US2943796A - Double tube oscillating lawn sprinkler - Google Patents

Description

July 5, 1960 E. w. SMITH DOUBLE TUBE OSCILLATING LAWN SPRINKLER Filed March 15, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 w m 0 0) a m m 2 HTTURNEYS y 1960 E. w. SMITH 2,943,796

DOUBLE TUBE OSCILLATING LAWN SPRINKLER Filed March 15, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 93 3 TI|": 7 ,7 1 1 )1 J INVENTOR. [.0 WW 14 5mm 4 law M Ww 3 ATTORNEYS DOUBLE TUBE OSCILLATING LAWN SPRINKLER Edwin W. Smith, Climax, Mich., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Turner Corporation, Sycamore, IlL, a corporation of Illinois Filed Mar. 15, 1957, Ser. No. 646,239

3 Claims. or. 239-442 This invention relates in general to a lawn sprinkler and, more particularly, to a type thereof having a plurality of oscillatable discharge heads arranged for dispensing a liquid over a relatively large area.

.It has long been recognized that, although the oscillatable type of lawn sprinkler can be utilized to sprinkle relatively large areas, it is generally necessary to operate such sprinklers for a long period of time in the same location in order to get the desired amount of saturation. Furthermore, it has been found that some portions of the area being watered become over-saturated before other portions receive enough Water, due to the conventional arrangement of theidischarge ports in the discharge head. In pursuing further the development of the oscillatable lawn sprinkler disclosed in the pending application, Serial No. 636,161 it was found that, by utilizing two discharge heads and coupling them together for simultaneous, but adjustable, operation by the same oscillating mechanism, an attractive appearance, as well as a wide variety of dispersion patterns, could be obtained.

, Accordingly, a primary object of this invention is the provision of an oscillatable-type lawn sprinkler having multiple discharge heads, which are oscillated by a single drive mechanism.

A further object of this invention is the provision of an oscillatable, lawn-type sprinkler, as aforesaid, whereby an attractive appearance can be obtained, said appearance resulting from the interlacing of streams of water at constantly changing angles with respect to each other.

A further object of this invention is the provision of an oscillatable, lawn-type sprinkler, as aforesaid, whereby the streams of water may, in at least some positions of use of the apparatus, be at all times in' a given cycle of operation at equal angles with respect to a vertical plane extending above the sprinkler, and thereby further promote an attractive and balanced appearance.

A further object of this invention is the provision of :an oscillatable lawn-type sprinkler, as aforesaid, whereby the dispersion patterns of liquid discharged thereby may be substantially increased in comparison with existing oscillatable sprinklers designed for the same or similar purposes.

A further object of this invention is the provision of a lawn sprinkler, as aforesaid, whereby the said improvement in dispersion can be accomplished without materially increasing the cost of the improved structure over'the cost'of existing structures of a similar type.

- Other objects and purposes of this invention will become apparentto persons familiar with this type of equipment upon readingthe following specification and examining the accompanying-drawings in which:

,Figurel is a top plan view of a lawn-type sprinkler embodying thednvention...

JFigurelZ is a sectional view, on a reduced scale, taken alongthe IineII-E-II of Figure 1, and rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise. q t

Figure 3,i s arsectional view substantially as taken along the line,III-III of Figure. 2.

atent i 2,943,796 Patented July 5,1969

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along the line IVIV of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a sectional view, on an enlarged scale, sub: stantially as taken along the line V--V of Figure 2.

Figure 6 is a sectional view, on an enlarged scale, taken along the line VI-VI of Figure 2.

Figure 7 is a sectional view substantially as taken along the line VII-VII of Figure 6.

Figure 8 is a sectional view taken along the line VIII-VIII of Figure 1, and rotated degrees clockwise.

Figure 9 is a sectional view taken along the line IX-IX of Figure 8. J '1 General description In order to'meet the objects and purposesiof the inven tion' set forth above, as well as others related thereto, there has been provided a lawn sprinkler comprised of a frame, here supported on skids, which has an upwardly extending portion on one end and supports a housing near the other end. A pair of elongated, hollow discharge heads are pivotally supported at their opposite ends for oscillating movement about substantially parallel axes and at one end upon said upwardly extending portion of the frame and at the other end upon a header mounted upon said housing. The header, which communicates with the interiors of the discharge heads is connectible through said housing to a source of liquid, to be distributed, normally water, which is discharged from said discharge heads through a plurality of ports therein. An oscillation shaft extends from said housing and has an axis substantially parallel with the said axes of said discharge heads. Said shaft is oscillated by drive mechanism within the housing, which may be substantially identical with the mechanism described in. said application, Serial No. 636,161. Said shaft is connected by linkage to both of the discharge heads, for effecting simultaneous oscillation thereof. Adjustable means is provided in said linkage for controlling both the direction and amplitude of the oscillation of said discharge heads.

The terms, upper, lower, horizontal, vertical, and similar expressions indicating direction or position, will have reference to the structure of a sprinkler characterizing the invention, when in its normal position of operation, as appearing in Figures 2 and 3. The terms left and right, will refer to corresponding parts of the structure, as appearing in Figure 1. The terms, inner, outer, and derivatives thereof, will have reference to the geometric center of the sprinkler and parts thereof.

Detailed construction As shown in Figure 1, the sprinkler 10 is comprised of a substantially rectangular base frame 11, having a pair of substantially parallel runners 12 and 13 which extend upwardly at the leftward end of each to form the end structure 14. A housing 16 is supported by means of the legs 17 and 18 upon the runners 12 and 13, respectively, near the other ends thereof. The base frame 11 and housing 16, including the oscillating mechanism contained therein, may be substantially the same as disclosed and described in detail insaid pending application, Serial No. 636,161. 1

Briefly, the base frame 11 (Figures -1 and 2) may be fabricated from tubular material arranged in a U-shaped form, therunners 12 and 13- providing the side elements of said U-shaped form. The housing 16, which is supported upon said frame 11, contains a chamber l9--(Figure 3) in which the drive, mechanism 21 is housed. Such drive mechanism includes .a substantially horizontal oscillation shaft 22, which-is rotatablysupported within, and extends through, a bearing 23 mounted in the outlet wal 24 of the housing 16.

A triangularly shaped pivot quadrant 27 (Figures 3-and 4) is disposed within the chamber 19 adjacent to said outlet wall 24, and has a substantially vertical slot 26 near its lower end. The inner end of the shaft 22 (Figure 3) slidably extends through said slot 26 in the pivot quadrant 27. A substantially vertical guide rod 28 extends through the drive shaft 22 and along the inner surface of the quadrant 27. Two pair of guide pins 29 and 31 are provided on said inner surface of said quadrant for slidably engaging said guide rod 28 near the opposite ends thereof. Thus, pivotal movement of the quadrant 27 about said shaft 22 operates through the pins 29 and 31, and the rod 28 to effect an oscillation of the shaft 22.

A substantially horizontal, arcuate slot 32 (Figure 4), having gear teeth along its opposing walls, is provided through the upper end of the quadrant 27. A drive shaft 33 (Figure 3), which is horizontally and rotatably supported within the chamber 19, extends through the gear slot 32. Said shaft 33 supports splined teeth 35 which are engageable with the teeth of said gear slot. Said teeth 35 and the slot 32 are so arranged that said teeth 35 engage the teeth along only one lengthwise wall of said slot 32 at a time. Means, not shown, is provided for keeping said teeth 35 in engagement with the teeth of said slot 32 at all times. Thus, rotation of said drive shaft 33 effects an oscillation of the pivot quadrant 27 in a manner set forth in detail in said application, Serial No. 636,161. The drive shaft 33 is driven by means ineluding the gear 34 and worm 36. V p A horizontally and laterally elongated header 37 (Figures 2 and having an inner compartment 38 extending lengthwise of said header, is mounted upon the outlet wall 24 of the housing 16 near the upper end thereof. The header compartment 38 is connected to the pressure fluid inlet 41 (Figure 5) by means including the passageway 39 through the housing 16 (Figures 3 and 5). The header 37 has a pair of spaced, axially horizontal outlet openings '42 and 43 through the outlet wall 44 from the compartment 38.

A T-shaped fixture 46 (Figure 1) is supported upon the upwardly extending and converging portions 47 and 48 of the runners 12 and 13, respectively. Said fixture 46 has a flange 49 which is substantially parallel with, and opposed to, the header 37, said flange 49 having a pair of spaced, bushed openings 51 and 52, which are preferably coaxial, respectively, with the outlet openings 42 and 43 in the header 37.

The sprinkler (Figure 1) includes a pair of elongated, arcuate discharge heads 53 and 54, which are preferably, but not necessarily, fabricated from tubular, metallic material. Said discharge heads 53 and 54 have arcuate, relatively long, central portions 56 and 56a, respectively. Said arcuate portions are disposed between relatively short, coaxial and straight end portions 57 and 57a, and 58 and 58a, respectively (Figures 5 and 9). The end portions 57 and 57a which have outwardly flaring flanges 59 and 59a, respectively, at their free ends extend through the outlet openings 42 and 43 into header 37. Sealing means, such as the O-rings 61 and 61a, are provided around said end portions 57 and 57a, respectively, within the compartment 38, between said flanges 59 and 59a and the outlet wall 44 of said header 37. The end portions 58 and 58a of said discharge heads 53 and 54, respectively, are rotatably disposed within, and extend through the openings 51 and 52, respectively, in the flange 49 of the fixture 46, as shown in Figure 9.

The discharge heads 53 and 54 (Figure 2) have internal chambers 64 and 64a, which communicate with the compartment 38 (Figure 5) in the header 37. A plurality of discharge ports 66 and 6601 (Figure 1), extend through the convex side of the arcuate portions 56 and 56a of the discharge heads 53 and 54, respectively, and communicate with the chambers 64 and 64a. In this particular embodiment, said discharge ports 66 and 6611 are preferably aligned along the lengthwise extent of their respective discharge heads, are substantially uniformly spaced, and are staggered on one discharge head with respect to the other.

Oscillating mechanism 68 (Figures 1, 2 and 3) is provided between the oscillation shaft 22 and the discharge heads 53 and 54- for effecting oscillation of said discharge heads about theirlengthwise axes in response to oscillation of the shaft 22 about its axis. Said oscillating mechanism 68 includes a drive crank 69, which is mounted upon, and movable with, the outer end of the oscillation shaft 22, and a pair of driven cranks 71 and 72 mounted upon, and movable with, the discharge heads 53 and 54, respectively. Said driven cranks 71 and 72 have split openings 73 and 74, in which the end portions 57 and 57a of said discharge heads are removably received. The screws 76 and 77 extend through the split portions 78 and 79 of said cranks 71 and 72 for adjustably securing said cranks upon said end portions 57 and 57a. A link bar 81 is pivotally mounted at its opposite ends upon said cranks 71 and 72 at points which, in this particular embodiment, are spaced equidistantly from the respective pivotal axes of said end portions 57 and 57a. Thus, rotation of one of said discharge heads 53 and 54 will, due to the link bar 81, result in a corresponding rotation of the other said discharge heads. Where it is desirable to have one discharge head produce a different spray pattern than the other discharge head, the distance between the pivot point 80 of said link bar 81 on said driven crank '71 may be increased, as indicated by broken lines at 8821 in Figure 2. Then the head 53 will oscillate through a smaller are than the head 54.

The outer end of the driven crank 72 (Figures 6 and 7) is provided with a circular opening 82, which is axially parallel with the pivot axis of said discharge head 54. A control shaft 83 is rotatably disposed within the opening 82 and is provided with a circular, radially extending flange 84, which is disposed adjacent to that side of the driven crank 72 next to the housing 16. A link bar 86 is pivotally mounted at one end by the pivot pin 85 upon said flange 84 at a point spaced from the rotational axis of the control shaft 83. Said bar 86 is pivotally secured at its other end (Figure 2) to the free end of the drive crank 69. Said control shaft 83 has a portion of reduced diameter, which extends away from the driven crank 72 and upon which a control knob 87 is removably secured by means of the screw 90 for effecting rotation of the flange 84. The face of the driven crank 72, which op poses the control knob 87 (Figures 6 and 7), is provided with a substantially annular groove 88, which is coaxial with and is spaced radially from the shaft opening 82. A substantially annular control ring 89 is removably disposed within said groove 88 and has a plurality, here four, of detent openings 91, 92, 93 and 94 therethrough (Figure 7). The adjacent peripheries of the groove 88 and control ring 89 are provided with cooperating, flat portions 96 for locating the ring 89 within the groove 88 and preventing its rotation therewithin about the axis of the shaft 83. The annular groove 88 is provided with a recessed portion 97 of reduced radial extent, which portion is covered by the ring 89 and communicates with the detent openings therein.

The control knob 87 is provided with a detent recess 98 opening through that side thereof adjacent to the driven crank 72 and aligned with the annular groove 88 therein. A detent ball 99, desirably of stainless steel, is disposed within the recess 98 and urged toward the control ring 89 by the spring 101, also disposed within the recess 98. The ball 99 is selectively and partially receivable into the detent openings 91 to 94 upon appropriate rotation of the control knob 87. In this embodiment, the detent ball 99 is preferably disposed in substantially the same radial direction from the axis of the control shaft 83 as is the pivot pin 85 on the flange 84.

It will be seen that, by placing the detent ball 99 in different ones of said detent openings, the distance between the pivot pin 85 and the'axis of the discharge head 54 may be varied substantially, thereby varying the extent ofthe oscillation of the said discharge head in a manner discussed in detail hereinafter. It will also be seen, that the pivot pin can be laterally displaced with respect to a centerline through the control shaft 83 and discharge head 54. Thus, the disposition of the oscillation of the discharge head 54 can also be varied by the control knob 87. Since the discharge heads 53 and 54 are normally coupled together, said variations in theextent and disposition of oscillation of the head 54 will also normally apply to the head 53.

' Operation Prior to operation of the sprinkler 10, the pressure fluid inlet 41 (Figure 5) is connected to any suitable source of pressure fluid to be distributed, such as water. Said water flows through the passageway 39 and the header 37 into the two discharge heads 53 and 54, and thence out through the disharge ports 66 and 66a-in said discharge heads. The oscillation shaft 22 (Figures 2 and 3) is oscillated about its rotational axis by the drive mechanism 21 (Figure 3) which may be energized, as by a water wheel connected to shaft 36 in a manner disclosed and described in detail in said pending application, Serial No. 636,161. The pivot quadrant 27 efiects an oscillation of the oscillation shaft 22 in response to rotation of the drive. shaft 33. Said oscillation of the shaft 22 is converted by the oscillating mechanism 68, including the cranks 69, 71 and 72 and parts associated therewith, into a pivotal oscillation of thedischarge heads 53- and 54 about their lengthwise axes.

When the control of knob-87 is positioned, asappearing in Figures 2 and 6, the detent ball 99 will be disposed withinthe detent opening 91 (Figure 7). Due to the relative location of the detent ball 99 and pivot pin 85, said pivot pin 85 will be at its closest point to the rotational axis of the discharge head 54. Accordingly, oscillation of the drive crank 69 will effect a maximum oscillationof the discharge head 54, which will be converted into agcorresponding oscillation of the discharge head 53 by the driven crank 71 and link bar 81. In this particular embodiment, such oscillation of the discharge heads 53 and 54 will be approximately 90 degrees. By proper adjustment of the discharge heads 53 and 54 within the cranks 71 and 72, such oscillation can be split so that one-half of it, or approximately 45 degrees is on each side of a position where the ports 66 and 66a face directly upwardly. Obviously, this arrangement can be varied, as desired or required, simply by loosening the screws 76 and 77. and re-adjusting said discharge heads within their respective driven cranks 71 .and 72. It follows, therefore, that said discharge heads 53 and 54 can be adjusted independently of each other within their respective driven cranks 71 and 72, to produce a wide variety of spray patterns.

Certain preselected variations in the extent and disposition of the spray pattern produced by the heads 53 and 54 can also be effected by turning the control knob 87. Although such preselected variations .are less in number, here four, they can be effected quickly and easily and without loosening screws or the like. Furthermore, these variations can be effected either while the sprinkler 10 is in operation or while it is at rest. These variations can be altered, as desired or required, to include any four of the positions which can be obtained by adjusting the cranks 71 and 72 upon the heads 53 and 54, respectively.

With the control knob in the position shown in the drawings, the discharge ports 66 and 66a will oscillate between 45-degree positions on opposite sides of the vertical position.

By turning the control knob 87 (Figure 2) unit the detent ball 99 drops into the detent opening 92, the pivot pin 85 will be moved to a position substantially adjacent to the detent opening 92. Since the drive crank 69 is relatively fixed in position, and connected tothe iiarig'e Si by" the' link bar' '86, such, movement, of the control knob 87.,will eifect a corresponding movement of the heads 53 and 54 about their respective axes.

It will be observed that, by moving the control knob 87so that the detent ball 99 drops in thedetent opening 92jthe pivot pin 85 is not only displaced laterally with respect to a center line through the detent opening 91 and the discharge head 54, but is also spaced a greater distance from said discharge head 54. In this particular embodiment, this increase in distance between the pivot pin 85 and discharge head 54 is arranged to reduce the arc of oscillation of said head to approximately 45 degrees. The lateral displacement of the pivot pin 85 is arranged to cause the discharge ports 66 and 66a to oscillate between a substantially vertical position and a position at 45 degrees with rrespectto, and rightwardly of, a

vertical position, as appearing in Figure 2.

By turning the control knob 87 to the point where the detent ball 99 drops into the detent opening 93, the oscil latingmechanism 68 will againbe set sothat the oscillation of the discharge ports 66 and66a will be between positions on opposite sides of a vertical position thereof. The pivot pin 85 connecting the flange 84 to the linkbar 86 has now been moved to a point which is substantially further from the rotational axis of the discharge head 54 than it was When the detent ball 99 was ineither of the detent openings 91 or 92. Accordingly, in this particular embodiment, the arc of oscillation of said discharge head 54, hence, the discharge head 53, is reduced to approximately degrees.

If the control knob 87 is now turned until the [detent ball 99 drops into the detent opening 94, the driven crank- 54. Accordingly, the discharge ports 66 and 66awill, in

this embodiment, oscillatethrough an arc-of approximately degrees between a vertical position andfa position pointing at an angle of 45 degrees to the left ofrsuch vertical position, as appearing-in Figure 2. Thearc of oscillation will be approximately 45 degrees for the same reasons set forth hereinabove with respect tothe operation when the detent ball 99 is disposed within the detent opening 92. v a e 1 i It becomes apparent fromthe foregoing that control of the'oscillation of the discharge heads53 and-54 depends in-part upon the positions oflthe detent openings 91,- 92, 93 and 94 with respect to each other, and the location ofthe pin 85 with respect to the rotational-axis of the control shaft 83 when the detent ball 99is in one of said detent openings. However, these are matters which can be controlled by appropriate design'of the parts concerned. 1 4 a .zThe dischargeports 66 and 66a, here shown-as 'only'a single row in each tube, are preferably staggered, as appearing in Figure 1, in order that the streams of water issuing therefrom will be interlaced with each other and streams with respect to each other are constantly changing and provide a fountainlike impression upon the observer. The spacing of the openings along each respective tube, and the arrangement of the openings on one tube, with respect to the arrangement of the openings on the other tube, may all be varied to meet specific requirements.

It will also be recognized that, by moving the pivot point of the link 81 and driven crank 71 into the broken position 80a (Figure 2), the extent and speed of oscillation of the head 53 will become materially less than that of the head 54. Thus, by appropriate adjustment of head 53 with respect to the crank 71, the reduced spray pattern of the head 53 can be used to increase the 7 concentration of water in a particular portion of the spray pattern of the head 54. H s H Thus, although a particular, preferred embodiment of the invention has been described in detail hereinabove for illustrative purposes, it will be understood that variations or modifications thereof, which lie within the scope of such disclosure, are fully contemplated unless specifically stated to the contrary in the appended claims.

1. An adjustable oscillation, comprising: an elongated link bar; rotatable means and means eccentrically connecting one end of said link bar to said rotatable means; an elongated crank having an opening therethrough adjacent one end thereof; a shaft extending through said opening and being rotatably supported upon said crank; a flange secured to said shaft; means pivotally and eccentrically connecting the other end of said link bar to said flange; a knob secured to said shaft and rotatable therewith; a substantially annular groove in said crank concentric with said shaft and adjacent to said knob; a ring non-rotatably disposed within said groove, said ring having a plurality of spaced openings therein on the side thereof adjacent to said knob; a detent supported upon said knob adjacent to said ring; resilient means urging said detent against said ring, said detent being removably receivable into said openings, one at a time, in response to rotative movement of said knob with respect to said crank.

2. An oscillating lawn sprinkler construction comprising: a ground engaging frame; a housing mounted on said frame adjacent one end thereof, said housing having a water inlet connection; an arcuately movable drive crank mounted on said housing; a header structure mounted on said housing and having a passageway therein communicating with the interior of said housing and with the path of movement of water therethrough so that the water as it exits from said housing enters said passageway, said header structure having two oppositely extending conduits therein communicating with said passageway; a pair of elongated, substantially parallel, tubular sprinkler heads transversely spaced from each other and each thereof communicating at one end thereof with one of said conduits, means in said header structure rotatably supporting said one end of said sprinkler heads; a fixture mounted on said frame adjacent the other end thereof and extending upwardly therefrom; means on said fixture spaced upwardly from said frame rotatably supporting the other end of said sprinkler heads; a driven crank rigidly secured to each of said sprinkler heads adjacent said one end thereof; alink bar extending between and pivotally connected at its respective ends to said driven cranks and means connecting said drive crank to one of said driven cranks whereby arcuate movement of said drive crank will effect oscillation of said sprinkler heads.

3. An oscillating lawn sprinkler construction comprising: an elongated ground engaging frame; a housing mounted on said frame adjacent one end thereof, said housing having a water inlet connection; an arcuately movable drive crank pivotally mounted on said housing adjacent the lower end thereof for pivotal movement about a horizontal axis and located outwardly of said housing adjacent the inner axial end thereof; an elongated, substantially horizontal header structure mounted on said housing adjacent the upper end thereof and located axially inwardly therefrom and extending transverse to the lengthwise extent of said frame, said header structure having a passageway therein extending transverse to the lengthwise extent thereof and communicating with the interior of said housing and with the path of movement of water therethrough so that the water as it exits from the housing enters said passageway, said header structure also having two, horizontal, oppositely extending conduits therein communicating with said passageway and extending transverse thereto; a pair of elongated, substantially parallel, tubular sprinkler heads extending parallel with the lengthwise extent of said frame and being transversely spaced from each other and each thereof communicating at one end thereof with one of said conduits; means in said header structure rotatably supporting said one end of said sprinkler heads; a fixture mounted on said frame adjacent the other end thereof and extending upwardly therefrom, said fixture includ ing a horizontally extending flange substantially parallel with and opposed to said header structure and spaced upwardly from said frame, said flange having means coaxial with said support means in said header structure for pivotally supporting the other end of said sprinkler heads so that said sprinkler heads each may oscillate about a substantially horizontal axis; a pair of driven cranks, said cranks each having a collar secured to one of said sprinkler heads adjacent said header structure, each of said collars having a radially extending splittherein, releasably securing means extending between the edges of the split in each of said collars for releasably and adjustably securing said collars to said sprinkler heads so that said sprinkler heads may be adjusted within their respective collars independently of each other; a link extending between said drive crank and one of said driven cranks and being pivotally connected at its respective ends thereto; a link bar extending between said driven cranks and pivotally connected at its respective ends thereto whereby arcuate movement of said drive crank will effect simultaneous oscillation of said sprinkler heads.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,508,028 Robinson Sept. 9, 1924 1,611,914 Jenkins Dec. 28, 1926 1,629,740 Ryberg May 24, 1927 1,847,048 Orr Feb. 23, 1932 2,205,664 Mayer June 25, 1940 2,426,603 Freygang Sept. 2, 1947 2,576,765 Patterson Nov. 27, 1951 2,676,842 Squiers Apr. 27, 1954 2,717,777 Steffen Sept. 13, 1955 2,769,665 Spender Nov. 6, 1956 2,838,956 Schneider June 17, 1958

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