Abstract: A swimming pool safety drain including a base having a bottom, and having end walls and side walls extending upwardly from the bottom to form an open top enclosure. A cover is removably secured to the enclosure and, when secured to the enclosure forms an inlet slot about the periphery thereof. A plurality of drain outlets are formed in the base for connection to water recirculating systems for the swimming pool and any supplemental water recirculating system. A safety bridge is secured in the enclosure between the side walls and is positioned over the drain outlets to provide hair and limb entrapment protection. A construction cover is provided to temporarily replace the permanent cover during construction and installation of the drain.

Abstract: A swimming pool cleaning system includes a pump, a first tube coupling a suction port of the pump in fluid communication with a main drain or mobile cleaning device which draws water and settled debris from the bottom of the pool, and a skimming device including an entrainment nozzle and a safety tube. The entrainment nozzle is coupled by a second tube to a coupling device which diverts a small portion of pool return water pumped from an outlet port of the pump. The safety tube extends from above the water line and above the debris trap in the skimmer to the body of the skimmer below the debris trap. Most of the pool return water is pumped into a rotary distribution valve, various outlets of which are connected to various pool cleaning heads embedded in an inner surface of the pool. A single low-horsepower pump produces simultaneous effective skimming and operation of embedded cleaning heads.

Abstract: A cleaning head for installation in a swimming pool floor fitting (9) includes a pop-up cylinder (5) having a plurality of first camming elements (44) disposed on its outer wall, a compression spring (6) disposed around it, and an outer cylinder (11) having a plurality of second camming elements (42) and third camming elements (40) disposed along the inner wall (47A) of the outer cylinder (11) for engagement with the first camming elements. A nozzle cap (15) is removably attached to the upper end of the pop-up cylinder (5), and includes a plurality of nozzles having various diameters, respectively, only a selected one of the nozzles being aligned with a clearance opening (20) of the pop-up cylinder.

Abstract: A distribution valve for a swimming pool cleaning system includes a housing with a high pressure fluid inlet disposed on a side of the housing, a plurality of outlet ports for connection to a plurality of return lines, respectively, a plurality of valves opening or closing the outlet ports from the interior, and an impeller-driven gear assembly to sequentially open and close each valve in response to rotation of the impeller. A cover unit is connected to the housing, and includes an impeller chamber connected to an underside portion of the cover unit, with the impeller disposed concentrically in the impeller chamber. The impeller includes a circular disk base that forms a bottom of the impeller chamber. A guide passage extends from an inlet window of the impeller chamber to guide a stream of water from the inlet into the inlet chamber against blades of the impeller causing it to rotate.

Abstract: A swimming pool cleaning system includes a pump, a first tube coupling a suction port of the pump in fluid communication with a main drain or mobile cleaning device which draws water and settled debris from the bottom of the pool, and a skimming device including an entrainment nozzle. The entrainment nozzle is coupled by a second tube to a coupling device which diverts a small portion of pool return water pumped from an outlet port of the pump. Most of the pool return water is pumped into a rotary distribution valve, various outlets of which are connected to various pool cleaning heads embedded in an inner surface of the pool. A vacuum canister having a removable cover to allow access to a removable debris trap disposed in the vacuum canister between an inlet and an outlet thereof is coupled between a suction inlet of the pump and the main drain or mobile cleaning device.

Abstract: A swimming pool debris removal system includes a recirculating pump and a vacuum chamber having an access port, an inlet port, and an outlet port connected to a suction inlet of the pump. The inlet port is connected to receive water and debris pumped from the pool. A removable vacuum seal lid is disposed in the access port, forming a vacuum seal therewith. An air bleed tube coupled to the outlet port draws air trapped between the lid and water in the chamber into the outlet port and suction inlet when the pump is operating, causing the trapped air to be replaced by water and thereby reducing momentum forces of water in the chamber against the lid as the pump is turned off. The lid includes a disk with a circumferential groove and a handle attached to an upper surface of the disk.

Abstract: A distribution valve includes a housing having an upper fluid inlet, a plurality of bottom fluid outlets and enclosing a rotary impeller disposed directly beneath the fluid inlet, and a plurality of stationary baffles disposed between a bottom plate of the impeller and the fluid inlet for directing portions of the incoming fluid directly at a plurality of vertical vanes supported at the bottom plate of the impeller. A stationary planetary gear disposed about a vertical axis of the distribution valve engages a pair of symmetric gear assemblies supported on a rotary gear assembly base and each driven by a drive gear attached to the impeller. A foot-shaped cam is attached to the lower portion of the rotary gear assembly base and rotates through a 360.degree. angle, sequentially lifting each of a plurality of spherical valve balls from its seat in the bottom of the housing.

Abstract: A distribution valve includes a housing having an upper fluid inlet, a plurality of bottom fluid outlets, and enclosing a plurality of bottom fluid outlets, and enclosing a rotary impeller disposed directly beneath the fluid inlet, a plurality of stationary baffles disposed between a bottom plate of the impeller and the fluid inlet for directing portions of the incoming fluid directly at a plurality of vertical vanes supported at the bottom plate of the impeller. A stationary planetary gear disposed about a vertical axis of the distribution valve, a pair of symmetric gear assemblies each driven by a drive gear attached to the impeller, each of the symmetric gear assemblies being supported on a rotary gear assembly base, and each also having an outer gear engaging the teeth of the planetary gear cooperate to cause the rotary gear assembly base to rotate in response to rotation of the impeller. A foot-shaped cam is attached to the lower portion of the rotary gear assembly base and rotates through a 360.degree.