Fluid ball joint apparatus and method of fabrication

摘要

A ball joint apparatus for a pressurized fluid line includes a bellows (16) and a pair of opposed tube portions (12, 14) to accommodate limited flexure between the tube portions. The apparatus also includes an annular ball element (20) positioned over one of the tube portions and an annular housing member (30) mounted on the other tube portion and overlapping the ball member (20). As initially formed, the overlapping end (40) of the housing member (30) is open and of a diameter exceeding the maximum diameter of the ball member to permit ease of assembly. After the component parts are in position and welded as desired, the apparatus is placed in a hydraulic press and the open end (38) of the housing member (40) is necked-down by a swaging process to establish bearing contact with the ball member and to form an axially-extending lip (41) to provide additional strength. Alternative arrangements of the apparatus are provided for use with stainless steel tubing and with titanium tubing. <IMAGE>