US1979623A

US1979623A - Recreation pool

Info

Publication number: US1979623A
Application number: US458133A
Authority: US
Inventors: Frank B Hunter
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1930-05-31
Filing date: 1930-05-31
Publication date: 1934-11-06
Anticipated expiration: 1951-11-06

Description

F. B. HUNTER RECREATION POOL Nov. 6, 1934.

Filed May 31, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet INVENTOR. Frank 13. Hunte 5*,

ATTORNEYS L] W2 $35 54 J2 F. B. HUNTER RECREATION POOL Filed May 51, 1930 I 'I'Illllfllll'lllll INVENTOR. Frank B. Hunter,

7 ATTORNEYS Patented Nov. 6, 1934 UNITED STATES AT N OFFICE RECREATION POOL Frank B. Hunter, Indianapolis, Ind. Application May 31, ,1930, Serial No. 458,133 25 Claims. (c1. 9-172) The present application relates to a recreational installation including a pool adapted for use as a swimming and wading pool or as an ice skating rink, a sand beach surrounding said pool, and a bath house, the only access to said pool being through said bath house. One of the primary objects of the invention is to provide a pool which shall be capable of use throughout the year, the pool being so constructed'as not to be damaged by the formation of ice during the winter. A further object of the invention is to provide more efficient circulating means for the water than has been provided in previously constructed pools. A further object of the invention is to provide means for preventing sand from being carried from the beach into thepool. A further object of the invention is to reduce pollution of the pool. A further object of the invention is to provide means for conserving the water used 20 in the pool. Still further objects of the invention will appear as the description proceeds.

I have illustrated one embodiment of myinvention in the accompanying drawings, but it is to be understood that changes maybe made in the specific construction illustrated and described without violating the scope of the invention, so long as the structure falls within the terms of the claims appended hereto.

In the drawings, Fig. l is a broken plan view of the installation as a whole; 1

Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof, the pool proper being shown in central section; I

Fig. 3 is a section onan enlarged scale of a portion of the pool showing the apparatus enclosed within the central island; j

Fig. 4 is a floor plan of the bath house;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view showing a detail; and

Fig. 6 is a plan of a sand trap.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, it will be seen that the installation comprises a bath house 10 guarding an opening 11 in a fence 12 completely surrounding the pool and beach. Immediately within the fence 12 there is provided an annular sand beach 13separated by a second fence 14 from a walk 15 surrounding the periphery of the pool proper. Lamp-posts 16 are preferably positioned about the fence 14 to provide illumination for the pool and beach. r

At spaced points about the fence 14 there are provided openings for permitting passage between the beach 13 and the pool proper, such openings being guarded by sand traps 17. Each of the sand traps comprises a fence provided with an entrance 18 and an exit 22 leading throughthe fence 14.- Between said entrance and said exit there are provided

bafiie walls

19 and 20 providing a tortuous passage through said trap, and the free ends of said baffle walls have secured thereto pipes 17' provided with spray openings therein. Water is constantly supplied to said pipes whereby spray curtains are formed, through which curtains'a person must pass to reach the pool from the beach. As will be obvious, any sand adhering to a bather will be washed off by the spray as the bather passes through the sand trap so that he will not carry sand from the beach into the pool. I have illustrated the pool 23 as circular in form, and this is the preferred embodimentof my invention for reasons which will appear hereinafter. Of course, however, many of the advantages of my invention which life guardscan keep watch on the bathers in the pool.

As isclearly illustrated, the pool is deepest at its center portion 27, and the floor 28 of said pool rises rather suddenly at a point spaced somewhat from the island and thereafter slopes gently upwardly and outwardly so] that the portion 29 adjacent the periphery of the pool makes an angle with the horizontal not greater than the angle of slip of ice on the material of which the floor is made. The angle 'of incidence disclosed may be otherwise defined as a safety tread slope. Such a slope is defined in various building codes and, in the illustrated embodiment, is approximately 12 degrees5 minutes. Otherwise expressed, this slope is a drop of 2 feet 2 inches in 10 feet.

As will be clear from the drawings, the pool of the present application is constructed entirely without side walls, the water in the pool, being retained solely by the floor thereof. As a consequence of this construction, the expansion of ice the floor. 32.0fsaid island is preferably positioned slightly below the floor 28 of the pool, although this latter arrangement is not of particular importance. At equidistantly spaced points about the periphery of the island there are provided outlet ports 33 in the floor 28 of the pool, said ports being connected by pipes 34 with T-couplings 35, and said couplings are connected by pipes 36 to a common head 37. Adjacent the upper end of the island, said island is formed with a scum gutter 38, the lip 39 of which is positioned just below the normal water level 40 in said pool. At spaced points about said scum gutter 38 there are provided outlet ports 41 connected by pipes 42 to the respective T-couplings 35. 1

The head 37 is connected by a pipe 43 with the intake port of a pump 44 of desired construction, said pump being preferably driven by a motor 45. A pipe 46 connects the outlet port of said pump with a filter 47, said filter being connected by apipe 48 with a chlorinating device 49. Of course, it is tobe understood that the filter and 'chl'oriuator are illustrated only diagrammatical 1y herein; A pipe 50 leads from the chlorinator 49 to a distributing head 51 withwhich are connected'a plurality'of pipes 52 leading to the inlets 53 positioned at equidistantly spaced points about theouter edge of the pool, and opening into said pool at points slightly below thenormal water levelin said pool. A branch inlet 54 is connected to each of said pipes 52, the same being adapted to project a thin stream of water 55 into the pool above the surface thereof for decorative purposes. As will be obvious, since the lip 39 of the scum gutter 38 is located slightly below the normal water level in the pool, wateris continuously overflowing said lip and flowing through the

pipes

42 and 36 to the head. 37I Likewise, water will continuously flow through the outlet'ports 33 and

pipes

34 and 36 to thehead 37. The'water thus flowing tothehead 37. is continuously drawn therefrom by the pump 44, forced throughthe filter and the chlorinator', and so to the head 51 and through the pipes 52 to

theinlets

53 and 54. A constant circulation of waterthrough the pool is thus maintained, the water being purified each time it passes through the mechanism within the island and before it is again projected into the pooL' A very definite advantage is inherent in the particular arrangement of inlets and outlets disclosed herein, in combination with the shapeof the floor of Ithepooh The

inlets

53 and 54, are, as has been said,.equidistantly spaced about the periphery of the pool. The depthlof the water increasesprogressively from the periphery of the pool to' 'the regionof theoutlets. It will be readily apparent that apoolof this general character can beso designed that'the cross-section of the segment of water handled by each ofthe centrally located. outlets shall remain substantially constant from the periphery of the .pool to the outlet. That is, the horizontal dimension of such a section adjacent the periphery of the pool is quite large, whilethe, vertical dimension thereof ,isvery small. Adjacent the outlet, the vertical dimension 1 of such a section is comparatively .largepdue to the increased depth of the water, while the horizontal dimension thereof is quite small, The result of this arrangement, of course, is-a substantially constant rate offlow of water ,from the inlets to the outlets, with its resultant advantage in. the facility of maintaining a given chlorine content. I LwOfcourse, from theustandpoint'of obtaining this constant flow rate, a circular pool is the most efficient. The advantages of the described arrangement, however, can be attained, to a certain extent, in pools of other configuration, so long as the deepest portion of the pool is adjacent the center thereof, and the inlets are arranged about the perimeter of the pool and equiangularly spaced with respect to a central outlet. Where a plurality of outlets are used, the advantages may be obtained in some degree by spacing the inlets equiangularly about the perimeter of the pool with respect to the center thereof, and by spacing the outlets also equiangularly-about the center of the pool.

It is desirable that the water level in the pool be maintained quite close to the peripheral edge of the floor thereof. It is practically essential to prevent the water from overflowing the curb 24. It is desirable to prevent loss of water anywhere. To accomplish these functions, I have provided means whereby, if the water level is raised, the excess water will be drawn off from the pool and retained in a suitable reservoir until such'time as it is needed to maintain the desired level. On an average, an adult human displaces'about three and one-half cubic feet of water. A sudden ingress of a number of bathers into the pool will, of course, raise the water level above the desired position. A plurality of outlets 56 are arranged about the periphery of the island 25 immediately above the normal water level indicated at 40. These outlets are utterly independent of the

outlets

33 and 41, and are connected by pipes 5''! to a common head 58 which discharges, through a pipe 59, into a reservoir 60 Within the island 25. A discharge pipe 61 leads from said reservoir 60 to the inlet port of a pump 62, and'a pipe 63 leads from the outlet port of said pump to the filter 47, said pipe being provided with a check valve 63. As will be obvious, water displaced by bathers will flow through the outlet ports 56 and the

pipes

57 and 59 to the reservoir 60, thus lowering the water level again to the desired level indicated at 40.

I have provided automatic means for bring the water level back up to its normal when bathers leave the pool. Of course, if a large number of bathers leave the pool substantially simultaneously, the water level will drop below the lip 39. Even in the absence of compensating means,the level would slowly be built up because of the reduction in the rate of outflow due to-the elimination of flow through the pipes 42. It is desirable, however, to build up this level more suddenly, and such building up is effected in the following manner.

At a point materially below the normal water level, the wall of the island 25 is formed with a port 64 towhich is connected a pipe 65 communicating with the bottom of a chamber 66 within the island, said chamber being open to the atmosphere at its top. An arm 6'7 is pivoted to said chamber 66 and carries on its one end within said chamber a float 68. The opposite end 69 of said armfi'l is disposed without said chamber 66 and carries an electrical contact member 70 adapted to cooperate with a second contact member 71 carried upon a bracket 72. A source of current is diagrammatically illustrated in Fig. 3 and comprises a pair of wires '13 and '78. The line '73 is connected by a wire '74 with the contact point '71 and a wire '75 connects the contact point 70 with one terminal of a motor '76, the other terminal of which is directly connected by a wire 77 with the line '78. As will be obvious, the water level in the chamber 66 will be the same as the water level in the pool. Solongasl the level in the chamber 66 is maintained above a predetermined point,the contacts 70 and 71 will be separated. When the level in the chamber 66 drops below a predetermined point, in response to .acorresponding drop in the water level in the pool, the contact 70 will engage the contact '71 toestablish an energizing circuit for the motor 76. The motor '76'is connected to drive the pump 62, and said pump'will draw water from the reservoir and force it through the pipe 63, past the check valve 63, into the filter 47, and thus through the pipe 48, the chlorinator 49, and the pipe 50 to the distributing head 51. The pipes 52 and the

inlets

53 and 54 are capable of handling more water than is normally thrown by the pump 44, so that the water thrown by the pump 62 is simply added to the water forced through the outlets by the pump 44, thus quickly raising the level in the pool to its normal. When the water level in the pool reaches its normal, the contacts and v'71 are separated by the fioatarm 67, and the pump 62 stops.

Pollution of public swimming pools has always been a major problem. That problem has been solved, to a large extent, by the application of psychological principles to the bath house 10.

This house is divided into two sections by a partition 80,.one of the sections being devoted to women and the other to men. Since the two sections are identical, only one will be described.

On each side of the partition there is an entrance door 81 leading into a vestibule 82 from which a door 83, misaligned with respect to the door 81, 1eads into the locker room 84. The locker room 84 is provided with banks of lockers 85 between which are arranged benches 86for the convenience of the users of theinstallation. At one side of the locker room there is provided a check room 8'7 separated from the locker room 84 by a counter 88. r l v The only exit from the locker room 84 is through a passage 89 leading to a door 90 in one wall 91 of a shower cabinet defined by said wall 91, a wall 92, and battle Walls .93 and 94 forming a tortuous path through said shower cabinet. The free edge of the battle wall 93 is suitably formed to provide a horizontally directed series of spray curtains or blankets of sprayed water. Referring to Fig. 5, it will be seenthat each of these curtains 95 is divided into three sections substantially along the dotted

lines

103 and 104. Preferably the portions of the sprayabove the dotted line 103 and below the dotted line 104 areformed of cold water, while the portion of the spray between the

dotted lines

103 and 104 is formedof warm water. As will be apparent, the Warm-portion of the spray strikes a bather in the hipregion.

It is the warm portion of the spray which is the most important feature of this arrangement. The portions of the spray abovethe line 103 and below the line 104 may be omitted if desired, or the first two spray curtains encountered by a bather passing through the shower cabinet may be entirely cold Water while the last curtain is either composed of the three blankets illustrated in Fig. 5, or of a single blanket of warm Water arranged to strike the bather in the hip region.

It is a recognized scientific fact that a warm spray enveloping the hip region of a person tends to urge the person to attend to the demands of nature. As the bather leaves the sh owercabinet, he passes through a door 96 into a room 9'7 in which is arranged a bank of toilets.

. From this room, the bather passes through a door 98 into a small chamber communicating through a door 99 with a larger chamber 100 from which he passes through a door 101 to a platform from which he may pass through gates 102 to the beach 13. The wall between the chambers 100 and the adjacent chamber is so arranged as to prevent a direct view from the outsideinto the room 97.

' I claim the following:

l. A swimming and skating pond comprising a masonry fioor sloping smoothly upwardly and outwardly from its center and into a plane above the water line at the limits of said pond.

2. A swimming and skating pond comprising a masonry floor sloping upwardly and outwardly from its center and into a plane above the water line at the limits of said pond, the angle of inclinationof said floor adjacent the limits of said pond being not greater than a safety tread slope.

3. A swimming and skating pond having a central island therein and having its external boundaries formed by walls sloping outwardly and up wardly at an angle not greater than a safety tread slope.

4. A substantially circular swimming and skating pond centrally provided with an upstanding island formed substantially as a right cylinder, the bottom walls of said pond sloping smoothly upwardly and outwardly substantially uniformly on all sides of said island and meeting the adjacent beach surface at the periphery of said pond in an angle not exceeding a safety tread slope.

5. A substantially circular swimming and skating pond centrally provided with an upstanding island formed substantially as a right cylinder, the bottom walls of said pond sloping upwardly and outwardly substantially uniformly on all sides of said island. and nieeting the adjacent beach surface at the periphery of said pond in an angle not exceeding a safety tread slope, and means for maintaining the water level in said pond below the level of the outer edge of said bottom wall.

6. In a swimming pool, an island substantially centrally located in said pool, inlets adjacent the outer edge of said pool, outlets opening into said island, and mechanism within said island for drawing water through said outlets and ejecting the same through said inlets.

'7. In a swimming pool, a plurality of inlets 1"! equiangularly spaced, with respect to the center of said pool about the outer edge of said pool, and outlet means located centrally of said pool and adapted to draw water therefrom at substantially equal rates from points adjacent all of said. inlets.

8. In a swimming pool, a plurality of inlets equiangularly spaced, with respect to the center of said pool, about the outer edge of said pool, an island located centrally of said pool, and a plurality of outlets equiangularly spaced, with respect to'the center of said pool, about the outer Walls of said island.

9. In a substantially circular swimming pool, a plurality of inlets equidistantly spaced about the peripheral portion of said pool, a cylindrical island located centrally of said pool, and a plurality of outlets equidistantly spaced about a circle coaxial with said island and adjacent the wall thereof.

10. Ina substantially circular swimming pool deeper at its center than at its edges, a plurality of inlets equidistantly spaced about the peripheral portion of said pool, a cylindrical island located centrally of said pool, and a plurality of outlets equidistantly spaced about the wall of said island.

11. In asubstantially circular swimming pool, a plurality of outlets equidistantly spacediabout a circle concentric with said pool adjacent the center of said pool, said pool containing water, the cross-sectionalarea of the segment of water tending to flow to each outletbeing'substantially constant from the periphery ofsaid pool to said outlet. 2 r

12. In a swimming pool, an inlet, an outlet disposed above the normal water level of said pool, a reservoir, means connecting said outlet to deliver water to said reservoir, and means automatically operable upon a drop of the surface of the water in said pool below a predetermined level for forcing water from said reservoir to and through said inlet to said pool.

13. In a swimming pool, an inlet, an outlet disposed above the normal water level in said pool, a reservoir connected to receive the water drained through said outlet, means for forcing water from said reservoir to said inlet, and means'controlled by the water level in said pool for controlling the operation of said last named means.

14. In a swimming pool, an inlet, an outlet, means for circulating water from said outlet to said inlet, a water reservoir, and means-dependent upon the, water level in said pool for pumping water from said reservoir to and through'said inlet to increase the flow through said inlet beyond the capacity of said outlet.

15. In a swimming pool, an inlet, an outlet disposed below the water level in said pool, means for forcing the water flowing through said outlet to and through said inlet into said pool, areservoir, an outlet disposed above the normal water level in said pool andconnected to said reservoir, and means responsive to a drop of the water level in said pool below its normal for forcing liquid from said reservoir to and through said inlet into saidpool.

- 16. In a swimming pool, a plurality of inlets, a plurality of outlets, pumping means, means connecting said outlets to deliver water to said pumping means, means connecting said pumping means to deliver water to said'inlets, the capacity of said pumping means being substantially equal to the combined capacity of said outlets at normal head, a reservoir, an outlet'independentof said first mentioned outlets, means connecting. said last-mentioned outlet to deliver Water to said reservoir, and means automatically operable upon a drop of the water level in said pool below its normal for delivering water from said reservoir tosaid inlets, whereby the combined flow from said inlets exceeds the combined capacity of said first mentioned outlets.

17. In a swimming pool, a plurality of inlets, a plurality of outlets disposed below the normal water level in said pool, pumping means, means connecting said outlets to deliver water to said pumping means, means connecting said pumping means to deliver water to said inlets,'the capacity of said pumping means being equal to the combined capacity of said outlets at normal head, a

reservoir, an outlet independent of said firstmentioned outlets and disposed above the normal water level in said pool, means connecting said last-mentioned outlet to" deliver water to said reservoir and means automatically operable upon a drop of the water level in said pool below its normal for delivering water from said reservoir to said inlets, whereby the combined flow from said inlets exceeds the combined capacity of said first-mentioned outlets.

18. In a swimming pool, a pluralityof inlets,

a plurality of outletsfdisp'osed below the normal water level in-s'aid-pool, pumping means, means connectingsaid outlets to deliver water to said pumping means, means connecting said pumping means to deliver water to said inlets, the capacity of said pumping means being equal to the combined capacity of said outlets at normal head, a reservoir, an outlet independent of said firstmentionedoutlets and disposed'above the normal waterv level in said pool, means connecting said last-mentioned outlet to deliver water to said reservoir, means for delivering water from said reservoir to said inlets, and means dependent upon the water levelin said pool for causing operation of said last named means only when the water level in said poolis below normal.

19. Ina swimming pool, a plurality. of inlets, a plurality of outlets, means for forcing the water removed from said .pool through said outlets to and throughsaid inlets intosaid pool, a reservoir, means independent of said outlets for drawing water from said pool to said reservoir upon a rise of the-surface of the water in said pool above a predetermined level, and means including said inlets for delivering water from said reservoir to said pool only upon a fall of the surface of the water in said pool below a predetermined level.

20. In a swimming pool, a plurality of inlets, a plurality of outlets, means for forcing the water removed from said pool through said outlets to and through said inlets into said pool, a reservoir, means independent of said outlets for drawing Water from said poolto said reservoir upon a. rise of thesurface of the water in said-pool above a predetermined level, and means including said inlets but independent of said first named means for delivering water from said reservoir to said pool upon a fall of the surface of the water in said pool below a predetermined level.

21. In a swimming pool, an inlet, an outlet, means for drawing water through said outlet and for forcing the same to and through said inlet, an outlet independent of said first mentioned outlet, a reservoir connected to receive water flowing through said last mentioned outlet, and means independent of said first-named means for forcing water from said reservoir to and through said inlet.

22. In a swimming pool having its greatest depth substantially at its center, an upstanding island located centrally in said pool, pumping mechanism in said island, outlets opening into said pool substantially at the base of said island and supplying said pumping mechanism, an outlet opening through the wall of said island at a point above the normal water level in said pool, a reservoir within said island, means connecting said last mentioned outlet to deliver water to said reservoir, inlets located adjacent the outer boundary of said pool and supplied by said pumping mechanism, and means in said island for forcing water from said reservoir to and through said inlets.

23. In a swimming pool having its greatest depth substantially at its center, an upstanding island located centrally of said pool, pumping mechanism in said island, outlets opening into said pool substantially at the base of said island and supplyingsaid pumping mechanism with water, an outlet opening through the wall of said island ata point above the normal water level in said pool, a reservoir within said island, means connecting said last-mentioned outlet to deliver water to said reservoir, inlets located adjacent the outer periphery of said pool and supplied by said pumping mechanism, and means in said island and controlled by the water level in said pool for forcing water from said reservoir to and through said inlets.

24. In a swimming pool having its greatest depth substantially at its center, an upstanding island located centrally of said pool, an outlet opening through the wall of said island above the normal water level in said pool, a reservoir within said island connected to receive the water drained through said outlet, a pump Within said island connected to deliver water from said reserposed blankets of sprayed water extending across said passage, the intermediate one of said blankets being formed of warm water.

FRANK B. HUNTER.