Built nearly 30 years ago, the enormously popular LED-lighted show-style water feature comprises more than 250 manifold-mounted precision jet nozzles supplied by several large dry pumps. Designed to reflect the iconic interlocking Olympic rings, this choreographed display has become one of Georgia’s most photographed attractions, delighting guests with daily performances of synchronized water, lights, and music.

Led by Texas-based fountain design firm The Fountain People, the comprehensive restoration effort included the installation of 256 new display nozzles and an integrated LED ring light fixture for dramatic color-changing effects. The project also added plug-and-play connections and a new water feature show panel with a touchscreen interface that allows operators to select among up to ten choreographed musical fountain shows. 

Further improvements included modernized pump and filtration systems, fog system repairs, and remote access capabilities that give staff greater control over the fountain’s operation. Perhaps the most exciting addition brought by the renovation, however, was the installation of a new fountain valve technology that’s enabled vastly richer nozzle effects and choreographies, thrusting the historic attraction into a new, growing class of elite manifold-based fountains and water features.

Until recently, manifold-based water features such as the Fountain of Rings used a water switch, a three-way valve installed at each nozzle that allows on/off nozzle sequencing. The ability to independently control spray height for each nozzle, however, has always required a distributed pump architecture where each nozzle is controlled by its own VFD-driven effect pump. This approach required extensive submerged electrical infrastructure but allowed for show flexibility where programmers could provide complex effects such as waves, variable height chase scenes, and more. Now, this same level of control is available among manifold-based water features.

The Robotic Water Switch

Developed by Texas-based aquatic robotics company SplashBotix, the SplashValve is a single-axis, fast-acting robotic valve that uses a specially shaped diverter to bring proportional nozzle height control to manifold-based water features for the first time. The Fountain People’s restoration effort marks one of the first and largest uses of the new technology, representing a new standard in manifold-based water feature design and programming.

SplashValves are three-way valves installed at the nozzle, designed to divert incoming water to effect or bypass. Unlike water switches, however, SplashValves can also divert water to varying proportions of effect and bypass, enabling both on/off and spray height control. Capable of cycling up to four times per second, SplashValves marry the speed and on/off action of a conventional water switch with the height control flexibility of a VFD-driven effect pump.

SplashBotix is a division of ARM Automation, an industrial robotics and automation firm with more than 30 years of experience developing high-performance motion systems for semiconductor, aerospace, and factory automation. Unlike other technical suppliers in its industry, SplashBotix takes much of its design and engineering inspiration from the world of industrial automation. For this reason, the story of SplashBotix and the SplashValve challenges assumptions about where advanced robotics and automation principles can provide value—not just on factory floors, but in public and municipal spaces as well. 

Design Features

The secret behind the SplashValve’s advanced flow control capabilities lies in its clever electro-mechanical design. Rather than using a pilot switch to control the flow of water, the SplashValve uses a specially designed, servo-actuated diverter. Set inside the SplashValve’s bore, the diverter rotates 90-degrees between effect and bypass, incrementally changing the nozzle spray height as it shifts its position. Fully enclosed, the SplashValve’s servo motor transmits motion to the diverter through magnetic actuation, a clever static-seal design that makes the SplashValve virtually leak-proof. 

Composed mainly of 316 stainless steel and a proprietary blend of wear- and chemical-resistant plastics, the SplashValve also offers advantages over competing solutions when it comes to maintenance and durability. Effectively a one-inch diameter pipe when the diverter position is at full effect, the SplashValve allows most fountain debris to pass right through to the nozzle, making screen filters largely unnecessary. When clogs do occur, SplashBotix has made the diverter easily accessible for maintenance personnel, who can remove the diverter from the magnetic coupling, clean the valve and return the diverter back to the SplashValve all in less than a minute. 

From a fountain engineering and design perspective, the SplashValve represents a major paradigm shift. By bringing proportional control to manifold-based systems, the SplashValve is enabling designers to deliver world-class shows without the cost, complexity and power requirements of installing hundreds of VFD pumps. For municipalities like Atlanta and other stakeholders, this means richer experiences for guests, safer public amenities, and less frequent, less costly maintenance.

For more information: 

SplashBotix

ARM Automation

The Fountain People