Patent Application
20210340769
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The disclosure relates to downspout devices and more particularly pertains to a new downspout device for automatically rotating a downspout into an upright position.
The prior art relates to downspout devices. The prior art discloses an automatically tipping downspout that rotatably engages a gutter and which is manually positionable between an upright position and a downward position. The prior art discloses a downspout that includes a horizontal section that is hingedly coupled to a vertical section. The prior art also discloses an automatic downspout that is biased into an upright position with spring tension and which is urged into a downward position by weight of an entrained column of water.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising an intake pipe that is fluidly coupled to a downspout of a gutter on a building to receive precipitation from the downspout. A spout is rotatably coupled to and extends laterally away from the intake pipe and the spout is in fluid communication with the intake pipe to receive the precipitation. A stand is positionable beneath the intake pipe when the intake pipe is fluidly coupled to the downspout to support the intake pipe above a support surface. A tipping pipe is fluidly coupled to the spout to receive precipitation from the spout. The tipping pipe is biased into a home position and the tipping pipe can be urged into a tipped position when the tipping pipe fills with precipitation. In this way the tipping pipe directs the precipitation onto ground.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
A bearing 28 is provided and the bearing 28 is coupled to the outer wall 24. The bearing 28 is aligned with the fluid opening 26 and the bearing 28 has a rotatable portion 30 with respect to the intake pipe 12. The bearing 28 may comprise a friction reducing bearing, such as a ring bearing or the like. Additionally, the bearing 28 may be fluid impermeable to inhibit fluid from escaping through the bearing 28.
A spout 32 is rotatably coupled to and extends laterally away from the intake pipe 12. The spout 32 is in fluid communication with the intake pipe 12 wherein the spout 32 is configured to receive the precipitation 19. The spout 32 has an outlet 34 therein for passing the precipitation 19 outwardly therethrough and the spout 32 is positioned on the rotatable portion of the bearing 28. The spout 32 is rotatable about a perpendicular axis with respect to an axis extending through the upper end 20 and the lower end 22 of the intake pipe 12.
The spout 32 is aligned with the fluid opening 26 to receive the precipitation 19. Additionally, the outlet 34 is directed toward the upper end 20 of the intake pipe 12 when the spout 32 is rotated into a home position. The outlet 34 is directed downwardly when the spout 32 is rotated into a downspout position. Moreover, the spout 32 has a distal end 36 with respect to the intake pipe 12 and the spout 32 is threaded adjacent to the distal end 36.
A stand 38 is positionable beneath the intake pipe 12 when the intake pipe 12 is fluidly coupled to the downspout 14 to support the intake pipe 12 above a support surface 40, such as an exterior wall of the building 18. The stand 38 includes a plurality of legs 42 and a saddle 44, and each of the legs 42 extends downwardly from the saddle 44. The saddle 44 is concavely arcuate such that the saddle 44 conforms to curvature of the lower end 22 of the intake pipe 12 and each of the legs 42 is coupled to the support surface with fasteners or the like. As is most clearly shown in
A tipping pipe 46 is provided and the tipping pipe 46 is fluidly coupled to the spout 32 to receive precipitation 19 from the spout 32. The tipping pipe 46 is biased into a home position having the tipping pipe 46 extending upwardly along the intake pipe 12. In this way the tipping pipe 46 is protected from being damaged by lawn care machinery or the like. Conversely, the tipping pipe 46 is urged into a tipped position when the tipping pipe 46 fills with precipitation 19. In this wherein the tipping pipe 46 directs the precipitation 19 onto ground in the convention of a traditional downspout 14.
The tipping pipe 46 has a rear end 48, a forward end 50 and an outer wall 52 extending therebetween. The forward end 50 has a pair of apertures 54 each extending into an interior of the tipping pipe 46 to release the precipitation 19 when the tipping pipe 46 is in the tipped position. The outer wall 52 of the tipping pipe 46 has a top side 56, a first lateral side 58 and a second lateral side 60, and the outer wall 24 has a spout opening 62 extending through the first lateral side 58 and the second lateral side 60. The spout opening 62 is positioned closer to the rear end 48 than the forward end 50 and the spout opening 62 insertably receives the spout 32. In this way the outlet 34 in the spout 32 is positioned within the tipping pipe 46 and the distal end 36 is exposed.
The outer wall 52 of the tipping pipe 46 has an overflow opening 64 extending into the interior of the tipping pipe 46 to release the precipitation 19 when the tipping pipe 46 is in the tipped position. The overflow opening 64 is positioned adjacent to the forward end 50 of the tipping pipe 46. Moreover, the overflow opening 64 is positioned on the top side 56 of the outer wall 52 of the tipping pipe 46. The overflow opening 64 facilitates the precipitation 19 to pour outwardly when the apertures 54 cannot handle to volume of precipitation 19.
A cap 66 is provided and the cap 66 is positionable around the distal end 36 of the spout 32. The cap 66 has an inwardly facing surface 68 that threadably engages threads on the spout 32 when the spout 32 is extended through the spout opening 62 in the tipping pipe 46. In this way the tipping pipe 46 is retained on the spout 32. A counterweight 70 is positioned within the tipping pipe 46 and the counterweight 70 is positioned against the rear end 48 of the tipping pipe 46. The counterweight 70 biases the tipping pipe 46 into the home position when no precipitation 19 is in the tipping pipe 46. The counterweight 70 has a weight that is less than the weight of approximately 25% of the internal volume of the tipping pipe 46 in water. In this way the counterweight 70 is overcome by the weight of precipitation 19 in the tipping pipe 46 when the tipping pipe 46 is more than approximately one quarter full.
As is most clearly shown in
As is most clearly shown in
In use, the intake pipe 12 is positioned on the downspout 14 and the stand 38 is positioned beneath the intake pipe 12. The tipping pipe 46 is biased into the home position when no precipitation 19 is being moved through the downspout 14. In this way the tipping pipe 46 is protected from being damaged by lawn care machinery or the like. The tipping pipe 46 begins to fill with precipitation 19 when the precipitation 19 moves through the downspout 14. Moreover, the tipping pipe 46 falls into the tipped position once the tipping becomes sufficiently filled with precipitation 19. Thus, the tipping pipe 46 angles downwardly toward the ground for directing the precipitation 19 onto the ground. The tipping pipe 46 returns to the home position when the tipping pipe 46 is sufficiently emptied of the precipitation 19.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
