The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 28, 1999
Filed:
Mar. 06, 1998
Michael DeFrank, Temecula, CA (US);
Que Tran, San Diego, CA (US);
T-Systems International, Inc., San Diego, CA (US);
Abstract
A self cleaning drip irrigation hose comprising an elongated strip of plastic film folded longitudinally to form first and second overlapping longitudinal margins. A first longitudinal bead partially seals the overlapping margin. A second longitudinal bead outboard of the first bead partially seals the overlapping margins. The first and second beads have a repeating longitudinal pattern that forms a flow regulating channel and opposing inlets spaced along the length of the first and second beads. Outlets from the flow regulating channel to the exterior of the hose are spaced from the inlets to create a pressure drop across the flow regulating channel. A third longitudinal bead outboard of the second bead completely seals the overlapping margin. The second and third beads form a water access channel to the inlets in the second bead such that the inlets in the first bead when plugged are back flushed by water flow through the inlets in the second bead. The hose is made by extruding one or more molten beads on one of the margins and shaping the beads with a molding wheel.