INGROUND ANCHOR FOR WATER SUPPLY LINES AND SPRINKLERS

A watering system that includes a main water hose, a plurality of water supply lines, a plurality of sprinkler heads, and a plurality of inground anchors each including a shaft having clips thereon for releasably attaching the water supply lines and or a sprinkler head thereto and a spike extending therefrom including wing spikes and ground retention members extending therefrom for securely engaging the ground to thereby resist removal or rotation with respect to the ground.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to the field of watering systems including a plurality of water supply lines and sprinklers along with a plurality of inground anchors for releasably attaching the water supply lines and or a sprinkler thereto.

2. Description of the Related Art

Existing watering systems that include a plurality of water supply lines and sprinklers incorporate inground anchors to hold water supply lines between sprinklers. However, these previous inground anchors do not hold the water supply lines securely enough and become loose and break away from the anchors resulting in broken or separated water supply lines and water leaks. Therefore, a need exists to devise an improved inground anchor for watering systems with features incorporated therein to overcome these deficiencies.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known art, the present invention provides an improved inground anchor for water supply lines and sprinklers. The general purpose of the present invention, which will be described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a watering system that includes a plurality of water supply lines and sprinklers along with a plurality of inground anchors each including a shaft having clips thereon for releasably attaching the water supply lines and or a sprinklers thereto and a spike extending therefrom including wing spikes and ground retention members extending therefrom for securely engaging the ground to thereby resist removal or rotation with respect to the ground.

The various embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following embodiments and the accompanying drawings, which are incorporated into and form part of this disclosure, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, certain illustrative aspects of the invention are described herein in connection with the following description and the annexed drawings. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of the invention can be employed and the subject invention is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. Other advantages and novel features of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the drawings.

Referring toFIGS. 1-3, the present invention discloses a watering system100comprising a plurality of inground anchors200; a plurality of water supply lines300; at least one main water hose310; and a plurality of sprinklers400. The main feature of the inground anchors each comprise an elongated body including an elongated shaft210having a proximal end portion, a middle portion, and a distal end portion, and an elongated spike220including a proximal end portion attached to the distal end portion of the elongated shaft, a middle portion, and a distal end portion, wherein the elongated spike is tapered from the proximal end portion to the distal end portion. Each inground anchor200further comprises two clips215, each including at least one semi-cylindrical clip portion217adapted to releasably retain one of the plurality of sprinklers400or water lines300therein, wherein the two clips217are attached to opposite sides of the proximal end portion of the elongated body. Each inground anchor200further comprises two wing spikes230, each including a panel portion232, attached to the distal end portion of the elongated shaft210, and a downwardly extending tapered ground penetrating portion234extending from the panel portion and spaced from the distal end portion of the elongated shaft210, wherein the two wing spikes230are attached to opposite sides of the distal end portion of the elongated body; and at least one ground retention member240including a panel portion242attached to the middle portion of the elongated spike, and an upwardly extending ground engaging tapered portion244extending from the panel portion and is spaced from the middle portion of the elongated spike.

The plurality of inground anchors200are each adapted such that when inserted into the ground the elongated spike220, the at least one ground retention member240, and the ground penetrating portions234of the two wing spikes230are within and engage the ground to thereby resist removal therefrom or rotation thereto.

A chosen number of the sprinklers400can be respectively attached to chosen ones of the semi-cylindrical clip portions217of the clips215of the plurality of inground anchors200, and the plurality of water supply lines300can be attached between the at least one main water hose310and the plurality of sprinklers400and held in place via respective inground anchors200, to thereby form the watering system100.

In the preferred embodiment, the two clips215are oriented 180 degrees from one another upon the proximal end portion of the elongated body and each include two spaced semi-cylindrical clip portions217. In a first embodiment, the two semi-cylindrical clip portions217are in alignment to one another and adapted such that when a water supply line is attached therebetween the two semi-cylindrical clip portions contact the same side of the water supply line300. In a second embodiment, the two semi-cylindrical clip portions217are oriented 180 degrees from one another and adapted such that when a water supply line is attached therebetween the two semi-cylindrical clip portions contact opposite sides of the water supply line300thereby more securely holding the water supply line300therebetween.

The panel portion232of each of the two wing spikes230includes at least one aperture236therethrough adapted to allow a water supply line300to pass therethrough and extend upwardly to a respective one of the two clips215.

In the preferred embodiment, there are at least two ground retention members240spaced from one another and oriented 180 degrees to one another and form a pair of ground retention members. There can be at least two pairs of ground retention members spaced from one another along a length of the middle portion of the spike and be oriented 90 degrees to one another in an alternating pattern.

The at least one semi-cylindrical clip portion217of both of the two clips have an inner diameter chosen from a group of dimensions consisting of ½ inch, ¾ inch, and 1 inch; and wherein the at least one aperture236of said panel portion232of each of the two wing spikes230has an inner diameter chosen from a group of dimensions consisting of ½ inch, ¾ inch, and 1 inch. In following, the outer diameter of the at least one water supply line300is chosen from a group of dimensions consisting of ½ inch, ¾ inch, and 1 inch to match the inner diameters of the two clips215and the apertures236of the panel portions of the two wing spikes.

As shown inFIG. 3, the inground anchors200can be used to hold the water supply lines300adjacent to and then attached to a sprinkler400having its own inground spike portion410, or the clips215of the inground anchors200can also be used to hold a sprinkler400thereon and also hold the water supply lines300being attached to the sprinkler400. Besides a friction fit between the clips and sprinkler heads, means for holding the sprinkler head more securely to the clips may include screw threads or ridges or any variation thereof.