Patent ID: 8328117

Claim:
A lawn sprinkler apparatus for regulating the flow of water, comprising: a base, said base configured to confiningly receive a pressurized water flow; a sprinkler nozzle assembly, said sprinkler nozzle assembly arcuately coupled to said base, and said sprinkler nozzle assembly comprising a nozzle, said sprinkler nozzle assembly responsive to said pressurized water flow to pop-up into an operating position for discharge of water from said nozzle; a drive mechanism coupled to said sprinkler nozzle assembly, said drive mechanism comprising a water driven impeller and a gear train adapted for operatively driving said sprinkler nozzle assembly via arcuate movement; a water flow regulator, said water flow regulator configured (a) for regulating a first portion of said water flow to increase water flow rate of said first portion of said water flow over said first unit of time, and for regulating said first portion of said water flow to decrease water flow rate of said first portion of said water flow over said second unit of time, and (b) for regulating a second portion of said water flow to decrease water flow rate of said second portion of said water flow over said first unit of time and to increase water flow rate of said second portion of said water flow over said second unit of time, said water flow regulator comprising a first inlet fluidically coupled to said base and a first outlet fluidically coupled to said nozzle, said drive mechanism fluidically driven by said first portion of said water flow; said nozzle sized and shaped (a) to decrease the radial length of water distribution along a first vector over said first unit of time in response to said decrease in water flow rate of said second portion of said water flow, and (b) to increase the radial length of water distribution along a second vector over said second unit of time in response to said increase in water flow rate of said second portion of said water flow; and said drive mechanism operative to increase said arcuate speed of said sprinkler nozzle assembly over said first unit of time in response to said increase in water flow rate of said first portion of said water flow, and to decrease said arcuate speed of said sprinkler nozzle assembly over said second unit of time in response to said decrease in water flow rate of said first portion of said water flow.