Holding device for pipes and a method of making and using same

DETAILED DESCRIPTION This application claims the priority of German Application No.
100 35 020.
8, filed in Germany on Jul.
18, 2000, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
The invention relates to a holding device for holding pipes and a method of making and using same.
Such holding devices are used for the pipes of hydraulic systems to hold and provide vibration decoupling to units and pipes with average insulation properties.
Until now, plastic clips with elastomer inserts have been used for this purpose.
However, known plastic clips have several drawbacks.
Firstly, they provide acoustically insufficient decoupling for hydraulic systems.
Secondly, their ability to compensate tolerances is very limited.
This can cause the holding device to be deformed and lead to acoustic deterioration.
Further, proper installation of these known holding devices is critical since they lose their acoustic insulation properties if they are deformed during installation.
Thus, the object of the invention is to develop a holding device that obviates these drawbacks and does not lead to a deterioration of the acoustic properties even under critical conditions.
The holding device according to the invention has the advantage, on the one hand, that it can absorb or compensate tolerances or changes in pipe length in any direction.
On the other hand, good acoustic decoupling of the pipes is achieved even if tolerance inaccuracies cause a deformed mounting position, since adequate freedom of motion in all three spatial directions is ensured by the elastic elements on which the clip, and thus the pipes are supported.
According to a preferred embodiment, the elastic elements can comprise springs, rubber elements, elastomer elements or the like.
Such elements are generally known and can thus be readily produced or procured in any design and with any characteristics at little cost.
According to a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the fixed support bracket is T-shaped along a side-view, with a horizontal cross member and a vertical shaft