A SELF-PROPELLED IRRIGATOR

Abstract: A self-propelled irrigator comprising a reel on which a hose is wound up. The water supplied through the hose is fed into chambers (p) in a driving wheel (a) from a water outlet (i) located in front of the vertical, diametral plane of the driving wheel when seen in the moving direction. The chambers are defined by side walls in the driving wheel (a) and partitions connecting said walls. hese partitions are curved backwards in the direction of rotation relative to the wheel radii and form guiding plates guiding overflowing water from a filled upper chamber into the preceding chamber for accumulation of the driving power. The chambers comprise narrow inlet slots forming flow restrictors for water flowing out of the chambers carried over the rear alf of the wheel. As a result these chambers not yet emptied provide a braking effect necessary on hilly grounds.

Description: Technical Field The present invention relates to a self-propelled irrigator for irrigation of row crops, lawns, and the like areas, and comprising a hose wound up on a reel, water from a statio- nary tap flowing through said hose to a nozzle unit such as a sprinkler and to an outlet through a driving wheel com¬ prising containers along its periphery, said containers be¬ ing supplied with water when they are in an uppermost posi¬ tion in front of the vertical, diametral plane of the wheel and releasing water during the movement past their lowest position. Background Art German patent specification No. 215,616 discloses an irri¬ gator comprising a water distributing " pipe situated between two driving wheels. Along the periphery these driving.wheels comprise tiltable cups, which are supplied with water when they are in their uppermost position and emptied when they hit a stop in their lowest position and thereby tilt. These known cups are therefore only filled with water when they are in a particular uppermost position, which, especially when the apparatus is being started, involves an insuffi¬ cient or no propellant moment. Furthermore, the mechanical tilting of the cups in their lowest position involves a sud¬ den emptying which does not provide a necessary braking ef- feet when the apparatus moves downhill. Consequently, the apparatus moves forwards at an uncontrollable speed, to which must be added that these tiltable cups are expensive to ma¬ nufacture and to keep in repair. Disclosure of Invention The object of the invention is to provide an inexpensive apparatus of the above type, which ensures a more regular and a more powerful propulsion compared to these known appa- ratuses in such a manner that the apparatus according to t invention - in spite of the considerable and varying load from a hose wound up on the reel - can move forwards at a uniform speed even on a slightly hilly ground, and which furthermore permit a uniform irrigation with, controllable amounts of water. The self-propelled irrigator according to the invention is. characterised in that the containers are chambers separate by partitions curved backwards in the direction of rotatio relative to the wheel radii, said partitions connecting tw side walls perpendicular to the wheel axis, and whereby th outer portions of said partitions form guiding plates in¬ clining towards the wheel axis in such a manner that they can guide the trickling or overflowing water into a narrow slot at the trailing edge of the partition ahead of the di rection of rotation when the chambers are in their uppermo positions in front of the vertical, diametral plane of the wheel when seen in the driving direction, and furthermore such a manner that the inlet slots turning downwards on th rear half of the wheel form flow restrictors for the outfl wing water. The driving wheel can be inexpensively manufactured, e.g. plastics, and requires no maintenance. In addition, a unif irrigation of the area is obtained since the apparatus mov forwards by a considerably power and at a uniform speed, a so when moving on hilly grounds. The constant, controllabl jet of liquid through theOutlet fills the chambers on the front of t wheel, since the water — when the uppermost chamber at the start is filled - flows into the preceding chamber and - w this chamber has been filled - forwards to the next chambe situated therebelow etc. , unti 1 the torque is sufficient f driving the wheel forwards. Subsequently, the chambers are slowly emptied at the back of the wheel,which provides a necessary braking effect and consequently a uniform, stepwi operation. The wheel is influenced by imbalance implying O that the wheel moves forwards at regular intervals each time a plurality of chambers have been filled. Then the water flows out, and the wheel stops until a corresponding plura¬ lity of new chambers has * been filled. The slow emptying of the chambers implies that the tendency of the wheel to roll faster when driving downhill is counteracted because a higher number of not yet emptied chambers are carried to the rear half of the wheel. By regulating the water flow through the outlet to the chambers, the driving speed of the apparatus and consequently the amount of water supplied to the ground can be regulated. In order to guide the water safely downwards to the prece¬ ding chamber and in order to avoid waste of water, it is according to the invention preferred that the side walls.of the driving wheel extend radially past the free trailing edges of the partitions. For smaller lawns it is completely sufficient that the appa¬ ratus comprises only one driving wheel at one end of the wheel axis and a general supporting wheel of the same diame- ter at the opposite end of the axis. However,- " for irrigation of row crops and larger grass areas in parks and sports grounds, a driving wheel can be provided at both ends of the wheel axis. The wheels may furthermore be displaceably arranged on the wheel axis whereby their mutual distance can be changed. In an embodiment of the irrigator according to the inven¬ tion a predetermined wheel diameter provides an increase of the tractive capacity for propelling the apparatus, and this embodiment is according to the invention characterised in that the driving wheel forms part of the reel, on which the hose is wound, and the width of which corresponds substan¬ tially to the width of the reel. Since the driving wheel is built into the reel, it may have a considerable width where¬ by the chambers may contain a correspondingly high amount of water providing a heavy torque. In a simple and inexpensive embodiment of the apparatus ac¬ cording to the invention, the reel itself forms the driving wheel and comprises closed end bottoms provided with, edge portions projecting radially outwards from the reel cylinde and forming road wheels, and whereby at least one of said edge portions together with- an additional jradial flange de¬ fine a groove located under the water outlet, said groove communicating freely with the chambers of the driving wheel the partitions of said chambers forming paddle blades ex¬ tending from end bottom to end bottom within the reel. Reel bearings and particular road wheels are not necessary in such a construction, and since the diameter of the reel nee not be smaller than the diameter of the road wheels it is possible to wind up a relatively long hose on the reel, sai reel thereby driving directly on the hose or on the edge portions of the end bottoms projecting outwards. When the hose reel itself forms the driving wheel, it is according to the invention preferred that the portion of the reel on which, the hose is wound up is surrounded by a cylindrical jacket protecting the chambers between the paddle blades against fouling. This cylindrical jacket may according to the invention be radially spaced from the ends of the paddle blades forming the partitions of the chambers. As a result, the water can flow quickly through the chambers as well as said chambers can be easily cleaned by rinsing with water. Brief Description of Drawings The invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Fig- 1 is a front view of an embodiment of the irrigator according to the invention. Fig. 2 is a side view of the driving wheel of the apparatus, whereby a side plate is removed. Fig. 3 is a front view of a second embodiment of the appa- ratus according to the invention. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a third embodiment of the irrigator according to. the invention. Fig. 5 is a sectional view through the reel taken along the arrows II-II of Fig. 4, Fig. 6 is an axial, sectional view through a fourth embodi¬ ment of the irrigator, whereby the reel is not provided with a cylindrical jacket, and Fig. 7 is an axial, sectional view through a fifth embodi¬ ment of the irrigator according to the invention. Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention The irrigator illustrated in Fig. 1 comprises a driving wheel a formed by two side plates. A plurality of chambers £ regu¬ larly distributed about the axis, cf. Fig. 2, is situated between these two side plates. Each of these chambers is closed towards the centre of the wheel by an end wall ex¬ tending into a partition curved radially backwards in the direction of rotation. This partition ends up in a wall por¬ tion inclining backwards, an inlet slot for water being shaped at the free trailing edge of said wall portion. The substantially radial walls may also be formed as continuous paddle blades curved backwards. The driving wheel a is unpivotably mounted at the end of a pipe b forming a wheel axle, at the opposite end of which a MPI 'IPO fixedly mounted supporting wheel c is provided, the diamete of which corresponds to the diameter of the driving wheel A reel d is rotatably mounted on the pipe b, and a water hose s_ is wound up on the reel. This hose is connected to tap at the end of the area to be irrigated. Such taps may for instance be situated on a pipe at regular intervals of about 20 m, said pipe being located at the end of the law or field with crops to be irrigated. The end of the hose wound up on the reel is connected to a branch f_ turning fo wards in the direction of travel in such a manner that th reel unwinds the hose from under the apparatus, so that s hose does not impede forward movement. The branch f_ is mou ted on a swivel ~ ^_ located above an aperture in the pipe thus permitting inflow of water from the hose to the inte rior of the pipe. The pipe b_ also comprises a swivel e opp site a second aperture in the pipe wall, and through this aperture water is carried through a pipe to a sprinkler irrigating the area. The pipe £ furthermore comprises a branch pipe having an outlet, through which water is made to flow downwards into the front and uppermost chambers' p_. First this uppermost chamber is filled, whereafter the wa ter flows on the outside of the chamber wall downwards int the preceding chamber etc. until the driving wheel a has such an imbalance that it turns forwards, and the water in the lowest chamber starts to flow out, whereafter the whee stops until the imbalance is sufficiently great to drive t wheel forwards. The pipe i. may optionally be provided with a valve or a cock regulating the outflow of water to the chambers and consequently the speed of the apparatus acros the ground. The swivel e comprising the outlet i and the sprinkler k is at its lowest end provided with a rod h. A moving wheel is mounted on this rod in such a manner tha it is always ahead of the apparatus and maintains the pipe in a vertical position. The rod h and the wheel may advantageously be replaced b a U-shaped yoke trailing backwards and simultaneously serv OMP as a handle. During the forward movement, this yoke slides on the rod, which provides a minimum friction and prevents the apparatus from being stopped by holes in the ground. This embodiment as well as other embodiments of the appara- tus according to the invention have the advantage that the water supply to the sprinkler and to the propellant means can easily be regulated independent of each, other. This means that the apparatus can also be used as a stationary irriga¬ tor. Furthermore, the irrigation is independent of th-e water pressure since a rise in the pressure involving a faster propellant speed implies that a correspondingly higher amount of water is irrigated from the sprinkler. The embodiment of the apparatus illustrated in Fig. 3 is particularly intended for large parks, sports grounds, and for irrigation of row crops in market gardens. In this em¬ bodiment, driving wheels a and sprinklers k are provided on both sides of the apparatus. Furthermore, the driving wheels are adjustably mounted in axial direction on axial extensions " n, which also applies to the front wheels r displaceably mounted on axles o_. The pipe comprising the outlet i for supply of water to the chambers in the driving wheels may be correspondingly extended. In the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 7 the reel d is rotat- ably mounted on an axle b unpivotably connected to the road wheels and the driving wheel a_, the diameter of which is slightly smaller than the inside diameter of the reel. The width of the driving wheel a is only slightly smaller than the inside width of the reel, and the long water chambers provide a considerable torque on the road wheels when filled with water. The water supplied through the hose to the con¬ necting branch f_ flows through a conduit u via a swivel e and a vertical conduit to a sprinkler k and an outlet i.. Subsequently, the water flows down into a groove outside the reel d and through apertures in the bottom of the groove down into the chambers of the driving wheel. In the embodiment illustrated in Figs. 4 to 6, the water also flows from the connecting branch f_, cf. Fig. 6, thro the conduit u via the swivel e_ and the conduit £ to the sprinkler k and the outlet _i. Subsequently, the water flo down into the groove defined by an edge portion £ project outwards from the closed end bottom of the reel and a rad edge flange v situated inside said end bottom. The groove open towards the chambers £ of the driving wheel a, said chambers being defined by the end bottoms of the reel and substantially radial, however curved, paddle blades x as well as an inner cylindrical pipe b_. Here the reel is ut lized as driving wheels in its entire width out to the ed portions £ forming road wheels. These paddle blades may, course, also be assembled in another manner at their inne edges, a transverse pipe or an axle at the centre of the reel not necessarily being provided. In the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 6 the chambers £ ar open outwards along their entire length., and the paddle blades x are secured to the end bottoms, the edge portion £ of which projecting outwards forming road wheels. The e bottom illustrated left in Fig. 6 co-operate with the edg flange v in preventing the hose from rolling out over the reel ends. If desired, an edge flange v may also be provi ded at the end bottom illustrated left in the Figure, whe by a groove is formed, which is supplied with water from additional outlet JL. In the embodiment illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5, the porti of the reel on which the hose is wound up is surrounded b a cylindrical jacket y protecting the chambers against fouling.

Claims: AMENDED CLAIMS (received by the International Bureau on 20 August 1979 (20.08.79)) 1. A self-propelled irrigator for irrigation of row. crops, lawns, and the like areas, and comprising a hose (s) wound up on a reel, water from a stationary tap flowing through " 5 said hose to a nozzle unit (k) such as a sprinkler and to an outlet (jL) through a driving wheel (a) drivingly connec¬ ted to ground wheels and comprising containers along its periphery, said containers being supplied with water when they are in an uppermost position in front of the vertical, 0 diametral plane of the wheel and releasing water during the movement past their lowest position, characteri zed in that the containers are chambers (£) separated by parti¬ tions curved backwards in the direction of rotation relative to the wheel radii, said partitions connecting two side walls 5 perpendicular to the wheel axis, and whereby the outer por¬ tions of said partitions form guiding plates inclining to¬ wards the wheel axis in such a manner that they can guide the trickling or overflowing water into a narrow slotat the trailing edge of the partition ahead of the direction of 0 rotation when the chambers are in their uppermost positions in front of the vertical, diametral plane of the wheel when seen in the driving direction, and furthermore in such a manner that the inlet slots turning downwards on the rear half of the wheel form flow restrictors for the outflowing 5 water. 2. An irrigator as claimed in claim .1, character i z ed in that the side walls of the driving wheel (a) extend radi¬ ally past the free trailing edges of the partitions. 3. An irrigator as claimed in claims 1 and 2, charac- 30 t eri z ed in that the driving wheel (a) forms part of the reel (d) , on which the hose (s) is wound, and the width of which corresponds substantially to the width of the reel. 4. An irrigator as claimed in claim 3, c h a r a c t e - r i s e d in that the reel itself forms the driving whee (a.) and comprises closed end bottoms (c) provided with, ed portions (£) projecting radially outwards from the reel c linder and forming wheels, and whereby at least one of sa edge portions together with an additional radial flange ( define a groove located under the water outlet (_i) , said groove communicating freely with the chambers (£} of the driving wheel [a] , the partitions of said chambers formin paddle blades " (x) extending from end bottom to end bottom in the reel. 5. An irrigator as claimed in claims 3 and 4, c h a r a t e r i _s e d in that the paddle blades (x) are surround by a cylindrical jacket (y) forming the hose-receiving sur face of the reel adjacent the water-receiving groove. 6. An irrigator as claimed in claim 5, c h a r a c t e r i s e d in that the cylindrical jacket (y) is radially spaced from the ends of the paddle blades (x) . ξϋR OM Π " - STATEMENTUNDERARTICLE19 In view of US, A 1507506 cited in the international novelty re¬ port, claim 1 should be amended as follows: In line 6: before "comprising" should be inserted: "drivingly connected to ground wheels and" . OM.PI

Inventors: GRONLYKKE S
Applicants: GROENNELYKKE SVEN, GRONLYKKE S
Application year: 1979
Main classification: A01G25
IPC codes: A01G25, B05B17