Pipe joint

Claim 1

A PIPE JOINT FOR JOINING TWO PIPE SECTIONS IN END TO END ALIGNMENT, COMPRISING: A UNITARY CLAMPING BAND ENCIRCLING AND BRIDGING ADJACENT ENDS OF TWO PIPE SECTIONS, EACH OF SAID ADJACENT ENDS HAVING A RADIALLY OUTWARDLY DIRECTED FLANGE, THE CLAMPING BAND HAVING, A LONGITUDINAL SPLIT PROVIDING IT WITH TWO CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED APART ENDS, TWO LUGS AT EACH OF SAID ENDS PROVIDING TWO PAIRS OF OPPOSITE LUGS, THE OPPOSITE LUGS BEING CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED APART SUFFICIENTLY TO PREVENT THEIR COMING TOGETHER WHEN THE CLAMPING BAND IS TIGHTENED ABOUT THE TWO PIPE SECTIONS BY DRAWING THE ENDS CLOSER TOGETHER, A SLIT EXTENDING CIRCUMFERENTIALLY BETWEEN SAID TWO PAIRS OF OPPOSITE LUGS DIVIDING THE CLAMPING BAND INTO TWO LONGITUDINALLY SIDE BY SIDE AND INDEPENDENTLY ADJUSTABLE SPLIT RINGS WHICH ARE JOINED TOGETHER FOR A PORTION OF THEIR CIRCUMFERENCE DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSITE THE LUGS, A TONGUE EXTENDING FROM ONE END OF EACH OF SAID ADJUSTABLE SPLIT RINGS INTO A GROOVE IN TEH INSIDE SURFACE OF THE OPPOSITE END OF THE SAME ADJUSTABLE SPLIT RING AND A CIRCUMFERENTIAL RECESS IN THE INNER SURFACE THEREOF POSITIONED OVER AND HAVING AN AXIAL EXTENT AT LEAST AS GREAT AS THE AXIAL DISTANCE BETWEEN THE AXIALLY OUTERMOST PORTIONS OF SAID FLANGES, SAID RECESS IN SAID BAND HAVING A RADIAL DEPTH SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL TO THE RADIAL HEIGHT OF SAID FLANGE; A UNITARY GENERALLY CYLINDRICAL SLEEVE OF ELASTOMERIC MATERIAL ENCIRCLING AND BRIDGING THE ADJACENT ENDS OF THE TWO PIPE SECTIONS INTERPOSED BETWEEN THE CLAMPING BAND AND THE PIPE SECTIONS, SAID SLEEVE HAVING AN AXIAL EXTENT GREATER THAN THE AXIAL EXTENT OF SAID CIRCUMFERENTIAL RECESS, THE SLEEVE HAVING AT APPROXIMATELY THE LONGITUDINAL MIDPOINT OF ITS INTERNAL SURFACE A PROJECTION EXTENDING RADIALLY INWARD BETWEEN THE ADJACENT ENDS OF THE TWO PIPE SECTIONS WHEREBY THE PIPE ENDS ARE SPACED AND CENTERED IN THE SLEEVE; AND A BOLT EXTENDING THROUGH EACH PAIR OF LUGS PROVIDING MEANS FOR INDEPENDENTLY CLAMPING EACH OF THE SPLIT RINGS ABOUT ONE OF THE TWO PIPE SECTIONS TO FROM A CONTINUOUS CIRCUMFERENTIAL RING OF COMPRESSION OF THE SLEEVE AGAINST EACH PIPE SECTION, THE CLAMPING BAND BEING SUBSTANTIALLY FREE OF CONTACT WITH THE TWO PIPE SECTIONS.