Pipe joint

Claim 1

IN A PIPE JOINT COMPRISING A MALE COMPONENT, A FEMALE COMPONENT, AND A FLUID SEALING GASKET WHEREIN SAID FEMALE COMPONENT HAS A CIRCUMFERENTIALLY EXTENDING RADIALLY INWARDLY OPENING GROOVE ADJACENT AN AXIAL EXTREMITY THEREOF AND WHEREIN SAID MALE COMPONENT IS INSERTED WITHIN SAID FEMALE COMPONENT AND SAID GASKET IS POSITIONED BETWEEN SAID MALE AND FEMALE COMPONENT TO EFFECT A FLUID SEAL THEREBETWEEN, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING: (A) A GASKET COMPRISING RESILIENT MATERIAL HAVING A RADIALLY OUTER PORTION OF GREATEST OUTSIDE DIAMETER CLOSELY FITTED WITHIN SAID GROOVE AND HELD THEREON AGAINST ANY SUBSTANTIAL MOVEMENT, (B) SAID GASKET HAVING A PLURALITY OF INTEGRAL AXIALLY EXTENDING ARMS, (C) SAID GASKET HAVING AT SAID AXIALLY EXTENDING ARMS A WIDTH IN AN AXIAL DIRECTION GREATER THAN THE WIDTH OF SAID GROOVE IN SAID AXIAL DIRECTION, (D) SAID AXIALLY EXTENDING ARMS HAVING AN OUTSIDE DIAMETER SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL TO THE DIAMETER OF THE INNER PERIPHERAL SURFACES OF SAID COUPLING ON EITHER AXIAL SIDE OF SAID GROOVE, (E) SAID GASKET HAVING A RADIALLY INNER PORTION OF SMALLEST DIAMETER HAVING A WIDTH IN AN AXIAL DIRECTION SMALLER THAN THE WIDTH OF SAID GASKET IN SAID AXIALLY EXTENDING ARMS, (F) SAID PIPE END WHEN BEING INSERTED IN SAID COUPLING CONTACTING SAID RADIALLY INNER PORTION AND DEFORMING SAID RADIALLY INNER PORTION AXIALLY INWARDLY AND RADIALLY OUTWARDLY SO THAT SAID RADIALLY INNER PORTION AND THE AXIALLY INNER ONE OF SAID AXIALLY EXTENDING ARMS EXERT COMPRESSIVE FORCES AGAINST SAID PIPE END AND SAID COUPLING, AND (G) THE AXIALLY OUTER ONE OF SAID AXIALLY EXTENDING ARMS BEING DEFORMED INTO CONTACT WITH SAID PIPE END.