1. home and garden

Oct. 26, 1937.
y.J.'D_. WALKERl '
Y
ROTARY
DISTRIBUTOR
Filed oct. 15, _1934
y
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@más
2,097,111
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2 sheets-sheet 1
Oct. 26, 1937.
`
J. D. WALKER `
` 2,097,111
ROTARY’ DISTRIBUTOR -
Filed Oct. l5, 1934
2 Sheets-Sheet 2
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Patented Oct. 26, 1937, l
lPai-‘ENT jor-Eier.
u rra -sTA'rEs
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no'rAniî’ïivs'lrïmu'ron'
.lamœv Donald Walker, Aurora, Ill., assignor, by
mesne assignments, to ‘The> American Well '
Works, Aurora, lll., a'corporation o! Illinois> '
Application october 15, 193,4, semi No; 748,285
is on.' (ci. 21o-Ln
This invention relates to rotary distributors capable of distributing liquor uniformly thereoverl
without .requiring appurtenant dosing tanks or
and more particularly to rotary distributors em
ployed for spreading liquor uniformly over a cir
cular trickling filter b_ed. .
pumps.v Further,v the present invention provides
a distributor which can take care of any hows,
that come to the plant, the operation of the dis
In the Adevelopment of sewage disposal plants,
tributor -being vindependent of' the head vand
volume- at the distributor, and therefore. vpro
one type of disposal system comprises the dis
tributing of sewage in a substantially uniform
sheet over the area of aïñlter bed. The sewage,
as it trickles through the interstices in the filter
10 medium, is acted upon by biological life or bac
ducing a 'distributor which may operate on a
very minimum‘head or ñow.
` In this connection; the present distributor is
so designed that after it` has once started rotat
teria which form a surface or nlm over the in-`
dividual ñlter particles, and the »sewage emerges
ing, 'the drive unit has only to overcome the -frifc- '
from the bottom of the ñlter bed ln'astabilized _tion losses in the liberally designed .ball bear
ing upon which the distributor is mounted-> with
and oxidized condition.
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15 . Distributors of the type now in use with which ` - respect to its central supporting Mmember. and 15»
I am familiar are almost entirely of the reac
these friction losses .require relatively little power
tion type,l that is, the reaction of the liquory
consumption.
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Another object- of the present invention is to
. ‘emerging’from orifices or jets in the distributor
arms produces rotation of‘the -distributor.. This -
provide distributor arms lwhich 'are “capable of ,
distributing the sewage over the nlter bed in a
20 necessarily requires. a dosing tank to store up
sufficient liquor so that When'it is introduced „ uniform sheet over- the entire area of the stone
into the distributor, it will, upon emergence from
the jets or orifices, produce a sufñcient reac
tion impulse to eiîect rotation of the distributor.
25 'Ifhe operation of such a distributor isA inter
or other ñlter medium so that most efñcient use
of the stone from the surface on down is made.
In order to overcome the defects-which occur
`in the reaction type of distributor arms, I have 25
provided, in the, present invention, arms made of .
mittent, and is dependent upon the head and
volume of the liquor at the distributor. Further,
steel tubing'with widenon-clogging slots milled
appurtenant dosing tanks and pumps are neces
in the bottom> through which the sewage dis
charges. Directly' below these >slots I provide a
sary for its operation, and it is inherentlyun»
splash plate which spreads the discharge from
30 satisfactory in thatit may concentrate flow of
the slots into a wide thin nlm which drops onto
the ñlter bed.v These illms are overlapping inl
the area covered by the distributor arms' so that
tate the distributor arm,
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A further objection to the useof such types of . complete and uniform. distribution is provided.
distributors arises from the fact that the areal It is apparent that by the provision'of the holes
of the jet or o_riñce in the distributor larm must at the bottom of the distributor arms the arms
are self-draining and self-ñushing'. l"
be kept -quite small to produce a suilicientreac.
sewage overonly a restricted portion of the bed
if the reaction discharge is not suñicient to ro
-tion impulse,l and consequently clogging and
Another feature ofthe present invention is the
provision of afree wheeling drive between the
stoppage-of now occurs _due to solid particles ln
'40 the sewage. Further, these jets or orifices must
be directed laterally outwardly of the ârm, and
consequently are not self-draining, and are not
self-flushing.
The present invention‘pro'vides -a positively
. ~-rotated distributor, driven by a fractional horse
speed »reducing gearing and the distributor, ' 40
whereby possible interruptions of power will pre
_vent the reverse rotation of the distributor from
- imposing any strains upon the gearing.
, power motor having a built-in reduction gear to y
produce a- slow-speed uniform rotation of the
By the use offsplashfplates fordistribution, it -
advantage ~may be taken of " the filter media.'
distributor arms. The gearing is provided with
a dog tooth clutching member, to prevent damage
to the reduction gearing if reverse rotation ofthe
which .comprises ¿relatively expensive _selected
'distributor should inadvertently occur due to
down tothe bottom of the ñlter bed.- This pro-`
duces two distinct advantages, namely, a better
Aeffluent for a given bed depth, andthe use_'of a
lesser bed depth than is required in the case where sewage is applied in a' non-uniform sheet.
Winder-other force when the motor is stopped.
A primary object of the present invention __is
to provide a distributor which. is uniformly ro
»tate'd over the circular ñlter bed, and which is
,
is possible to Spread the sewage uniformly over 45`
the entire areaI oitlfle'bed.v Inthis manner, full
stone of substantially- uniform size, so that 'the
ñltenmedium is affected from the upper surface tol
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2,097,111
Also, by the use of this -type of distributor, with
uniform distribution, there is less “sewage ñy”
breeding, since the entire surface of the iilter bed
is kept wetted.
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A further advantage provided by the present
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In the drawings:
in Figure 1;
the sewage liquor before it reaches the bottom of
' the bed.
I have found that because of the relatively
large mass and weight of rotary distributors of
this type, whereby the ordinary types of distrib
utors have' relative high static and kinetic in
ertias, considerable difliculty has been experienced
in providing a driving mechanism, of economical
design and requiring only a small operating power
~ supply, that will be eiïective to overcome the
initial static inertia of the distributor when the
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Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a rotary
distributor mounted in‘position over a tricklíng 5
vided by sealing means interposed between the
feed pipe and the supporting collar for the dis
tributor at the. lower portion of the distributor
housing, whereby _no sewage can leak from` the
feed pipe directly downwardly past the support
porting column for the distributor, and conse
> quently not efficiently oxidizing and stabilizing
,
constructionand. operation of a preferred form
filter bed;
' centrated dosing of sewage adjacent the sup
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of the invention.
invention is the provision of means for prevent
ing short circuiting of the filter bed. 'This is pro
ing column into the filter bed, producing a con
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Figure 2 is a plan view of the distributor shown
Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view taken cen
trally through the distributor and `its supporting
column;
Figure 4 is an enlarged vertical sectional view
of the seal provided between the overñow flange
and the distributor manifold well;
Figure 5 is a sectional view through one of the
distributor arms, taken substantially on the line
5_5 of Figure 3; `and
Figure 6 is a diagrammatic view, partly in
section, of a modiñed type of driving means.
Referring 'now in detail `to the drawings, in 20
Figure 1 I have shown aV filter'bed comprising the
tank indicated at 6, provided with arbase ‘I having
a central. supporting column sformed therewith.
The bed 6 is preferably constructed of reinforced
concrete or the like. Disposed within the bed 6, ‘-'which is cylindrical in shape, I provide a illter
bed of substantially uniform height, indicated
motor is started. Also, due to the weight of the ' generally by the reference numeral 9, and com
distributor, there is a tendency, when the motor -posed of relatively hard rocks, which rocks are of
'il stopped, for the distributor to continue its a size such that, in a preferred embodiment'- of
rotary movement, resulting in overstressing and
possible breakdown ofithe driving connections
between the rotatable drum of the distributor
and the driving motor, with consequent whipping
of the distributor arms which may result in entire
disablement ofthe gears or shafting.
In order `to overcome these disadvantages, I
have devised a driving structure wherein the rate
of acceleration of the distributor may be con
trolled in order to increase the time interval be
fore predetermined speed is reached so that the
u c:
the invention, they pass a two-inch screen and are
retained upon a one-finch screen. The rock is
carefully selected for hardness, and the indi»
vidual particles- thereof, >when piled into the bed
5, provide a plurality of interstices therebetween 35
through which the sewage liquor trickles as it is
discharged by the rotary distributor.
The base of the distributor `is mounted upon
.the supporting column 8, and comprises, pref
erably, a cast iron anchorage T I0 provided with '10
a clean-out ñange and also provided with a. drain
Amaximum torque may be provided with minimum ‘ plug, I2. The T I0 receives sewage .from the
stress on the structure. /In the same manner, sewage inlet pipe I3, which is connected thereto
the rate of deceleration is decreased to lengthen
the time interval for stopping rotation, preventing
undue stress on the driving connection. By this
means I am able to provide a vrelatively small
initial starting torque upon the distributor with
out overstressing the driving means, and by
gradually bringing the distributor up to a pre
determined-speed by means of .a variable ratio
drive, no overstressing of the driving mechanism
is produced. This is of distinct advantage in
enabling starting, and stopping of the distributor
without overstressing or disablement of the shaft
ing-and driving means and without any tendency
for the motor to stall. In addition, by reason of
through the reducer I 4, the sewage being pumped
through the pipe I3 into the T I0,_and thence into
the distributor.
The distributor itself comprises a distributor
manifold, shown in Figure 3 at I5, upon which is
mounted the revolving drum I6 by means of the
cap bolts I1 threaded into the upper flange of 50
the manifold I5. The drum I6, at its upper end,
supports the drive head I8 of >the distributor,
which drive head is aligned coaxia-.lly with the
drum IB.
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The manifold I5 is provided with oppositely
extending outlet ports indicated at I9, to which
are secured the distributor arms 20, the arms 20
this arrangement, I am able to employ driving being threaded into an annular ñange plate 22
means having a relatively small power supply, -whichfis bolted, by bolts 2_3, to the flange at the
whereby. aîn economically operating rotary dis outlet ports I9 of the manifold I5.
tributar may be produced at Small cost in ac
Extending upwardly from the vertically ex
cordance with the teachings of ‘thisl invention! tending ñange 24 of the T I0 is a supporting spool
Another feature of the present invention` is the or column 25, which is secured to the flange 24
-provision ofa distributor of this .type which is by means of the threaded flange plate 26 and the
relatively ,compact in design, and is pleasing in bolts 21. This spool or annular collar 25 may be 65
appearance, while yet providing the requisite of any desired vertical extent, depending upon
strength and rigidity 'for a structure of. this type. the depth of the filter bed 9, and the height at,`
In this connection, the power supplymeans for-> which the distributor is to be supported above the
the _drive motor is led through the filter bed and upper surface of the bed.V At its upper end, the
supporting column within Aa submarine cable.
spool 25 is provided with a threaded collar 28,4
Other objects and advantages of the present which is adapted to have abutting engagement 70
invention will appear more fullyfrom the follow- . with a second threaded collar 29, the collars being
ving detailed description', which, taken in con-»' secured together by bolts 39. Threaded into the
junction with the'accompanying drawings, will collar '29 is a supporting column32, which extends
disclose to those skilled in the art the particular -upwardly within the revolving drum I6, and at u ’
its upper end is threaded into an annular collar
tion of power and inadvertent reversal of direc- `
-tion of vrotation of the drum I8.
Referring now in detail to the distributor arms,
33, the collar 33 being bolted to a bearing housing
' 34 mounted over the upper en_d of the column 32.
'I'he bearing housing 34 is provided with a flange
5 portion »35 which extends within an annular
these 4arms extend radially outwardly of the>
flange 36 carried by the base 31 of the motor hous--
vals, with wide non-clogging slots 68 milled in
ing I8. Suitable packing or sealing means 38
‘is provided therebetween to prevent passage of
foreign matter or grit into the bearing housing
10 past the flange 35 and ñange 36. The base 31
the motor housing is bolted, by bolts 39, to an
inwardly‘extending iìange 40 disposed at the up
per end of the revolving drum I6;
the bottom of the arms, as shown in detail in
Figure 5. These slots or 4openings 60 are adapt- ,
ed to be" covered, if desired, by cover platesv 62
having slots 63 therein for sliding movement with 10
respect to a boltmemberi64 tapped into the pipe
‘20. Thus, by loosening the bolt member 64, the
cover plate 62 may be slid over the opening 68 to
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.The bearing housing 34 is provided with a cen
close 'the same.
15'tral stud portion 42, which extends upwardly
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o
45 contained within the enclosed motor hous
It will be noted that the openings 60, as shown l5
in Figure 1, are spaced unequally from the mani-_
-fold I5 in each of the pipes 20. This is for the
purpose of providing uniform distribution of the
liquor as itlleaves the splilSh `plate 65 and drops
ing I8.
onto the surface of the filter bedv s.
therefrom and forms a support upon which the
bracket 43 of the motor 44 is mounted.
The
motor 44 is provided with speed reducing gearing
20
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manifold> I5, and are provided, at spaced inter- 5.
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The stud portion 42 of the bearing housing 34
Extending valong the entire length of each of
extends through a. suitable opening formed in the
the arms 20 is a series of splash plates, indicated
base flange 31 of the housing I8, and suitable oil
lsealing means 46 is provided therebetween for
at
extending
65, eachñange
of which
or lip
isprovided
portion 66with
having
a normally
a cush
ioning member 61 extending along the defining 25
-edge thereof, the member 61 being formed of rub
ber or the like. The plate 65 is secured to the pipe
I 25 preventing entry of foreign matter along the sur
face of the stud 42.
o
' A suitable ball bearing member, indicated at
41, is interposed between the bearing housing 34 » or distributor arm 28 by means of a bolt 68, whichextends through a spacing bushing v69 and is
30 motor housing I8. This bearing 41 supports the tapped into the pipe-20. The bolt 68 enters the 30 `
weight of the distributor upon the shoulder of pipe at a slight angle, so that the splash plate 65
the bearing housing 34, and thus upon the column extends outwardly of the opening 60 at a slightly
32 and spool 25, and thus upon the T I0 and sup
downwardly inclined angle with respect to the
porting eolumn 8. The .bearing 41 is adapted to horizontal," 'so that liquor discharged through the
n and a shoulder 48 formed on the base 31 of the
I 35 run in oil, there being oil disposedV within the '_ opening 68" and spreading into a film> over the 35
substantially cup-shaped bearing housingr 34,' splash plate 6_5 will be discharged from vthe plate
which oil is prevented from leaking out by means^
of the sealing means 38 and 46. This sealing
means comprises vpacking or the like disposed in
40 wedge-shaped annular grooves adjacent the leak
- age surfaces, and, due to the relatively- slow ro
tation of the drum I6 with respect to the column
65 over the ylower end thereof.
diametrically opposed sides thereof 'which are
spaced 90° from the diametrically ‘opposed por- 40
tion I9 of the manifold I5,-is provided with nodes
or> >supporting bosses indicated at 10, which are
32, substantially no entrance of foreign _matter
adapted tol provide supports for'plate members
into the bearing housing occurs. '
-45
1I, which plate members_ erve to support -fsuit- ì
Referring now to the speed-reduction gearing
45, this gearingr includes a vertically extending
able guy rods or the'like fo
ner, _and these plates are free to rotate with’re
ion has engagement with an internalring gear
50 53 formed'in the upper end of the driving head
I8. A suitable cover plate 64 encloses the ringv
gear 63 and the upper endvof the-drive head and
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spect to the'supporting bosses 10, in order to pro'-- -
vide for adjustment of the truss structure. Simi- 50
larly, at the lower end of the revolving drum I6
the stud portion 42 of thebearing housing 34,
and that its lower end is passed through the cable
stuñing box |86, and downwardly through the
,
and extending outwardly from the manifold I5,
are a pair of supporting members orstruts "12,
which form-bearings for the guy members 13.se--
,
It will be noted that the-power supply for the
55 motor 44 is’ conducted through the submarine
cable I65 upwardly through acentral. opening in
ing the truss struc- 45
ture which supports the arms 20. The guy rods
aresecured to'the plates >1I in any desired _man
shaft 50, upon- which is mounted, for’free rota-4
tion with respect thereto, a pinion 52,*'which pin
housing I8.
I
The drive head and motor housing ‘I8. upon .
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cured to and aligning the pipe 26 radially of the , 55 _
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manifold
I5.
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It is thus apparent that the two diametrically
>‘opposed distributing arms are bolted to the mani
fold and are yrigidly trussed in bothplanes, that
is, the vertical and horizontal planes, by adjust- 6o
60 bed 9 to a suitablesource of power.
The shaft 50 also has keyed thereto a driving ‘ able guy rods. , Thedistributor can be furnished>
clutch member- 55', which has dog tooth engage
either with the conventional straight guy rods or
ment,’as shown at 56, with‘ the pinion 52, whereby .with a curved top cord.A The latter is not only’
rotation in one direction of the shaft 56 -will cor
65 respondingly rotate the clutch 56, and conse
> pleasing to the eye, but also materially cuts
.
. down the vertical‘extent ofthe distributor itself. 05
î
quently will rotate the pinion 52>and the ring In this connection, it is to be noted that thev head
>gear 53. However, rotation of the ring gear 53 ~I8 for the rotating drum is a semi-steel casting,
in an opposite directionwlll result in slippage y and is amply ribbed to caryv all the loads trans
Vbetween- the. clutch >5,6 _' and the _'pinion 52,'and ' >mitted .by the guy rods.
.
70 consequently will produce no reverse rotation
In order to take care of any possible radial 70 f
u'pon the shaft so, which wou1d be damaging mf loads at the base of the distributor, I preferably
case worm gearing was employed in the speed
provide four anti-friction roller bearings, indi
reduction >gearing 45. 'I‘his free wheelingclutch
cated at 86, spaced about and engaging the outer- .
"
zenga'gement or> drive provides ~for elimination of
peripheral surface of the annular collar i 29.'_>
l.
' 15 ystrains upon' the gearing.: due to possible interrup
' 'I'hese roller bearings 80 are carried upon suitable '7|
.f f
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2,097, 1 1 1
spindles 82, which spindles are carried by the driving structure which is of such design as to
4
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manifold, and are adjustable as to their center
and radius of revolution. 'I'his adjustment may
be provided by means of the adjusting screws
83, which shift the supporting brackets 04 and
the spindles 02 laterally with respect to the collar
29.
‘
It is desirable to provide for» exact dynamic bal
ance of the distributor, and for this purpose ad
10 justable weighting of the distributor arms is pro
vided for.
prevent disablement or breakdown of the driving
means during initial starting 'of the distributor/or
upon stopping thereof. It is to be noted that
because of the extremely long lever arm formed
by each of the distributor arms, an extremely
high leverage can be exerted upon the driving
connections by a force exerted at the outer ends
of the arms.
For this reason it is necessary to
provide relative slippage between the drum and
the driving connections to accommodate any
In addition, in order to prevent reverse rota
such stresses. 'I‘he driving head ||5 of this em
tion of the distributor when the power is cut off, 1 bodiment corresponds generally to the drive head
I provide, adjacent the outer end of each of-the |8 of Figure 3, and is secured in` position upon the
15 arms 20, anchor rods -indicated at v81, which -top of the column 32 in a manner similar to that 15
anchor rods are rotatable in a vertical plane described in connection with Figure 3. -Extend
about pivots 88 carried by the clamping members ing centrallyl upwardly within the head' ||5 is
89 secured to the arms 20. The arms 81, when a bearing member or. stud ||6 corresponding to .
the distributor attempts to rotate ina direction the member 42 of Figure 3, which is preferably
20 opposite to that shown by the arrow in Figure 2, axially recessed to receive a shaft |I1 carried 20
dig into the ñlter media in the bed 6, and pre
by the driving means. Mounted at the upper end
vent this reverse rotation of the distributor. of the drum ||5 is a suitable. closure plate ||8
This is especially advantageous if the distributor having a central opening extending about any
is placed in position where it is'subjected to gusts desired type of enclosedmotor ||9 mounted ver
25 of wind or the like, which wouldtend to impose tically within the drive head and extending out 25
severe stresses upon the shaft 50, pinion 52 and. wardly of the plate ||8 in order to provide for
durch 55.
A
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Considering now the operation of the distribu
tor and the'- circulation of sewage in the system,
30 thelsewage enters the anchorage T I0, and passes
upwardly through the spool 25 and into the
lower end of the supporting column 32. From
the column 32, the sewage emerges into the ro
tating drum I6 and manifold I5 through slots or
openings 90 formed in the column 32. Imme
diately below the slots 90 and extending about
the column 32 is an. inverted frusto-conical over
flow. flange, indicated in detail in Figure 4 by the>
lreference numeral 92. The flange is provided
with a recessed portion _adapted to receive a seal
ing material 93 for sealing engagement with the
cooling thereof.
.
The motor I|9 is connected in any suitable
manner with the unit |20 of a heliocentric re
duction drive indicated generally at |22.
This 30
drive may be of any well known type now on the
market. If desired, any suit/able type of reduc
tion gearing maybe employed in this connection.
The reduction gearing |22 terminates in a drum
|24 which is rotated at a constant speed through
the reduction drive from the motor H9.` This
Adrum-has its outer lateral surface ñnished as 'a
brake surface, and is adapted to be engaged
Aby braking surfaces formed upon twò semi-cir
cular brake shoes |25 and |26 which are disposed
in engagement with the drum |24 and are pro
'outer peripheral surface of the column 32, and vided with integrally formed web portions |21
is adjusted vertically by means of the slot 94
through which the adjusting bolt 95 extends,
45 the bolt 95 being tapped into the column 32. '
At its outer end, the flange'92 is provided with a
engaging suitable thrust means |28 carried by the ,
drum ||5 for rotating the drum by means o`f the
,rotary driving force transmitted to the shoes |25
and |26 by the rotatable drum |24. Adjustable
depending tongue portion 96, which tongue por
tensioning means, comprising bolt members |30
ticn is adapted toI extend yinto an annular groove and nuts |32, with compression springs |33, are
91 formed in a collar 98 fitted over the cylindrical provided for- coupling the brake shoes together,
member 9S which is threaded, at its lower end,
into the base of the manifold I5 to deñne the
manifold chamber orwell |00.
The annular groove 911s adaptedl to be partial,
ly ñlled with mercury. or the like, indicated'at
55 |02, into which the depending tongue 96 extends.
It is thus apparent that liquor passing out
through the openings 90 inthe column 32, and
spilling over the flange 92 into the annular cham
ber |05 in the manifold I5, will, at no time, be
capable of passing within the annular collar 9,9,
and thence downwardly past the outer surface of
the spool 25 into the filter bed. The mercury
seal |02 effectively prevents any sewage liquor,
regardless of the vertical extent to which it may
rise within the well |00, from passing into the
_ interior of the member 99.
This seal therefore
prevents short circuiting of the ñlter bed, and
serves to force all liquor spilling into the well |00
to be distributed through the arms 20. The col
70 umn 32 may be provided with additional openings
below its upper end, as a precaution against any
sewage liquor passing through stud 42 into the
motor housing.
,
.
Referring now in detail to Figure 6, I have
disclosed in thisembodiment of my invention a
and may be adjustable in any predetermined
manner to vary the frictional engagement of the
shoes |26 and |26 with the drum |24.
Current for the motor I I3 is led up through any
suitable means, such as the cable |05 extending
through a ribbed-out portion of the bearing ||6 55
4and connected to a pair of contact rings |34 and _
|35 mounted in insulated relationship upon the
outer end Íof the bearing |I6. Contact rings |34
and |35 are adapted to be engaged by suitable
contact brush collectors |36 and |31 which en
gage the contact rings |34 and ~|35 and which in
turn are connected through suitable conductors
which lead upwardly through the drum |24 and
associated drive assembly to the motor I I9.v
It is to be noted in this embodiment of the in 65
vention that upon initial actuation of the motor
||9 the'drum |24 is adapted to be driven at a
predetermined constant speed determined by the
reduction in drive through the unit |22. Due
to the large static resistance of the rotary dis
tributar, the shoes |25 and |26 will have an ap
preciable amount of slippage with respect to the
rotating drum |24 during initial actuation of the motor. 'I'he thrust of these shoes upon the driv
ing means |28 will slowly start to rotate the drum
2,697,111
||5 and, as the static inertia of the distributor
is reduced, the shoes |25 and |26 will continue
to apply an increasing rotary force to the drum
until the drum or drive head ||5 is rotating at
the speed of the drumV |24. At this time the shoes
lock _with the drum |24, and the distributor is
then rotated at a constant speed determined by
5.
spaced central supports for said truss structure,
tension members extending» from said brackets
to said arms and from said brackets to the upper
endsof certain of said truss struts to brace said
arms against lateral whipping during rotation
of said drum, and strut members extending out
wardly normal to said arms at the base of said
the reduction in drive between the motor I|9 1 drum and providing lateral truss supports for
and the drum |24. Thus there is no tendency
5. In a rotary distributor of the class de 10
for distortion, overstressing _or disablement of
any of the driving mechanism as the initial static _scribed having a driving _head and a depending
revolving drum, a manifold at the lower end of
load of the distributor is imposed upon'the driv
said'arms.--
ing means. Further, when the motor is stopped,
the slippage between the shoesi25-l26 and the
15 drum |24 will. allow the distributor to continue
in its rotation until this frictional resistance
brings it to stationary position. 'I'his prevents
any undue stresses being imposed upon the driv
ing means during stopping of the distributor.
20
It is apparent that any other suitable means
may be employed in place of the friction drum and
shoes shown in this embodiment of the invention.
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said drum, outwardly extending distributor arms '
carried by said manifold, supporting studs on said
driving head, strut members extending laterally 15
outwardly _of said manifold intermediate said ,
arms, strut members extending vertically up-f
wardly at spacedintervals along said arms, and a
truss structure supported on said studs and strut
members for supporting said arms in both vertical
and horizontal planes, said structure providing
.20„
a curved top chord having a maximum height less
By adjusting the bolts |32, any desired pressure >than the spacing between said vertically extending
of the shoes upon the drum may be provided, and
25 the acceleration rate will thereby be increased
6. Means for spreading liquor discharged from 25
or decreased. Thus the time interval of accelera . spaced openings formed in they bottom of a tubular
tion is lengthened to prevent overstressing of the distributor arm comprising a substantially planar
driving connections due to the linitial static re- - plate member having an angularly extending
strut
members.
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.
,
flange, cushioning means along the defining edge
. sistance or inertia of the- distributor. Thev driv
30 ing ratio is thus automatically varied in accord
of said iiange, and securing means supporting said'
ance -with the inertial resistance of the dis-v plate and threading into said tubular member,
' said securing means mounting said plate in a.
tributor.
Having described my invention in accordance
with the patent st-atutes, what I claim as new an
desire to secure by Letters Patent is:
"
1. In combination, a filter bed, a sewage inlet
slightly inclined plane extending downwardly
away from said ñange, said cushioning means en
gaging the . outer periphery of _said tubular 35
pipe 4extending into said bed, a vertically extend
ing supporting pipe, 'a bearing at the upper'end
member.
7. In a rotary distributor of the class described,
a »pair of oppositely extending distributor arms,
of said pipe, a rotary .distributor supported on
.clamp means mounted on said arms adjacent the
said bearing, electrical _driving means supported .
outer endsthereof, horizontal pivots carried by
said clamp means, and anchor bars supported at
‘_one end by said pivots «and freely swingable in a
on said bearing, non-reversible gearing between
saidl driving means and said distributor, clutch
means for driving said distributor in one direc
tion and providing for free rotation of said dis
vertical planel thereabout.
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8. 'I'he combination with a filter bed having a
tributor in the opposite direction, and submarine
cable means extending through said bed and sup
porting pipe to said driving means for 'supplying
electrical current to said driving means.
2. In a rotary distributor of the class described
rotary’distributor mounted centrally thereof and
provided with oppositely extending arms, of
clamp means adjacent the extremities of each
of said arms, pivots on said‘clamp means extend
for spreading liquor over a filter bed, a revolving
„carried by said pivots and vertically swingable
drum, distributor arms, extending radially there
from over said bed, means extending centrally of
said bed for supporting said drum,'said supporting
~ means serving to conduct ‘unfiltered liquor to said
55 drum, electric driving means carried by said sup
porting means for rotating said drum, and sub
marine cable means extending through said bed
and supporting means to said driving means for
ingv rearwardly of said arms, and anchor bars
into and out of engagement with said bed.
9. In combination, a rotary distributor, a. cen
tral supporting'colurnn therefor, motor means l
ñxed on saidv column, and driving means mounted
for driving reaction between' said motor means
and said distributor including a frictionally oper
ated coupling between said driving means and
said distributor for lengthening the time interval
of acceleration and deceleration of said distribu
supplying electrical current thereto.
f"
tor upon initial ¿starting and stopping of said
3. In combination, a rotary distributor, a cen
tral supporting column therefor, oil-sealed bear- .
motor.
ing means therebetween, a motor mounted'on said ‘ .
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1,0. In combination, a rotary distributor, a
central supporting column therefor, and driving
means disposed for driving reaction between said
column, driving means between said motor and
distributor, and cable means extending upwardly
through said column and bearing means to`said ’ column and said distributor for driving said dis
tributor and including means automatically vary
motor for supplying electric current thereto.
4. In a rotary distributor of the class described,_ ing the driving ratio in accordance with the in
a revolving drum, a cylindrical'driving head sup
ported thereon, distributor arms extending radial
ly outwardly from the lower end of said drum,
vertically extending truss struts at spaced inter
vals on said arms, a truss structure for -support
ing said arms, studs projecting outwardly on op
ertial resistance of said distributor.
`
11. In combination, a rotory distributor, a
central lsupporting column therefor, and driving
means mountedon said‘column fordriving said
distributor and including means automatically
varying the relative rate of rotation o'f the dis
posite sides of said driving head, truss brackets ` tributor with respect to the speed of .said driving
pivotally> supported on said studs and forming means.
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i
is'
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2,097,111
12. In combination, a rotary distributor having
a central rotatable drum, a central supporting
column withinsaid drum, and driving means on
said column including a motor and friction clutch
coupling means between said- motor and said
drum providing for overrunning movement of said
driving means relative to said distributor during
acceleration and for overrunning movement of
said distributor relative to said drive means dur
10 ing deceleration.
~
13. In combination, a rotary distributor having
a revolving drum and a pair of oppositeiy extend
ing arms, a central stationary feed pipe forming a
support therefor and having outlet means inter
15 mediate its ends for supplying liquor to said arms,
drivev means between the distributor and said feed
pipe at the upper end thereof including friction
controlled coupling meansfcrlengthening the time
interval of acceleration and deceleration of said
20 distributor upon initial starting and stopping of
rotation of said distributor, and motor means
carried by said feed pipe and .sealed from the in
terior thereof for actuating said driving means.
14. In combination, a rotary distributor, a
radially extending arms, a central supporting
column therefor having bearing means at its up
per en_d providing for rotation of said distributor
on said column, -and power operated driving`
means including agear reduction means _inter
posed between said distributor and the upper end
of said column for rotating said distributor- in
one direction, said means providing for free move
ment of said distributor in the reverse direction,
said central column having a feed connection and 10
outlet means serving to supply liquor to the arms
-of said distributor.4
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16. In combination, a rotary distributor having
laterally extending` distributing arms and a.
central drum portion, acentral feed pipe extend- . 15 «.
ing axially of said drum for supplying liquor
through said drum to saidarms, said pipe having
bearing means at the upper end thereoi’support
ing the weight of ysaid distributor, a bearing sur
face about the lower end of _said feed pipe, cir 20
cumferentially spaced bearing means carried by
said drum, means for adjusting said latter bear
ings with respect to said surface for maintaining
axial alignment between said drum and feed pipe,
central ' supporting column therefor, driving and drive means reacting between; said drum and
means between said column and said distributor _feed pipe -and including friction operatingv cou
for rotating said distributor in one direction, pling means for-accelerating rotation of saidv dis
means in said driving means for accommodating tributor in one direction in accordance with the
relative movement of said distributor in the op» inertial resistance of said distributor, said drive
30 posite direction, and motoi` means at the upper end means providing for free relative movement of
30
of said column and enclosed within said distribu
said distributor with respect to said feed pipe in
tor for actuating said driving means.
the reverse direction.
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15. In combination, a rotary distributor having
JAMES DCNALD WALKER.