Flood guard warning system, apparatus and process

• US 4,083,657 A
• Filed: 10/30/1975
• Issued: 04/11/1978
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/1975
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Doyle R. Misener
• Original Assignee: Doyle R. Misener
• Inventors: Misener, Doyle R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Freeh, William L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Look, Edward
• Application Number:
  US05/627,247
• Time in Patent Office: 894 Days
• Field of Search: 210/86, 210/104, 210/152, 210/170, 210/241, 137/392, 417/3-7, 417/12, 417/63, 73/304 R, 73/313, 73/328, 73/329, 415/118
• US Class Current: 417/4
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 41/06 Combinations of two or more pumps

Abstract

A plurality of horizontally and vertically spaced apart remote liquid level sensor assemblies free of upwardly directed surfaces operatively connect only under emergency conditions to the sump tank of a sewerage system through vertical housings connected to horizontally extending drain lines connected to a sump tank and reliably indicate such emergency conditions for timely corrective action and avoid flood damage.

Claims

1. A system of residences and sewerage systems therefor comprising:

a. A plurality of residences supported on a body of ground;

b. A ground level for each of such residences;

c. A vertically extending drain pipe for liquid wastes for each of said residences, with one, upper, end of said vertically extending drain pipe operatively connected to one of said residences;

d. A vertically extending sump tank at a location spaced away from at least one of said residences;

e. A pump assembly, and an inlet to said pump assembly located in said sump tank;

f. A horizontally extending drain collector pipe;

g. A plurality of vertically extending conduits each extending substantially to said ground level and operatively connected to said horizontally extending drain collector pipe and spaced away horizontally from said sump tank;

h. A horizontally extending sewer line;

i. A sensor and indicating assembly, and

wherein;

j. Each of said residences comprises a living area at a vertical height below the level of said ground level and below the height of said horizontally extending said sewer line;

k. Each of said vertically extending drain pipes being horizontally spaced apart from other vertically extending drain pipes and extending downwardly to and operative connecting to said horizontally extending drain collector pipe;

l. All portions of said horizontally extending drain collector pipe slope downwardly toward said sump tank and are operatively connected to said sump tank;

m. Each of said vertically extending conduits has a lower end opening to and connecting to said horizontally extending drain collecting pipe at an intersection therebetween, said system including a plurality of such intersections, said vertically extending conduits being operatively connected to said sump tank through said horizontally extending drain collector pipe;

n. Said pump assembly has an outlet operatively connected to said sewer line, a power source operatively connected to said pump assembly; and

,

o. Said sensor and indicating assembly comprises, in operative combination,

(i) a plurality of liquid level sensing means;

(ii) a vertically extending dimensionally stable sensor support means for each of said liquid level sensing means located in one of said vertically extending conduits, each of said liquid level sensing means attached to the bottom of one of said sensor support means and extending downward therefrom;

(iii) a plurality of sensor support positioning means each firmly supported in the ground and an attaching means on each of said sensor support means near its upper end attached to one of said sensor support positioning means and a source of electrical voltage;

(iv) each of said liquid level sensing means firmly located above an intersection of a vertically extending conduit and said downwardly sloped horizontally extending drain collector pipe and in said vertically extending conduit, each of said liquid level sensing means comprising a horizontally and narrowly spaced apart pair of vertically extending electrical conductors having different electrical polarity and the same distance between members of pairs of said vertically extending electrical conductors on all of said liquid level sensing means;

(v) said liquid level sensing means being located at different vertical levels and each of said liquid level sensing means being horizontally spaced away from said sump tank and below the height of the top of said sump tank;

(vi) a plurality of indicating means in a support therefor and an electrical conductor between each of said liquid level sensing means and one of said plurality of indicating means, each of said indicating means being indicative of liquid level at said one of said liquid level sensing means;

(vii) a plurality of electrical circuits each comprising a relay coil and one of said sensor assemblies in series across a low voltage source and a normally open relay switch electromagnetically actuated by said relay coil, with the same voltage applied across each of the pairs of conductors forming said liquid level sensing means at the bottom of each of said sensor support positioning means, said normally open relay switch being in series with a second, higher, voltage source and one of said indicating means;

(viii) said low voltage source actuating each said relay and each said indicating means being connected to a power source which is separate from the power source connected to said pump assembly; and

,

(ix) said support for said indicator means being remote from said sump tank and from one of said residences.

2. A system as in claim 1 where in said liquid level sensing means is free of upwardly directed surfaces and said sensing means is indicative of level of electrically conductive liquid.

3. A system as in claim 2 wherein said horizontally extending drain collector pipe includes a plurality of such intersections between said drain collector pipes and said vertically extending conduits.

4. A system as in claim 2 including a plurality of such horizontally extending drain collector pipes.

5. System as in claim 4 including also, for each relay in said circuit, a second indicating means remote from said first indicating means and in electrical series with said second voltage source and said switch.

6. Process of monitoring a system of a plurality of residential structures and sewerage system therefor wherein liquid waste from each of said structures flows vertically through a vertical drain line, thence to a horizontally extending drain collector line and thence to a sump tank and is normally elevated from said sump tank by a pump assembly to a sewer drain line above the level of said residence floor and the improvement which comprises the steps of:

A. sensing liquid levels at different vertical levels in each of a plurality of horizontally and vertically spaced apart points outside of said sump tank;

B. providing indication of the results of all of said plurality of sensing steps at a point remote from said sump tank; and

,

C. adding additional pumping capacity to empty said sump in response to indication of elevated liquid level from said points outside of said sump.

7. Process as in claim 6 comprising the added steps of applying unidirectional low voltage to each of said points for liquid level sensing through a first circuit therefor and actuating one of said first circuits in response to presence of conductive liquid at one of said points of liquid level sensing and applying a high voltage alternatively to one of a plurality of signalling means at a first location and to a corresponding one of a corresponding plurality of signalling means at a second location spaced apart from said first location whereby the system is under constant surveillance.