Installation tool for irrigation emitter barbs

A tool for installing irrigation barb emitters in irrigation tubing, the tool comprising:

• a cradle member having a cradle handle and a cradle jaw on opposing ends thereof, and a barb holder member having a barb holder handle and a barb holder jaw on opposing ends thereof, the cradle member and the barb holder member being arranged in crossed relation and connected intermediate opposing ends at a pivot such that the cradle handle opposes the barb holder handle and the cradle jaw opposes the barb holder jaw;
• a cradle mounted on the cradle jaw, the cradle having an upwardly opening V-shape and being elongated widthwise thereby being suitable for receiving a peripheral portion of an irrigation tubing;
• and
• a barb holder mounted on the barb holder jaw, the barb holder being a hollow cylinder having an axis aligned with the cradle when the cradle jaw and the barb holder jaw are brought together, the hollow cylinder having a lower cavity and an upper cavity concentrically oriented and cylindrically shaped with the upper cavity being of smaller diameter than lower cavity thereby forming a shoulder therebetween, the upper cavity being sized whereby a frictional force releasably holds an enlarged head of an emitter barb therewithin is less than the force required to withdraw an enlarged head from an irrigation tubing, the lower cavity being large enough to accommodate an annular shoulder disk of an emitter barb, the lower cavity being long enough whereby a second shoulder of a barb emitter is positioned proximate to an opening of the barb holder, the shoulder within the hollow cylinder acting against an annular disk shoulder on a barb emitter to force a piercing point on a barb emitter to penetrate a periphery of an irrigation tubing held within the cradle when the cradle jaw and the barb holder jaw are brought together, a barb emitter being released from the barb holder and retained within the irrigation tubing upon movement of the barb holder away from the cradle.