Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6457656
-
Patent Number
6,457,656
-
Date Filed
Friday, September 15, 200024 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, October 1, 200221 years ago
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Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
Agents
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 239 237
- 239 200
- 239 201
- 239 570
- 251 48
- 251 50
- 137 5145
- 137 51627
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International Classifications
-
Abstract
A pop-up sprinkler includes an outer housing having an inlet passage and an inlet for connection to a source of pressurized fluid. A riser is mounted in the housing for moving from a normally retracted position to an operative extended position in response to fluid pressure. A pressure responsive inlet valve assembly is mounted in the outer housing adjacent the inlet passage and includes a valve seat and a valve member. The inlet valve assembly further includes a velocity control disc that is biased into engagement with the valve seat. The velocity control disc initially meters inlet fluid for limiting a rate of opening of the valve member for controlling flow of fluid through the inlet and extension of the riser to the extended position. The velocity control disc is made of an elastomeric material and is deflectable radially inwardly to accommodate debris.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to irrigation sprinklers, and more particularly, to an improved velocity control disc for an inlet valve assembly of a pop-up sprinkler.
The use of irrigation systems for watering plants where rainfall is inadequate is common throughout the world today. One of the most widely used systems, particularly for lawns and athletic fields, is a sprinkler system wherein a plurality of pop-up sprinklers are positioned about a land area for uniformly distributing water in accordance with a watering program executed by a controller. These sprinklers have a telescoping riser which retracts into a fixed sub-surface housing when not in use. When pressurized water is supplied to the sprinkler, the riser extends or pops-up from the sub-surface housing to eject a stream of water.
Sprinklers of this type are widely used on golf courses and other turf applications. These are usually high pressure systems and are frequently subjected to significant forces each time water is supplied to them, particularly when they are supplied with a high pressure combination of air and water. These high forces over a lifetime of use can damage sprinklers and reduce their useful life. The highest forces result when a sprinkler is subjected to surge conditions, such as when the system is being winterized or being refilled with water in the spring. In climates where irrigation systems are subject to freezing, the water must be removed from the system before winter. The water is purged from the system by means of compressed air. The compressed air acts much more rapidly than water and usually results in the risers shooting up rapidly with very high forces resulting in damage to the sprinklers. High surge forces also frequently occur when empty pipes are being filled with water. As the lines are being filled, air or a combination of water and air is forced into each sprinkler and vented through the same. Under these conditions the riser frequently shoots up at a high velocity and is slammed against the stationary outer housing with relatively great force.
Attempts to solve this problem by making the sprinklers heavier and stronger have been unsatisfactory because of increased costs. The dual medium of water and air makes unsatisfactory the use of slow opening valves to control the out-flow.
Another problem frequently encountered in so-called “valve-in-head” sprinklers is that large particles get trapped between the moving valve member and seat during closing of the valve. This results in continuous leakage until the sprinkler is cycled again. The valve seat can also be damaged.
Therefore, there is a need for a means for reducing the extension velocity of the riser of a pop-up sprinkler in order to prolong its life. There is also a need for a valve-in-head sprinkler design that reduces the tendency for large particles to become trapped against the valve seat.
Accordingly, it would be desirable that a sprinkler be available having a means for reducing the riser extension velocity to prevent the resultant high forces and consequential damage. It would also be desirable that a sprinkler have some means for reducing the tendency for large particles to become trapped against the valve seat.
SUMMARY AND OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a pop-up sprinkler having an improved inlet valve assembly for controlling riser extension velocities and reducing high forces normally resulting therefrom.
In accordance with the present invention, a pop-up sprinkler includes an outer housing having an inlet passage and an inlet for connection to a source of pressurized fluid. A riser is in the housing for moving from a normally retracted position to an operative extended position in response to fluid pressure. A pressure responsive inlet valve assembly is mounted in the outer housing adjacent the inlet passage and includes a valve seat and a valve member. The inlet valve assembly further includes a velocity control disc that is biased into engagement with the valve seat. The velocity control disc initially meters inlet fluid for limiting a rate of opening of the valve member for controlling flow of fluid through the inlet and extension of the riser to the extended position. The velocity control disc is made of an elastomeric material and is deflectable radially inwardly to accommodate debris.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The above and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description when read in conjunction with the drawings wherein:
FIG. 1
is a vertical sectional view of a prior art pop-up sprinkler incorporating a conventional inlet valve assembly;
FIG. 2
is an enlarged vertical sectional view showing further details of the inlet valve assembly illustrated in
FIG. 1
;
FIG. 3
is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view showing details of the left half of a preferred embodiment of the inlet valve assembly of the present invention in its closed position;
FIG. 4
is a view similar to
FIG. 3
showing details of the right half of the inlet valve assembly in its open position; and
FIG. 5
is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view of the valve seat and velocity control disc of the inlet valve assembly of
FIG. 3
when the inlet valve assembly is in its closed and a piece of grit is lodged against the valve seat and is deflecting the velocity control disc inwardly.
Throughout the drawing figures, like reference numerals refer to like parts.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring to
FIG. 1
, there is illustrated a conventional pop-up sprinkler
10
. It includes a generally cylindrical tubular outer housing
12
having a threaded inlet
14
at a lower end for mounting to the end of a threaded pipe or the like (not illustrated) connected to a supply line. The supply line is typically a PVC pipe that is connected to a source of pressurized fluid which may be water, air, or a combination of water and air. An upper outlet end of the housing
12
is provided with a split retaining ring
16
detachably mounted in an annular recess
18
for securing a retractably mounted cylindrical tubular inner housing or riser
20
.
The riser
20
(
FIG. 1
) is retractably mounted inside the outer housing
12
for extension upwardly therefrom. The riser
20
includes a nozzle
22
mounted in an upper or outer end thereof for distributing a stream of water therefrom. The nozzle
22
is mounted in a passage or socket
24
in a head
26
that is rotatably driven by means of a turbine
28
through a reduction gear drive train
30
, as more fully described hereafter.
The particular sprinkler
10
(
FIG. 1
) is designed for watering golf courses and playing fields. The nozzle
22
rotates in a partial or full circle about a central vertical axis of the outer housing
12
. A second nozzle
32
is mounted in the head
26
opposite the nozzle
22
. The nozzle
32
communicates via a port
34
with a through passage
36
to improve the distribution of the stream of water closer in to the sprinkler
10
.
The riser
20
(
FIG. 1
) is retractably mounted within a bore
38
of the outer housing
12
, and is oriented by a plurality of circumferentially spaced internal ribs
40
and by means of teeth
42
on radial flange
44
at the lower end thereof An elongated coil compression spring
46
engages a shoulder or flange
44
at the lower end of the riser
20
, and is confined within the bore by means of the retaining ring
16
at the upper end. The riser
20
is normally biased by the coil spring
46
to its lowermost or retracted position, as illustrated in
FIG. 1
, when the water pressure is shut off. The spring
46
is positioned between the annular flange
44
and a ring
48
at the upper end of the housing
12
, which biases against an outer annular seal assembly
50
retained in position by the retaining ring
16
.
The riser
20
(
FIG. 1
) carries the rotating head
26
from its retracted position in the outer housing
12
to an extended position above the ground surface where the head
26
rotates and distributes water. The riser
20
converges at the top with inwardly tapering walls to an opening
52
in which is rotatably mounted a tubular shaft
54
, having an upper end extending above the upper end of housing
20
and upon which the rotating head
26
is mounted. The shaft
54
serves to mount the head
26
to convey water from the inlet
14
to the outlet nozzles
22
and
32
. The shaft
54
also transfers torque from the gear drive train
30
to the rotating head
26
.
The driving assembly for rotating the head
26
is mounted in the riser
20
and includes support structure
56
having a journal
58
in which the lower end of the tubular shaft
54
is rotatably mounted. A shoulder surrounds the opening
52
and is engaged by a shoulder on rotary shaft
54
.
The turbine
28
rotates in response to water flowing upwardly through the sprinkler
10
. The turbine
28
is mounted on a shaft
60
which drivingly rotates a pinion gear which meshes with and drives a reduction gear unit
62
having a larger driven gear and a smaller pinion gear. The reduction gear unit
62
further drives a reduction gear
64
which in turn drives a reduction gear unit
66
further driving a reduction gear
68
. The reduction gear
68
is the final drive component in the reduction drive gear train
30
. The gear
68
meshes with a gear
70
on a shaft
72
for driving a pinion
74
which in turn drives an internal ring gear
76
which drives the tubular shaft
54
. inlet valve assembly
80
(
FIG. 1
) is mounted inside the lower end of the outer housing
12
adjacent the inlet
14
and controls fluid entering the sprinkler
10
. The valve assembly
80
also functions as a check valve in that it prevents back flow. The valve assembly
80
comprises a housing
82
(
FIG. 2
) which may or may not be integral with the outer housing
12
. The housing
82
is shown as a separate insert in FIG.
2
. The housing
82
is of a generally cylindrical configuration and is positioned coaxially within the bore of outer housing
12
adjacent the inlet
14
. The housing
82
includes an outer cylindrical wall
84
having an internal bore
86
in which a generally cylindrical valve member
88
is reciprocally mounted.
The valve member
88
(
FIG. 2
) has a generally cylindrical configuration including a circular face
90
(
FIG. 1
) on which is mounted an elastomeric valve seal
92
(
FIG. 2
) for sealingly engaging an annular valve seat
94
surrounding the inlet
14
. The valve member
88
is reciprocally mounted in the bore
86
by means of an annular seal
96
and guided by a plurality of ribs
98
. An annular retainer ring
100
threadably mounts to the interior of the valve seal
92
and retains the seal
96
in place. A coil-type spring
102
normally biases the valve member
88
to its closed or seated position as shown in
FIGS. 1 and 2
.
The valve member
88
(
FIG. 2
) closes the bore
86
forming a closed chamber
104
which is normally pressurized to maintain the valve member
88
in its closed or seated position. A rivet
106
engages a retaining and strainer washer disc
108
which engages and retains the valve seal
92
on the face of the valve member
88
. Pressurized fluid from the inlet
14
flows very slowly past slots in the edge of disc
108
via a tortuous passage through the face
90
of valve member
88
into chamber
104
and maintains the valve member
88
in its normally closed position. Further details of this construction are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,979,863, of Bradley M. Lousberg, granted Nov. 9, 1999, entitled, “Irrigation Control Valve and Screen”, the entire disclosure of which is specifically incorporated herein by reference.
The chamber
104
is vented via a passage
110
(
FIG. 2
) in the housing
82
and an outlet
112
in the outer housing
12
by a remotely controlled solenoid or hydraulically actuated valve (not shown). The outlet
112
is connected to the solenoid or hydraulically actuated valve by a hose
114
. This venting enables inlet fluid to open the valve member
88
. When the valve member
88
is in its raised open position, water from the inlet
14
can flow radially outwardly past the valve seat
94
and through flow passages between circumferentially spaced ribs
116
. When the incoming fluid is air or a mixture of air and water, the valve member
88
may open rapidly causing a very rapid extension of the riser
20
, which may damage the sprinkler
10
.
In accordance with the present invention, the sprinkler
10
has a modified inlet valve assembly
120
illustrated in FIG.
3
. An elastomeric velocity control disc
122
is mounted in overlapping fashion concentric with the circular base
124
a
of a cylindrical valve member
124
. A lower valve metering assembly
126
surrounds a metal metering rod
127
. The velocity control disc
122
is sandwiched between the lower valve metering assembly
126
and the circular base
124
a
of the valve member
124
. The valve member
124
is supported for vertical reciprocation by a flexible elastomeric hinge valve member
128
. The radially inward lip
128
a
of the hinge valve member
128
is held against the upper circular edge of the valve member
124
by the wrap-around upper annular edge of a cylindrical mounting cup
130
. The radially outward lip
128
b
of the hinge valve member
128
is clamped between a lower cylindrical retainer
132
and an upper cylindrical cover member
134
. The upper end of the metering rod
127
is snugly received inside a socket
136
integrally formed on the underside of the cover member
134
. A plurality of radially, extending, circumferentially and axially spaced fins
140
connect the cover member
134
to a circular rim
142
held in place in the outer housing
12
by a split snap ring
144
. The fins
140
center the cover member
134
. The spaces between the fins
140
define major flow paths for water flowing from the inlet
14
past the valve seat
94
when the inlet valve assembly
120
is in its raised open position illustrated in FIG.
4
. The lower retainer
132
and upper cover member
134
have inclined opposing walls that form a region with a V-shaped cross-section for limiting upper and lower movement of the central flexible web
128
c
of the elastomeric hinge valve member
128
. The upper end of a coil spring
146
surrounds a cylindrical shoulder
148
integrally formed on the underside of the cover member
134
. The lower end of the coil spring
146
engages the flat bottom wall of the mounting cup
130
to bias the inlet valve assembly
120
to its closed position illustrated in FIG.
3
.
An upper pressure chamber
150
(
FIG. 3
) in the inlet valve assembly
120
is selectively vented via passage
152
(
FIG. 4
) through a C-shaped hose
154
terminating in a barbed fitting
156
. The barbed fitting
156
is connected via another hose (not illustrated) to a solenoid actuated or hydraulically actuated pilot valve (not illustrated).
The velocity control disc
122
(
FIG. 3
) has a generally disc shaped configuration with a serpentine cross-section. The velocity control disc
122
has a radially inwardly tapered outer peripheral wiper
122
a
(
FIG. 5
) that engages (or provides a close fit with) the wall of the valve seat
94
and the passage leading to the inlet
14
to meter the incoming air and/or water during initial opening of the inlet valve assembly
120
. This results in a slower pop-up stroke of the riser
20
and/or a lower impact at the end of its stroke. The velocity control disc
122
also acts to strain relatively large debris particles such as
160
during closing as the velocity control disc
122
can deflect radially inwardly and keep the debris particle
160
from being trapped between the velocity control disc
122
and valve seat
94
. The valve member
124
has a radially inwardly tapered wall
124
b
that normally provides a gap between the velocity control disc
122
and the valve member
124
. This gap is visible in
FIGS. 3 and 4
. The gap disappears when the large debris particle
160
(
FIG. 5
) pushes the outermost portion of the velocity control disc
122
inwardly.
In operation, when a fluid such as air and/or water is supplied under high pressure to the inlet of the sprinkler
10
and the chamber
150
(
FIG. 3
) is vented. The inlet fluid acts against the lower face of the inlet valve assembly
120
to force it away from the seat
94
. Fluid initially begins flowing around the peripheral edge of the velocity control disc
122
and is initially metered, resulting in a slower opening of the valve member
124
and a slower flow of fluid into the sprinkler
10
. This results in a slower movement of the riser
20
to its extended position and lessens the resulting impact force when the coil spring
46
(
FIG. 1
) reaches the end of its compression. The velocity control disc
122
thus serves as a metering or damping means. When the inlet valve assembly
120
is being closed or shut down after a run cycle of the sprinkler
10
, the elastomeric velocity control disc
122
extends into the inlet passage immediately upstream of the female threaded inlet
14
. The velocity control disc
122
begins metering the water and forcing it at high across the valve seat
94
. This flushes debris such as the particle
160
away from the seat
94
to insure a more complete seal. The disc
122
also deflects or deforms to prevent damage to the valve seat
94
by the debris particle
160
. The velocity control disc
122
may have notches around its peripheral edges, as shown in
FIG. 5
of my U.S. Pat. No. 5,927,607. This provides additional fluid bleed.
While I have illustrated and described my invention by means of specific embodiments, it should be understood that numerous changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims:
Claims
- 1. A pop-up sprinkler, comprising:an outer housing having an inlet passage and an inlet for connection to a source of pressurized fluid; a riser mounted in the outer housing for moving from a normally retracted position to an operative extended position in response to fluid pressure; and a pressure responsive inlet valve assembly mounted in the outer housing adjacent the inlet passage, the inlet valve assembly including a valve seat, a valve member and a velocity control disc biased into engagement with the valve seat, the velocity control disc initially metering inlet fluid for limiting a rate of opening of the valve member for controlling flow of fluid through the inlet and extension of the riser to the extended position, the velocity control disc being made of an elastomeric material and being deflectable radially inwardly to accommodate debris.
- 2. The sprinkler of claim 1 wherein the valve member and the velocity control disc are configured to provide a gap therebetween that allows a portion of the velocity control disc to deflect inwardly.
- 3. The sprinkler of claim 1 wherein the velocity control disc has a wiper formed on an outer peripheral edge thereof which engages the valve seat.
- 4. The sprinkler of claim 1 wherein the inlet valve assembly includes a metering assembly.
- 5. The sprinkler of claim 4 wherein the velocity control disc is sandwiched between the valve member and the metering assembly.
- 6. The sprinkler of claim 1 wherein the inlet valve assembly includes an upper pressure chamber and a passage for venting the upper pressure chamber.
- 7. The sprinkler of claim 1 wherein the inlet valve assembly includes a cover member, a circular rim and a plurality of circumferentially spaced fins connecting the cover member and the rim to define a plurality of water flow passages.
- 8. The sprinkler of claim 1 wherein the inlet valve assembly includes a cover member and the valve member is supported for vertical reciprocation by a flexible hinge valve member connected to the cover member.
- 9. The sprinkler of claim 1 and further comprising a metering rod extending axially through a center of the valve member.
- 10. The sprinkler of claim 1 wherein the valve member has an inwardly tapered wall and the velocity control disc is normally separated from the tapered wall to provide a gap therebetween that allows a portion of the velocity control disc to deflect inwardly to accommodate a debris particle.
- 11. A pop-up sprinkler, comprising:an outer housing having an inlet at its lower end; a riser reciprocably mounted in the outer housing and moveable between retracted and extended positions in response to the introduction of pressurized fluid into the outer housing through the inlet; a nozzle mounted in an upper end of the riser; a turbine mounted in the riser; drive means for coupling the turbine to the nozzle so that water flowing through the turbine will rotate the nozzle; and an inlet valve assembly mounted in the outer housing below the riser including a reciprocable valve member having a velocity control disc mounted thereon which can engage and disengage a valve seat to initially meter the inflow of fluid through the inlet to the riser to limit a of movement of the riser to the extended position, the velocity control disk having a portion that is deflectable radially inwardly to accommodate a particle of debris between the velocity control disk and the valve seat.
- 12. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the valve member has an inwardly tapered wall and the portion of the velocity control disc is normally separated from the tapered wall to define a gap therebetween.
- 13. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the velocity control disc is made of an elastomeric material.
- 14. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the velocity control disk has a serpentine cross-section.
- 15. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the velocity control disk has a wiper formed on an outer peripheral edge thereof which engages the valve seat.
- 16. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the valve seat is formed as part of the lower end of the outer housing.
- 17. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the inlet valve assembly includes a metering assembly and the velocity control disc is positioned between the metering assembly and a circular base of the valve member.
- 18. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the inlet valve assembly includes an upper pressure chamber and a passage for venting the upper pressure chamber.
- 19. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the inlet valve assembly includes a cover member and the valve member is supported for reciprocating movement by a flexible hinge valve member connected to the cover member.
- 20. A pop-up sprinkler, comprising:an outer housing having an inlet at its lower end; a riser reciprocably mounted in the outer housing and moveable between retracted and extended positions in response to the introduction of pressurized fluid into the outer housing through the inlet; a nozzle mounted in an upper end of the riser; a turbine mounted in the riser; drive means for coupling the turbine to the nozzle so that water flowing through the turbine will rotate the nozzle; and an inlet valve assembly mounted in the outer housing below the riser including a reciprocable valve member, a metering assembly, an upper pressure chamber, a passage for venting the upper pressure chamber, and a cover member, the valve member being supported for reciprocating movement by a flexible hinge valve member connected to the cover member, the inlet valve assembly further including an elastomeric velocity control disc mounted on the valve member and positioned between the metering assembly and the valve member for engaging and disengaging a valve seat to initially meter the inflow of fluid through the inlet to the riser to limit a speed of movement of the riser to the extended position, the velocity control disk having a portion that is deflectable radially inwardly to accommodate a particle of debris lodged between the velocity control disk and the valve seat, the valve member having an inwardly tapered wall and the portion of the velocity control disc normally being separated from the tapered wall to define a gap therebetween.
US Referenced Citations (7)