Fluent material handling – with receiver or receiver coacting mea – Automatic control of flow cutoff or diversion – Level or overflow responsive
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-17
2001-07-24
Maust, Timothy L. (Department: 3751)
Fluent material handling, with receiver or receiver coacting mea
Automatic control of flow cutoff or diversion
Level or overflow responsive
C141S094000, C141S095000, C141S192000, C141S391000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06263926
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention pertains to engine driven welding machines, and more particularly to arrangements for filling the fuel tanks for welding machine engines.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Engine driven welding machines include a gas powered engine to run a generator which supplies power to the welding electrode. Consequently, the fuel tank for the gas powered engine must be periodically refilled with fuel. Historically, the gas tank opening for the engine welder was located at or near the base of the engine welding machine. This position of the gas tank opening of the welder had several disadvantages, one which was that an operator was required to bend down to the ground to open, fill and then reseal the gas tank. Another disadvantage was that the close proximity of the gas tank opening to the top of the gas tank provided little if any warning to the operator during fueling that the gas tank was approaching a full condition, thus resulting in fuel spillage. One attempt to overcome the spillage problem was to use fuel gauges in the fuel tanks. Although the fuel gauges helped to reduce fuel spillage, the fuel gauges generally did not indicate the fuel level in the fuel tank quickly enough to prevent many fuel spillages. Another disadvantage to the fuel opening in the base of the engine welder was that the fuel tank opening was positioned on one side of the engine welder, thus requiring the engine welder to be positioned in a location that would not obstruct the fuel opening for later fueling of the engine welder. A further disadvantage was that instruction and/or warning labels positioned near the fuel opening which informed the operator about the type of fuel to use and/or the proper operation for fueling the engine welder were difficult to read since such instructions and/or warning labels were positioned at or near the base of the engine welder.
Several engine welders have been designed to overcome some of the problems associated with the positioning of the fuel tank opening at or near the base of the engine welder by including long filler tubes to the fuel tank, and by positioning the opening in the filling tube to allow for access to the opening from the top of the engine welder. The use of the longer filler tube provides additional fuel storage space to help reduce the number spills and the volume of fuel spillage. The positioning of the filler tube opening at the top of the engine welder allows for more versatile positioning of the engine welder. The use of the long filler tube also has several disadvantages. The long filler tube can have pressure build up in the filler tube during fueling which can result in fuel back flow and fuel spillage when the fuel flow into the fuel tank is suddenly stopped. The reduced diameter of the longer filler tube also can result is rapid filling of the filler tube with fuel after the fuel tank is filled thereby potentially causing high velocity fuel to move up the filler tube during the filling of the fuel tank resulting in spraying and spillage. Another disadvantage is that filler tube openings extending above the top of the engine welder detract from the aesthetics of the engine welder. In addition the portion of the filler tube extending above the top surface of the engine welder was susceptible to damage from being struck from objects positioned near the top of the engine welder as the engine welder was moved to various locations. The filler tube opening in the top of the engine welder also caused spilled fuel to spill on the top of the engine welder resulting in the spilled fuel to flowing into the interior of the engine welder and on multiple sides of the engine welder thereby requiring extensive cleanup prior to again operating the engine in the engine welder.
Several designs have been suggested to reduce the problems with spillage on the top of the engine welder. These designs have included the use of enlarged regions or chambers about the filler tube opening designed to temporarily store fuel that exits the filler tube opening. However, these design still do not overcome the problem of fuel spillage when the fuel overflows the chamber nor the problems associated with damage to the portion of the filler tube that protrudes above the top of the engine welder.
A recent improvement to fuel tank designs for engine welders is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,928,535. A portion of the top and adjacent side of the engine welder is cutout and a grommet is positioned in the cutout region to reseal the top and side of the engine welder. The opening of the filler tube extends through the bottom of the grommet and to a position that is below the top of the engine welder. The filler tube includes an expansion space to reduce splashback and spillover during the fueling of the fuel tank. This fuel tank design overcomes many of the problems associated with past fuel tank designs for engine welders. Damage to the recessed filler tube opening is minimized by this design. The cavity of the grommet directs spilled fuel to one side of the engine welder for easier cleanup of spills. The design of the filler tube also reduces splashback and spillover during the fueling. However, several disadvantages still exist in this fuel tank design. During operation of the engine welder, the components of the engine welder vibrate. As a result of these vibrations, the filler tube moves in the opening of the grommet. As a result of such movement, the seal between the filler tube and the grommet becomes worn and compromised thereby allowing fuel that spills out of the filler tube opening to enter the interior of the engine welder housing. In addition, periodic servicing of the engine welder can include the removal and cleaning or replacement of the grommet. When the cleaned grommet or replacement grommet is replaced back into position, the bottom of the grommet must form a seal about the cutout side of the engine welder and the filling tube opening to prevent fuel from leaking into the interior of the engine welder when a spill occurs. The design of the grommet makes it difficult to form such a seal when the grommet is repositioned on the engine welder. The modified filler tube design also has several disadvantages. The enlarged region of the filler tube requires additional space in the interior of the engine welder. Such space requirements can complicate the interior design of the engine welder and make it inconvenient to service the interior of the engine welder. The filler tube design also does not inform an operator when the gas tank is about to be filled. The enlarged region of the filler tube is deigned to provide additional time for an automatic fuel cutoff to activate before the fuel overflows. However, if the automatic fuel cutoff malfunctions or is too slow to respond, fuel spillage still occurs.
In view of the deficiencies of the present fuel tank designs, there is a need for a fuel tank design for an engine spreader that will significantly minimize the incidents of splashback and spillover during the fueling of the engine welder, is easy to service, facilitates in proper sealing and minimizes or prevents fuel from contaminating the interior of the engine welder when a fuel spill occurs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an fuel tank design for an engine welder, and more particularly, to an improved grommet for the filler tube opening and an improved fuel level monitoring arrangement; however, the invention is not limited to engine welders and can be used in all types of mechanisms that include a gas powered engine.
In accordance with a principal aspect of the present invention, an engine driven welder is provided which includes a housing to protect the internal components of the welder. Protected by the housing is a fuel powered engine and an electric generator. The fuel powered engine runs the electric generator which in turn produces electricity for the arc welder. The electric generator is selected to produce electricity for various types of welders, such as TIG welders, plasma arc welders, MIG welders, STT welders,
Bender David J.
Parmelee Donald R.
Lincoln Global Inc.
Maust Timothy L.
Vickers Daniels & Young
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