Time delay adjustment mechanism for sprinkler system water flow detector

• US 8,607,645 B2
• Filed: 12/02/2011
• Issued: 12/17/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/02/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Laubach, William F., Borbath, Zoltan, Butalla, Fred M. III, Murphy, James M.
• Primary Examiner(s): THOMPSON, JEWEL VERGIE
• Application Number:
  US13/310,554
• Publication Number:
  US 20130139607A1
• Time in Patent Office: 746 Days
• Field of Search: 738/617.6, 340/606, 340/610, 137/554, 200/293
• US Class Current: 73/861.76
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 1/708 Measuring the time taken to traverse a fixed distance
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/8242 Electrical
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 74/188 including spur gear
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 74/18808 with rack

Abstract

A water flow detector has a spring driven mechanical timer responsive to the movement of a lever. The lever is connected to a paddle. The paddle is responsive to the flow of water in a pipe. The detector via the spring driven timer responds to the flow of water in the pipe after a predetermined delay.

Claims

1. An assembly forming part of a water flow detector, the assembly comprising:

a mounting plate;

a switch assembly carried by the mounting plate;

a lever rotatably coupled to said mounting plate,

a gear assembly, the gear assembly includes an axially movable shaft with a starting position and a spring activated timer, the shaft is released from the starting position by movement of the lever and arrives at a switch activating position in response to action of the timer; and

wherein the switch assembly changes state, at least in part, in response to movement of the shaft to the switch activating position.

2. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the spring activated timer comprises a rack.

3. The assembly of claim 2 wherein when the lever is in a first position, the rack is in an unengaged position and wherein when the lever is in a second position the rack is engaged for movement to a final position;

and

wherein when the rack has moved to a selected position the switch assembly changes state.

4. The assembly of claim 3 further comprising an activating spring.

5. The assembly of claim 4 wherein the shaft is freely movable by the spring, relative to the rack, a predetermined distance.

6. The assembly of claim 5 where the shaft carries a rack engaging surface.

7. The assembly of claim 6 where the rack engaging surface is carried on an adjustable member which establishes the predetermined distance.

8. The assembly of claim 7 where the predetermined distance substantially establishes a delay between when the lever moves from the first position and when the switch assembly changes state.

9. The assembly of claim 8 where the adjustable member includes a nut, with delay setting threads, axially movable on the shaft.

10. The assembly of claim 9 where the nut carries the delay setting threads internally oriented generally along the shaft, and external nut rotating threads, oriented circumferentially around the nut.

11. The assembly of claim 10 which includes a manually movable member having a circular set of gear teeth.

12. The assembly of claim 11 wherein when the manually movable member is rotated, the circular teeth engage the external nut rotating threads to move the nut axially.

13. The assembly of claim 12 wherein rotating the nut axially changes the predetermined distance.

14. The assembly of claim 12 where when the lever is in the first position the rack and the shaft exhibit a predetermined initial relationship relative to one another.

15. The assembly of claim 14 where adjusting the gap does not alter the predetermined initial relationship between the rack and the shaft.

16. A flow detector comprising:

a housing;

a flow indicating lever rotatably carried by the housing, biased to a no flow position;

an axially movable shaft, in part threaded, the shaft is slidably carried by the housing;

a nut threadably carried on the shaft;

a mechanical timer which interacts with at least a portion of the nut;

a switch assembly slidably activated by movement of the shaft; and

a spring coupled to the shaft to axially move the shaft from a no flow position, in response to the lever rotating from a no flow position to a flow position, and where the nut activates the timer, in response to the movement of the shaft, wherein the timer inhibits movement of the shaft for a delay interval, and subsequent thereto the switch assembly changes state.

17. A flow detector as in claim 16 wherein the timer incorporates a mechanical escapement which permits axial movement of the shaft in one direction and timed axial motion of the shaft in an opposite direction.

18. A flow detector as in claim 16 wherein an overall delay value can be adjusted by rotating the nut to provide a gap between the timer and the nut.

19. A flow detector as in claim 16 wherein the shaft and a portion of the timer have a repeating initial position, relative to one another, when the lever returns to the no flow indicating position.