Abstract:
A swivel fitting is specifically configured for mounting a pressure regulator and a solenoid to a valve having a female threaded solenoid mounting port. The swivel fitting includes a generally cylindrical upper body having a first female threaded bore for having a male threaded neck of either a solenoid or a pressure regulator screwed into the first bore. A generally cylindrical lower body is mated to the upper body and has a male threaded segment for screwing into the female threaded solenoid mounting port of a valve. A swivel body surrounds and encloses the upper body and the lower body and has an extension with a second female threaded bore for having the male threaded neck of either the solenoid or the pressure regulator screwed into the same. The swivel body is freely rotatable relative to the cylindrical bodies. A pair of valve seats in the swivel body and communicating ports and chambers allow the solenoid to open and close flow through the valve and the pressure regulator to regulate flow through the valve when the solenoid and the pressure regulator are each screwed into one of the first and second bores.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates to irrigation valves used in residential and commercial irrigation systems. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Solenoid actuated valves are used in automatic irrigation systems for watering turf and/or landscaping. They control the supply of pressurized water to a plurality of sprinklers. An electronic irrigation controller is used to turn the valves ON and OFF in accordance with a watering program. In recent years water conservation has become increasingly important in terms of conserving precious environmental resources. Irrigation sprinklers are designed to work most efficiently over specified water pressure ranges. Often water is supplied at a pressure which is too high, causing large amounts of water to be wasted. Therefore pressure regulators are often installed in irrigation systems to alleviate this problem. It has been conventional to mount a pressure regulator on the valve body using an adapter. Typically the adapter is screwed into the valve body where the solenoid is normally screwed. The pressure regulator is then screwed into one port of the adapter and the solenoid is screwed into a second port of the adapter. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    In accordance with the present invention a swivel fitting is specifically configured for mounting a pressure regulator and a solenoid to a valve having a female threaded solenoid mounting port. The swivel fitting includes a generally cylindrical upper body having a first female threaded bore for having a male threaded neck of either a solenoid or a pressure regulator screwed into the first bore. A generally cylindrical lower body is mated to the upper body and has a male threaded segment for screwing into the female threaded solenoid mounting port of a valve. A swivel body surrounds and encloses the upper body and the lower body and has an extension with a second female threaded bore for having the male threaded neck of either the solenoid or the pressure regulator screwed into the same. The swivel body is freely rotatable relative to the cylindrical bodies. A pair of valve seats in the swivel fitting and communicating ports and chambers allow the solenoid to open and close flow through the valve and the pressure regulator to regulate flow through the valve when the solenoid and the pressure regulator are each screwed into one of the first and second bores. 
         [0004]    The present invention also provides an assembly for use in an irrigation system that includes an irrigation valve with a solenoid and pressure regulator operatively coupled thereto via a swivel adapter. The irrigation valve has a mounting port that communicates with a chamber on one side of a flow control diaphragm that moves to control flow from an inlet port to an outlet port. The swivel adapter is coupled to the mounting port. The solenoid and the pressure regulator are both operatively coupled to the swivel adapter. The swivel adapter includes a valve seat for selective opening and closing by the solenoid to cause movement of the flow control diaphragm. The swivel adapter further includes a plurality of chambers for permitting the pressure regulator to control the pressure at the outlet port of the irrigation valve. The swivel adapter includes at least two bodies that are rotatable relative to each other so that the relative positions of the solenoid and the pressure regulator can be changed without affecting the ability of the solenoid to open and close the irrigation valve and the pressure regulator to control the pressure at the outlet port. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0005]      FIG. 1  is an enlarged isometric view of a swivel adapter in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0006]      FIGS. 2A  is a reduced isometric view of a conventional irrigation valve that has a solenoid and a pressure regulator operatively coupled thereto with the swivel adapter of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0007]      FIG. 2B  is a side elevation view of the irrigation valve of  FIG. 2A  taken from the side on which the outlet port opens. 
           [0008]      FIG. 2C  is a view similar to  FIG. 2B  rotated ninety degrees in a counter-clockwise direction viewed from above. 
           [0009]      FIG. 2D  is a top plan view of the irrigation valve of  FIG. 2A . 
           [0010]      FIG. 2E  is a view similar to  FIG. 2A  with the pressure regulator swung to a different location as permitted by the swivel adapter. 
           [0011]      FIG. 2F  is a view similar to  FIG. 2E  illustrating the interchange of the mounting positions of the solenoid and the pressure regulator on the swivel adapter. 
           [0012]      FIG. 3  is an enlarged cross-section view of the swivel adapter of  FIG. 1  with the solenoid and the pressure regulator operatively coupled thereto as illustrated in  FIGS. 2A-2D . 
           [0013]      FIG. 4  is an exploded side elevation view of the swivel adapter of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0014]      FIG. 5  is a top plan view of the swivel adapter of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0015]      FIG. 6  is a vertical section view of the swivel adapter taken along line  6 - 6  of  FIG. 5 . 
           [0016]      FIG. 7  is a side elevation view of the swivel adapter of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0017]      FIG. 8  is a horizontal sectional view of the swivel adapter taken along line  8 - 8  of  FIG. 7 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0018]    Referring to  FIG. 1  a swivel adapter  10  includes a generally cylindrical upper body  12  and a mating generally cylindrical lower body  31  ( FIG. 4 ) that are rotatably confined within a generally L-shaped outer swivel body  14  by a pair of retaining pins  62   a  and  62   b  ( FIG. 1 ) pressed into a corresponding pair of hubs  64  and  66  formed on the swivel body  14 . The upper body  12 , the lower body  31  and the outer swivel  14  are preferably injection molded out of suitable plastic although they could be made of machined brass or other suitable metal. 
         [0019]    Referring to  FIGS. 2A-2F  the swivel adapter  10  operatively couples a conventional solenoid  80  and an adjustable pressure regulator  90  to a solenoid actuated irrigation valve  70  to form an assembly that can function as a component of an irrigation system. Pressurized water is conveyed through a pipe (not illustrated) connected to an inlet port  74  of the valve  70 , and exits the valve  70  via outlet port  76  when the valve  70  is opened by energizing the solenoid  80 . The water exits the irrigation valve  70  at a lower regulated pressure that is determined by the manual setting of the adjustable pressure regulator  90 . The large arrows in  FIG. 2C  illustrate the direction of flow of the main water flow path through the irrigation valve  70 . 
         [0020]    The irrigation valve  70  is a bonnet-style diaphragm valve such at that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,979,482 granted Nov. 9, 1999 or No. 5,996,608 granted Dec. 7, 1999, both assigned to Hunter Industries, Inc., the assignee of the subject application. The entire disclosures of the aforementioned &#39;482 and &#39;608 patents are hereby incorporated by reference. The solenoid  80  is connected to a dedicated field valve line and a common return line (not illustrated) that are connected to an irrigation controller (not illustrated). A low voltage electrical signal, such as twenty-four volts AC, is selectively sent to the solenoid  80  by the irrigation controller via the lines to energize the solenoid and open the irrigation valve  70 . See U.S. Pat. No. 7,181,319 granted Feb. 20, 2007 and assigned to Hunter Industries, Inc. for an example of such an irrigation controller. The entire disclosure of the aforementioned &#39;319 patent is hereby incorporated by reference. 
         [0021]    Referring to  FIG. 3  a male threaded neck  81  of the solenoid  80  is screwed into a female threaded bore  28  ( FIG. 1 ) in the upper body  12  of the swivel adapter  10 . A male threaded neck  91  ( FIG. 3 ) of the pressure regulator  90  is screwed into a female threaded bore  26  of a cylindrical extension  14   a  of the swivel body  14 . The bores  26  and  28  extend at a ninety degree angle relative to each other so that the solenoid  80  and pressure regulator  90  extend at substantially a right angle relative to each other. The relative positions of solenoid  80  and the pressure regulator  90  can be interchanged, as illustrated in  FIGS. 2B and 2F , so that the pressure regulator  90  is threaded into the upper body  12  and the solenoid  80  is threaded into the swivel body  14  without affecting the ability of the irrigation valve  70  to turn ON and OFF by energization and de-energization of the solenoid  80  and without affecting the ability of the pressure regulator  90  to control the pressure of water flowing through the irrigation valve  70 . 
         [0022]    Referring to  FIG. 4 , during assembly of the swivel adapter  10  a pair of O-rings  16   a  and  16   b  made of a suitable elastomeric polymer material are installed in axially spaced relationship around the upper body  12 . Similarly a pair of O-rings  16   c  and  20  made of a similar elastomeric material are installed in axially spaced relationship around the lower body  31 . The lower body  31  is installed in the swivel adapter  14 . The upper body  12  is then installed in the lower body  31 . 
         [0023]    The retaining pins  62   a  and  62   b  are then installed into the hubs  64  and  66  to retain the upper body  12  and lower body  31  in the swivel body  14  while allowing the swivel body  14  to freely rotate around the upper body  12  and lower body  31 . Four lower body locking fins  54  ( FIG. 8 ) arranged in a cross pattern interlock with mating pairs of retainer flanges  56  to rotationally lock the upper body  12  to the lower body  31 . With the upper body  12  and the lower body  31  rotationally coupled, a wrench can be engaged with a plurality of wrench flat surfaces  58  ( FIG. 7 ) formed on the upper end of the upper body  12  in order to tighten the swivel adapter  10  to the irrigation valve  70  by rotating a male threaded segment  24  of the lower body  31  into a mating female threaded solenoid mounting port (not illustrated) in a solenoid support neck  72  ( FIG. 2C ) of the irrigation valve  70 . 
         [0024]    The O-ring  20  ( FIG. 6 ) prevents pressurized water from leaking out of the solenoid support neck  72 . Full line pressure water that has entered the irrigation valve  70  through the inlet port  74  is directed to a port  30  ( FIG. 6 ) of an inlet seal  22 . Line pressure water continues to flow through a port  32  in a co-axial stem  13  of the upper body  12  to a port  34  in a vertical valve seat  18   a.  When the solenoid  80  is de-energized, an elastomeric plunger cover  86  on the lower end of its plunger  82  ( FIG. 3 ) is held in sealing engagement against the valve seat  18   a  by the spring force exerted by a coil spring  84  that surrounds the plunger  82 . When an electrical current energizes the solenoid  80 , the plunger cover  86  on the lower end of the plunger  82  is lifted off of the valve seat  18   a  and pressurized water fills a chamber  36  ( FIG. 6 ) in the swivel adapter  10 . This action turns ON the flow of water through the irrigation valve  70  by relieving pressurized water in a chamber behind a relatively large flow control diaphragm (not illustrated) in the irrigation valve  70 . Pressurized water from chamber  36  in the swivel adapter  10  flows through a plurality of radially extending communication ports  38  in the upper body  12  ( FIGS. 4 and 6 ) to fill a ring chamber  40  ( FIG. 6 ) which is formed in the upper body  12 . Water is confined to this area by the O-rings  16   a  and  16   b.  Pressurized water continues to flow from the ring chamber  40  through a swivel inlet port  41  and through a central port  42  of a horizontal valve seat  18   b.    
         [0025]    Referring again to  FIG. 3 , the male threaded neck  91  of the pressure regulator  90  screws into the female threaded bore  26  of the swivel body  14 . The pressure regulator  90  includes a pressure regulator inlet seal  92 . The pressure regulator  90  regulates the water pressure by modifying the flow through the swivel adapter  10 . This in turn regulates the pressure on the back side of the flow control diaphragm in irrigation valve  70  which in turn regulates the pressure of the water exiting the irrigation valve  70  through outlet port  76 . The regulated pressure of the pressure regulator  90  can be adjusted by manually twisting a control knob  93  on the outer end of the pressure regulator  90 . 
         [0026]    The chamber  44  ( FIG. 6 ) in the swivel body  14  is in fluid communication with the outlet of the irrigation valve  70  such that the outlet pressure of the irrigation valve  70  is communicated to a diaphragm  94  ( FIG. 3 ) of the pressure regulator  90 . The chamber  44  ( FIG. 6 ) communicates through a port  46  to a peripheral swivel pressure chamber  48  and then directly to a lower body pressure chamber  50  and a plurality of outer radial ports  52  in the inlet seal  22 . The O-rings  16   b  and  16   c  ( FIG. 4 ) prevent the water in the pressure chamber  48  ( FIG. 6 ) from leaking into other areas of the swivel adapter  10 . The pressurized water in chamber  44  pushes the diaphragm  94  ( FIG. 3 ) and a piston  102  against the opposing force of a coil spring  104  in the pressure regulator  90 . If the pressure is too high, relative to the force of the spring  104 , a pin  96  moves with piston  102  to cause a metering pin head  100  to come in closer proximity to the walls of a metering port  98  as illustrated in  FIG. 3 . This reduces the flow of water from the back side of the flow control diaphragm (not illustrated) of the irrigation valve  70  that is flowing through seat  18   b.  The irrigation valve  70  begins to reduce output flow as the flow of water behind its flow control diaphragm is decreased and the pressure behind its flow control diaphragm increases. As the output flow of the irrigation valve  70  is reduced, the output water pressure also reduces. As the output pressure reduces, the pressure in chamber  44  also reduces which reduces the pressure force against the diaphragm  94  and the piston  102 . As the pressure in chamber  44  reduces, the force of the spring  104  causes the piston  102  and the metering pin  96  to move the metering head  100  away from the metering port  98  to allow additional flow of water through the metering port  98 . This allows the irrigation valve  70  to deliver more water though the outlet port  74  and increases the water pressure at the outlet port  74 . The regulation of the pressure at the outlet port  74  of the irrigation valve  70  is accomplished by the forces of the pressurized water in the chamber  44  equalizing with the forces of the spring  104  ( FIG. 3 ) which regulates the flow of water through the metering port  98  by moving the metering pin head  100  to a position that regulates the flow of water coming through a bleed port in the irrigation valve  70  such that the flow control diaphragm of irrigation valve  70  positions itself to regulate the flow, and thus the pressure of the water exiting port  74  of irrigation valve  70 . 
         [0027]    When the pressure regulator  90  and the solenoid  80  are interchanged to their alternate mounting positions, the irrigation valve  70  functions in the same manner as the water pressure in the chamber  44  ( FIG. 6 ) is communicated to the chamber  36  via the port  42  in the valve seat  18   b  to the ring chamber  40  and through the communication ports  38 . The plunger cover  86  engages the horizontal seat  18   b  in this configuration. When the solenoid  80  is energized, the pressure in the chamber  36  is substantially the same as the pressure in the chamber  44 . The water pressure in the chamber  36  forces the diaphragm  94  and piston  102  against spring  104  to accomplish the regulating function. This does not adversely affect the functionality of the pressure regulator  90  or the solenoid  80 . The interchange feature of the swivel adapter  10  allows for flexibility when installing the assembly at the irrigation site to best meet the space limitations and wiring requirements in the subterranean valve box. 
         [0028]    The swivel adapter  10  provides substantially more flexibility in regard to mounting the pressure regulator  90  and the solenoid  80  on the top of the irrigation valve  70 . As illustrated in  FIGS. 2E and 2F  the solenoid  80  may be mounted to either the top port or the side port of the swivel adapter  10  and the pressure regulator  90  may mounted to either the side port or the top port. The side port swivels around the axis of the top port and can be freely rotated in any direction. This allows an installer to mount the pressure regulator  90  and solenoid  80  in the best positions during installation of a valve in a subterranean valve box to accommodate wiring and plumbing and to provide easier maintenance in the future. Alternate rotational positions for the pressure regulator  90  are illustrated in  FIGS. 2D and 2E . The swivel adapter  10  places a central axis of the solenoid  80  or the pressure regulator  90  in vertical co-axial relationship with a central vertical axis of the female threaded mounting port formed in the solenoid support neck  72  of the irrigation valve  70 . The solenoid  80  and the pressure regulator  90  extend at substantially a right angle relative to each other. Thus either the pressure regulator  90  is rotatable about the central axis of the solenoid  80  or visa versa. 
         [0029]    While an embodiment of the swivel adapter of the present invention has been described in detail, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention can be modified in arrangement and detail. The swivel fitting could be made with only one valve seat so that the positions of the solenoid and pressure regulators could not be swapped. The swivel fitting can also be used with other types of irrigation valves besides the illustrated bonnet-style irrigation valve, including piston type valves. See for example U.S. Pat. No. 7,303,147 granted Dec. 4, 2007, both assigned to Hunter Industries, Inc., the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference. The swivel fitting can accept a fixed pressure regulator in addition to an adjustable pressure regulator. The swivel adapter, solenoid and/or the pressure regulator may utilize other attachment methods, such as bayonet, collet, or snap together type couplings instead of the threaded couplings. The upper and lower body components could be manufactured as a single unit. Therefore the protection afforded the present invention should only be limited in accordance with the scope of the following claims.