Reinforcing ring with sleeve

Abstract

A compression collar is used for reinforcing an interference fit between a piping end and a fitting. The compression collar comprises a reinforcing ring having a tubular geometry with a radially-inward facing surface and a radially-outward facing surface. A sleeve is received around, at least in part, a portion of the radially-outward facing surface of the reinforcing ring and this sleeve wraps around one axial end of the reinforcing ring to form a stop edge thereon.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A compression collar for reinforcing an interference fit between a piping end and a fitting, the compression collar comprising:
 a reinforcing ring having a tubular geometry with a radially-inward facing surface and a radially-outward facing surface; and   a sleeve received around, at least in part, a portion of the radially-outward facing surface of the reinforcing ring and wrapping around one axial end of the reinforcing ring to form a stop edge thereon.   
     
     
         2 . The compression collar of  claim 1 , wherein the sleeve comprises a different material than the reinforcing ring. 
     
     
         3 . The compression collar of  claim 1 , wherein the sleeve comprises a polymeric material configured to shrink when exposed to heat. 
     
     
         4 . The compression collar of  claim 3 , wherein the polymeric material configured to shrink when exposed to heat is PVC. 
     
     
         5 . The compression collar of  claim 1 , wherein the sleeve comprises a perforation. 
     
     
         6 . The compression collar of  claim 5 , wherein the sleeve comprises two perforations positioned parallel to one another and configured to allow a portion of the sleeve to tear when the compression collar is initially expanded. 
     
     
         7 . The compression collar of  claim 1 , wherein the reinforcing ring is at least one of polyolefin, cross-linked polyolefin, polyethylene, cross-linked polyethylene, PEX, PEX-a, PEX-b, PEX-c, and PERT. 
     
     
         8 . A method for manufacturing a compression collar for reinforcing an interference fit between a piping end and a fitting, the method comprising the steps of:
 forming a reinforcing ring having a tubular geometry with a radially-inward facing surface and a radially-outward facing surface from a cold-expansion material; and   placing a sleeve around, at least in part, a portion of the radially-outward facing surface of the reinforcing ring such that the sleeve wraps around one axial end of the reinforcing ring to form a stop edge thereon.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , the method further comprising shrinking the sleeve around the reinforcing ring. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein shrinking the sleeve around the reinforcing ring includes applying heat to the sleeve as the sleeve surrounds, at least in part, the portion of the reinforcing ring. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the stop edge is formed by shrinking the sleeve on the axial end of the reinforcing ring to a greater degree than a remainder of the sleeve that contacts the radially-outward facing surface of the reinforcing ring. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 8 , the method further comprising cutting the formed reinforcing ring to a desired length. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the cold-expansion material is at least one of polyolefin, cross-linked polyolefin, polyethylene, cross-linked polyethylene, PEX, PEX-a, PEX-b, PEX-c, and PERT. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the step of forming the reinforcing ring is performed by extrusion. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the sleeve comprises PVC. 
     
     
         16 . A method of using a compression collar for reinforcing an interference fit between a piping end and a fitting, the method comprising the steps of:
 placing the compression collar over the piping end, the compression collar comprising a reinforcing ring having a tubular geometry with a radially-inward facing surface and a radially-outward facing surface, and a sleeve received around, at least in part, a portion of the radially-outward facing surface of the reinforcing ring and wrapping around one axial end of the reinforcing ring to form a stop edge;   expanding the compression collar by expanding the piping end; and   placing a fitting within the piping end.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , the method further comprising indicating to a user that the compression collar has been expanded. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the step of further indicating to a user that the compression collar has been expanded occurs when a portion of the sleeve tears. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the sleeve comprises two perforations positioned parallel to each other that are configured to allow a portion of the sleeve to tear when the compression collar is initially expanded. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein the step of expanding the piping end occurs using a pipe expanding tool.