Fluid-handling device with multiple elastic bladders
OwnerRobert J. Harterinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A fluid-handling device, such as a lawn-and-garden water sprayer, includes a plurality of elastic bladders that are filled via a common manifold. To ensure that all the bladders can be filled without one bladder over expanding or emptying into another one, the fluid-handling device includes a plurality of limit valves in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of bladders. When filling the bladders, the limit valves are open to convey fluid from the manifold to the bladders. In some examples of the invention, each individual limit valve will close automatically in response to its respective bladder having reached a predetermined expanded length.
Claims20
A fluid-handling device for discharging a fluid under pressure, the fluid-handling device comprising:
- a first elastic bladder that is resiliently expandable;
- a second elastic bladder that is resiliently expandable;
- a manifold in fluid communication with both the first elastic bladder and the second elastic bladder;
- and
- a spray nozzle connected in fluid communication with the manifold.
A fluid-handling device for discharging a fluid under pressure, the fluid-handling device comprising:
- a manifold
- a first elastic bladder that is resiliently expandable;
- a second elastic bladder that is resiliently expandable;
- a first limit valve connecting the first elastic bladder in fluid communication with the manifold;
- and
- a second limit valve connecting the second elastic bladder in fluid communication with the manifold.
A fluid-handling device for discharging a fluid under pressure, the fluid-handling device comprising:
- a first elastic bladder that is resiliently expandable sequentially from a relaxed state to an initial bulge volume to a predetermined expanded state, the first elastic bladder is at an initial bulge pressure at the initial bulge volume, the first elastic bladder is at a normal operating pressure at the predetermined expanded state, the initial bulge pressure is greater than the normal operating pressure;
- a second elastic bladder that is resiliently expandable;
- a manifold in fluid communication with both the first elastic bladder and the second elastic bladder;
- a limit valve that connects the manifold in selective fluid communication with the first elastic bladder, the limit valve has an open position that connects the manifold in fluid communication with the first elastic bladder, the limit valve has a closed position that obstructs fluid communication between the manifold and the first elastic bladder, the limit valve is in the open position when the first elastic bladder is in the relaxed state, and the limit valve is in the closed position when the first elastic bladder is in the predetermined expanded state;
- and
- an actuator that is flexible and elongated, the actuator is operatively coupled to the limit valve and the first elastic bladder so as to pull the limit valve from the open position to the closed position in response to the first elastic bladder undergoing a predetermined change in length, the first elastic bladder in the relaxed state has a minimum bladder length, and the actuator has a maximum actuator length that is greater than the minimum bladder length.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.