Reversible adjustable arc sprinkler

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6827291
  • Patent Number
    6,827,291
  • Date Filed
    Tuesday, March 4, 2003
    21 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, December 7, 2004
    20 years ago
Abstract
A reversible, adjustable arc sprinkler head comprising a sprinkler body incorporating a fixed nozzle; a spray plate mounted on one end of a support cage for rotation with the support cage in one or the other of two opposite directions about a first axis arranged coaxially with a stream emitted from the nozzle, and for back and forth tilting motion about a second axis perpendicular to the first axis, an opposite end of the support cage secured to a sleeve rotatably mounted in the sprinkler body, the spray plate having a pair of substantially parallel grooves for selectively receiving the stream, wherein the direction of rotation of the spray plate about the first axis is determined by the tilting motion of the spray plate about the second axis; and a shift lever formed with an aperture sized to receive the stream, the shift lever mounted at one end on the sleeve for rotation about a third axis parallel to the first axis, the shift lever enabled to shift the stream from one of the pair of grooves to the other of the pair of grooves to thereby reverse the direction of rotation of the spray plate.
Description




TECHNICAL FIELD




This invention relates to a reversible, adjustable arc sprinkler head.




BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




Typical reversible, adjustable arc sprinklers employ various mechanisms to reverse the direction of rotation of the sprinkler head including, for example, mechanical trippers and magnets. See U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,805,838; 4,763,839 and 4,540,125. There remains a need, however, for a reversible, adjustable arc sprinkler of simple and reliable construction.




The present invention provides a reversible, adjustable arc sprinkler head that is driven by the flow of water from a fixed nozzle. In one exemplary embodiment, the sprinkler head is of the type in which a fixed nozzle is mounted within a sprinkler body, and a rotatable spray plate is supported by a cap releasably secured to the body, in axially spaced relation to the nozzle. The spray plate is mounted in a cage that is, in turn, mounted on a shaft for rotation about a first vertical axis through the sprinkler body. The spray plate is also mounted within the cage for tilting movement about a second, horizontal axis, perpendicular to the first axis. The spray plate is formed with a pair of parallel water distribution grooves that are shaped to redirect a vertical stream emitted from the nozzle into a generally radially outwardly directed stream. A center barrier between the two distribution grooves is centered relative to the nozzle, such that when the spray plate tilts in one of two opposite directions, it will receive the stream in one or the other of the two distribution grooves. The spray plate is caused to rotate on the shaft about the first axis in a direction dependent upon which groove receives the stream, which, in turn, is dependent upon the direction of tilt of the spray plate about the second axis.




The distribution grooves have generally vertically oriented inlets and generally horizontally oriented outlets, and the grooves may be covered by a correspondingly shaped “shield” that confines the stream in the respective grooves.




The spray plate cage, as noted above, is secured to one end of a rotatable shaft, and the other end of the shaft may be secured within a viscous retarder “motor” of the type described in commonly owned U.S. Pat. Nos. Re. 33,823; 5,058,806; and 5,288,022, for controlling the speed of rotation of the spray plate. The cage also supports a horizontally extending shift lever for free rotation about a third axis that is parallel to the first vertical axis. The shift lever is formed with a generally round-shaped aperture that is arranged so that the stream emitted from the nozzle passes through the aperture, upstream of the spray plate grooves. The shift lever is pivotable between a pair of tabs on the spray plate cage and, as explained in greater detail below, serves to deflect the stream sufficiently to cause the spray plate to tilt and thus allow the stream to move from one to the other of the two grooves and thereby reverse the rotation direction of the spray plate.




A generally cylindrically shaped stop assembly is also secured to the sprinkler cap, above the nozzle and surrounding at least a portion of the spray plate cage and the shift lever. The stop assembly includes a first ring component having a first receiving stop formed in an interior surface thereof. A second ring component of the stop assembly is mounted on the first ring component and includes a second reversing stop that is rotationally adjustable relative to the first stop, it being understood that the arcuate distance between the stops (and through which the outer end of the shift lever travels) determines the arc through which the spray plate rotates. Specifically, the shift lever rotates with the stop assembly about the first axis until it contacts one of the reversing stops. Then while the spray plate continues to rotate, the shift lever is forced to rotate about the third axis, moving from is center position and engaging the stream thus shifting the stream away from the spray plate center barrier. This then causes the spray plate to tilt, resulting in a reversal of the direction of rotation of the spray plate.




In a second and presently preferred embodiment, the viscous retarder motor is incorporated into the sprinkler body, upstream of the nozzle. This arrangement essentially eliminates the cap and motor shaft as well as a significant portion of the spray plate cage as described above. In this embodiment, the sprinkler body includes a fixed outer housing that supports a stator housing or sleeve for rotation about a fixed rotor stem that, in turn, supports the nozzle. The stator housing or sleeve mounts a vertically extending spray plate support that pivotally mounts the spray plate for tilting movement in a manner similar to that of the first described embodiment. The shift lever is supported directly on the stator housing, while first and second rings and associated first and second reversing stop posts are adjustably supported on the outer housing.




Viscous fluid is introduced between the stator housing and fixed rotor stem and acts to retard the speed of rotation of the stator housing and spray plate relative to the speed of rotation that would otherwise result from the impingement of the stream on the curved water emitting grooves in the spray plate




In its broader aspects, therefore, the invention relates to a reversible, adjustable arc sprinkler head comprising a sprinkler body incorporating a fixed nozzle; a spray plate mounted on one end of a support cage for rotation with the support cage in one or the other of two opposite directions about a first axis arranged coaxially with a stream emitted from the nozzle, and for back and forth tilting motion about a second axis perpendicular to the first axis, an opposite end of the support cage secured to a sleeve rotatably mounted in the sprinkler body, the spray plate having a pair of substantially parallel grooves for selectively receiving the stream, wherein the direction of rotation of the spray plate about the first axis is determined by the tilting motion of the spray plate about the second axis; and a shift lever formed with an aperture sized to receive the stream, the shift lever mounted at one end on the sleeve for rotation about a third axis parallel to the first axis, the shift lever enabled to shift the stream from one of the pair of grooves to the other of the pair of grooves to thereby reverse the direction of rotation of the spray plate.




In another aspect, the invention relates to a reversible, adjustable arc sprinkler head comprising a sprinkler body having an outer housing, a rotatable stator housing supported within the outer housing, and a fixed, hollow rotor stem secured to the outer housing and located radially inward of the stator housing, the rotor stem supporting an axially arranged nozzle; a spray plate mounted in a cage for tilting motion relative to the cage about a horizontal axis; the cage and spray plate mounted at one end on the stator housing for rotation relative to the sprinkler body about one vertical axis, the spray plate having formed therein a pair of substantially parallel grooves adapted to be sequentially aligned with the nozzle for receiving a stream from the nozzle, wherein the direction of rotation of the spray plate about the first axis is determined by the tilting motion of the spray plate about the second axis; a shift lever extending substantially horizontally and mounted on the stator housing for confined pivotal rotation about another vertical axis, parallel to the one vertical axis, the shift lever having an inner portion with an aperture therein through which a stream emitted from the nozzle may pass; and a stop assembly mounted on the outer housing and including a first annular ring provided with a first stop post, and a second annular ring supported on the first annular ring for rotation relative to the first annular ring, the second annular ring having a second stop post adjustable relative to the first stop post; and wherein the shift lever is arranged to rotate with the stator housing, the cage and the spray plate about the one vertical axis between the first stop post and the second stop post, and to rotate about the another vertical axis after engagement with one of the first stop post and the second stop post.




The invention will now be described in detail, in connection with the drawing figures identified below.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

is a side elevation of a sprinkler head, with parts removed for clarity;





FIG. 2

is a plan view of the sprinkler head shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 3

is an exploded elevation, illustrating a spray plate assembly and a stop assembly for attachment to the cap shown in

FIG. 4

;





FIG. 4

is a side elevation of a cap component for the sprinkler head shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 5

is a perspective view of the spray plate assembly including a retarder motor, spray plate and spray plate cage in assembled relationship;





FIG. 6

is an exploded perspective view of the spray plate and spray plate cage for use with the sprinkler head shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 7

is an inverted perspective view of the stop assembly shown in

FIG. 3

;





FIG. 8

is a bottom plan view of the cap shown in

FIG. 4

;





FIG. 9

is a side elevation, partly in section, of a shift lever component, taken from the spray plate cage as shown in

FIGS. 4 and 5

;





FIG. 10

is a partial front elevation, partly broken away, illustrating how a stream of water impinges on the spray plate on start-up;





FIG. 11

is an elevation similar to

FIG. 10

, but illustrating the stream entering one of two grooves on the spray plate after start-up;





FIG. 12

is a bottom perspective view of the spray plate, spray plate cage and stop assembly in accordance with the invention;





FIG. 13

is a front elevation, similar to

FIGS. 10 and 11

, but illustrating the manner in which the shift lever acts to shift the stream from one groove to the other;





FIG. 14

is a front elevation similar to

FIGS. 10

,


11


and


13


, but illustrating the stream fully shifted into the other of the two grooves;





FIG. 15

is a front elevation of an assembled sprinkler head in accordance with the invention;





FIG. 16

is a perspective view of a sprinkler head in accordance with another embodiment of the invention;





FIG. 17

is a side section of the sprinkler head shown in

FIG. 16

, with selected elements removed and shown in exploded form;





FIG. 18

is a rear elevation of the sprinkler head shown in

FIG. 16







FIG. 19

is a front elevation of the sprinkler head shown in

FIG. 16

; and





FIG. 20

is an exploded assembly view of the sprinkler head shown in FIGS.


16


-


19


.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION




With reference to

FIG. 1

, a sprinkler head


10


in accordance with a first exemplary embodiment is illustrated in part, showing a sprinkler body


12


including an inlet


14


and a nozzle


16


that is arranged to emit a single stream coaxial with the longitudinal axis of the sprinkler head. The sprinkler body


12


is provided with a pair of upstanding struts or supports


18


and


20


that extend upwardly from respective radially outwardly extending base portion


19


and


21


. The struts


18


,


20


are adapted to mount a cap


22


(see

FIGS. 4

,


8


and


15


) that supports a rotatable spray plate assembly


24


and a stop assembly


126


(FIG.


3


). The inlet


14


is adapted to be secured to a water supply component such as a fixed riser or the like. An integral nut


26


can be utilized to thread the sprinkler head onto the water supply component.




The struts


18


,


20


terminate at an annular ring


28


provided with a plurality of radially outwardly directed tabs


30


by which the cap


22


can be secured in a known fashion, e.g., in a press and twist configuration.




The cap


22


(

FIG. 4

) includes a lower annular ring


32


and an upper annular ring


34


connected by four upstanding struts (three of which are shown at


36


,


38


and


40


) on 90° spacing. The upper annular ring


34


is formed with an integral center hub


42


that includes an annular ring


44


on the underside of the hub, and a plurality of upstanding tabs


46


on the upper side of the hub. The hub


42


supports the spray plate assembly


24


shown in exploded view in FIG.


3


. The spray plate assembly


24


includes a spray plate


48


, a spray plate cage


50


, and a viscous retarder motor


52


. The viscous retarder motor


52


slows the speed of rotation of the spray plate


48


as described further herein, and may be constructed as disclosed in commonly owned U.S. Pat. Nos. Re. 33,823; 5,058,806 and 5,288,022. The retarder motor


52


is press fit and snapped into place within the hub


42


of the cap


22


, with a lower portion of the motor engaged by annular ring


44


and a middle portion of the motor engaged by the tabs


46


. The latter may be formed with horizontally oriented ribs


51


(

FIGS. 4 and 8

) on interior surfaces thereof that are engaged in the groove


54


in the motor housing. A motor shaft


56


is received in a bushing


58


on the spray plate cage


50


so that the spray plate cage and spray plate rotate about a first vertical axis A coincident with shaft


56


, and is slowed by the viscous retarder motor


52


. Axis A is also coincident with the longitudinal axis of the sprinkler body, passing through the center of nozzle


16


.




With reference also to

FIGS. 5

,


6


,


9


and


10


, the spray plate


48


is formed with a pair of side-by-side parallel grooves


60


,


62


separated by a center wall or barrier


64


. The grooves are generally vertically oriented at an inlet end


66


thereof, but transition to an almost horizontal orientation at an outlet end


68


(see FIG.


6


). The spray plate


48


is also formed with a pair of vertically oriented, aligned mounting tabs


70


,


72


having apertures


74


,


76


, respectively, by which the spray plate is pivotally mounted on a pair of aligned pins


78


,


80


on the spray plate cage


50


, for swinging movement about a horizontal axis B defined by the pins


78


,


80


.




The inlet end


66


of groove


60


is flared at


84


, and the center barrier


64


is chamfered at


86


so that, on start-up, more of the stream emitted from nozzle


46


will enter groove


60


than


62


, causing the spray plate to tilt about axis B, resulting in all of the stream flowing into groove


60


. Because the stream exit point for the groove


60


is offset from the axis of rotation A of the plate, the plate will rotate about axis A to distribute the stream in a part circular pattern. This action will be described in greater detail below.




A cover or shield


88


(

FIG. 6

) including side walls


90


,


92


may be snapped into place over the open faces of the grooves


60


,


62


to confine the stream to the grooves between the inlet and outlet ends


66


,


68


.




The spray plate cage


50


that carries the spray plate


48


includes a top surface


94


and a pair of side walls


96


,


98


that confine movement of the spray plate


48


on the pins


78


,


80


. Specifically, the spray plate


48


is free to tilt back and forth between two stop surfaces


100


,


102


(best seen in

FIG. 10

) of the side walls


96


,


98


. Note that the back wall


104


is open in the area above reference number


105


, allowing the tab


72


to be attached to the pin


80


.




The bushing


58


extending above the top surface


94


includes an aperture


106


that receives the retarder shaft


56


in a friction, spline or other suitable fit.




A second bushing


108


projecting from a lower bar


110


extending between the side walls


96


,


98


is formed with a blind bore for receiving a pivot pin


112


formed with an integral head


114


that serves to mount a shift lever


116


via hole


118


for rotation about a second vertical axis C coincident with the pin


112


. An extended lever portion


120


of the shift lever


116


is thus free to move back and forth between a pair of depending tab stops


122


,


124


at the lower end of the back wall


104


. An aperture


125


in the shift lever interacts with the stream emitted from the nozzle as explained further herein.




Referring now to FIG.


3


and especially

FIG. 7

, the stop assembly


126


includes an inner annular ring


128


having a first fixed reversing stop


130


. The annular ring


128


is also formed with a pair of diametrically opposed, part annular walls


132


,


134


that terminate at radially outwardly directed attachment flanges


136


,


138


. These flanges are formed with grooves


140


,


142


, respectively, on the lower side thereof (note: in

FIG. 7

, the stop plate assembly is inverted from its normal orientation shown in FIGS.


3


and


14


). The upper sides of the flanges


136


,


138


are each formed with a pair of opposed wedge elements


144


,


146


that taper inwardly and are undercut to form seating surfaces


148


,


150


on each flange for receiving tabs


152


,


154


on the interior of the cap ring


32


(at the upper end of the ring). Tabs


156


,


158


,


160


and


162


(at the lower end of the cap ring


32


) cooperate with tabs


30


to secure the cap


22


to the annular ring


28


of the sprinkler body, but also assist in locating the stop assembly


126


when attaching it to the cap


22


. Vertical tabs


164


,


166


also force the assembler to properly locate the stop assembly for interaction with the tabs


152


,


154


. Squeezing the cap ring


32


at points indicated by arrows D provides the space necessary to seat the stop assembly within the cap, and apertures


168


,


170


in the flanges


136


,


138


permit the assembler to verify that the tabs


152


,


154


are correctly seated.




The stop assembly


126


also includes an outer ring


172


, telescoped over the inner ring


128


, utilizing a snap fit or other suitable attachment mechanism that allows ring


172


to rotate relative to ring


128


. Outer ring


172


is formed with a second, movable reversing stop


174


that is radially inwardly offset from the ring


172


, such that it rides on the edges


176


of the inner ring. The user is thus able to move reversing stop


174


relative to the fixed reversing stop


130


to obtain a desired arc through which the spray plate will rotate before reversing direction. Ring


172


may be provided with circumferentially spaced ribs


178


(or other suitable surface texture) to facilitate rotation of the ring.




Before describing the operation of the sprinkler head, reference is made to

FIG. 9

where the shift lever


116


is shown in enlarged form. The aperture


125


is adapted to receive a stream S emitted from the nozzle


16


. The inlet to the aperture


125


is tapered as shown at


180


to facilitate entry of the stream as described below. The main portion of the aperture is tapered outwardly in a downward direction, opposed points describing an arc of about 23°. At its widest point, opposed points of the tapered inlet describe a 90° arc.




With reference now especially to

FIGS. 10-14

, it will be appreciated that on start-up, the stream S exiting nozzle


16


passes through the aperture


125


in the lever


116


, and the aperture shape creates a venturi effect that causes the lever to “center up” around the stream. The stream initially impinges on the barrier


64


of the spray plate


58


, and the beveled or chamfered edge


86


deflects more water into groove or channel


60


, preventing a “null” or “equalization” of the stream that would otherwise cause the plate not to rotate, i.e., to stall. The force of the stream S entering the spray plate groove


60


, and coming into contact with the side of the center barrier


64


tilts the spray plate


68


in a counterclockwise direction about axis B (FIG.


11


), with the spray plate


48


engaged with stop surface


102


on the spray plate cage


50


. The stream passing through the groove


60


is directed it to an offset exit position relative to the axis of rotation A of the spray plate assembly, thus causing the spray plate


48


and cage


50


to rotate about axis A in a first direction (counterclockwise as viewed in FIG.


12


).




Turning to

FIG. 12

, as the spray plate assembly


24


rotates about axis A, the shift lever


116


rotates with the plate about the same axis, until a remote end of the lever portion


120


comes into contact with fixed reversing stop


130


. This causes the shift lever to stop rotating with spray plate


48


on axis A, and to begin rotation about axis C (pin


114


). As the spray plate assembly continues to rotate, the shift lever


116


will be forced to enter the stream S (FIG.


3


). As the shift lever


116


moves into the stream, it deflects the stream away from the center barrier


64


, allowing the upward force created by the stream being arced outward to the offset exit point of the groove


60


to overcome the force on the center barrier. This causes the spray plate to pivot about axis B (pins


78


,


80


) and to tilt in a clockwise direction to the position shown in FIG.


14


. Now the stream S shifts to groove


62


. Once the stream enters groove


62


, reversal of the direction of the spray plate


58


occurs. The shift lever


116


will remain in contact with the stream S until the spray plate


68


has shifted (i.e., until the spray plate tilts into engagement with stop


104


, see

FIG. 14

) and the spray plate assembly has started to rotate in the opposite or reverse direction. As rotation in the opposite direction continues, the shift lever


116


will come off the stop and the venturi effect within aperture


125


will once again center up the shift lever


116


on the stream S. The lever


116


will eventually contact the adjustable reversing stop


174


, and the reversing process will be repeated.




Rotation of ring


172


relative to ring


128


on the stop assembly


52


will vary the arc of coverage of the stream and thus vary the sprinkling pattern, as desired.




Turning now to

FIGS. 16-20

, a second exemplary embodiment of the invention relates to a sprinkler head


182


that generally includes a sprinkler body


184


and a spray plate


186


supported on the sprinkler body by a vertical spray plate or support cage


188


. Except as noted below, the spray plate


186


is similar to spray plate


24


described hereinabove, including parallel grooves


187


,


189


. The sprinkler body


184


includes an outer, generally cylindrical housing


190


with a reduced diameter, externally threaded inlet


192


for attaching the sprinkler head to a pipe or the like. Supported concentrically within the outer housing


190


is a stator housing or sleeve


194


that has an upper radial flange portion


196


that overlies the upper edge


198


of the outer housing. A rotor stem


200


is located within the stator housing, and the lower end of the rotor stem is press fit into the reduced diameter lower end of the outer housing at


202


. A conventional safety retaining ring (not shown) may be seated in the annular groove


204


in the stem to insure that the rotor stem will not be pushed out of the outer housing should excessive water pressure be encountered.




Upper and lower bearings


206


,


208


are located between the rotor stem


200


and the stator housing


194


to permit the stator housing to rotate relative to the fixed rotor stem and outer housing


190


as described further below. Viscous fluid is introduced into the cavities


210


,


212


below the upper bearing


206


and above the lower bearing


208


(and thus into the radial clearance between the rotor stem and stator housing), to retard rotation of the stator housing. Fluid retention seals


214


,


216


are located on reduced diameter portions


218


,


220


of the stem, adjacent bearings


206


,


208


, respectively, with bearing retention retaining rings


222


,


224


axially therebetween.




A nozzle


226


is threaded into the open upper end of the rotor stem


200


. The nozzle includes an upper hexagon flange


228


, a 45° angle face


229


, an external threaded section


230


and a pilot length portion


232


. The pilot length portion


232


provides initial positioning of the nozzle in the rotor stem


200


, and the external threaded section


230


will engage the internal threaded portion


231


of the rotor stem to secure the nozzle in place. The nozzle 45° angle face


229


will mate with a complimentary rotor stem 45° angle face


235


providing a face contact seal and finalizing the positioning of the nozzle. The nozzle


226


defines a discharge orifice


234


for the water stream supplied to the head


182


via inlet


192


and through the rotor.




The simplified spray plate support cage


188


includes an integral, lower annular ring portion


236


that seats on the radial flange


196


of the stator housing


194


and is secured thereto by a plurality of fastener screws


238


(or similar). The cage


188


also includes a pair of vertical supports


240


,


242


connected at their upper ends by an integral, horizontal brace


244


. A pivot shaft


246


, press fit within the spray plate


186


is journalled in the brace


244


via pivot bearings


248


,


250


, for rotation about a horizontal (or second) axis that is perpendicular to a center (or first) axis of the sprinkler head


182


passing through the nozzle


226


. Thus, the spray plate


186


is supported solely by the pivot shaft


246


and is free to tilt back and forth about the pivot shaft, as determined by the stream emitted from the nozzle. Sloped interior surfaces


251


,


253


(

FIG. 19

) of the vertical supports


240


,


242


provide stops that limit the tilting movement of the spray plate as in the first described embodiment.




The shift lever


252


with stream receiving aperture


254


, is mounted on the upper peripheral edge of the stator housing


194


via shift lever support shaft


256


that is press fit in the housing wall. The shift lever


252


thus rotates with the stator housing


194


but also pivots about shaft


256


(defining a third axis parallel to the center or first axis of the sprinkler head) for movement between notched surfaces


257


,


259


on the vertical supports


240


,


242


, respectively. Shift lever bushings


258


,


260


and an associated conventional retaining ring (not shown), adapted to be received in groove


262


may be used to facilitate rotation of the shift lever


252


relative to the shaft


256


, but are not required. With reference to

FIG. 17

, flange


263


engages the upper surface of ring portion


236


and flange


261


engages the lower end of bushing


260


when the shaft


256


is installed.




The stop assembly in this embodiment includes a pair of annular rings


264


,


266


that are telescoped over the outer housing


190


below and in proximity to flange


196


. The rings are seated one on top of the other and held in place on the housing by conventional retaining rings (not shown) adapted to be seated in grooves


268


,


270


. The rings


264


,


266


are each rotatable relative to the other. The lower ring


266


has a radial projection


272


that supports a first upstanding stop post


274


at its radially outer end. A thumb screw


276


passing through the projection


272


and ring


266


serves to lock the post in the desired position by engaging a groove


278


the wall of the outer housing


190


when tightened.




Similarly, the upper ring


264


has a radial projection


280


that supports a second upstanding stop post


282


, also at its radially outer end. Thumb screw


284


is used to lock the post


282


in the desired position by engaging groove


286


in the wall of the outer housing


190


. The rotationally adjustable stop posts


274


,


282


are thus used to establish any desired arc of rotation of the spray plate


186


. Once the arc of rotation is set, the interaction of the stream, spray plate slots, shift lever and stop posts cause the stator sleeve


200


and spray plate


186


to continuously reverse the direction of rotation in substantially the same manner as described above.




While the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiment, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.



Claims
  • 1. A reversible, adjustable arc sprinkler head comprising a sprinkler body incorporating a fixed nozzle; a spray plate mounted on one end of a support cage for rotation with said support cage in one or the other of two opposite directions about a first axis arranged coaxially with a stream emitted from the nozzle, and for back and forth tilting motion about a second axis perpendicular to said first axis, an opposite end of said support cage secured to a sleeve rotatably mounted in said sprinkler body, said spray plate having a pair of substantially parallel grooves for selectively receiving the stream, wherein the direction of rotation of said spray plate about said first axis is determined by the tilting motion of said spray plate about said second axis; and a shift lever formed with an aperture sized to receive said stream, said shift lever mounted at one end on said sleeve for rotation about a third axis parallel to said first axis, said shift lever enabled to shift the stream from one of said pair of grooves to the other of said pair of grooves to thereby reverse the direction of rotation of the spray plate.
  • 2. The sprinkler head of claim 1 wherein said support cage includes a pair of stop surfaces for confining the tilting motion of the spray plate.
  • 3. The sprinkler head of claim 2 wherein said support cage also includes a pair of opposed notches engageable by said shift lever, radially beyond said aperture.
  • 4. The sprinkler head of claim 1 wherein said aperture in said shift lever is shaped to provide a venturi effect which centers the stream within the aperture.
  • 5. The sprinkler head of claim 1 and further comprising a pair of upstanding stop posts arranged for engagement by a remote end of said shift lever, said shift lever normally rotating with said spray plate and said sleeve until said shift lever engages one of said stop posts, causing said shift lever to cease rotating about said first axis and commence rotating about said third axis.
  • 6. The sprinkler head of claim 5 wherein, when said shift lever rotates about said third axis between said stop posts, the shift lever causes the stream to shift to the other of said pair of grooves which, in turn, causes said spray plate to tilt and reverse the direction of rotation thereof.
  • 7. The sprinkler head of claim 1 wherein said pair of substantially parallel grooves are each comprised of a vertical inlet portion and a generally horizontal, radially outward outlet portion.
  • 8. The sprinkler head of claim 1 wherein said aperture in said shift lever is flared at an inlet portion thereof, describing an angle of about 90° between two diametrically opposed surfaces thereof.
  • 9. The sprinkler head of claim 6 wherein said sprinkler body comprises an outer housing, said rotatable sleeve located radially inward of said outer housing, and a fixed, hollow rotor stem that supports said fixed nozzle.
  • 10. The sprinkler head of claim 9 wherein said sleeve comprises a stator housing, with space provided radially between said rotor stem and said stator housing, and further wherein said space is at least partially filled by a viscous fluid.
  • 11. The sprinkler head of claim 10 wherein said space includes enlarged cavities at opposite ends of said rotor stem that also contain viscous fluid.
  • 12. The sprinkler head of claim 9 wherein said stop posts are supported on respective rings rotatably mounted on said outer housing.
  • 13. A reversible, adjustable arc sprinkler head comprising a sprinkler body having an outer housing, a rotatable stator housing supported within said outer housing, and a fixed, hollow rotor stem secured to said outer housing and located radially inward of said stator housing, said rotor stem supporting an axially arranged nozzle; a spray plate mounted in a cage for tilting motion relative to the cage about a horizontal axis; the cage and spray plate mounted at one end on said stator housing for rotation relative to said sprinkler body about one vertical axis, said spray plate having formed therein a pair of substantially parallel grooves adapted to be sequentially aligned with said nozzle for receiving a stream from said nozzle, wherein the direction of rotation of said spray plate about said first axis is determined by the tilting motion of said spray plate about said second axis;a shift lever extending substantially horizontally and mounted on said stator housing for confined pivotal rotation about another vertical axis, parallel to said one vertical axis, said shift lever having an inner portion with an aperture therein through which a stream emitted from said nozzle may pass; and a stop assembly mounted on said outer housing and including a first rotationally adjustable, annular ring provided with a first stop post, and a second rotationally adjustable, annular ring supported on said first annular ring for rotation relative to said first annular ring, said second annular ring having a second stop post adjustable relative to said first stop post; and wherein said shift lever is arranged to rotate with said stator housing, said cage and said spray plate about said one vertical axis between said first stop post and said second stop post, and to rotate about said another vertical axis after engagement with one of said first stop post and said second stop post.
  • 14. The sprinkler head of claim 13 wherein said first and second stop posts are adjustable relative to each other.
  • 15. The sprinkler head of claim 14 wherein each of said first and second annular rings includes a means for locking the first and second annular rings, respectively, in desired adjusted positions.
  • 16. The sprinkler head of claim 13 including a viscous fluid between said stator housing and said rotor stem for retarding rotational speed of said stator housing and said spray plate.
  • 17. The sprinkler head of claim 16 wherein enlarged cavities are provided at opposite ends of said rotor stem that also contain said viscous fluid.
Parent Case Info

This is a continuation-in-part application of Ser. No. 10/216,798 filed Aug. 13, 2002.

US Referenced Citations (9)
Number Name Date Kind
4540125 Gorney et al. Sep 1985 A
4763839 Greenberg Aug 1988 A
4805838 Greenberg Feb 1989 A
5058806 Rupar Oct 1991 A
RE33823 Nelson et al. Feb 1992 E
5288022 Sesser Feb 1994 A
5372307 Sesser Dec 1994 A
5671886 Sesser Sep 1997 A
6494384 Meyer Dec 2002 B1
Continuation in Parts (1)
Number Date Country
Parent 10/216798 Aug 2002 US
Child 10/377786 US