US2417228A - Sprinkler - Google Patents

Description

March 119 1947.4 S'Wi YQDER 2,417,228,

I SPRINKLER Filed Sept. l5, 1945 y ,Arron/vsn Patented Mar. 11, 1947 Unirse 'IES rst' OFFICE My invention relates in general to sprinklers and more particularly to the type of sprinklers known customarily as whirlpool sprinklers.

Sprinklers of the whirlpool type are characterized, by having the sprinkled fluid, usually water, forced into a rapid rotary motion within a dome and discharged in a spray by centrifugal force rather than by being divided and directed in a spray by small orices. The orice` on the dome of such a sprinkler is usually provided with a thin lip to achieve greater comminution by suddenly changing the direction of motion from inwardly and rotary to outwardly and tangential. The thin lip presents problems of corrosion and wear and it isA not uncommon to have it in the form of a special insert of brass or other nonrusting metal. The whirlpool eiect within the dome is obtained by a tangentialinlet. However, the water pressure forces the vortex to one side of the exit orifice, and in fact may cause it to move around as such vortices are commonly observed to move in nature, result-- ing in an elliptical and erratic discharge instead of an even circular spray.

It is accordingly a principal object of my invention to provide a sprinkler of whirlpool action that will throw the spray evenly in all directions.

It is another of my objects to s control and direct the llow of water as to render unnecessary the use of thin lips or noncorrosive inserts.

It is still a further object to provide a sprinkler ruggedly constructed of a minimum of easily manufactured parts.

These and other objects I obtain in a manner which will be clear from a consideration of the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l is a plan View of my sprinkler;

Figure 2 is a front elevation;

Figure 3 is a side elevation;

Figure 4 is a vertical section of the sprinkler as disposed in Fig. 2, andon an enlarged scale;

Figure 5 is a vertical section on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4; and

Figure 6 is a partial horizontal section on the line 6-6 of Fig. 4, but on the scale of Fig. 1.

Referring now to Figs. l, 2, and 3, the numeral l0 designates a casing, the central portion of which is curved upwardly to form a round dome l l with a central orifice I2. A boss i3, carried off center by the dome Il, is recessed and threaded internally, as shown at I4 in Figs. 5 and 6, to receive the end of a hose or other conduit. At the inmost end of the recess is an inletpassage i5, of restricted cross-section relative to the hose or conduit, which connects with the inside of the dome ll in a tangential man- As shown in Figs. l and 5, the orice l2 is provided with an inwardly extending annular flange l5, which I designate as a centralizing tube. This centralizing tube It rextends inwardly to about the level of the mid-point of the inlet l5. The sides of the dome Il are eX- truded inwardly at the point where `they outwardly join the casing l0, to form a second annular ange Il which, as will be seen, serves as a supporting ange.

As also shown in Figs. l and 5, a plug I8 is pressed within the supporting ange Il, sealing the bottom of the ydome Il. On its interior surface the plug I8 carries an annular ridge or wall E9. The wall i9 is of greater diameter than, and concentric with, .the centralizingtube l, and is of sulcient height to overlapslightly the inner end of the tube I6.

It will be seen from the foregoing that the entire construction is of the utmost simplicity, consisting of two major pieces which may be diecast and pressed together and requiring machinery only for the threaded connection for the nose.

In operation, the water enters the sprinkler at high velocity through the inlet l5 and is deflected from short-circuiting to the centralizing tube i6 and the orifice l2 by the ridge I9. The

water is thereby forced to rotate within the dome H., and as all parts therein contacted by the water are annular in form and without ports, ribs, or other frictional obstructions, the water develops a high rotational speed.

Since thecross-section of flow in the dome is larger than that of the inlet i5, the velocity is less than that in the inlet, and as is well known in hydrodynamics, such a change of velocity tends to set up internal turbulence 4and eddies. rIhe presence of the centralizing tube I6 counteracts this tendency vand. streamlines the rotary flow more evenly than would be otherwise possible. The outowing water moves evenly downwardly between the annular wall i9 and the centralizing tube l5 which by their overlap prevent the pressure at the inlet l5 from exerting decentralizing force upon the swirling water contained between them. Consequently, nthe water passes under the lower edge of the centralizing tube i6 with an even distribution around the entire edge, and rises within the tube, clinging to the Walls .thereof by centrifugal force, to the orice l2, from the increasing the rotary velocity of the water at that` point and causing it `to begin its outward travel through the centralizing tube with great speed-2l Y The centralizing tube i6 forms 1,afixedJ/iortex.. f.

around which the water swirls, preventingthe formation of a one-sidedor wobblingvcrtex suchl as occurs when the vortex is free. When 4the water passes under theedge of the centralizingv tube, it clings to the inner surface of the tube by centrifugal forceand isliftedby-the -waterbehind it; producing an evenly ydistributed supply of spray-forming water at the'oriiice-l.

Other means of forming .the chamber andof` creating a restricted annular passageto a tubular exist will occur .to those familiar with the art andv should be understood to `come within=the scope and spirit'of my invention-.l I wish it to be understood thatthis detailed descrptf'ionrand showing of one embodiment Aof my invention Yis not to be taken in a limiting sense, as the invention is best defined in the appended claims.

1. A sprinkler comprising a-circularchamber, Y

an inlet to said 4chamber arrangedv substantially tangentially thereof, anoutlet positioned centrallyatone end'of saidchamber, a recess in the other end ofsaid chamber having an annular wall, a ,tubular flange on "said outlet extending within said chamber to a pointfwithinesaid recess,

said'tubular ilange and'sa-id annularwall forming between them a restricted annularpassageto the interior of said tubular-flange.

2,. A sprinkler comprising a circular chamber,

an inlet to said chamber arranged substantially tangentially thereof; anloutlet v'positioned centrally at onevend of said chamber, a tubular -lange on said outlet extending centrally withinsaid chamber to a point-adjacent the other end-thereof,I and means forming'part ffsaid--therend of said-chamber--for directing'the vilow of"liq`uid into the interior of said tubular ange at a` ve'- locityhigher than the 'mean velocity withinfthe chamber. f fi 3. A sprinkler comprisnig a'dome shaped chamber, a rclosure for the base of said chamber, an outlet orice in the top' of -saidlchamber 'and centrally positioned therein, an inlet substantially tangential to said chamber adjacent to the base of said chamber and at right anglesrto said outlet orice, an annular flange surrounding said outlet orice and extending centrally within the said dome, and an annular wall carried by said closure of greater diameter than said flange and extending inwardly of said dome to a position of overlap with said flange, said wall and said flange cooperating concentrically to form an annular passage between them, and said wall having a height sufficient to screen said passage fromsaid i inlet.

'Y 4. In a whirlpool sprinkler having a circular Y chamber, an inlet substantially tangential there- Y to.and.an. outlet centrally located in one end thereof, the combination of, a tubular member ex- A tendingwithin said chamber from said outlet and adaptedto screen said outlet from the adjacent portion of said chambenand a member surrounding the interior end of said tubular member and forming therewith a` restrictedannular passage thereto andadapted to screen said passage from said inlet. f- A Y 5. In a whirlpool sprinklervhaving a circular chamber, an inlet substantially tangential thereto, and an outlet centrally located in oneend thereof, the combination of, a tubular member extending within said chamber from said outlet toY a point adjacent the other end of thesaid chamber and adaptedfto divide the whirlpool into a iirstY whirlpool within said chamber and outside of said-tubular member and arsecond whirlpool within said'tubular memberin alignment with said outlet, and means foridirecting said first subdividedwhirlpool'into said second subdivided whirlpool ata velocity greater Ythan Vthe mean velocity of said rstsubdivided whirlpool.

v(i. A sprinkler comprising a circular chamber, an inlet to saidfchamber arranged substantially tangentially thereof, anv outlet positioned centrally at one end of said chamber,v and ra tubular ange on said outlet extending'centrally'within said chamber to a point below the upper level of said inlet, whereby to maintainthe center of rotation within'said chamber in axial alignment with said chamber. K

Y STANLEY W. YODER.v

- REFERENCES CITEDv Thevfllwi'ng-references are of record in the le 'ithis patent: y

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number

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