US3009651A

US3009651A - Sprinkler guard

Info

Publication number: US3009651A
Application number: US31730A
Authority: US
Inventors: Wolf Charles
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1960-05-25
Filing date: 1960-05-25
Publication date: 1961-11-21
Anticipated expiration: 1978-11-21

Description

Nov. 21, 1961 I c. WOLF 3,009,651

SPRINKLER GUARD Filed May 25, 1960 w. "WWI FG 2 24 CHARLES WQLF uvmvroa ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,009,651 SPRINKLER GUARD CharlesWolf, 1571 6th St., Trenton, NJ. Filed May 25, 1960, Ser. No. 31,730 1 Claim. (Cl. 239-231) My invention relates to guards or deflect-ing members adapted to be applied to lawn sprinklers to deflect or limit the field of the spray of water issuing from a sprinkler.

It is often desirable to position a lawn sprinkler near a walk, pathway or building, but the spray of water from the sprinkler then will wet persons walking along the pathway or will soak the wall of a building.

It has been suggested heretofore that this objection can be overcome by providing a lawn sprinkler with a deflector in the form of an annular plate which is slotted about the edges to provide segments that can be bent up or down to control the direction or distance in which the water is sprayed. However, such construction-s have not always been satisfactory because the deflecting plate and its supports are readily displaced and bent out of shape. Thus, if the sprinkler is engaged by a lawn mower or by tools used in Working about a garden or even by dogs which may brush against the sprinkler, the deflecting plate is so displaced that it may be engaged by the rotatable elements of the sprinkler and thus interfere with its normal operation or may be tilted in such a way as to permit undesired spreading of the water. Moreover, the mounting means heretofore used in securing the deflecting plate to the sprinkler have included members which are clamped onto the sprinkler head itself and tend to become loosened as the head or its elements rotate or vibrate in use.

In accordance with my invention, these objections to the guards or deflecting members of the prior art are overcome and a construction provided which is rugged in construction and will not be displaced even when given rough handling or severe usage. Moreover, the manner in which the deflecting means is constructed, supported and mounted assures more effective shielding of any desired area and reduces undesired deflection of the water from a sprinkler.

These advantages are preferably attained by providing a guard or deflecting means in the form of a disc which has deformable segments about the outer periphery thereof but is supported and held against displacement by improved supporting and clamping means which are spaced from the rotating elements of the sprinkler but derive a central support therefrom.

Accordingly, the principal object of my invention is to provide an improved type of guard or deflecting means for water sprinklers which are rugged in construction and may be securely mounted and held in place despite the vibration of the sprinkler or when subjected to impacts or pressure from lawn mowers, tools, dogs and the like.

These and other objects and features of the present invention will appear from the following description thereof wherein reference is made to the figures of the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a typical form of sprinkler guard embodying my invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the construction shown in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 1.

In the preferred form of my invention chosen for purposes of illustration in the drawing the sprinkler and guard assembly are of the general type shown and de- 3,009,651 Patented Nov. 21, 1961 2 scribed in US. Patent No. 2,530,779. That is they enibody a water supply pipe '2 having a sprinkler head 4 secured thereto and including rotatable sprinkling elements 6.

The guard 8 of my invention is in the form of a disc 10 which is formed about the edges with sectors 12 which can be bent up or down to the dotted line positions 16 shown so as to extend or restrict the distance from the sprinkler the water may be sprayed. The sectors 12 are preferably formed by cuts rather than slots so that there is no appreciable space between the sectors and they may be twisted transversely as shown in dotted plate or disc which has a central opening 18 therein.

The head 4 of the sprinkler shown in the drawing has a boss 20 at the upper end thereof with a pin 22 which projects upward above the boss. When the sprinkler is operating, the head rises to the dotted line position of FIG. 1 and the boss 20 on the head projects through the opening 18 in the guard. The opening 1 8 is only slightly larger than the boss 20. Therefore, when the head 4 is in its raised position, the guard is prevented from moving sideways with respect to the head, whereas the head can rotate freely. On the other hand, when the sprinkler is not being used and the head 4 is in the lowered position shown in full lines in FIG. 1, the pin 22 projects through the opening 18. In this way, the guard is restricted in its lateral movement at all times whether the sprinkler is operating or not so that the guard cannot be displaced or tilted sideways even when it is struck a severe blow or subjected to considerable lateral pressure.

The members 24 which support the guard 8 are formed of rounded wire or similar material and are flattened on the upper ends at 26 for attachment to the guard 8 by screws or the nuts and bolts 28. The members 24 extend outward and upward from a lower clamping means 30 so that they are spaced a substantial distance from the rotatable elements 6 of the sprinkler. Therefore, they will not engage or interfere with the operation of the rotatable elements even if the guard should be displaced or bent severely.

The members 24 extend outward and upward about the outer edges of the guard 8 and have their upper inner ends bent inwardly and downwardly so that they are attached to the upper surface of the guard plate or disc 8 inside the deformable segments 12.

The lower ends 32 of the supporting members 24 extend inwardly to the clamping means 30 which is positioned so as to be clamped onto the water supply pipe 2 rather than the sprinkler head itself. The clamping means shown consists of a strap 34 which extends about the flattened portions 36 of the ends 32 so as to hold them securely in place on the portion of the pipe 2 directly below the head 4 of the sprinkler. The ends of the strap 3-4 are provided with a threaded sleeve 3-8 and a draw bolt 40 which cooperate to permit band 32 to be tightened to secure the assembly rigidly in place on the pipe 2 independently of the sprinkler head 4.

The construction which I have provided not only serves to support and hold the guard in place so that it will not be bent or loosened when struck by a lawn mower or the like, but also affords suflicien-t clearance for rotation of the element-s 6 without danger of interference therewith. The rounded form of the supporting members 24 also serves to present minimum interference or splashing of the water which strikes them during the sprinkling operation. Furthermore, the elimination of slots or other undesirable openings between the segments of the guard assures the most effective control of the water being sprayed.

A further important advantage of my invention resides in the fact that all of the parts thereof are substantially flat so that the guard, supporting members and clamping means with the bolts or screws necessary for assembly thereof can be packed in a fiat envelope or package for storage, sale and distribution. The assembly can thus be made very economically and can be packaged and sold without employing the usual bu lky cartons or containers in which such guards have been packaged heretofore.

While the drawing shows and I have described a preferred form of my invention, the construction is capable of numerous changes in the form and arrangement of the elements, and of course, the guard may be used with any preferred type of sprinkler head. In view thereof, it should be understood that the particular embodiment of my invention herein dislcosed is intended to be illustrative only and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

I claim:

In combination with a lawn sprinkler having a sprinkler support and rotatable elements with a member which is rotatable with said elements and projects upwardly therefrom substantially in line with the axis about which said elements rotate, a water deflecting plate positioned above said rotatable elements and provided with a central opening therein through which the upwardly projecting member on the sprinkler extends, said opening being slightly larger than said upwardly projecting rotatable member so that the upwardly projecting member on the sprinkler will be normally spaced from the edges of the opening and freely rotatable therein but will be engageable by the plate to prevent substantial lateral movement of the water deflecting plate with respect to the sprinkler, and a plurality of supporting members secured to the water deflecting plate at spaced points beyond the central opening in the plate and above said rotatable elements and to the sprinkler support at points below the rotatable elements, said supporting means being positioned outside the path of movement of the rotatable elements of the sprinkler and serving to hold said water deflecting plate above the rotatable elements of the sprinkler and out of contact with the rotatable upwardly projecting member of the sprinkler.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS