Abstract:
A lawn sprinkler comprises a connection pipe, and a spray angle adjustment structure mounted at one end of the connection pipe and formed of a circular distribution member, an adjustment member and a control member. The control member is actuated to turn by the adjustment member such that one or more of a series of arcuate rims of the control member block one or more of a series of arcuate through holes of the circular distribution member, thereby resulting in the sprinkling of water in various patterns.

Description:
RELATED U.S. APPLICATIONS 
     Not applicable. 
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     Not applicable. 
     REFERENCE TO MICROFICHE APPENDIX 
     Not applicable. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to a lawn sprinkler nozzle, and more particularly to a lawn sprinkler nozzle comprising a spray-angle adjustment structure. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The conventional lawn sprinkler nozzle is generally provided with a structure enabling the nozzle to spray in various patterns at a fixed angle. Such conventional lawn sprinkler nozzle as described above is therefore limited in function in that it is incapable of cost-effective irrigation in terms of water consumption. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a lawn sprinkler nozzle capable of various spray-angle adjustments. 
     In keeping with the principle of the present invention, the foregoing objective of the present invention is attained by a lawn sprinkler comprising a connection pipe and a spray-angle adjustment structure mounted at one end of the connection pipe which is connected at the other end to a water supply source. The spray-angle adjustment structure comprises a circular distribution member, a control member, and an adjustment member. The circular distribution member is fixedly fastened in the one end of the connection pipe and is provided with a series of arcuate through holes which are concentric and different in distance from the circular center of the circular distribution member. The circular distribution member is located between the control member and the adjustment member. The control member is located beneath the circular distribution member and is provided with a series of arcuate rims. The control member is actuated by the adjustment member to turn in such a way that a specific arcuate through hole of the circular distribution member is blocked by a specific arcuate rim of the control member, thereby resulting in a specific spray angle. 
     The features and the advantages of the present invention will be more readily understood upon a thoughtful deliberation of the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 shows an exploded view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     FIG. 3 shows a longitudinal sectional view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention in combination. 
     FIG. 4 is a sectional schematic view showing that the corresponding arcuate rims and arcuate through holes of the preferred embodiment of the present invention are arrangement correspondingly. 
     FIG. 5 shows a schematic view of a 360-degree spray pattern which is attained as a result of the arrangement as shown in FIG.  4 . 
     FIG. 6 shows a sectional schematic view of an arrangement of the arcuate rims and the arcuate through holes in the wake of a 90-degree rotation of the adjustment member of the present invention. 
     FIG. 7 shows a schematic view of a 90-degree spray pattern which is attained as a result of the arrangement as shown in FIG.  6 . 
     FIG. 8 shows a sectional schematic view of an arrangement of the arcuate rims and the arcuate through holes in the wake of a 180-degree rotation of the adjustment member of the present invention. 
     FIG. 9 shows a schematic view of a 180-degree spray pattern which is attained as a result of the arrangement as shown in FIG.  8 . 
     FIG. 10 shows a sectional schematic view of an arrangement of the arcuate rims and the arcuate through holes in the wake of a 270-degree rotation of the adjustment member of the present invention. 
     FIG. 11 shows a schematic view of a 270-degree spray pattern which is attained as a result of the arrangement as shown in FIG.  10 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     As shown in FIGS. 1-3, a pop-up sprinkler  05  embodied in the present invention comprises a connection pipe  10 , and a spray-angle adjustment structure comprising a circular distribution member  20 , an adjustment member  30 , and a control member  40 . 
     The spray-angle adjustment structure is mounted at a top end  12  of the connection pipe  10  which is connected at a bottom end to a water source. 
     The connection pipe  10  is provided in the top end  12  with an output port  11  having a shoulder  13  extending along the inner wall of the output port  11 . 
     The circular distribution member  20  is fixedly located in the output port  11  such that the circular distribution member  20  is supported by the shoulder  13 . The circular distribution member  20  is provided with a center through hole  21  and four arcuate through holes A 1 , A 2 , A 3 , and A 4 , which are concentric and different in distance from the center of the center through hole  21 . The first arcuate through hole A 1  is located in a first quadrant  01  (0°-90°). The second arcuate through hole A 2  is located in a second quadrant  02  (90°-180°). The third arcuate through hole A 3  is located in a third quadrant  03  (180°-270°). The fourth arcuate through hole A 4  is located in a fourth quadrant  04  (270°-360°), as shown in FIG.  4 . These four arcuate through holes A 1 , A 2 , A 3 , and A 4  are progressively different in distance from the center of the center through hole  21  of the circular distribution member  20 , with the first arcuate through hole A 1  being the farthest as shown in FIG.  4 . 
     The adjustment member  30  has a tapered portion  31  and a projection  32  extending from the free end of the tapered portion  31 . The projection  32  is provided in the outer wall with a stop edge  33  and is further provided with a fastening segment  34  which is in turn provided with a threaded hole  35  engageable with the threads  50  of a fastening bolt  51 . The adjustment member  30  is mounted on the circular distribution member  20  such that the projection  32  is put through the center through hole  21  of the circular distribution member  20 . 
     The control member  40  is provided in the center with a through hole  41  and is further provided with a first arcuate rim B 1 , a second arcuate rim B 2 , a third arcuate rim B 3 , and a fourth arcuate rim B 4 , which are respectively corresponding to the first arcuate through hole A 1 , the second arcuate through hole A 2 , the third arcuate through hole A 3 , and the fourth arcuate through hole A 4  of the circular distribution member  20 . The control member  40  is mounted beneath the circular distribution member  20  such that the control member  40  is linked with the adjustment member  30  by the fastening bolt  51  which is engaged with the threaded hole  35  of the adjustment member  30 . As a result, the control member  40  is actuated to turn by the adjustment member  30  in motion. 
     As illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, a 360-degree spray pattern W 1  is resulted from an arrangement in which the four arcuate through holes A 1 -A 4  of the circular distribution member  20  are respectively corresponding in location to the four arcuate rims B 1 -B 4  of the control member  40 . 
     As illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7, the adjustment member  30  is turned an angle of 90 degrees, thereby resulting in obstruction of the second arcuate through hole A 2 , the third arcuate through hole A 3  and the fourth arcuate through hole A 4  respectively by the first arcuate rim B 1 , the second arcuate rim B 2 , and the third arcuate rim B 3 . In another words, the passage of water is possible only through the first arcuate through hole A 1  which cannot be blocked by the fourth arcuate rim B 4 , as illustrated in FIG.  6 . In light of the 90-degree rotation of the adjustment member  30 , a 90-degree spray pattern W 2  is attained, as shown in FIG.  7 . 
     As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the adjustment member  30  is turned an angle of 180 degrees, thereby resulting in a similar rotation of the control member  40 . As a result, the passage of water is allowed only through the first arcuate through hole A 1  and the second arcuate through hole A 2 , as illustrated in FIG.  8 . In light of the 180-degree rotation of the adjustment member  30 , a 180-degree spray pattern W 3  is formed, as shown in FIG.  9 . 
     When the adjustment member  30  is turned an angle of 270 degrees, as illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 11, the fourth arcuate through hole A 4  of the circular distribution member  20  is blocked by the first arcuate rim B 1  of the control member  40 , as shown in FIG.  10 . In another words, the passage of water is allowed by the first arcuate through hole A 1 , the second arcuate through hole A 2 , and the third arcuate through hole A 3 . As a result of the 270-degree rotation of the adjustment member  30 , a 270-degree spray pattern W 4  is formed. 
     The embodiment of the present invention described above is to be regarded in all respects as being illustrative and nonrestrictive. Accordingly, the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without deviating from the spirit thereof. The present invention is therefore to be limited only by the scope of the following claim.