111111

United States Patent

c12)

1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
US008448888B2

(lO)
(45)

Smith et al.
(54) BALL TUBE MILL TRUNNION SEAL
(75)

2,360,345
2,456,073
2,486,477
2,797,940
3,047,242
3,383,115
3,401,893
3,549,094
3,599,947
3,601,323
3,604,639
3,746,268
4,133,718
4,199,155

Inventors: Daniel P. Smith, Spencer, MA (US);

George King, Ware, MA (US); John
Sund, Oakham, MA (US); Paul Knight,
Spartanburg, SC (US)

(73)

Assignee: Riley Power Inc., Worcester, MA (US)

( *) Notice:

Subject to any disclaimer, the term ofthis

patent is extended or adjusted under 35
U.S.C. 154(b) by 1304 days.

Filed:

Prior Publication Data

US 2009/0058016 Al

Mar. 5, 2009

Related U.S. Application Data

(60)

Provisional application No. 60/968,784, filed onAug.

29, 2007.

(51)

Int. Cl.
B02C 17114

(52)

U.S. Cl.

(58)

(2006.01)

USPC ............ 2411178; 241/176; 241/177; 241/179

Field of Classification Search
CPC ... F27B 7/24; B02C 17/04; B02C 17/06; B02C
17/002; B02C
17/22 USPC .......................... 277/903; 241/176183,299
See application file for complete search history.

(56)

References Cited
U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
1,590,655 A
1,607,828 A
1,794,454 A

*
*
*
*
*

10/1944
12/1948
1111949
7/1957
7/1962
5/1968
9/1968
12/1970
8/1971
8/1971
9/1971
7/1973
111979
4/1980

May 28,2013

Hilkemeier
Newhouse ...................... 241167
Kennedy
Michener, Jr. et al. ....... 277/353
Genier
Eckley et al.
Reynolds ...................... 2411171
Kurtz ............................ 2411171
Sherwood et al.
Giencke .......................... 241/70
Jenness
Kastrinos et al.
Jaquay
Day et al. ...................... 277/377

International Search Report dated Mar. 11, 2009 for PCT/US2008/

074857.

Aug. 29, 2008

(65)

A
A
A
A
A
A
A
A
A
A
A
A
A
A

US 8,448,888 B2

(Continued)
OTHER PUBLICATIONS

(21) Appl. No.: 12/201,609

(22)

Patent No.:
Date of Patent:

6/1926 Spicer
1111926 Holthoff et al.
3/1931 Green

Primary Examiner- Vishal Patel

Assistant Examiner- Nathan Cumar
(74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm- Edwards Wildman Palmer
LLP; Joshua L. Jorres
(57)

ABSTRACT

A trunnion sea! assembly for joining a stationary

inlet/outlet box of a hall tube mili to a rotational interior of
the hall tube mili includes an outer ring component
configured to be
mounted toan outerwall ofthe stationary inlet!outlet box. An
inner ring component is joined to the outer ring component
substantially concentrically with the outer ring component.
A flexible pad sea! is configured to be joined to the outer
wall of the stationary inlet/outlet box proximate outer ring
compo nent. The pad sea! includes a first annular sealing
surface. A mili head extension ring configured to bejoined
toa rotational mili head is located proximate to and
substantially concentric with the inner ring component.
The mili head extension includes a second annular sealing
surface sealingly engaged with the first annular sealing
surface ofthe flexible pad sea!.
11 Claims, 1O Drawing Sheets

122

US 8,448,888 B2
Page 2
U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
4,338,868
4,795,572
4,874,349
4,966,471
5,000,462

A
A
A
A
A

711982
111989
10/1989
10/1990
3/1991

Lientz
LaVal ley
Gall ................................ 464/14
Trozzi
Trozzi

5,361,997 A * 1111994 Burkes ............................ 241/70

5,814,273 A
9/1998 Nielsen
6,550,778 Bl * 4/2003 Zutz .............................. 277/358
2006/0249610 Al
1112006 Bliss et al.
2009/0058016 Al* 3/2009 Smith et al. ................... 277/607

* cited by examiner

U.S. Patent

May 28,2013

Sheet 3of 10

US 8,448,888 B2

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FIG. 2

{PRIOR ART)

IQ,_/

100

FIG.3
105

FIG.4
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U.S. Patent

May 28,2013

US 8,448,888 B2

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US 8,448,888 B2
1
BALL TUBE MILL TRUNNION SEAL
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED
APPLICATIONS
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional
Patent Application Ser. No. 60/968,784 filedAug. 29,2007,
whichis incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
l. Field ofthe Invention
The present invention relates to a systems and methods
for sealing trunnions, and more particularly to systems and
meth ods for sealing trunnions of ball tube milis for
pulverizing materials.
2. Background ofthe RelatedArt
Ball tube milis are used in material size reduction pro
cesses, such as grinding coa! or other minerals. A typical
ball tube mili includes a large, cylindrical drum that rotates
along its axis, supported by a trunnion on each end. As the
drum rotates, a mass ofballs and coa! or other material mix
in the bottom ofthe drum, whichreduces the particle size
ofthe coa! or other material. Particles that are fine enough
become air bome and are vented out of the drum for use in
further pro cesses such as coa! combustion. New coa! or
other material enters through the ends of the drum to
replace the airborne particles leaving the ends ofthe drum.
In arder to move material between the rotating drum and
related stationary components such as a coa! piping system,
for example, the rotating drum typically connects at each
end to a stationary inlet/outlet box via a trunnion sea!. The
trun nion sea! allows passage of material between the
rotating drum and the stationary inlet/outlet box while
discouraging or

2
In one aspect of the invention, the trunnion sea! can
further include a sea! sleeve joined to the stationary ring
component and having an outward facing sea! face aronnd
the circumfer ence thereoffor engagement toan inward
facing sea! face of the mili head extension ring. At least one
of the inward facing sea! face of the mili head extension
ring and the outward facing sea! face of the stationary
ring component can be grooved. An air sea! channel can be
defined between the sea! sleeve, pad sea!, and stationary
ring component. It is contem10 plated that the second annular sealing surface can be gener
ally convex, concave, flat, or any other suitable shape.
The invention also provides a trunnion sea! ring for a
ball tube mili. The sea! ring includes an outer ring
component configured to be mounted to an outer wall of
a stationary
15 inlet/outlet box of a ball tube mili. The outer ring
component
includes an outer filler body defined along a chord of a
circle defined by the inner circumference ofthe outer ring
compo nent. An inner ring component includes an inner
filler body defined along a chord of a circle defined by the
inner circum20 ference thereof. The inner ring component is joined to the
outer ring component substantially concentrically with the
inner and outer filler bodies defining a filler having a
substan tially triangular cross-sectional profile.
In another aspect, the inner and outer ring components are
25 configured to be assembled into a ball tube mili by
positioning the inner ring component partially into the ball
tube mili so the inner ring component is substantially
concentric with the ball tube mili, then inserting the outer
ring component axially outside the inner ring component
and into alignment there30 with, and bolting the inner and outer ring components
together. The inner ring component can include a circular
sea! sleeve configured to extend from an inward portian of
the inner ring component into an interior passage of a ball
tube mili.
preventing
material from
The
invention
further
escaping
into
the provides a trunnion sea!
surroundings. It is 35
assembly for joining a
advantageous to form the
stationary inlet/outlet box of
best possible sea! between
a ball tube mili to a
station ary and rotating
rotational interior of the ball
components, as the fine
tube mili. The trunnion sea!
assembly includes an outer
particles
involved
can
ring component, an inner
readily escape if the sea! is
ring component, a flexible
inadequate. When operating
pad sea!, anda mili head
a ball tube mili, the
extension ring substantially
trunnion seals wear down
as described above. The
and eventually
need to be replaced. This can inner and outer filler bodies
be exacerbated by the fact that define a filler having a
40
substantially triangular crossthe rotating axis of the mili
sectional profile. The outer
ring component includes an
tends to move downward as
axi ally outward base of the
its bearings wearwith use.
triangular profile and the
Replacing the trunnion seals
inner
ring
component
typically requires removing
includes an axially inward
the inlet/outlet box from
apex ofthe triangular
foundation
blocks
underthetrunnions,
whichresults in significant
down
time.
their intended purpose. How
Such
conventional ever, there still remains a
methods
and
systems continued need in the art for a
generally
have
been trunnion sea! that has an
considered satisfactory for improved service life and is

US 8,448,888 B2
1
easier to

install and remove. The

present invention provides a
solution 50
for these problems.
SUMMARY OF THE
INVENTION
The subject invention is
directed toa new and useful
trun- 55 nion sea! for a ball
tube mili. The trunnion sea!
includes a stationary ring
component configured to be
mounted around
an inlet/outlet passage of
a ball tube mili. A
flexible pad sea! is joined
to the stationary ring
component. The pad
sea!

includes a first annular

sealing surface. A mili head
extension
ring is configured to be
joined to a rotational mili
head proxi mate to and
substantially
concentric
with the stationary ring
component. The mili head
extension includes a second
annu- lar sealing surface
sealingly engaged with the
first annular
sealing surface ofthe flexible
pad sea!. The first and
second 65 annular sealing
surfaces forma sea! to
discourage passage of
particles within the mili
passing into the surrounding
air.

profile.
In another aspect, the
trunnion sea! assembly
includes a stationary ring
component configured to
be joined to an outer wall
ofthe inlet/outlet box
radially outward ofthe
outer ring component.
The
stationary
ring
component can include
a
plurality of circumferential
sections configured to be
sepa
rated and joined for
installation and removal
around the outer ring
component. In yet another
aspect, the inner ring
compo nent, outer ring
component, pad sea!, and
mili head extension ring
can be configured and
adapted to be installed and
unin stalled between a
rotational portian of a ball
tube mili and a stationary
inlet/outlet box leaving
the inlet/outlet box in
place.
These and other features
of the systems and methods
ofthe subject invention will
become more readily
apparent to those
60 skilled in the art from the
following
detailed
description
ofthe
preferred embodiments
taken in conjunction with
the draw- ings.

45

BRIEF
DESCRIPTION OF
THE DRAWINGS

So that those skilled in

the art to which the subject
inven tion appertains will
readily understand how to
make and use

US 8,448,888 B2

the devices and methods of the subject invention without

FIG. 19 is a schematic view of a second step of installing
a trunnion sea! ring, showing the inner ring component
undue experimentation, preferred embodiments thereof will
being aligned with the opening ofthe drum;
be described in detail herein below with reference to certain
FIG. 20 is a schematic view of a third step of installing a
figures, wherein:
trunnion sea! ring, showing the inner ring component posi
FIG. 1is a cross-sectional side elevation view of a ball
tioned partially within the drum;
tube
FIG. 21 is a schematic view of a fourth step of installing a
mili for material size reduction, including the drum and
trunnion sea! ring, showing the outer ring component being
trun nion on each end ofthe drum;
positioned between the inlet/outlet box and the inner ring
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side elevation view of a portian
of a prior art trunnion sea! component having a split sea! 10 component; and
FIG. 22 is a schematic view of a fifth step of installing a
configuration;
trunnion sea! ring, showing the inner and outer ring compo
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side elevation view of a
nents joined together.
portian
DETAILED
of trunnion sea! constructed in accordance with the present faces of a stationary, flexible
DES
invention, showing engagement between annular sealing pad sea! and a rotational mili
CRI
sur
15
PTI
head extension;
ON
FIG. 4 is a crossOF
sectional side elevation
THE
view of a portian of a
PRE
trunnion sea! assembly
FER
constructed in accordance
RED
with the present invention,
EM
showing two portions of the
BO
trunnion
DIM
sea! ring combined to forma
ENT
single trunnion sea! ring having
S
20 a wedge shaped portian
forming part of an inlet/outlet
Reference will now be
pas sage between the drum
made to the drawings
ofthe mili and the inlet/outlet
wherein
like
reference
box;
numerals identify similar
structural features or aspects
FIG. 5 is a front
ofthe subject invention. For
elevation
view
ofthe
purposes of explanation and
trunnion sea! ring of FIG.
illustration,
and
not
4, showing both portions
limitation, a partial view of
of the trunnion sea! ring
an exem plary embodiment
ofthe trunnion sea! in
accordance
with
the
invention is shown in FIG. 3
and is designated generally
by reference character 100.
Other embodiments
of
trunnion
25 seals in accordance with the
together;
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional invention, or aspects thereof, are
provided in FIGS. 4-22, as
side elevation view ofthe
will be described. The
trun nion sea! ring ofFIG. 5,
system of the invention can
showing
both
portions
be u sed to increase service
ofthetrunnion
sea!
ring
life
and
facilitate
together;
installationlremoval
FIG. 7 is a front elevation
oftrunnion seals in ball
view ofthe inner portian
tube milis.
ofthe
Ball tube milis are used
in material size reduction
pro
cesses, such as grinding coa!
trunnion sea! ring of FIG. 4,
or other minerals. FIG.
showing the inner part of the
1shows
30
a ball tube mili, which
wedge-shaped portian;
rotates
a
drum
103
FIG. 8 is a crosssupported by a trunnion
sectional side elevation
101on either end.As drum
view ofthe inner portian
103rotates, the mass 104
ofthe trunnion sea! ring
ofballs and coa! or other
ofFIG. 7, showing the inner
material mixes in the bottom
of drum
103, which reduces the

US 8,448,888 B2
particle size of the coa! or
part ofthe wedge-shaped
portian;
FIG. 9 is a front
elevation view ofthe outer
portian ofthe trunnion sea!
ring of FIG. 4, showing
the outer part of the
wedge-shaped portian;
FIG.10 is a crosssectional side elevation
view ofthe outer

other
35 material. Particles that are
fine enough become
airborne and are vented
out of drum 103 for use
in further processes. New
coa! (or other material)
also enters through the
ends of drum 103 to
replace
the
airborne
particles leaving drum
103, as indicated by
arrows in FIG. l.
portian ofthe trunnion sea!
When operating a ball
ring ofFIG. 9, showing the
tube mili, eventually the
outer 40
seals of
p
trunnions 101need to be
a
replaced. This can involve
r
removing inlet/outlet boxes
t
122from foundation blocks
102undertrun nions 101,
o
which
results
in
f
significant downtime, as
t
dis cussed above.
h
Trunnion bearing ball tube
e
milis ("btm's") employ a
trunw
nion sea! at each end that
e
prevents fine particle dust
d
from escaping. Originally, a
g
split sea! configuration 10
e
was employed, which is
shown in FIG. 2. It was
s
found,
however,
that
h
effectiveness ofthe split
a
sea! components 12was
p
reduced
e
d
p
o
r
t
i
a
n
;
FIG. 11is a front
elevation view of a
trunnion sea! assem bly
constructed
in
accordance
with
the
present
invention,
showing the assembly as
viewed from the mili side
ofthe sea!;
FIG. 12 is a crosssectional front elevation
view of the 45
trunnion sea! assembly
ofFIG. 11, showing the
flexible pad sea!member
engaged with the sealing
surface of the mili head
extension;
FIG. 13 is a side elevation
view ofthe trunnion sea!
assem
bly of FIG. 11, showing
sections of the stationary ring
the circumferential
component;

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional
side elevation view of a
portian
of the trunnion ring sea!
assembly of FIG. 11,
showing a cross-section
taken along section line 1414 ofFIG. 11;
FIG. 15is a cross-sectional
side elevation view of a
portian of the trunnion ring
sea! assembly of FIG. 11,
showing
a cross-section
taken along section line 1515 ofFIG. 11;
FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional
side elevation view of a
portian of the trunnion ring
sea! assembly of FIG. 11,
showing
a cross-section
taken along section line 1616 ofFIG. 11;
FIG. 17 is a crosssectional plan view of a
portian of the trunnion ring
sea! assembly of FIG. 11,
showing a cross section
taken along section line 1717 ofFIG. 11;
FIG. 18 is a schematic
view of a first step of
installing a
trunnion sea! ring in
accordance with the present
invention, 65
showing the inner ring
component being positioned
between the inlet/outlet box
and the drum ofthe mili;

rather quickly as the

bearings of the mili wore,
causing the mili axis
moved downward slightly.
FIG. 3 shows sea!
components 114 and 118 in
accordance
with the invention, which
can be used to replace the
original sea! configuration
10 and thereby extend the
service life ofthe
55 sea!. Sea! components 114
and 118in FIG. 3 provide a
longer effective sealing life
because as the mili wears,
drurn 103 and mili head
extension
118
move
downward, but pad sea!
114 does not loose its sea!
with adjacent mili head
extension ring 118.
60
With
continued
reference to FIG. 3,
trunnion sea! 100 includes
a
stationary
ring
component 112 configured
to be mounted around an
inlet/outlet passage of a ball
tube mili, i.e. the passage
between the interior drum
103 and inlet/outlet box
122. Flexible pad sea! 114
is joined to stationary ring
component 112. Pad seal114
includes a first annular
sealing surface facing inward
toward the interior of drum
103. Mili head extension ring
118is joined toa rotational
mili head (i.e.
50

US 8,448,888 B2
5
at trunnion 101) proximate to and substantially concentric
with stationary ring component 112. Mili head extension 118
includes a second annular sealing surface sealingly engaged
with the first annular sealing surface ofthe flexible pad sea!,
as indicated in FIG. 3. The annular sealing surfaces of pad
sea! 114 and mili head extension 118 form a sea! to
discourage passage of particles within the rotating drum 103
passing into the surrounding air.
Trunnion seal100 includes a trunnion ring 106 having a
sea! sleeve 105. Trunnion ring 106 is fixed with respect to 10
stationary ring component 112, since trunnion ring 106 and
stationary ring component 112 are both fixed to outer wall
120 of inlet/outlet box 122. Sea! sleeve 105 has an outward
facing sea! face around the circumference thereof for engage
ment toan inward facing sea! face of mili head extension ring
15 118, as indicated in FIG. 3. The inward facing sealing surface
of mili head extension ring 118 is grooved to facilitate
sealing trunnion 101. However, this is an optional feature
and one or both of the sealing surfaces of mili head
extension ring 118

6
ary inlet/outlet box 122 to the rotational interior of a ball tube
mili. FIG. 11 shows a view ofthe assembly oftrunnion sea!
100 as seen from the mili side. FIG.12 shows a similar, albeit
cross-sectional view taken along section line 12-12 indicated
in the side elevation view of FIG. 13. FIG. 13 shows that
stationary ring component 112 includes a plurality of circum
ferential sections 132 that can be separated and joined for
installation and removal of stationary ring component 112
around inner and outer ring components 108/110. Pad sea!
114 is shown in FIG. 12 with circumferential sections, and
mili head extension 118 can also advantageously be sectioned
circumferentially. FIGS. 14-17 show cross sectional views of
the trunnion sea! assembly of FIGS. 11-13 taken along sec
tion lines 14-14, 15-15, 16-16, and 17-17, respectively.
Referring now to FIGS. 18-22, a method of installing the
trunnion sea! assembly ofFIG. 11 is shown. As shown in
FIG. 18, inner ring component 108 is installed first, with
the sea! sleeve 105 retracted out from, but directed toward
the ball tube mili, with the outermost portian of inner ring
component
and sea! sleeve 105 can be 108 includes an inner filler
smooth or can have any body 128 defined along a
other
suitable
texture chord of a circle defined by
without departing from the the
inner
circumference
scope of the invention.
thereof, as shown in FIGS. 5
An air sea! channel 124
and 7.
is defined between
Inner ring component 108
trunnion ring
is joined to outer ring
106 (including sea! sleeve
compo
105), pad seal114, and nent
110
substantially
stationary ring component concentrically with inner and
112. Air sea! channel124 outer filler bodies 128/130
contains sea! air which defining a filler 126 having a
prevents
or
reduces substan tially triangular crosspulverized coa! or other sectional profile, as shown in
materials from escaping. The FIGS. 4 and 6. Assembled
annular sealing surface of trunnion ring 106, inner ring
mili head extension ring 118 component
is generally convex, as
shown in FIG. 4, however, it
can be also be generally
concave, flat, or of any
suitable contour without
departing from the spirit and
scope ofthe invention.
With reference now to
FIG. 4, a trunnion sea! ring
106 is depicted for a ball
tube mili. Sea!ring 106 can
advantageously u sed in
conjunction
with
pad
seal114 and mili head
extension 118, or with
conventional trunnion seals
to simplifY installa tion and
removal of trunnion seals.
Sea! ring 106 includes an
outer ring component 11O
configured to be mounted
to an outer wall120 of
stationary inlet/outlet box
122 of a ball tube mili.
Outer ring component 11O
includes an outer filler body
130 defined along a chord
of a circle defined by the
inner circumference
of
outer ring component 110,
as shown in FIGS. 5 and 9.
An inner ring component

US 8,448,888 B2
108 elose to outer
wall120 of inlet/outlet
box 122. FIG. 18 shows
inner ring component
108
being
inserted
between trun nion 101
and inlet/outlet box 122
vertically, however this
is for sake of clarity.
Inner ring component
108 can also be brought
into position laterally, or
from
any
suitable
direction.
25 FIG. 19 shows inner ring
component 108 between
trunnion
101
and
inlet/outlet box 122,
and
substantially
concentric with drum
103. In this position,
inner ring component is
then shifted partially
into trunnion 101, as
shown in FIG. 20.
Outer ring component 11O is
then positioned between
inlet/
30 outlet box 122 and
inner ring component
108 (from any suitable
direction including
vertically as shown in
FIG. 21). Once outer
ring component 110 is
properly aligned, it can
be joined to inner ring
component 110 to form
trunnionring 106, as
shown in FIG. 22. It is
contemplated that one or
more bolts

20

108, andouter ring component

110 are shown in cross-section
50 from the side in FIGS. 6, 8,
and 10, respectively. As shown
in FIG. 10, outer ring
component 110 includes an
axially out ward base of the
triangular profile of filler 126,
andas shown
in FIG. 8, inner ring
component 108 includes an
axially
inward apex of the triangular
profile of filler 126. Filler 126
55 forms a portian of the chute
for moving material between
inlet/outlet box 122 and drum
103 (compare FIG. 1).
The two-part construction
of trunnion ring 106 allows
installation and removal
thereofwithout the need to
remove inlet/outlet box 122
from foundation block 102, as
will be 60 described in greater
detail below. This is an
advantage over conventional
trunnion rings, for which the

116 can be used to join

ring components 108/110
together
while also joining them to
outer wall120 of inlet
outlet box
122. The positioning of
one or both of ring
components 108/ 110 can
include shimming or any
other suitable technique.
Other components, e.g.,
pad seal114 and mili head
extension
40 ring 118 can be installed
during this process. It is also
possible
to
install
components
having
circumferential
sections (e.g., stationary
ring component 112 with
circumferential sections
132) after trunnion ring
106 has been assembled
into place. The reversing
of these procedures, or
similar steps, can be
45 u sed to remove the
trunnion ring assembly. All of
this can be
done
without
removal of
inlet/outlet
box 122.
Since the inlet/outlet
box assembly does not
have to be removed to
accommodate
the
installation
ofthe
components
oftrunnion
seal100,
approximately
two days of maintenance
corresponding inlet/outlet
box 122 is removed during
installation and removal.
As shown in FIGS. 11-17,
trunnion ring 106, mili head
65 extension 118, stationary
ring component 112, and pad
sea! 114 combine to forma
trunnion sea! assembly to join
station35

labor per sea! are saved

during
installation
or
replacement of trunnion
seals. And where there are
two seals per ball tube mili,
the
total
savings
is
approximately four days of
mainte nance labor per
mili, which means four
days less of lost generation
capability. These advantages
result from the two part
construction of trunnion
ring 106, which can be
posi tioned laterally into
place one part at a time as
described
above,
and
removed by the reverse
process.
The
methods
and
systems of the present

invention, as described
above and shown in the
drawings, provide methods
and
systems
with
superiorproperties
including improved ser vice
life
and
ease
of
installation and removal,
leading to reduction of
downtime for ball tube
milis. While the appara tus
and methods ofthe subject
invention have been shown
and
described
with
reference
to
preferred
embodiments, those skilled
in the art will readily
appreciate that changes
andlor modifications may
be made thereto without
departing from the spirit
and scope ofthe invention.

US 8,448,888 B2
7

What is claimed is:

l. A trunnion sea! assembly for joining a stationary
inlet/ outlet box of a ball tube milito a rotational interior of
the ball tube mili, the trunnion sea! assembly comprising:
a) an outer ring component configured to be mounted
toan
outer wall of a stationary inlet/outlet box of a ball tube
mili, the outer ring component having an outer filler
body defined along a chord of a circle defined by the
inner circumference ofthe outer ring component;

ring includes an inward facing sea! face configured for

engagement to the sea! face ofthe sea! sleeve.

4. A trunnion sea! assembly as recited in claim 3,

wherein the inward facing sea! face ofthe mili head
extension ring is grooved.
5. A trunnion sea! assembly as recited in claim 1,
wherein an air sea! channel is defined between the inner
ring compo nent, the outer ring component, the pad sea!,
anda stationary
b)an inner ring component including an inner filler body
10 ring component joining the pad sea! to an outer wall
of the
inlet/outlet box.
defined along a chord
of a circle defined by
6. A trunnion sea!
the
inner
assembly
as recited in
circumference of the
claim 1, wherein the
inner ring component,
second annular sealing
the
inner
ring
surface
is
generally
component
being
arcuate.
joined to the outer ring
7. A trunnion sea!
compo
nent
assembly as recited in
substantially
claim 1, wherein
concentrically with the 15
the
second annular sealing
inner and outer filler
bodies defining a filler surface is generally flat.
having a substantially
8. A trunnion sea!
triangular
crossassembly as recited in
sectional
profile
claim 1, wherein the inner
wherein the outer ring
and
outer
ring
component includes an
components
are
axially outward base
configured to be installed
ofthe
tri
angular
into a ball tube mili by
profile, and wherein
positioning the inner ring
the
inner
ring
component
includes an axially
inward apex of the
triangular profile;
e) a flexible pad sea!
1, further comprising a
configured to be joined
circular sea! sleeve
to the outer 20 wall of
extending axially inward
the stationary
from the inner ring
inlet/outlet box
component, wherein the
proximate the outer ring sea! sleeve is configured to
component, the pad sea! extend into an interior
including a first annupassage of a ball tube 35
lar sealing surface; and
mili.
d) a mili head extension
3. A trunnion sea!
ring configured to be
assembly as recited in
joined to a rotational
claim 2, wherein the sea!
mili head proximate to
sleeve
includes
an
and substantially con- 25 outward facing sea! face
centric with the inner
around the circumference
ring component, the
thereof, and wherein the
mili head extension
mili head extension
including a second
annular sealing surface
sealingly engaged with
the first annular sealing
surface
of the pad sea!, the
first and second annular
sealing surfaces forming
a sea! to discourage
passage of par- 30 tieles
within the mili passing
into the surrounding air.
2. A trunnion sea!
assembly as recited in claim

US 8,448,888 B2
component partially into the
ball tube mili, then inserting
the
outer
ring
component
axially outside the inner
ring compo nent and into
alignment therewith, and
bolting the inner and outer
ring components together.
9. A trunnion
sea!
assembly as recited in claim
1, further comprising a
stationary ring component
configured to be joined toan
outer wall of the inlet/outlet
box radially outward ofthe
outer ring component.
1O. A trunnion sea!
assembly as recited in claim
9, wherein the stationary
ring component includes a

plurality
of
circum
ferential
sections
configured to be separated
and joined for installation
and removal around the
outer ring component.
11. A
trunnion
sea!
assembly as recited in
claim 1, wherein the inner
ring component, outer ring
component, pad sea!, and
mili head extension ring
are
configured
and
adapted to be installed and
uninstalled
between
a
rotational portian of a ball
tube mili and a stationary
inlet/outlet box leaving the
inlet/ outlet box in place.

* * * * *