US2953841A - Spray valves - Google Patents

Description

p 1960 G. E. BULLOCK 2,953,841

SPRAY VALVES Filed April 27, 1954 INVENTDR Err-:5 BBuLLncK A T1" URNEY United States Patent This invention relates to manually operated spray 34 generally constitutes a bell-crank, and has a loop 38 adapted to embrace the reduced diameter shank 17 of the valve pin 18 forward of the head 40' thereof. Slidably mounted upon the valve pin 18 forward of the lever arm 38 is a U-shaped member 42, the base 44 of which is apertured and swiveled upon the forward portion of-the valves used in conjunction with spraying equipment, and

more particularly to the construction thereof and the method of fabrication.

The valve of the present invention is of the general type disclosed in Bullock Patent No. 2,285,010, and relates to a construction wherein the use of expensive brass, bronze, or other castings is completely eliminated, and in which a lightweight rugged valve fabricated from steel parts integrally welded is provided. The invention further has to do with a sequence of operations whereby the tubular members forming the a valve may be securely welded, the necessary ports provided, and the parts formed to provide a convenient size for manual grasp and operation. t

The above and other novel features of the invention will appear more fuly hereinafter from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is expressly understood that the drawings are employed for purposes of illustration only and are not designed as a definition of the limits of the invention, reference being had for this purpose to the appended claims. Y

In the drawings, wherein like indicate like parts:

'Figure 1 is an elevational .viewtof the valve cated in accordance with'the invention; v

'Figure 2 is a transverse sectional view takensubstantially on the line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 shows an initial step in the fabrication of the body portion of the valve, including the welding circuit;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary view showing an initial contact between the parts before the welding operation is performed;

Figure 5 illustrates the subsequent step of drilling the port and forming the parts to provide a convenient hand valve construction; and

Figure 6 is a sectional view through the valve showing the operating parts.

In Figure 1, there is shown the valve casing 10, which is in the general form of a thimble and drawn from flat sheet metal. The thimble has a flare at one end as atlZ, a generally cylindrical body portion 14 and a reduced diameter end portion 16, through which the valve-operating stem 18 extends. Laterally secured to the body portion 10 is an inlet tube 20, the end 22 of which is electrically butt welded to the side wall of the thimble or body portion 10. The inlet tube is curved as at 24, and has a rearwardly extending portion 26 extending generally parallel with the axis of the body portion 10. The tip end 28 is adapted to receive a flexible tube generally employed to connect the valve to a pressure spray fluid containing tank.

Mounted on the tube slightly to the rear of the bend 24 is a lug 30, which is welded in place as at 32, such lug forming a pivotal fulcrum support for a manual control lever 34, which lever is generally of channel or U-section, and is pivoted to the lug 30 as at 36. The lever reference characters as fabriexposed valve pin 18 extending from the body 10. Such U-member is adapted to be rotated manually from the position shown in Figure 1, where its flanks 48 and 50 are sufficiently spaced to embrace the lever arm loop 38, to a position 90 therefrom, where the edges of such flanks engage the arm 38 to hold the valve open, such valve internally being similar to that shown in Patent No. 2,285,010, and being spring-seated.

In Figures 3 and 4, thereris shown the body portion 10 as fabricated from sheet stock drawn to the thimble shape shown, and the tubular member 20 from which the inlet conduit and handle are subsequently formed. The end 52 of the tubular member 20 is squared off and is caused to bear against the cylindrical wall 14 of the body means such as generally indicated by the guide block 56.

welding current.

Electrical connections for welding are made to the body portion 10 and the tubular member 20 as at 58 and 60, and such connections lead to a welding transformer 62 having a timer 64 for limiting the time of flow of the With the parts mounted in. the relation shown, the welding current is applied while pressure is exerted as at A, whereupon fusion takes place atthe contact between the tube 20 and the body portion 10. The pressure exerted in the direction of arrows A causes the tube 20 to follow up asthe metal is fused at the point of contact and the current flow is regulated as to intensityand time, so that the contacting transverse end of the tubular member 20 becomes fused around its entire circumference 66 and in its contact with the 'metal' of the body portion 10. The transverse end is fused during the operation to a saddle shape, the periphery of which fuses with the wall metal of the member 10.

The welding operation is performed while the body portion 10 is in the solid thimble form as shown in Figures 3 and 4; and after the welding operation is completed, and the wall of the tube 20 at its end is fused continuously around its entire circumference to the body portion 10, an elongated drill of a diameter slightly less than the internal bore of the tube 20 is inserted lengthwise through the tube 20, and the aperture 68 is then drilled in the body portion 10. After the aperture 68 is drilled, the drill is removed, and the tubular member 20 is curved as at 24 to form a substantially arc, whereupon the rearwardly extending portion 28 extends substantially parallel with the axis of the body portion 10. Thereafter, the remaining operations, including the removal of flash metal, to complete the integral body portion and inlet tube and handle described are performed, and the parts assembled, whereby the valve construction generally shown in Figure 1 results.

It will be appreciated that by butt welding the end of the tube 20 to the side wall of the body portion 10 without any aperture having been previously provided in the body portion 10, the strength of the parts is adequate during the welding, and any problem of alignment is completely eliminated, and that by drilling the hole to complete the passage for the tube 20 into the body portion 10 after the welding operation is completed, perfect alignment is attained.

The parts of the body portion 10 and the tubular part 20 are made of ordinary sheet steel and steel tubular 2,953,841 Ice Patented Sep 6 stock, of such characteristics in regard to carbon content as may be found desirable, and as will be well understood in the art. The parts upon completion may be polished and plated, or otherwise treated, so that the entire structure has good appearance aspects, is light, and has adequate strength. The necessity of employing high cost materials such as brass or bronze, as well as expensive casting processes heretofore employed, are thus eliminated.

The valve, as shown in Figure 6, comprises an end nipple 70 threaded in the flared end of the thimble 14, such nipple having a port 72 adapted to act as a valve seat. The valve stem 18 is tapered as at 74 at its forward end to cooperate with the seat formed by the port 72. The stem has a compression spring 76 arranged thereon and held between washers 78 and 80, the washer 78 bearing against the split ring retainer 82, while the washer 80 bears against a packing ring 84. It will be seen that the valve stem has a free axial movement, and that the lever arm, being slidable on the head 40, permits the valve stem to move fore and aft on its axis and allows the same to rotate, so that even wear on the tapered end and the port 72 results, promoting long life, with perfect seating.

While a single embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. As various changes in the construction and arrangement may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art, reference will be had to the appended claims for a definition of the limits of the invention.

A divisional application, Serial No. 657,424, filed May 6, 1957, is directed to the subject matter of the valve.

What is claimed is:

1. The method of making the body and inlet conduit assembly of a manual spray valve which comprises butt resistance welding the open squared end of an elongated straight ferrous metal inlet conduit to the imperforate cylindrical side wall of a ferrous metal body portion by electrical resistance welding, controlling the flow time of the welding current while forcing the conduit toward the body and during the upset and fusion of the contact metal to form a saddle like end fused to said body portion, thereafter drilling a hole through the body portion in alignment with said inlet conduit after welding by extending a drill through the conduit, and thereafter curving the welded end of said tube through an arc of whereby the free end of said tube extends substantially parallel with the axis of said body, portion along a line spaced from the axis of the body portion by substantially the radius of said arc.

2. The method of making the body and inlet conduit assembly of a manual spray valve which comprises drawing a thimble from sheet ferrous metal stock to form a body portion having a cylindrical wall, substantially closed at one end and flared at the other, butt resistance welding the open end of an elongated straight inlet ferrous metal tube to an intermediate portion of the cylindrical wall of said body, thereafter drilling a hole in said wall in alignment with said tube by extending a drill into said tube, thereafter forming said tube to provide a handle by bending the welded end of said tube through an arc of 90 to cause the free end to extend parallel with the axis of the thimble in the direction of the closed end of said thimble, and attaching a fulcrum lug to said conduit by welding at a point to the rear of said body portion, said lug extending part way toward the axis of said body portion and lying in the common plane of the thimble axis and the axis of the conduit free end.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,208,850 Mayer July 23, 1940 2,285,010 Bullock June 2, 1942 2,335,987 Young Dec. 7, 1943 2,425,645 Ryan Aug. 12, 1947 2,436,701 Sundholm Feb. 24, 1948 2,462,291 Sette Feb. 22, 1949 2,528,280 Lyon Oct. 31, 1950 2,710,443 Webb June 14, 1955 2,736,949 Kraemer Mar. 6, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 361,204 France 1906 48,712 Austria 1911 306,299 Germany 1918 832,632 France Sept. 29, 1938 767,557 Great Britain 1952 703,759 Great Britain 1954

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