Mud Valve with Integral Yoke and Flange

摘要

A mud valve having a flange frame and yoke that are permanently connected to form a single unit without the aid of removable fasteners is described. Installation of the drain plug is facilitated by an arrangement of guide tabs on either side of the drain plug that are of different distances from the surface of the drain plug. This staggered arrangement allows the drain plug to be installed through a tilting and rotating of the drain plug that brings the tabs into alignment with guide rails on the yoke without necessitating the separation of the yoke from the flange frame. Similarly, the construction described allows the drain plug to be removed for repair or replacement in the field without disassembling the yoke and flange frame.

主权项

1. A mud valve comprising:
a) an annular frame having a lower surface forming a flange, and an upper surface with an open center having an inner circumference forming a seating surface with a seat angle relative to the upper surface of the annular frame; b) a yoke having an arch with an apex, a first arm with an inner surface and an end, and a second arm with an inner surface and an end; the inner surface of the first arm having a guide rail with a thickness, and the inner surface of the second arm having a guide rail with a thickness; the end of the first yoke arm and the end of the second yoke arm being permanently connected to the upper surface of the annular frame; c) a valve plug having a diameter with a first end and a second end, an upper surface, a lower surface with a circumference, and a seating surface on the circumference of the lower surface of the valve plug having a seat angle corresponding to the seat angle of the inner circumference of the annular frame; d) a first pair of tabs comprising a near tab and a far tab mounted on the upper surface of the valve plug at opposite sides of the first end of the diameter, the pair of tabs extending radially past the first end of the diameter of the valve plug and being separated from each other by a distance at least as great as the thickness of the guide rail on the inner surface the first arm of the yoke; e) a second pair of tabs comprising a near tab and a far tab mounted on the upper surface of the valve plug at opposite sides of the second end of the diameter, the pair of tabs extending radially past the second end of the diameter of the valve plug and being separated from each other by a distance at least as great as the thickness of the guide rail on the inner surface the second arm of the yoke; the near tab of the second pair of tabs being on a same side of the diameter as the near tab of the first pair of tabs, and the far tab of the second pair of tabs being on a same side of the diameter as the far tab of the first pair of tabs; f) a valve stem passing through the apex of the yoke and having an end coupled to the upper surface of the valve plug; and wherein each of the near tabs are mounted closer to the upper surface of the valve plug than each of the far tabs, a distance between an upper edge of each near tab and a lower edge of the far tab in the pair of tabs being at least as great as the thickness of the guide rail on the inner surface of the yoke.