Nelson Irrigation Corporation

Riley D Greenwood

Craig B Nelson

George L Sesser

Lee A Perkins

Chad Daniel Leinweber

Michael R Townsend

Reid A Nelson

Sean M Scott

A flow control device includes a housing with an inlet and an outlet and a flow conduit disposed in the housing. The inlet, the flow conduit, and the outlet define a flow passage. A valve seat is disposed in the housing downstream of the inlet, and a shuttle is movably disposed in the housing and displaceable between a closed position engaging the valve seat to close the flow passage and an open position spaced from the valve seat to open the flow passage. A sealed chamber is defined between the housing and the flow conduit. A port coupled with a source of pressurized fluid communicates with the sealed chamber, where the shuttle is displaceable between the closed position and the open position based on a pressure in the sealed chamber. The threshold water pressure for displacing the flow conduit may be adjustable by modifying the pressure in the sealed chamber.

Multi-function pressure regulation valve

A flow control device including: a housing including a flow passage extending from an inlet, through the housing to an outlet; a hollow tube within the housing defining a tube passage included in the flow passage of the housing; a valve seat in the housing and disposed between the inlet to the flow passage and an inlet to the tube passage of the hollow tube; and a drain check shuttle within the housing and configured to move reciprocally with respect to both the housing and the hollow tube, wherein the drain check shuttle has: a first position within the housing at which the drain check shuttle abuts the valve seat, and closes a gap between the valve seat and the inlet to the hollow tube; and a second position displaced from the valve seat and which opens the gap.

Flow control device with drain check

Pressure regulator

A pressure regulator including: a housing including an inlet flow passage and an outlet flow passage; a plunger reciprocally mounted in the housing and including a plunger flow passage; an inlet to the plunger flow passage, wherein the inlet is aligned with a plane oblique to an axis of the plunger flow passage; and a valve seat fixed to the housing and positioned between the inlet flow passage and the inlet to the flow passage of the plunger, wherein the valve seat is configured to receive and abut the inlet to the flow passage of the plunger.

Pressure regulator having an oblique valve seat

A weighted inverted sprinkler assembly adapted for use with a drop hose of an irrigation system is disclosed. The assembly comprises a coiled weight formed from a coiled wire, a sprinkler fluidly associated with the drop hose, and a coiled weight support structure. A pressure regulator may be provided in fluid associated with the irrigation drop hose and the sprinkler. The coiled weight has a shape that is selected for use with a particular sprinkler assembly. The shape may be an elongated shape for use with an elongated coiled weight support structure, a beehive shape for use with a pressure regulator having a collar to support the coiled weight, and a pear shape for use with a pressure regulator having a flared housing. The coiled weight is preferably formed from a single coiled wire although two or more weights may be used in combination in a given application.

Sprinkler assembly having coiled weight

A pressure regulator () including: a housing () including a flow passage (); a plunger () configured to move within the housing, wherein the plunger is hollow and has a plunger passage () included in the flow passage; a valve seat () in the housing and disposed in the flow passage immediately upstream of an inlet () to the plunger passage; a shuttle () within the housing configured to move between an upstream-most position at which the shuttle abuts the valve seat to close the flow passage and a downstream position displaced from the valve seat which opens the flow passage; a sealed chamber () within the housing and between the plunger and the shuttle, wherein the sealed chamber is configured to be operated at pressures other than at atmospheric pressure; and a port () in the housing and open to the sealed chamber, wherein the port is configured to be connected to a source () of a pressurized fluid.

A gooseneck pipe includes a first pipe half having a first radiused centerline curve, and a second pipe half fixed to the first pipe half and having a second radiused centerline curve. The first and second pipe halves define a flow path. Cross-sectional diameters of the first and second pipe halves vary along the flow path. The varying diameters of the first and second pipe halves serve to mitigate pressure losses due in part to Dean vortices or secondary flow patterns in the flow path when a fluid is turned in the gooseneck pipe.

Center pivot irrigation gooseneck with varying cross-sectional diameters

A method to operate a pressure regulator including an inlet flow passage and an outlet flow passage; a plunger reciprocally between the inlet and outlet flow passages, wherein an axis of the plunger is offset from an axis of the inlet flow passage and the plunger moves with respect to a stationary valve seat to regulate pressure of liquid flowing through the pressure regulator.

Pressure regulator having single strut seat with strut coaxial to plunger

A pressure regulator includes a housing having an inlet cap with an inlet flow passage and an outlet cap with an outlet flow passage. A plunger is reciprocally mounted in the housing. A stationary regulator valve seat is disposed between the inlet flow passage and an inlet to the plunger. A drain check shuttle is disposed in the inlet cap and positioned downstream of the regulator valve seat to prevent water from draining out of the regulator when an inlet water pressure is below a predetermined threshold.

Drain check in pressure regulator

A pressure regulator including a housing including an inlet flow passage and an outlet flow passage; a plunger reciprocally mounted in the housing and including a plunger flow passage having an axis offset from an axis of the inlet flow passage, and a stationary valve seat fixed to the housing and positioned between the inlet flow passage and an inlet to the flow passage of the plunger, wherein the valve seat is configured to receive and abut the inlet to the flow passage of the plunger.

A rotational speed control device maintains a shaft rotation speed. The device includes a housing containing a viscous fluid and a shaft disposed in the housing and rotatable relative to the housing. A rotor is coupled with the shaft for rotation in the viscous fluid. The rotor is axially displaceable along the shaft between a low-shear position and a high-shear position. A spring mechanism is disposed in the housing and biases the rotor toward the low-shear position. The rotor may be designed to cooperate with the housing or other nonrotating features within the housing to vary a shear gap according to the axial position of the rotor. The rotor, housing and spring mechanism can be designed to cooperate to create large changes in braking torque in response to small changes in shaft rotational speed. This allows the rotation speed to be controlled within a relatively narrow range.

Viscous rotational speed control device

A rotational speed control device includes a housing containing a viscous fluid, a shaft disposed in the housing and rotatable relative to the housing, a hub assembly secured to the shaft for rotation with the shaft, and a rotor coupled with the shaft by a frictional engagement with the hub assembly. A spring is disposed in the housing and acts on the rotor to bias the rotor axially on the shaft in a low torque direction. A braking torque between the rotor and the housing is varied according to an axial position of the rotor on the shaft.

A rotational speed control device maintains a shaft rotation speed. The device includes a housing containing a viscous fluid and a shaft disposed in the housing and rotatable relative to the housing. A rotor is coupled with the shaft for rotation in the viscous fluid. In one arrangement, the rotor is axially displaceable along the shaft between a low-shear position and a high-shear position. A spring mechanism is disposed in the housing and biases the rotor toward the low-shear position. In another arrangement, the rotor may be designed to cooperate with the housing or other nonrotating features within the housing to vary a shear gap according to radially expanding components of the rotor. The rotor, housing and spring mechanism can be designed to cooperate to create large changes in braking torque in response to small changes in shaft rotational speed. This allows the rotation speed to be controlled within a relatively narrow range.

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Walla Walla, WA, United States of America

Riley D Greenwood