Trickle irrigation systems with improved emitters
OwnerClarence R. Goodmaninventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An emitter for receiving water from a trickle irrigation system and emitting the received water at a trickle flow rate to an area to be irrigated. The emitter includes a float controlled water inlet shutoff valve for receiving water from the trickle irrigation system and supplying it to a housing to establish a water supply therein and maintain the water supply at a predetermined substantially constant level above at least one water outlet opening of predetermined size formed in the housing to provide a pressure head which interacts with the size of the water outlet opening to determine the trickle output flow rate of the emitter.
Claims16
An irrigation system having a single stage emitter for dispensing water under low pressure, said emitter comprising in combination:
- (a) an elongated tubular single compartment housing having an upper end for receiving a flow of water under pressure from a source external to said housing, including a tubular sidewall said housing including means for receiving the flow of water at the upper end within an area generally circumscribed by a projection of said sidewall;
- (b) an outlet disposed in said tubular sidewall of said housing in direct and immediate fluid communication with the water within said housing for discharging water from within said housing at essentially constant pressure, which pressure is a function only of the head pressure within said housing, said outlet being capable of discharging any water within said housing which water is at the elevation at or above said outlet;
- (c) means for continuously venting said housing directly to the atmosphere to relieve any pressure within said housing which might be imposed by the source of water under pressure;
- (d) means for maintaining the water level within the compartment of said housing essentially constant at an elevation above said outlet by controlling only the water flowing into said housing to establish the head pressure present at said outlet, said maintaining means including valve means disposed at the upper end of said housing for regulating the flow rate of water received by said housing as a function of the water level within said housing;
- (e) said valve means including a float having a peripheral surface and being vertically positionally responsive to the height of the water within said housing, an inlet in fluid communication with the source of water under pressure and means associated with said float for controlling the flow of water though said inlet in response to vertical repositioning of said float;
- and
- (f) means for guiding said controlling means with respect to said inlet upon vertical positioning of said float, said means including said peripheral surface of said float and a bore of said housing.
In an irrigation system, a method for dispensing water under low pressure from a tubular emitter in fluid communication with a source of water under pressure, said method comprising the steps of:
- (a) introducing into a housing the water received from the source of water under pressure, the housing having a single compartment defined in part by a sidewall;
- (b) discharging the water from the housing through an outlet disposed in the tubular sidewall at a pressure which is a function of the head pressure within the housing at the outlet and provided only that the water level within the housing is at an elevation at or above the outlet;
- (c) continuously venting the housing directly to the atmosphere to relieve any pressure within the housing which might be imposed by the source of water under pressure;
- (d) maintaining the water level within the compartment of the housing essentially constant to attempt to maintain a predetermined head pressure at the outlet by controlling only the water flowing into the housing;
- and
- (e) regulating the flow rate of the water received by the housing with a single stage regulator having a single float in response to exercise of said step of maintaining.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.