Claims
- 1. A top serviceable pop-up sprinkler, comprising:an outer housing having an inlet at a lower end thereof; a riser mounted inside the outer housing for vertical reciprocation through an opening in an upper end of the outer housing; a nozzle mounted in an upper end of the riser for ejecting a stream of water; at least one valve actuator component connected to the outer housing; and a diaphragm valve module mounted in the lower end of the outer housing for controlling the flow of water through the inlet in response to actuation of the valve actuator component, the diaphragm valve module being removable as a unit from the outer housing through the opening in the upper end of the outer housing upon removal of the riser from the outer housing.
- 2. The sprinkler of claim 1 wherein the diaphragm valve module includes means for releasably holding the diaphragm valve module in an operative position in the lower end of the outer housing.
- 3. The sprinkler of claim 2 wherein the holding means comprises a radially retractable and expandable snap ring.
- 4. The sprinkler of claim 3 wherein the snap ring has a pair of opposing peripheral annular portions that are joined by a central portion that can be squeezed to radially retract the annular portions.
- 5. The sprinkler of claim 1 wherein the diaphragm valve module includes a valve body, a valve seat connected to the valve body by a plurality of axially extending, circumferentially spaced ribs, and an elastomeric valve member supported by the valve body that has a portion that engages and disengages the valve seat to permit water to flow through the ribs and around the valve body.
- 6. The sprinkler of claim 5 wherein the valve module has a screen connected to the valve seat.
- 7. The sprinkler of claim 5 wherein the valve module has a cover that fits over the valve body and includes a pilot valve passage.
- 8. The sprinkler of claim 7 wherein a radially retractable and expandable snap ring is mounted to the cover for holding the diaphragm valve module in an operative position in the lower end of the outer housing.
- 9. The sprinkler of claim 7 wherein the cover has a central portion, an outer annular portion and a plurality of radially extending, circumferentially extending fins that connect the central portion of the cover to the outer annular portion of the cover to define water flow passages.
- 10. The sprinkler of claim 1 wherein the riser includes a turbine driven by water flowing through the riser, a gear train coupled to the turbine, and an arc adjustment and reversing mechanism connecting the gear train to a drive shaft connected to the nozzle.
- 11. A top serviceable pop-up sprinkler, comprising:an outer housing having an inlet at a lower end thereof; a riser mounted inside the outer housing for vertical reciprocation through an opening in an upper end of the outer housing: a nozzle mounted in an upper end of the riser for ejecting a stream of water; at least one valve actuator component supported by the outer housing; and a diaphragm valve module mounted in the lower end of the outer housing and connectable to the valve actuator component for controlling the flow of water through the inlet in response to actuation of the valve actuator component, the diaphragm valve module being removable as a unit from the outer housing through the opening in the upper end of the outer housing upon removal of the riser from the outer housing.
- 12. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the diaphragm valve module includes means for releasably holding the diaphragm valve module in an operative position in the lower end of the outer housing.
- 13. The sprinkler of claim 12 wherein the holding means comprises a radially retractable and expandable snap ring.
- 14. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the valve actuator component is a pilot valve.
- 15. The sprinkler of claim 14 wherein a hose connects the pilot valve to a pilot valve passage in the diaphragm valve module when the diaphragm valve module in an operative position in the lower end of the outer housing.
- 16. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the diaphragm valve module includes a valve body, a valve seat connected to the valve body, and an elastomeric valve member supported by the valve body that has a portion that engages and disengages the valve seat to permit water to flow around the valve body.
- 17. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the valve module includes a screen.
- 18. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the valve module includes a pilot valve passage.
- 19. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the valve actuator component is a solenoid actuated pilot valve and the sprinkler further comprises a pressure regulator connected to the pilot valve.
- 20. The sprinkler of claim 11 wherein the riser includes a turbine driven by water flowing through the riser, a gear train coupled to the turbine, and an arc adjustment and reversing mechanism connecting the gear train to a drive shaft connected to the nozzle.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/491,006 filed Jan. 25, 2000 of Loren W. Scott and Phillip A. Hope, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. Said application Ser. No. 09/491,006 is a continuation-in-part of now abandoned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/094,412 filed Jun. 9, 1998 now abandoned. Said application Ser. No. 09/491,006 issued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,227,455, granted May 8, 2001.
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Continuation in Parts (2)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09/491006 |
Jan 2000 |
US |
Child |
09/659977 |
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US |
Parent |
09/094412 |
Jun 1998 |
US |
Child |
09/491006 |
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US |