector includes a stop feature that protrudes from the exterior of the plug body; and wherein the socket connector includes a resilient latch ring disposed within the cavity, the resilient latch ring being configured to expand while camming over the stop feature during insertion of the plug connector and to snap back to an initial size after clearing an apex of the stop feature.
6 . The coupling assembly of claim 5 , wherein the socket body defines an annular groove sized and positioned to accommodate expansion of the latch ring.
7 . The coupling assembly of claim 5 , wherein the release sleeve is configured to move relative to the plug body towards the stop feature to disconnect the plug connector from the socket connector.
8 . The coupling assembly of claim 5 , wherein the stop feature includes a shoulder having a camming surface facing at least partially towards the second end of the plug body and an abutting surface facing at least partially towards the first end of the plug body.
9 . The coupling assembly of claim 1 , wherein at least a third of the plug body is received within the cavity of the socket body.
10 . The coupling assembly of claim 1 , the valve stem being stationary relative to the socket body, the valve sleeve being movable towards and away from the port opening to close and open the valve arrangement, respectively, the valve sleeve being biased towards the port opening to close the second passage.
11 . The coupling assembly of claim 1 , wherein the plug connector and the socket connector are configured such that, when the plug connector is inserted through the second end of the socket connector to couple the plug connector and the socket connector together, the first spring compresses before the second spring compresses.
12 . A coupling assembly, comprising: a plug connector, including: a plug body extending along a longitudinal axis between respective first and second ends, the plug body defining a first passage extending therethrough along the longitudinal axis, the first end of the plug body being configured to receive a respective fluid line, the second end of the plug body defining an interface aperture leading to the first passage; a valve stopper disposed within the first passage to move towards and away from the interface aperture, the valve stopper being biased by a spring towards the interface aperture to close the first passage at the interface aperture, the spring being positioned within the first passage and surrounding an outer surface of the valve stopper, a first portion of the spring being positioned within a notch on the outer surface of the valve stopper; and a stop feature disposed at an exterior of the plug body, the stop feature being spaced along the longitudinal axis from the valve stopper when the valve stopper closes the first passage, the stop feature including a camming surface tapering radially outwardly from the plug body as the camming surface extends along the longitudinal axis towards the first end of the plug body, the stop feature also defining an abutment surface tapering radially inwardly as the abutment surface extends along the longitudinal axis toward the first end of the plug body, the abutment surface having a steeper slope than the camming surface; and a socket body extending along a second longitudinal axis and including a valve sleeve, the valve sleeve having a first end and a second end, wherein the first end of the plug body is configured to be received within the socket body; wherein a second spring abuts against a surface of the first end of the valve sleeve, the surface facing a first end of the socket body; wherein the valve sleeve includes a flange extending radially away from the second longitudinal axis of the socket body; and wherein a length of the valve sleeve from the flange to the second end of the valve sleeve is shorter than a length of the valve sleeve from the flange to the first end of the valve sleeve.
13 . The coupling assembly of claim 12 , further comprising a release sleeve mounted at an exterior of the plug body at a longitudinal midpoint of the plug body.
14 . A socket connector comprising: a socket body extending along a longitudinal axis between respective first and second ends, the first end of the socket body being configured to receive a respective fluid line, the socket body defining a cavity at the second end and a second passage extending along the longitudinal axis from the first end of the socket body and into the cavity, the second end of the socket body defining a port opening leading to the cavity, the cavity being sized to receive a second end of a plug body; and a valve arrangement disposed with the cavity and configured to selectively close and open the second passage, the valve arrangement including a valve stem that is fixed relative to the socket body and a valve sleeve that moves relative to the valve stem and slides within the socket body, the valve sleeve extending along the longitudinal axis from a first end of the valve sleeve towards a second end of the valve sleeve, the second end of the valve sleeve abutting the valve stem when the second passage is closed, the valve sleeve including a flange extending radially away from the longitudinal axis, the flange being offset along the longitudinal axis from the second end of the valve sleeve and configured to contact the second end of the plug body to slide the valve sleeve within the second passage to open the second passage, wherein the second end of the valve sleeve is covered entirely by the valve stem when the valve arrangement is closed; wherein a spring abuts against a surface of the first end of the valve sleeve, the surface facing the first end of the socket body; and wherein a length of the valve sleeve from the flange to the second end of the valve sleeve is shorter than a length of the valve sleeve from the flange to the first end of the valve sleeve.
15 . The socket connector of claim 14 , further comprising a locking arrangement disposed within the cavity at a location spaced along the longitudinal axis from the valve arrangement towards the port opening, the locking arrangement being accessible only within an interior of the cavity, wherein the locking arrangement includes a region of the cavity defining an annular groove and an abutment surface, the locking arrangement also including a latch ring retained within the region, the latch ring being movable along the longitudinal axis between the annular groove and the abutment surface, the latch ring being resiliently expandable within the annular groove.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a National Stage Application of PCT/IB2021/062182 filed Dec. 22, 2021, which claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/128,981, filed Dec. 22, 2020, which applications are hereby incorporated herein by reference. To the extent appropriate, a claim of priority is made to each of the above-disclosed applications. BACKGROUND Motor vehicles—such as cars, motorcycles, and buses—and motor-assisted vehicles—such as electric drive bicycles (hereinafter “e-bikes”)—enable a user to travel quickly for sustained periods with little effort. Such vehicles use robust braking systems, such as hydraulic braking systems, to slow momentum of the vehicle. Improvements are desired. SUMMARY Some aspects of the disclosure are directed to quickly assembling a robust braking arrangement on a motorized or motor-assisted vehicle. For example, certain aspects of the disclosure are directed to quickly assembling a brake actuator with a brake control on an assembly line without needing to bleed a corresponding brake fluid line. Other aspects of the disclosure are directed to a coupling arrangement allowing for quick connect, but prohibiting quick disconnect. In certain implementations, the coupling arrangement includes a plug connector that mates with a socket connector. In certain implementations, the plug and socket connectors mate together without introducing air, liquid, or other contaminants from an exterior of the coupling arrangement into a joined fluid line. A variety of additional inventive aspects will be set forth in the description that follows. The inventive aspects can relate to individual features and to combinations of features. It is to be understood that both the forgoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the broad inventive concepts upon which the embodiments disclosed herein are based. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the description, illustrate several aspects of the present disclosure. A brief description of the drawings is as follows: FIG. 1 is schematic diagram showing two portions of a brake assembly disposed at an assembly line station for connection thereof; FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an example coupling arrangement by which the two portions of the brake assembly of FIG. 1 can be connected, the coupling arrangement including a socket connector and a plug connector: FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the coupling arrangement of FIG. 2 showing the plug connector spaced from the socket connector; FIG. 4 is another perspective view of the coupling arrangement of FIG. 3: FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the socket connector and the plug connector of FIG. 2 shown in a disconnected state; FIGS. 6-8 are enlarged views of a portion of FIG. 5 showing a progression of a stop feature of the plug connector through a latch ring of the socket connector during insertion of the plug connector into the socket connector: FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the coupling arrangement of FIG. 2; FIGS. 10-12 are enlarged views of a portion of FIG. 9 showing a progression of the release sleeve and stop feature relative to the latch ring during removal of the plug connector from the socket connector; and FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of another example design for a coupling arrangement including socket and plug connectors with alternative seal arrangements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION Reference will now be made in detail to exemplary aspects of the present disclosure that are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. The present disclosure is directed to a coupling arrangement for hydraulic lines. The coupling arrangement includes a plug connector terminating a first hydraulic line and a socket connector terminating a second hydraulic line. The plug and socket connectors can be quickly and easily secured together to form a combined hydraulic line. In certain implementations, the connection between the plug and socket connectors is sufficiently secure to inhibit disconnection without the use of a separate tool. In certain implementations, the plug connector and the socket connector secure together without introducing air into the combined hydraulic line. Referring to FIG. 1, configuring a coupling arrangement 106 for a quick and easy connection facilitates use of the coupling arrangement at a station 100 on an assembly line. Accordingly, the coupling arrangement 106 facilitates the efficient assembly of a hydraulic arrangement, such as a brake arrangement 104 for a motorized or motor-assisted vehicle, at the assembly line station 100. Configuring the coupling arrangement 106 to inhibit disconnection enhances the safety and reliability of the connection. Accordingly,