WO2016162048A1

WO2016162048A1 - Spray head and spraying apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2016162048A1
Application number: PCT/EP2015/057484
Authority: WO
Inventors: Michael Kistler; Thomas Renner
Original assignee: Husqvarna Ab
Priority date: 2015-04-07
Filing date: 2015-04-07
Publication date: 2016-10-13
Also published as: TW201635895A

Abstract

The invention relates to a spray head for a spraying apparatus (100), the spray head comprising: - a spray head base body (2) including a spray head fluid channel ( 3 ); - a plurality of nozzles (4), each nozzle (4) comprising a nozzle fluid channel (4.1), wherein said nozzle fluid channels (4.1) being coupled with the spray head fluid channel (3) and the free ends of the nozzle fluid channels (4.1) forming liquid outlets (5) of the spray head (1), wherein each nozzle (4) comprises a liquid guiding portion (4.2), said liquid guiding portion (4.2) including said nozzle fluid channel (4.1) and being made of a flexible material, - an adjustment unit (6) comprising an adjustment entity (7), said adjustment entity (7) being movably mounted at the spray head base body (2), the adjustment entity (7) comprising a plurality of apertures (7.1) for providing passages for said flexible liquid guiding portions (4.2), wherein the spray head (1) is adapted to change the spraying pattern by moving the adjustment entity (7) with respect to the spray head base body (2), said movement causing a bending of the flexible liquid guiding portions (4.2) of said nozzles (4); and - means included in the nozzles and/or interacting with the nozzles (4) for generating a spray mist.

Description

Spray head and spraying apparatus

The present invention relates generally to the field of spray heads . More specifically, the present invention is related to a spray head being adapted to change the irrigation area size.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Spraying apparatuses, specifically spraying apparatuses for wa- tering flowers or plants, are well known in prior art. Said spraying apparatuses comprise a housing with a liguid inlet, at least one liguid channel for guiding liguid through the spraying apparatus and a liguid outlet for providing liguid, specifically water, to the flowers or plants. Said spraying apparatuses may comprise a valve for enabling/disabling the liguid flow through the liguid channel. Also, spraying apparatuses of shower spray head type are known which comprise a spray head with a plurality liguid outlets and which comprise means for changing the size of irrigation area.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an objective of the embodiments of the invention to pro^¬ vide a technically simple spray head which can be manufactured in a cost-efficient way and which provides a possibility to change the size of irrigation area. The objective is solved by the features of the independent claims. Preferred embodiments are given in the dependent claims. If not explicitly indicated otherwise, embodiments of the invention can be freely combined with each other.

According to an aspect, the invention relates to a spray head for a spraying apparatus. The spray head comprises a spray head base body including a spray head fluid channel. The spray head further comprises a plurality of nozzles which are arranged at the spray head base body. Each nozzle comprises a nozzle fluid channel. The nozzle fluid channels are coupled with the spray head fluid channel and the free ends of the noz- zle fluid channels form liguid outlets of the spray head. The nozzles may be circumferentially arranged around a central axis of the spray head. In other words, the nozzles may be distribut^¬ ed over a front side of the spray head. Preferably, the nozzles are arranged in multiple concentric nozzle rings. Each nozzle comprise a liguid guiding portion, said liguid guiding portion including said nozzle fluid channel and being made of an elas^¬ tic, flexible material. Said material may be, for example, an elastomer . The spray head further includes an adjustment unit comprising an adjustment entity, said adjustment entity being movably mounted at the spray head base body. The adjustment entity comprises a plurality of apertures for providing passages for said flexible liguid guiding portions. The spray head is adapted to change the spraying pattern by moving the adjustment entity with respect to the spray head base body, said movement causing a bending of the flexible liguid guiding portions of said nozzles.

In order to provide an enlarged spray pattern, means for gener- ating a spray mist are included in the nozzles and/or interact with the nozzles. Thereby, the liguid beams provided by the noz^¬ zles are atomized and an even distribution of liguid is

achieved . Advantageously, a technically simple and cost-efficient spray head including an adjustment mechanism for changing the size of irrigation area is obtained which is adapted to provide an en^¬ larged spray pattern . According to embodiments, the spray mist is generated by squeez^¬ ing the nozzle. Said squeezing may lead to an atomization of the liquid beam, i.e. a spray-like distribution of liquid. The squeezing may be obtained by a squeezing of the liquid guiding portion of the nozzle between two edges. Furthermore, said squeezing may be performed close to the free end of the nozzle at which the liquid outlet is provided. Preferably, the squeez^¬ ing may be obtained by moving the adjustment entity with respect to the spray head base body.

According to embodiments, the spray mist is generated by direct^¬ ing the liquid jet provided by the nozzle towards a deflector. The deflector may be located close to the liquid outlet, i.e. close to the free end of the nozzle at which the liquid beam is leaving the nozzle. For example, the deflector may be formed by a deflecting portion being arranged in close proximity to an ap^¬ erture through which the nozzle is passing. Preferably, the de^¬ flector may be integrally formed at a nozzle plate which is cov^¬ ering the spray head at the front side, i.e. in the area of the liquid outlets. Said nozzle plate may be, for example, a guiding entity .

According to embodiments, the spray mist is generated by a tear- off edge provided at the liquid outlet of the nozzle. Prefera- bly, a pair of tear-off edges is provided at a slot-shaped aper^¬ ture. Said tear-off edges may be arranged in parallel and at a certain distance to each other in order to form said slot-like aperture. Furthermore, the aperture may comprise slanted edges. For example, the slanted edges may be formed by tapered nozzle portions and/or the slot-like aperture may broaden upwardly.

According to embodiments, some or all nozzles may include said at least one tear-off edge(s) . Preferably, only the nozzlespro- vided at one or more outer nozzle rings comprise said tear-off edge(s) . Still preferably, only every second nozzle provided at one or more outer circumferential nozzle rings comprise said tear-off edge(s) .

According to embodiments, the adjustment entity is adapted to change the radial distance of the liguid outlets with respect to the spray head central axis. In other words, by moving the ad^¬ justment entity, the liguid guiding portions are bent in order to direct the liguid jet provided by the respective nozzle in a certain direction, wherein the radial distance of the free ends of the liguid guiding portions with respect to the spray head central axis is changed. Thereby, a significant change of irri^¬ gation area size is obtained.

According to embodiments, the adjustment entity is rotatably ar- ranged at the spray head base body. The adjustment entity may rotate around a rotation axis which may be the spray head cen^¬ tral axis. The adjustment entity may comprise guiding means for transforming the rotary movement of the adjustment entity into a radial movement (with respect to the spray head central axis) of liguid outlets. The adjustment entity may be a circular plate. Thereby, a compact design of the spray head is achieved.

According to embodiments, in a non-bent condition of the liguid guiding portions, said liguid guiding portions are arranged par- allel to each other. Preferably, the liguid guiding portions of all nozzles may be arranged parallel to each other. For example, in the non-bent condition, the smallest irrigation area size is obtained because the liguid outlets of the nozzles are arranged in a position close to the spray head central axis.

According to embodiments, the adjustment entity comprises a plu^¬ rality of oblong apertures, wherein the distance between a first end an oblong aperture and a rotating axis of the adjustment en^¬ tity is greater than the distance between the second end of said oblong aperture and said rotating axis. Due to said distance difference, the liquid guiding portions are deformed when rotat^¬ ing the adjustment entity and the liquid outlets provided at the free ends of the nozzles are moved radially with respect to the spray head central axis.

According to embodiments, the oblong apertures have a curved shape. Thereby, a smooth bending of the liquid guiding portions is obtained. According to other embodiments, the oblong aper^¬ tures have a linear shape.

According to embodiments, the longitudinal axis of the oblong apertures is slanted with respect to a radial direction, said radial direction referring to the rotating axis of the adjust^¬ ment entity. The slanting angle may be close to 90°, e.g. in the range of 70° to 89°, wherein the slanting angle opens outwardly (in a direction opposite to the spray head central axis or rota^¬ tion axis) .

According to embodiments, the adjustment entity is adapted to bend the liquid guiding portions in peripheral direction with respect to the rotational axis of the adjustment entity. In oth^¬ er words, when rotating the adjustment entity around its rota^¬ tional axis, the liquid guiding portions of the nozzles are bent in rotational direction. Said bending is achieved by edges of apertures provided within the adjustment entity. When rotating the adjustment entity, said edges abut against the liquid guid^¬ ing portions of the nozzles and bend said liquid guiding por^¬ tions in order to increase/decrease the irrigation area. According to embodiments, the adjustment entity is slidably mounted within the spray head, wherein the sliding direction is parallel or essentially parallel to the spray head central axis. The adjustment entity may comprise nozzle passages, said nozzle passages applying a radially inwardly or radially outwardly di- rected force to the liquid guiding portions when sliding the ad^¬ justment entity.

According to embodiments, the liquid guiding portions of the nozzles are slanted with respect to the sliding direction. Said slanting refers to non-bent liquid guiding portions (without ap^¬ plying external force to the liquid guiding portions) . For exam^¬ ple, the nozzles are tilted at an angle of 10° to 30°, prefera^¬ bly, 15° to 25°, most preferably, 16°, 17°, 18°, 19°, 20°, 21°, 22°, 23° or 24°. By sliding the adjustment entity, an external force is applied to the liquid guiding portions and the tilt an^¬ gle is decreased thereby reducing the irrigation area size.

According to embodiments, the adjustment entity comprises a plu- rality of apertures, the edges of the apertures providing a close fit to the liquid guiding portions. Said apertures provide the upper-mentioned nozzle passages. Close fit as used in the present disclosure means that the aperture dimension is adapted to the dimensions of the liquid guiding portion such that the adjustment entity can be easily moved with respect to the liquid guiding portions but there is only a small gap between the aper^¬ ture edge and the liquid guiding portion in order to achieve up^¬ per-mentioned liquid guiding portion deformation when moving the adjustment entity.

According to embodiments, the adjustment unit comprises an ad^¬ justment portion, said adjustment portion being rotatably mount^¬ ed at the spray head, wherein the adjustment portion is coupled with the adjustment entity such that the adjustment entity is shifted when rotating the adjustment portion. The adjustment portion may be an adjusting ring. The adjustment portion may comprise an internal thread which is coupled with a lateral pro^¬ trusion or edge of the adjustment entity in order to transform the rotary movement of the adjustment portion into a transversal movement (shifting) of the adjustment entity. According to embodiments, a guiding entity is provided, said guiding entity being arranged between the adjustment entity and the liquid outlets of the nozzles. Said guiding entity is adapted to provide a lateral guide for the liquid guiding por^¬ tions . Thereby an enhanced and guided movement of the liquid guiding portions is obtained.

According to embodiments, said guiding entity is fixedly ar- ranged with respect to the spray head base body. In other words, the guiding entity does not move when rotating or sliding the adjustment entity. Thereby, the liquid guiding portions of the nozzles are guided or fixed at both ends and deformed by means of the adjustment entity which is arranged between those ends thereby achieving a well-defined movement of the liquid guiding portions .

According to embodiments, the guiding entity comprises oblong apertures, the longitudinal axes of said oblong apertures being radially arranged with respect to the spray head central axis.

Thereby, the liquid guiding portions can move in a radial direc^¬ tion and guided in a direction perpendicular to said radial di^¬ rection . According to embodiments, the adjustment entity is adapted such that only some of the nozzles are bent by the adjustment entity or the bending angle is different. Preferably, nozzles which are arranged opposite to each other (point-symmetric with respect to the central axis) are bent by the same bending angle. Thereby, a spray pattern with an oval cross section is obtained.

According to a further aspect, the invention relates to a spray^¬ ing apparatus . The spraying apparatus comprises a spray head ac^¬ cording to anyone of the above-mentioned embodiments. The term "essentially" or "approximately" as used in the present disclosure means deviations from the exact value by +/- 10%, preferably by +/- 5% and/or deviations in the form of changes that are insignificant for the function.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The various aspects of the invention, including its particular features and advantages, will be readily understood from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings, in which :

Fig. 1 shows an example perspective view of a spray head ac^¬ cording to a first embodiment;

Fig. 2 shows an example front view of the spray head accord^¬ ing to the first embodiment;

Fig. 3 shows an example front view of the spray head accord^¬ ing to the first embodiment when removing the guiding entity;

Fig. 4 shows a sectional view of the spray head according to the first embodiment with non-bent liguid guiding portions ;

Fig. 5 shows a sectional view of the spray head according to the first embodiment with outwardly bent liguid guid^¬ ing portions;

Fig. 6 shows an example perspective view of a spray head ac^¬ cording to a first embodiment;

Fig. 7 shows a sectional view of the spray head according to the second embodiment with non-bent liguid guiding portions ;

Fig. 8 shows a sectional view of the spray head according to the second embodiment with inwardly bent liguid guid^¬ ing portions; Fig. 9 shows a sectional view of the spray head according to a third embodiment with non-bent liquid guiding por^¬ tions;

Fig. 10 shows a sectional view of the spray head according to a fourth embodiment with non-bent liquid guiding por^¬ tions;

Fig. 11 shows a further sectional view of the spray head ac^¬ cording to the third embodiment with non-bent liquid guiding portions providing liquid jets;

Fig. 12 shows a further sectional view of the spray head ac^¬ cording to the third embodiment with bent liquid guiding portions providing slanted liquid jets cross^¬ ing each other;

Fig. 13 shows an example front view of the spray head accord- ing to the third embodiment with non-bent liquid guiding portions;

Fig. 14 shows an example front view of the spray head accord^¬ ing to the third embodiment with bent liquid guiding portions ;

Fig. 15a, b show example means for generating a spray mist by us^¬ ing of a deflector;

Fig. 16a, b show example means for generating a spray mist by squeezing the liquid guiding portion of the nozzle;

Fig. 17a, b show example means for generating a spray mist by us- ing tear-off edges included in the nozzle;

Fig. 18a, b shows a further embodiment according to Fig. 17a, b including deflector surfaces; and

Fig. 19 shows an example side view of a spraying apparatus. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will now be described more fully with ref^¬ erence to the accompanying drawings, in which example embodi- ments are shown. However, this invention should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Throughout the following description similar reference numerals have been used to denote similar elements, parts, items or features, when ap^¬ plicable .

Fig. 1 to 5 show a spray head 1 according to a first embodiment. The spray head 1 comprises a spray head base body 2 which com^¬ prises a connection portion 2.1 for connecting the spray head 1 with a spraying apparatus base unit . Alternatively, it may be possible that the spray head 1 is directly connected with a wa^¬ ter hose by means of said connection portion 2.1. The spray head base body 2 includes a spray head fluid channel 3 through which water, in general liquid, is flowing when using the spray head 1.

At the opposite side of the connection portion 2.1, a plurality of nozzles 4 are arranged at the spray head base body 2. Said nozzles 4 may be circumferentially arranged around a central ax^¬ is CA. Each nozzle 4 comprises a nozzle inlet which is fluidi- cally coupled with the spray head fluid channel 3 and a nozzle outlet which constitutes one of the plurality of liquid outlets 5 of the spray head 1. In other words, the nozzle comprises an oblong nozzle fluid channel 4.1 formed within the nozzle 4, the free ends of the nozzle fluid channel 4.1 building the nozzle inlet and the nozzle outlet, wherein the nozzle fluid channel 4.1 is fluidically coupled with the spray head fluid channel 3 for providing a water flow through said nozzle 4.

Each nozzle 4 comprises a nozzle base portion 4.3 by means of which the liquid guiding portion 4.2 is coupled to the spray head base body 2. The liquid guiding portion 4.2 may comprise a tubular shape. At least the liquid guiding portion 4.2 is made of a flexible, elastic material, e.g. a elastomer. Preferably, the nozzle 4 is integrally formed and made of a flexible, elas- tic material (one-piece nozzle) . In addition, it may be possible that multiple nozzles 4 (group of nozzles) or all nozzles 4 of the spray head 1 are integrally formed by a nozzle entity. The liquid guiding portions 4.2 of the nozzles 4 protrude at the front side of the spray head 1. Due to the elastic, flexible ma- terial of the liquid guiding portion 4.2 of the nozzles 4, the direction of water flow can be changed by bending the liquid guiding portion 4.2 of the nozzle 4.

The nozzles 4 are circumferentially arranged around a central axis CA of the spray head 1. According to the present embodi^¬ ment, the nozzles 4 are arranged in a ring-shaped area. For ex^¬ ample, the nozzles 4 are arranged in multiple concentric rings at the spray head base body 2, i.e. the nozzle rings comprise different sizes (different ring diameters) . Preferably, also the front portion of the spray head 1 comprises a circular or essen^¬ tially circular shape.

In order to change the irrigation area size for enabling at least a soft and a hard irrigation of a water receiving object (e.g. a flower or plant), the spray head 1 comprises an adjust^¬ ment unit 6, said adjustment unit 6 being adapted to bend the liquid guiding portions 4.2 in a certain direction in order to change the irrigation area. It is worth mentioning that due to the longitudinal shape of the liquid guiding portions 4.2 of the nozzles 4, the irrigation area can be changed only by changing the alignment of the liquid guiding portions 4.2.

The adjustment unit 6 comprises an adjustment entity 7 which is adapted to interact with the liquid guiding portions 4.2 of the nozzles 4 such that the alignment of the liquid guiding portions 4.2 is changed. More in detail, the adjustment entity 7 compris^¬ es a plurality of apertures 7.1. Said apertures 7.1 are arranged at the adjustment entity 7 such that the liquid guiding portion of each nozzle is received in one aperture 7.1. In other words, the adjustment entity is put on the plurality of liquid guiding portions 4.2 such that said liquid guiding portions 4.2 pass through the adjustment entity 7 and the apertures 7.1 provide the passages for said liquid guiding portions 4.2. The adjust^¬ ment entity 7 may comprise a plate-like, planar shape.

For achieving a bending of said liquid guiding portions 4.2 of the nozzles 4, the adjustment entity 7 is movably arranged at the spray head 1. Preferably, by moving the adjustment entity 7, the alignment of all liquid guiding portions 4.2 is changed sim- ultaneously thereby changing the irrigation area affected by the spray head 1. The irrigation area may be changed by changing the radial distance RD of the liquid outlets 5 with respect to the spray head central axis CA. In other words, by moving the ad^¬ justment entity 7, the liquid guiding portions 4.2 are bent such, that the free ends of the liquid guiding portions 4.2 are moved from a position close to the central axis CA to an outer position or from an outer position to a position close to the central axis CA. According to the present embodiment, the adjustment entity 7 is rotatably arranged within the spray head 1 in order to change irrigation area size. As shown in Fig. 3, the adjustment entity 7 comprises a plurality of oblong apertures 7.1. The narrow side of the oblong aperture 7.1 is adapted to the outer dimensions of the liquid guiding portion 4.2 in order to enable a bending of the liquid guiding portion 4.2 of the nozzle 4 by means of the aperture edges.

According to the present embodiment, the longitudinal axes of the oblong apertures 7.1 are slanted with respect to a radial direction, said radial direction referring to the central axis of the spray head 1. By means of said slanted arrangement of the oblong apertures 7.1, the liquid guiding portion 4.2 is bent by the edge of the oblong aperture 7.1. For example, the longitudi- nal axes of the oblong apertures 7.1 is tilted with respect to the radial direction (referring to central axis CA) an angle be^¬ tween 70° and 90°, preferably, 70°, 71°, 72°, 73°, 74°, 75°, 76°, 77°, 78°, 79°, 80°, 81°, 82°, 83°, 84°, 85°, 86°, 87°, 88° or 89°, wherein the angle opens in a direction opposite to the central axis CA. The apertures 7.1 may comprise a curved shape. In other words, the plurality of oblong apertures 7.1 may form holes comprising a paddle-wheel-like shape.

For enabling rotation of the adjustment entity 7 arranged in the interior of the adjustment unit 6, the adjustment unit 6 further comprises an adjustment portion 8. Said adjustment portion 8 may be an adjustment ring being circumferentially arranged at the spray head 1. The adjustment portion 8 is rotatably mounted at said spray head 1 and coupled with the adjustment entity 7 in order to rotate the adjustment entity 7.

In order to avoid an undesired deformation of the liquid guiding portions 4.2 laterally with respect to the longitudinal axis of the aperture 7.1, the adjustment unit 6 further comprises a guiding entity 9. The guiding entity 9 may form the outer entity of the front portion of the spray head 1, i.e. may be arranged close to the liquid outlets 5 of the spray head 1, and the ad^¬ justment entity 7 may be arranged between the guiding entity 9 and the nozzle base portions 4.3. The guiding entity may com- prise a plurality of oblong apertures 9.1. Said oblong apertures 9.1 may be radially or essentially radially arranged at the guiding entity 9, i.e. the longitudinal axes of said oblong ap^¬ ertures 9.1 are radially arranged with respect to the spray head central axis CA. Similar to the adjustment entity 7, the said apertures 9.1 are arranged at the guiding entity 9 such that the liquid guiding portion 4.2 of each nozzle 4 is received in one aperture 9.1. In other words, the guiding entity 9 is put on the plurality of liquid guiding portions 4.2 such that said liquid guiding portions 4.2 pass through the guiding entity 9 and the apertures 9.1 provide the passages for the liquid guiding por^¬ tions 4.2. The guiding entity 9 may also comprise a plate-like, planar shape .

Preferably, the guiding entity 9 is fixedly arranged at the spray head 1, i.e. there is a relative movement between the mov^¬ able, specifically rotatable adjustment entity 7 and the fixedly arranged guiding entity 9. Due to the slanted arrangement of the oblong apertures 7.1 with respect to the radially arranged ob^¬ long apertures 9.1 of the guiding entity 9 and the arrangement of the adjustment entity 7 and the guiding entity 9 next to each other, a well-defined passage of each liquid guiding portion 4.2 through the adjustment unit 6 is provided, thereby realizing a well-defined guiding of the liquid guiding portion 4.2. Fig. 6 to 8 show a second embodiment of a spray head 1. Similar to the first embodiment, the spray head 1 comprises a spray head base body 2 which comprises a connection portion 2.1 for connecting the spray head 1 with a spraying apparatus base unit or a water hose. The main difference of the spray head 1 according to the second embodiment with respect to the first embodiment is the implementation of the adjustment unit 6. Therefore, in the following the adjustment unit 6 according to the second embodi^¬ ment is described in closer detail. Apart from that, the de^¬ scription of the technical features of the first embodiment also applies to the second embodiment.

A main difference between the first and the second embodiment is the arrangement of the nozzles 4 at the spray head base body 2. In a non-bent condition, the longitudinal axes of the nozzles 4 are slanted with respect to a central axis of the spray head 1. For example, a support portion 4.4 of the nozzles 4 comprise a truncated cone-like shape, such that in the non-bent condition (without external force applied by the adjustment entity 7) all nozzles 4 are slanted by the same angle with respect to the cen- tral axis CA.

According to the second embodiment, the adjustment entity 7 is slidably arranged within the spray head 1 in order to change said irrigation area size. The adjustment entity 7 which is in- eluded in the spray head 1 comprises a plurality of apertures 7.1, wherein the aperture dimension is adapted to the outer di^¬ mensions of the liquid guiding portions 4.2 of the nozzles 4 in order to enable a bending of said liquid guiding portions 4.2 by means of the aperture edges. Said bending is achieved by sliding the adjustment entity 7 in a sliding direction SD, said sliding direction SD being parallel to the spray head central axis CA.

Due to the slanted arrangement of the nozzles 4 with respect to said central axis or sliding axis, the distance between a lower portion of the liquid guiding portion 4.2 (e.g. a portion close to the nozzle base portion 4.3) and the central axis CA is dif^¬ ferent to, preferably smaller than the distance between an upper portion of the liquid guiding portion 4.2 (e.g. a portion close to the liquid outlets 5) and the central axis CA. So, by sliding the adjustment entity 7 in a direction parallel to central axis CA, the nozzles are deformed or bent by the edges of the aper^¬ tures 7.1 of the adjustment entity 7.

Fig. 7 and 8 illustrate two different positions of the adjust- ment entity 7, namely a retracted position (the adjustment enti^¬ ty 7 is located close to the support portion 4.4, Fig. 7) and a forward-pushed position (the adjustment entity 7 is located close to the liquid outlets 5, Fig. 8) . By sliding the adjust^¬ ment entity 7 from the retracted position to the forward-pushed position, the liquid guiding portions 4.2 are deformed thereby pushing the liquid outlets 5 in closer proximity to the central axis CA. According to another configuration, the liquid guiding portion 4.2 may be deformed thereby pushing the liquid outlets 5 away from the central axis CA. Thereby the irrigation pattern of the spray head 1 is changed.

For enabling said shifting of the adjustment entity 7 arranged in the interior of the adjustment unit 6, the adjustment unit 6 further comprises an adjustment portion 8. Said adjustment por- tion 8 may be an adjustment ring being circumferentially ar^¬ ranged at the spray head 1. The adjustment portion 8 is rotata- bly mounted at said spray head 1 and coupled with the adjustment entity 7 in order to shift the adjustment entity 7. More in de^¬ tail, the adjustment portion 8 may comprise an inner thread which is coupled with one or more lateral protrusions of the ad^¬ justment entity 7 in order to transform the rotary movement of the adjustment portion 8 into a transversal movement (shifting) of the adjustment entity 7. In order to avoid an undesired deformation of the liquid guiding portions 4.2, the adjustment unit 6 may further comprise a guid^¬ ing entity 9. The guiding entity 9 may from the outer entity of the front portion of the spray head 1, i.e. may be arranged close to the liquid outlets 5 of the spray head 1, and the ad- justment entity 7 may be arranged between the guiding entity 9 and the nozzle base portions 4.3. The guiding entity 9 may com^¬ prise a plurality of oblong apertures 9.1. Said oblong apertures 9.1 may be radially or essentially radially arranged at the guiding entity 9, i.e. the longitudinal axes of said oblong ap- ertures 9.1 are radially arranged with respect to the spray head central axis CA. Similar to the adjustment entity 7, the said apertures 9.1 are arranged at the guiding entity 9 such that the liquid guiding portion 4.2 of each nozzle 4 is received in one aperture 9.1. In other words, the guiding entity 9 is put on the plurality of liquid guiding portions 4.2 such that said liquid guiding portions 4.2 pass through the guiding entity 9 and the apertures 9.1 provide the passages for the liguid guiding por^¬ tions 4.2. The guiding entity 9 may also comprise a plate-like, planar shape .

Preferably, the guiding entity 9 is fixedly arranged at the spray head 1, i.e. there is a relative movement between the mov^¬ able, specifically shiftable adjustment entity 7 and the fixedly arranged guiding entity 9.

Fig. 9 to 13 show a further embodiment of a spray head 1. In the following, only differences of said further embodiment with re^¬ spect to the embodiments described before are described. Apart from that, reference is made to the features of the upper- mentioned embodiments.

Similar to the embodiments above, the spray head 1 comprises a spray head base body 2 including a spray head fluid channel 3 and a nozzle entity comprising a plurality of nozzles 4 made of elastic material.

In contrast to the embodiments described before, the spray head 1 preferably does not comprise any guiding entity 9. So, accord^¬ ing to the present embodiment, the adjustment entity 7 also builds the front-side cover plate of the spray head 1. The ad^¬ justment entity 7 comprises a plurality of apertures 7.1. Said apertures 7.1 are arranged at the adjustment entity 7 such that the liguid guiding portion 4.2 of each nozzle 4 is received in one aperture 7.1. In other words, the adjustment entity 7 is put on the plurality of liguid guiding portions 4.2 such that said liguid guiding portions 4.2 pass through the adjustment entity 7 and the apertures 7.1 provide the passages for said liguid guid^¬ ing portions 4.2. Preferably, the liguid guiding portions 4.2 are force-guided within the apertures 7.1 in order to obtain a reproducible spray pattern. In addition, due to the minimum gap between the liquid guiding portions 4.2 and the edges of the ap^¬ ertures 7.1, also the penetration of sand and dirt is minimized.

As shown in Fig. 9, the adjustment entity 7 is rotatably mounted at the spray head base body 2 by means of a central bearing 10, i.e. the adjustment entity 7 is able to be rotated around the central axis CA of the spray head 1 wherein the rotating axis RA coincides with the central axis CA. Said central bearing 10 may be sealed by a sealing ring 10.1 in order to avoid penetration of dirt.

Preferably, the adjustment entity 7 is mounted at the spray head base body 2 by means of a snap-on mechanism. The adjustment en^¬ tity 7 may comprise at least a pair of snap hooks 11 which are extending from the bottom side of the adjustment entity 7, i.e. at a side opposite to the plate-like portion comprising the ap^¬ ertures 7.1. Said snap hooks 11 interact with grooves 12 or re^¬ cesses provided at the spray head base body 2 such that the ad^¬ justment entity 7 is attached to the spray head base body 2 by the snap hooks 11 engaging into said grooves 12.

The grooves 12 may be provided in the spray head base body 2 or in a connecting piece 13 being arranged between the adjustment entity 7 and the spray head base body 2. For example, the con- necting piece 13 may be screwed onto the spray head base body 2. The connecting piece 13 may have a ring-like shape and may be used for fixing the nozzles 4, specifically a nozzle entity (nozzle mat) comprising a plurality of nozzles 4. Preferably, the grooves 12 comprise a length (in circumferential direction) which is greater than the width of the snap hooks 11. Thereby, the adjustment entity 7 is rotatable around the rotat^¬ ing axis RA, wherein the rotating angle is limited by the edges of the grooves 12. In other words, the edges of the grooves 12 form stop portions interacting with the snap hooks 11 such that the rotating angle of the snap hooks 11 is limited to a certain angle. Said angle may be in the range between 5° and 20°, pref^¬ erably between 10° and 15°, specifically 11°, 12°, 13° or 14°. Fig. 10 shows an alternative embodiment, which comprises means for limiting the angle of rotation provided in the interior of the spray head 1. For example, the adjustment unit 6 may com^¬ prise a web 6.1. Said web 6.1 may form a clamping element and may protrude towards the connecting piece, i.e. in a direction towards the spray head base body 2. Said web 6.1 interacts with a groove 13.1 provided in the connecting piece 13 such that said web 6.1 engages into the groove 13.1. Preferably, the length of the groove 13.1 (in circumferential direction) is greater than the length of said web 6.1. However, said groove is laterally limited by wall portions in order to limit the rotational move^¬ ment of the connecting piece 13. More in detail, the lateral free ends of the web 6.1 may abut against said wall portions of the groove 13.1 thereby limiting the rotational movement of the adjustment unit 6 to a certain angle. Said angle may be in the range between 5° and 20°, preferably between 10° and 15°, spe^¬ cifically 11°, 12°, 13° or 14°. In addition to said rotation limiting function, said web-groove-arrangement may provide bear^¬ ing means for said rotational movement of the adjustment unit 6. Fig. 11 and 13 refer to a rotational position of the adjustment entity 7 in which the liguid guiding portions 4.2 of the nozzles 4 are unbent, i.e. the adjustment entity 7 does not apply forces onto the nozzles 4. Therefore, the liguid guiding portions 4.2 of the nozzles 4 are parallel to each other and parallel to the central axis CA.

Fig. 12 and 14 shows the spray head 1 with the adjustment entity 7 in a rotational position in which the nozzles 4 are bent by the adjustment entity 7. The tilting angle of the nozzles 4 may be up to 45°. Depending on the position of a certain nozzle 4, the degree of bending is different, i.e. the inner nozzles 4 are tilted or bent by a smaller angle than the outer nozzles 4. In other words, due to the different distances of the nozzles 4 to the rotating axis RA, the tilting angle is different. Thereby liguid jets provided by the nozzles are crossing thereby gener^¬ ating a uniform irrigation pattern and/or a uniform distribution of liguid jets. The diameter of the irrigation area may be in the range between 10cm and 100cm (measured in a distance of lm from the free ends of the nozzles 4) .

Fig. 15a and 15b show a first embodiment of generating a spray mist by means of upper-mentioned flexible nozzles 4. According to the present embodiment, the spray mist is generated by di^¬ recting the liguid beam of the respective nozzle 4 against a de- flector 14 in order atomize the liguid beam. In other words, the focused liguid beam is directed towards a deflector 14, wherein the focused liguid beam is sprayed when hitting onto the deflec^¬ tor 14. According to preferred embodiments, the deflector is located close to the liguid outlet 5, i.e. close to the free end of the nozzle 4 at which the liguid beam is leaving the nozzle 4. For example, the deflector 14 may be formed by a deflecting portion being arranged in close proximity to the aperture 7.1, 9.1 through which the nozzle 4 is passing the adjustment entity 7 or the guiding entity 9. For example, the deflector 14 may be inte^¬ grally formed at the adjustment entity 7 or the guiding entity 9 and may protrude at the front side of said adjustment entity 7 or the guiding entity 9. Most preferably, the adjustment entity 7 or the guiding entity 9 may form a nozzle plate which is cov^¬ ering the spray head at the front side, i.e. in the area of the liguid outlets 5.

Fig. 15a shows the situation in which the nozzle 4 is unbent. So, a focused liguid beam is spurt out without hitting the de- flector 14. Fig. 15b shows the situation in which the nozzle 4 has been bent by the adjustment entity 7. Due to said bending of the nozzle, the liguid beam provided by the nozzle 4 is directed towards the deflector 14. When hitting the deflector 14, the liguid beam is atomized. In other word, the deflector 14 is adapted to transform the focused liguid beam into a spray mist. Thereby, a homogenous distribution of liguid is obtained.

Fig. 16a and 16b shows a second embodiment for generating a spray mist by means of upper-mentioned flexible nozzles 4. Ac^¬ cording to said embodiment, the spray mist is obtained by sgueezing the liguid guiding portion 4.2 of the nozzle 4. Said sgueezing may lead to an atomization of the liguid beam, i.e. a spray-like distribution of liguid.

Said sgueezing may be achieved simultaneously with the bending process. As shown in Fig. 16a and 16b, the spray head 1 may com^¬ prise at least an upper nozzle plate 15a and a lower nozzle plate 15b. The upper nozzle plate 15a may be, for example, con- stituted by the guiding entity 9 and the lower nozzle plate 15b may be, for example, constituted by the adjustment entity 7. The liguid guiding portion 4.2 of the nozzle 4 may pass through ap^¬ ertures 15.1a, 15.1b provided in the upper and lower nozzle plate 15a, 15b. The sgueezing is obtained by a relative movement of the lower nozzle plate 15b with respect to the upper nozzle plate 15a.

As shown in Fig. 16a and 16b, the upper and lower nozzle plate 15a, 15b are arranged at a distance D. In order to enable a sgueezing of the liguid guiding portion 4.2 close to the liguid outlet 5 of the nozzle 4, the lower nozzle plate 15b comprises a sgueezing portion 16 protruding from the lower nozzle plate 15b in the direction to the upper nozzle plate 15a. Said sgueezing portion 16 may be arranged in close proximity to an aperture 15.1b provided at the lower nozzle plate 15b, i.e. the sgueezing portion 16 may be arranged at the edge of said aperture 15.1b. Said sgueezing portion 16 may be orientated perpendicular or essentially perpendicular to the lower nozzle plate 15b. The height h of the sgueezing portion 16 may be chosen such that said height h is smaller than distance D (h<D) . Preferably, h is in the range between 0.8*D and 0.95*D (0.8*D < h < 0.95*D).

When operating the adjustment unit 6 thereby moving the lower nozzle plate 15b relative to the upper nozzle plate 15a, the elastic liguid guiding portion of the nozzle 4 is sgueezed be^¬ tween the lower edge of the upper nozzle plate 15a and an upper edge of the sgueezing portion 16. Said sgueezing may lead to an atomization of the liguid beam, i.e. a spray-like distribution of liguid.

In order to enhance the sgueezing effect, the aperture 15.1a of the upper nozzle plate 15a may be a countersink, wherein the di^¬ ameter of the aperture 15.1a rises towards the lower nozzle plate 15b.

Fig. 17a and 17b shows a third embodiment for generating a spray mist by means of upper-mentioned nozzles 4. According to said embodiment, the outlet of the nozzle 4 is adapted to provide an atomized liguid beam. For example, the outlet of the nozzle 4 comprises at least one tear-off edge 4.5 at which the liguid beam is atomized. Preferably, a pair of tear-off edges 4.5 is provided at a slot-shaped aperture, wherein the tear-off edges 4.5 are arranged in parallel and at a certain distance to each other in order to form said slot-like aperture. Furthermore, the aperture may comprise slanted edges, i.e. the aperture is broad^¬ ening upwardly. Thereby, tapered tear-off edges 4.5 are obtained which provide an enhanced atomizing effect. For example, some or all nozzle may include said at least tear-off edge(s) 4.5. Pref^¬ erably, only the nozzles 4 provided at one or more outer nozzle rings comprise said tear-off edge(s) 4.5. Still preferably, only every second nozzle 4 provided at one or more outer nozzle rings comprise said tear-off edge(s) 4.5.

Fig. 18a and 18b show a fourth embodiment for generating a spray mist by means of upper-mentioned nozzles 4. The present embodi^¬ ment is similar to the embodiment of Fig. 17a and 17b, i.e. the nozzle 4 comprises a pair of tear-off edges 4.5 which are ar^¬ ranged in parallel and at a certain distance to each other in order to form said slot-like aperture. According to the present embodiment, the nozzle 4 further comprises deflector surfaces 4.6 which are arranged perpendicular or essentially perpendicu^¬ lar to the tear-off edges 4.5. Said deflector surfaces 4.6 pro^¬ vide lateral limiting surfaces in order to focus the liguid beam in the lateral direction thereby avoiding an excessive widening of the liguid beam. Said deflector surfaces 4.6 may be slanted with respect to the liguid flow direction and may widen the noz^¬ zle opening towards the nozzle outlet. In addition, the slanting angles of the deflector surfaces 4.6 may be asymmetric (each de^¬ flector surface 4.6 of the pair of deflector surfaces may have a different slanting angle) in order to obtain a suitable spray pattern .

It is worth mentioning that said upper-mentioned embodiments for generating a spray mist can be arbitrarily combined with each other. The means for generating a spray mist may be provided at all nozzles 4 of the spray head. Preferably, said means are pro^¬ vided at the outer nozzles 4, preferably at one or more outer nozzle rings of the circumferentially arranged nozzles 4. Fig. 19 shows a hand-held spraying apparatus 100 according to an embodiment. The spraying apparatus 1 may be a handheld device, e.g. a spray gun, for providing liguid, specifically water to water receiving objects, for example, flowers or plants. The spraying apparatus 100 comprises a housing 110 with a grip por- tion 120 for manually holding the spraying apparatus 100. The spraying apparatus 100 may further comprise activation means 130, for example a button, said activation means 130 being cou^¬ pled with a valve (not shown) for enabling/disabling or controlling a liguid flow through the spraying apparatus 100. The spraying apparatus 100 may comprise a spray head according to one of the upper-mentioned embodiments for bringing out the same water flow rate on different irrigation areas (e.g. a small and large irrigation area) . It is worth mentioning that the spray head 1 may be adapted to provide a stepless adaption of the ir^¬ rigation area by a stepless moving (rotating, sliding) of the adjusting entity .

Optionally, the hand-held spraying apparatus 100 may be arranged by means of a rod at a certain distance above the ground wherein the liguid is sprayed upwardly. Due to the irrigation adjustment mechanism, the diameter of the irrigated area may be continuous^¬ ly changed between 0.2m and 3m.

It should be noted that the description and drawings merely il^¬ lustrate the principles of the proposed methods and systems. Those skilled in the art will be able to implement various ar^¬ rangements that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the invention.

List of reference numerals

1 spray head

2 spray head base body

2.1 connection portion

3 spray head fluid channel

4 nozzle

4.1 nozzle fluid channel

4.2 liquid guiding portion

4.3 nozzle base portion

4.4 support portion

4.5 tear-off edge

4.6 deflector surface

5 liquid outlet

6 adjustment unit

6.1 web

7 adjustment entity

7.1 aperture

8 adjustment portion

9 guiding entity

9.1 aperture

10 bearing

10.1 sealing ring

11 snap hook

12 groove

13 connecting piece

13.1 groove

14 deflector

15a upper nozzle plate

15b lower nozzle plate

15. la aperture

15. lb aperture

16 squeezing portion

100 spraying apparatus 110 housing

120 grip portion

130 activation means CA central axis

D distance

dl, d2 distance

h height

FD fluid flow direction RA rotating axis

RD radial distance

SD sliding direction

Claims

1. Spray head for a spraying apparatus (100), the spray head comprising :

- a spray head base body (2) including a spray head fluid channel ( 3 ) ;

- a plurality of nozzles (4), each nozzle (4) comprising a nozzle fluid channel (4.1), wherein said nozzle fluid channels (4.1) being coupled with the spray head fluid channel (3) and the free ends of the nozzle fluid chan^¬ nels (4.1) forming liguid outlets (5) of the spray head (1), wherein each nozzle (4) comprises a liguid guiding portion (4.2), said liguid guiding portion (4.2) including said nozzle fluid channel (4.1) and being made of a flexible material,

- an adjustment unit (6) comprising an adjustment entity (7), said adjustment entity (7) being movably mounted at the spray head base body (2), the adjustment entity (7) comprising a plurality of apertures (7.1) for providing passages for said flexible liguid guiding portions (4.2), wherein the spray head (1) is adapted to change the spraying pattern by moving the adjustment entity (7) with respect to the spray head base body (2), said move^¬ ment causing a bending of the flexible liguid guiding portions (4.2) of said nozzles (4); and

- means included in the nozzles (4) and/or interacting with the nozzles (4) for generating a spray mist.

2. Spray head according to claim 1, wherein the spray mist is generated by sgueezing the nozzle (4) .

3. Spray head according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the spray mist is generated by directing the liguid jet provided by the noz^¬ zle (4) towards a deflector (14) .

4. Spray head according to anyone of the preceding claims, wherein the spray mist is generated by a tear-off edge (4.5) provided at the liguid outlet (5) of the nozzle (4) .

5. Spray head according to anyone of the preceding claims,

wherein the means for generating a spray mist are only pro^¬ vided at one or more outer circumferential nozzle rings.

6. Spray head according to anyone of the preceding claims,

wherein the adjustment entity (7) is adapted to change the radial distance (RD) of the liguid outlets (5) with respect to the spray head central axis (CA) .

7. Spray head according to anyone of the preceding claims,

wherein the adjustment entity (7) is rotatably arranged at the spray head base body (2) .

8. Spray head according to anyone of the preceding claims,

wherein in a non-bent condition of the liguid guiding portions (4.2), said liguid guiding portions (4.2) are arranged parallel to each other.

9. Spray head according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the adjustment entity (7) comprises a plurality of oblong apertures (7.1), wherein the distance (dl) between a first end an oblong aperture (7.1) and a rotating axis (RA) of the adjustment entity (7) is greater than the distance (d2) between the second end of said oblong aperture (7.1) and said rotating axis (RA) .

10. Spray head according to claim 9, wherein the oblong apertures (7.1) have a curved shape.

11. Spray head according to claims 9 or 10, wherein the longitu^¬ dinal axis of the oblong apertures (7.1) is slanted with re- spect to a radial direction, said radial direction referring to the rotating axis (RA) of the adjustment entity (7) .

12. Spray head according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the adjustment entity (7) is adapted to bend the liguid guiding portions (4.2) in circumferential direction with respect to the rota^¬ tional axis (RA) of the adjustment entity (7) .

13. Spray head according to anyone of the preceding claims 1 to 6, wherein the adjustment entity (7) is slidably mounted within the spray head (1), wherein the sliding direction (SD) is parallel or essentially parallel to the fluid flow direc^¬ tion (FD) .

14. Spray head according to claim 13, wherein the liguid guiding portions (4.2) of the nozzles (4) are slanted with respect to the sliding direction (SD) .

15. Spray head according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the adjust^¬ ment entity (7) comprises a plurality of apertures (7.1), the edges of the apertures (7.1) providing a close fit to the liguid guiding portions (7.2) .

16. Spray head according to anyone of the preceding claims 13 to 15, wherein the adjustment unit (6) comprises an adjustment portion (8), said adjustment portion (8) being rotatably mounted at the spray head (1), wherein the adjustment portion (8) is coupled with the adjustment entity (7) such that the adjustment entity (7) is shifted when rotating the adjustment portion (8) .

17. Spray head according to anyone of the preceding claims 9 to 11 and 13 to 16, wherein a guiding entity (9) is provided, said guiding entity (9) being arranged between the adjustment entity (7) and the liguid outlets (5) of the nozzles (4), said guiding entity (9) preferably being fixedly arranged with respect to the spray head base body (2) .

18. Spray head according to claim 17, wherein the guiding entity (9) comprises oblong apertures (9.1), the longitudinal axes of said oblong apertures (9.1) being radially arranged with respect to the spray head central axis (CA) .

19. Spraying apparatus comprising a spray head according to any- one of the preceding claims .