Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6267303
-
Patent Number
6,267,303
-
Date Filed
Monday, September 27, 199924 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, July 31, 200122 years ago
-
Inventors
-
-
Examiners
- Kashnikow; Andres
- Bocanegra; Jorge
Agents
- Horton, Attorney; John Wiley
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 239 19
- 239 22
- 239 39
- 239 44
- 239 76
- 239 210
- 239 26517
- 239 26519
- 239 310
- 239 318
- 239 347
- 239 4245
- 222 518
- 137 2055
- 137 268
- 137 5645
- 137 587
- 137 893
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
A device for injecting liquid chemical solutions into the flow of a lawn sprinkler system. The device allows the user to easily attach and remove chemical jars without the risk of losing the prime on the pump.
Description
BACKGROUND
Field of Invention
This invention relates to the field of lawn sprinkler system. Specifically, the invention comprises a fertilizer injector which may be placed in the water lines feeding the sprinkler system in order to introduce fertilizer or other fluids into the sprinkler system.
OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES
The sprinkler systems presently available do not provide a means to introduce fertilizer or other desirable chemicals into the system. As a result, the homeowner must often spread or spray the lawn chemicals in a separate and time-consuming operation. The primary object of the present invention is to use the existing sprinkler system to spread the lawn chemicals during the normal irrigation process. Additional objects of the present invention are as follows:
(1) to allow the user to easily turn the chemical adding device on and off;
(2) To allow the user to disconnect the chemical container from the system without losing the prime on the sprinkler pump;
(3) To provide a fast means for switching chemical containers so that the user may add several different types of chemicals during a single irrigation cycle; and
(4) To provide a chemical adding device which may be used with many different types of existing sprinkler systems.
These objects and advantages will be fully explained in the details hereafter described, explained, and claimed, with reference being made to the accompanying drawings.
DRAWING FIGURES
FIG. 1
is an isometric view, showing the invention incorporated in a typical sprinkler system.
FIG. 2
is an isometric sectional view, showing more detail of the proposed invention.
FIG. 3
is an isometric section view, showing the details of the valves employed.
FIG. 4
is an isometric section view, showing the internal components of the distribution valve.
FIG. 5
is an isometric section view, showing the internal components of the distribution valve in the “off” position.
FIG. 6
is an isometric view of the distribution valve.
FIG. 7
is an isometric section view, showing how the distribution valve may be turned on and off using an external switch.
FIG. 8
is an isometric section view, showing an alternate embodiment incorporating a vent valve.
FIG. 9
is an isometric section view, showing an alternate embodiment incorporating a pinhole vent.
FIG. 10
is an isometric section view, showing an alternate embodiment without a check valve.
FIG. 11
is an isometric view, showing the preferred embodiment.
REFERENCE NUMERALS IN DRAWINGS
|
10
well pipe
12
injector assembly
|
14
pump
16
pump inlet
|
18
pump outlet
20
sprinkler distribution valve
|
22
sprinkler circuit
24
injector tee
|
26
distribution valve
28
check valve
|
30
injection venturi
32
relief venturi
|
34
mounting flange
36
jar
|
38
suction tube
40
threads
|
42
water passage
44
suction tube mount
|
46
intake
48
check ball
|
50
spring
52
rotary valve
|
54
check valve intake
56
check valve outlet
|
60
valve key
62
valve switch
|
64
vent valve
66
pull plunger
|
68
vent
70
vent passage
|
72
pinhole vent
74
distribution valve bore
|
76
rotary valve bore
78
valve switch passage
|
80
plunger seat
82
alternate vent
|
|
DESCRIPTION
FIG. 1
depicts a typical lawn sprinkler system. Well pipe
10
is placed into the earth at a depth sufficient to reach the local water table. Pump
14
pulls the water up through well pipe
10
and into pump inlet
16
. Pump
14
then pressurizes the water and discharges it through pump outlet
18
. From that point, the pressurized water flows into sprinkler distribution valve
20
, where it is split into several sprinkler circuits
22
.
Persons skilled in the art will recognize that it is very important to maintain the prime on pump
14
. If the prime is lost, pump
14
may become air locked and therefore unable to lift the water up well pipe
10
. The user would then have to reprime pump
14
.
Injector assembly
12
is placed into the system just before pump inlet
16
. The purpose of injector assembly
12
is to allow the user to inject fertilizer or other chemicals into the sprinkler system, thereby feeding them to the lawn. Turning now to
FIG. 2
, injector assembly
12
will be described in more detail.
Because it is important to understand several internal passages found within injector assembly
12
,
FIG. 2
shows the components in a section view. Injector tee
24
joins injector assembly
12
to the water lines. Many conventional methods may be used to ensure a leak-proof connection. The open ends of injector tee
24
could be threaded for compression fittings. Alternatively, the open ends could be joined to the water lines by PVC glue. As these methods are well known in the prior art, they have not been illustrated.
Inside injector tee
24
is water passage
42
. Water flows through the device and toward pump
14
in the direction shown by the arrow. Mounting flange
34
is provided for the mounting of jar
36
. Jar
36
actually contains the liquid solution which the user wishes to inject into the sprinkler system. Jar
36
is removably attached to mounting flange
34
by threads
40
. It is important to achieve an air-tight seal between jar
36
and mounting flange
34
.
Two internal passages connect with water passage
42
: injection venturi
30
and relief venturi
32
. Directly connected to injection venturi
30
is distribution valve
26
. Suction tube
38
is connected to the lower end of distribution valve
26
. Suction tube
38
extends down to the bottom ofjar
36
. Its purpose is to pull in the liquid contained within jar
36
and carry it up to distribution valve
26
. The purpose of distribution valve
26
is to control the flow of liquid proceeding from jar
36
, through injection venturi
30
, and into water passage
42
.
Directly connected to relief venturi
32
is check valve
28
. The purpose of check valve
28
is to control the flow of liquid from water passage
42
into jar
36
. Turning now to
FIG. 3
, the function of the valves will be explained in greater detail.
The suction induced by pump
14
causes the water within water passage
42
to flow at relatively high velocity, creating suction at injection venturi
30
. This phenomenon is well known in the prior art. The induced suction naturally tends to pull liquid up out of jar
36
and into the moving stream within water passage
42
. The lower end of distribution valve
26
is formed into a projection designated as suction tube mount
44
. Suction tube mount
44
is designed to tightly fit inside the inner diameter of suction tube
38
, and frictionally hold it in place. Suction tube mount
44
has intake
46
, which allows the liquid flowing up suction tube
38
to enter the interior of distribution valve
26
.
Distribution valve
26
has check ball
48
, which is held against its seat by spring
50
. Distribution valve
26
also has rotary valve
52
. Rotary valve
52
, which is an integral part of check valve
26
, has rotary valve bore
76
which can be aligned with distribution valve bore
74
. When rotary valve
52
is in the position shown in
FIG. 3
, it directly connects injection venturi
30
to the interior of distribution valve
26
. The induced suction of injection venturi
30
then tends to lift check ball
48
off its seat and allow fluid to flow up suction tube
38
, through distribution valve
26
, through injection venturi
30
, and into water passage
42
.
Check ball
48
is a very important feature of distribution valve
26
. When pump
14
is shut off, water flow ceases within water passage
42
. At that point check ball
48
is forced by spring
50
back against its seat, whereby it seals the entrance to water passage
42
. Without this feature, if pump
14
were shut down after all the liquid had been removed from jar
36
, air within jar
36
could enter water passage
42
and cause pump
14
to lose its prime.
In the embodiment shown in
FIG. 3
, jar
36
is not vented to the surrounding air. As liquid is removed from jar
36
, the pressure within jar
36
drops significantly lower than the pressure in the surrounding air. This fact makes jar
36
very difficult to remove from mounting flange
34
. Check valve
28
in included to remedy this problem. After pump
14
shuts down, the vacuum within jar
36
pulls check ball
48
in check valve
28
off its seat and water flows from water passage
42
, through relief venturi
32
, through check valve intake
54
, past check ball
48
, out check valve outlet
56
and into jar
36
. This flow then raises the pressure within jar
36
. When the pressure within jar
36
approaches the pressure within water passage
42
, check valve
28
will again close, whereupon jar
36
may be easily removed from mounting flange
34
.
FIG. 4
shows an enlarged view of distribution valve
26
. Rotary valve
52
is provided to control the fluid flow through distribution valve
26
. In the position shown, rotary valve bore
76
is aligned with distribution valve bore
74
, meaning that the valve is in the “ON” position. Turning to
FIG. 5
, rotary valve
52
may be rotated in the direction shown so that rotary valve bore
76
is no longer perfectly aligned with distribution valve bore
74
. In this position, flow through distribution valve
26
is reduced. If rotary valve
52
is rotated still further, all flow will be cut off and the valve will be in the “OFF” position. Thus, the reader will appreciate that rotary valve
52
may be used to continuously adjust the flow through distribution valve
26
.
FIG. 6
shows distribution valve
26
in a conventional view. Rotary valve
52
has a square valve key
60
cut into its external face so that another piece can engage and rotate rotary valve
52
. Turning now to
FIG. 7
, the reader will observe that valve switch
62
is shaped and sized to fit within valve switch passage
78
. The end of valve switch
62
is shaped and sized to engage valve key
60
, so that when valve switch
62
is turned manually, rotary valve
52
is turned. Valve switch
62
is located to be easily accessible to the user. The user turns valve switch
62
in order to regulate the flow of liquid within jar
36
into the sprinkler system. It is helpful to provide reference markings on injector tee
24
so that the user understands which orientation of valve switch
62
is “ON” and which orientation is “OFF.” As such markings are commonly understood in the art, they have not been illustrated.
The user desiring to operate the device follows a simple procedure. Returning to
FIG. 2
, the user unscrews jar
36
from mounting flange
34
. The operation of the valves, as described earlier, prevents the loss of pump prime. The user fills jar
36
with the desired liquid (often a fertilizer solution). Jar
36
is then screwed tightly back into mounting flange
34
. Turning to
FIG. 7
, the user then sets valve switch
62
to the desired setting.
Sprinkler systems are typically run on a timer. The timer most often switches the system on in the early morning. It is important to realize that the user can fill jar
36
and set valve switch
62
at any time—even while pump
14
is running (although valve switch
62
must be placed in the “OFF” position before removing jar
36
). Thus, the user does not need to worry about when the sprinkler system will run. He or she simply fills the jar, sets the switch, and leaves the device in place.
Although the preceding description constitutes one of the invention's embodiments, several alternate embodiments are also effective. Returning now to
FIG. 3
, the reader will recall that check valve
28
is provided to prevent the pressure within jar
36
from dropping too low as liquid is drawn out ofjar
36
. The Applicant has experimentally determined that if a flexible material is used for jar
36
, check valve
28
can be eliminated. This results from the fact that jar
36
will partially collapse as the liquid is drawn out, preventing the pressure from dropping too low. This alternate embodiment is illustrated in FIG.
10
.
While the embodiment shown in
FIG. 10
does work, the vacuum within jar
36
can make it very difficult to remove. Thus, another component is desirable in order to dissipate the vacuum within jar
36
before the user can remove jar
36
from mounting flange
34
.
FIG. 8
illustrates the remedy to this recognized problem. The reader should note that valve switch
62
is not shown in
FIG. 8
, for purposes of visual simplicity. Valve switch passage
78
is shown—which illustrates where valve switch
62
would be inserted. In the alternate embodiment shown in
FIG. 8
, vent passage
70
occupies the space occupied by check valve
28
in the embodiment depicted in FIG.
3
. Vent passage
70
connects the inside of jar
36
to vent valve
64
. As explained previously, the operation of the system causes a significant vacuum within jar
36
. The user desiring to remove jar
36
must first dissipate this vacuum.
Vent valve
64
has moveable pull plunger
66
. Pull plunger
66
is held tightly against plunger seat
80
by spring
50
. Thus, in the position shown, vent valve
64
does not allow flow between the inside of jar
36
and the surrounding air. In order to release the vacuum within jar
36
, the user grasps pull plunger
66
and pulls it in the direction shown by the arrow. This motion pulls pull plunger
66
off of plunger seat
80
. Surrounding air then rushes in vents
68
, through the internal cavity of vent valve
64
, past plunger seat
80
, through vent passage
70
, and into the interior of jar
36
. The vacuum is thereby dissipated and jar
36
may easily be removed.
FIG. 9
illustrates another alternate embodiment. In this alternate embodiment, vent valve
64
is removed and pinhole vent
72
is simply left open to the surrounding air. This embodiment reduces cost by eliminating the need for check valve
28
and vent valve
64
. However, the diameter of pinhole vent
72
must be carefully coordinated with the workings of distribution valve
26
. Otherwise, once all the liquid within jar
36
has been consumed, air may be drawn through distribution valve
26
. If enough air is drawn in, pump
14
can lose its prime. Thus, the reader will appreciate that although the alternate embodiment shown in
FIG. 9
is cheaper, it may be less effective in maintaining pump prime in some circumstances.
Preferred Embodiment
FIG. 11
illustrates the preferred embodiment. In this embodiment, check valve
28
is connected to the surrounding air by alternate vent
82
. As fluid is pulled out of jar
36
and pressure drops within jar
36
, check valve
28
will open to allow pressure equalization through alternate vent
82
. In this configuration, the operation of check valve
28
prevents the build-up of significant vacuum within jar
36
. When pump
14
is shut down, check valve
28
closes, thereby sealing jar
36
and preventing the loss of pump prime. When pump
14
is running, check valve
28
will cycle open in the event that a significant vacuum builds within jar
36
. In this respect, the preferred embodiment is superior in operation to the embodiment depicted in FIG.
2
. The embodiment depicted in
FIG. 2
only tends to equalize pressure after pump
14
has shut down. The preferred embodiment, on the other hand, prevents the build-up of significant vacuum.
Summary, Ramifications, and Scope
Accordingly, the reader will appreciate that the proposed invention allows the user to easily inject liquids into an existing sprinkler system. Furthermore, the proposed invention has additional advantages in that:
1. It allows the user to add the desired liquids without losing pump prime;
2. It allows the user to easily turn the chemical adding device on and off;
3. It allows the user to rapidly switch chemical containers so that the user may add several different types of chemicals during a single irrigation cycle; and
Although the preceding description contains significant detail, it should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but rather as providing illustrations of the preferred embodiment of the invention. Many alterations could be made without changing the basic scope of the present invention. As an example, the injector tee could incorporate multiple jars so that more than one chemical could be added simultaneously. Thus, the scope of the invention should be fixed by the following claims, rather than by the examples given.
Claims
- 1. A device for allowing a user to inject liquid chemical solutions into the well pipe of a sprinkler system so that said injected chemical solutions will be carried into a pump and from thence into the sprinkler circuits, comprising:a. an injector tee, being attached to said well pipe of said sprinkler system, with said injector tee having a internal water passage oriented to allow the flow of water through said well pipe to flow through said injector tee; b. a mounting flange, being integrally formed with said injector tee, and being in the shape of a vertical cylinder extending downward from said injector tee, with the lower surface of said mounting flange opening into an interior cylindrical cavity, with the vertical surface of said cylindrical cavity being cut by female threads, and with the horizontal surface of said cylindrical cavity opening into an injection venturi passing from said cylindrical cavity to said water passage, thereby allowing fluid communication between said cylindrical cavity and said water passage; c. a hollow jar, with the upper portion of said jar being formed in the shape of a hollow vertical cylinder, with the outer vertical surface of said hollow vertical cylinder being formed into male threads, and being sized so that said hollow jar threads tightly into said interior cylindrical cavity of said mounting flange, with said male threads bearing tightly against said female threads; and d. means for conveying said liquid chemical solutions contained within said jar up to said injection venturi, so that as the water flowing within said water passage induces suction at said injection venturi, said chemical solutions are drawn out of said jar and injected into said water passage; e. said means for conveying said liquid chemical solution having a distribution valve, with an upper end and a lower end, with said upper end opening into a hollow interior cavity passing vertically thorough said distribution valve and exiting at said lower end, with said upper end being immediately adjacent to said injection venturi so that fluid passing through said distribution valve may pass through said injection venturi; f. a hollow suction tube, having an upper end and a lower end, with said upper end being removably attached to said lower end of said distribution valve, and with said lower end being in close proximity with the bottom of said jar; and g. means withing said distribution valve for continuously regulating the flow of said chemical solutions from zero to full flow; h. wherein said horizontal surface of said cylindrical cavity also opens into a vent passage passing from said cylindrical cavity to the surrounding air, thereby allowing fluid communication between said cylindrical cavity and said surrounding air, and wherein flow within said vent passage is regulated by a vent valve, with said vent valve having a pull plunger which is normally biased against a plunger seat in order to obstruct all flow through said vent passage, but which may be grasped by said user and pulled to momentarily allow flow through said vent passage so as to equalize the pressure withing said jar and said surrounding air.
- 2. A device as recited in claim 1, wherein said horizontal surface of said cylindrical cavity also opens into a relief venturi passing from said cylindrical cavity to said water passage, thereby allowing fluid communication between said cylindrical cavity and said water passage, and wherein flow within said relief venturi is regulated by a check valve, which permits flow from said water passage to said cylindrical cavity, but prevents flow in the reverse direction.
- 3. A device as recited in claim 1, wherein said horizontal surface of said cylindrical cavity also opens into an alternate vent passing from said cylindrical cavity to the air surrounding said jar, thereby allowing fluid communication between said cylindrical cavity and said air surrounding said jar, and wherein flow within said alternate vent is regulated by a check valve, which permits flow from said air surrounding said jar to said cylindrical cavity, but prevents flow in the reverse direction.
US Referenced Citations (12)