Internal-combustion engines – Accessories – Covers – trays – vibrators – corrosion inhibitors – air filters
Reexamination Certificate
2001-05-23
2002-10-29
Mancene, Gene (Department: 3747)
Internal-combustion engines
Accessories
Covers, trays, vibrators, corrosion inhibitors, air filters
Reexamination Certificate
active
06470848
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a fuel tank-mounting structure for a portable power working machine, such as a leaf blower, a sprayer, and the like, wherein a fuel tank is received in a tank housing portion defined by a two-piece cover housing of the power working machine.
FIG. 6
is an exploded perspective view of a previously known leaf blower, representing one example of a portable power working machine provided with the aforementioned fuel tank-mounting structure. In the assembled state, the leaf blower of
FIG. 6
is similar in external appearance to the leaf blower shown in
FIG. 1
, which shows one embodiment of the present invention as described hereinafter.
The conventional leaf blower
5
shown in
FIG. 6
is provided with right and left cover housings
12
and
11
constituting a two-piece structure, in which a centrifugal air blower
20
and an internal combustion engine (a small air-cooled two-stroke gasoline engine)
30
for rotatably driving the air blower
20
are housed and held in place. External air is inducted from an intake port (not shown) provided on the left side of the left cover housing
11
and accelerated in a volute case
22
provided integrally with the left cover housing
11
. The accelerated air is discharged from an exhaust nozzle
25
defining the terminal portion (an upper front portion) of the volute case
22
and then ejected out of the leaf blower
5
through a flexible tube or an ejection tube (not shown), to thereby blow fallen leaves and refuse.
On the top of the left cover housing
11
, there is mounted a handle
15
which is provided with a throttle lever
17
for controlling the carburetor throttle valve (not shown) of the internal combustion engine
30
and also with an engine stop switch
18
.
Tank housing portions
42
and
41
(
40
) for housing and retaining a fuel tank
50
′ for the fuel (gasoline) for the internal combustion engine
30
are provided at a lower portion of each of the right and left cover housings
12
and
11
.
The fuel tank
50
′ is a closed container shaped into an elongated (in the longitudinal direction of the cleaner
5
) rectangular parallelopiped and provided at an upper rear portion thereof (proximal side in the drawing) with a fuel-filling port
55
which extends upward and slopes rightward. The fuel tank
50
′ is also provided on the left side of the fuel-filling port
55
thereof with a grommet-attached insertion hole
56
through which a fuel intake pipe, a return pipe and a tank inner pressure-adjusting pipe (not shown) are introduced into the fuel tank
50
′. A bottom V-groove
52
is formed on the underside of the fuel tank
50
′, the bottom V-groove
52
being adapted to be engaged with a ridge-like protrusion
44
that projects upwardly from the bottom face of the left tank housing portion
41
. A sloping recess portion
54
is formed on the upper surface of the fuel tank
50
′, the recess portion
54
being adapted to be engaged with a protrusion (not visible) at the upper left side portion of the fuel tank housing
40
.
The fuel tank
50
′ is provided with anchoring lugs
58
that protrude from a central portion of the front and rear end faces of the fuel tank
50
′, respectively, the anchoring lugs
58
being designed to be fixed, by means of a screw
59
, to columnar mounting portions
60
attached to and protruding from the inner wall of the left tank housing portion
41
, thereby fastening the fuel tank
50
′ to the left tank housing portion
41
.
A tapped hole
47
is formed at each of the ridge-like protrusion
44
and the front and rear upper edge portions of the left tank housing portion
41
. In conformity with these tapped holes
47
formed in the left tank housing portion
41
, the right tank housing portion
42
is also provided at each of three portions thereof with a screw-receiving hole (e.g.,
49
). Therefore, the right and left tank housing portions
42
and
41
can be joined face to face with each other by introducing screws (e.g.,
59
) from the right cover housing
12
side through the screw-receiving holes
49
and by threading the screws
59
into the tapped holes
47
, thereby clamping the right and left cover housings
12
and
11
to each other.
The right cover housing
12
is provided with cut-out portions
37
and
36
for enabling the muffler
32
of the internal combustion engine
30
and a recoil starter
34
(i.e., the handle
34
a
thereof) to extend out of the right cover housing
12
, and also with a semi-cylindrical port
39
for facilitating removing and attaching the cap of the fuel-filling port
55
of the fuel tank
50
′.
In the conventional fuel tank-mounting structure for a portable power working machine of
FIG. 6
, the fuel tank is fastened to the tank housing portion by anchoring lugs provided on the fuel tank by making use of the screws, as described above. The conventional fuel tank-mounting structure, however, has the following problems.
(1) The vibration of the internal combustion engine and/or of the air blower is directly transmitted to the fuel tank, and due to the vibration, bubbles are generated in the fuel in the fuel tank. Bubbles in the fuel supplied to the internal combustion engine can cause the performance of the internal combustion engine to deteriorate;
(2) Since not only the fuel tank but also the tank housing portion are both required to be provided with mounting members (such as the aforementioned anchoring lugs) for fastening the fuel tank, the manufacturing cost of the power machine is increased, and at the same time, the configuration of the fuel tank is restricted by such mounting members; and
(3) Stresses due to the vibrations of the tank are concentrated at the connections of the aforementioned anchoring lugs with the tank body; the concentrated stresses can lead to fracture of the anchoring lugs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been made to overcome the aforementioned problems, and therefore an object of the present invention is to provide a fuel tank-mounting structure for a portable power working machine, which is capable of preventing the vibration of the internal combustion engine from being easily transmitted to the fuel tank, thereby avoiding possible deterioration in performance of the internal combustion engine due to formation of bubbles in the fuel, preventing possible damage to the fuel tank, and reducing the manufacturing costs of the fuel tank-mounting structure.
With a view to attaining the aforementioned objects, there is provided, according to the present invention, a fuel tank-mounting structure for a portable power working machine having an internal combustion engine as a power source and a fuel tank that is received in a tank housing portion of a two-piece cover housing of the power working machine. According to the invention, the fuel tank is retained in the tank housing portion by being embraced by one or more cushioning members.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the cushioning member(s) is interposed in spaces between the tank housing portion and all faces of the fuel tank, namely, the front and rear end faces, the right and left side faces, and the top and bottom faces of the fuel tank. Advantageously, the cushioning member(s) is immovably sandwiched between the cover housing and the fuel tank.
The fuel tank-mounting structure, according to the present invention, may include a front end portion-sustaining cushioning member of a generally U-shape in cross section and having an inner surface that engages at least three faces of the fuel tank selected from the front end face, the right side face, the left side face, the top face and the bottom face of the fuel tank and a rear end portion-sustaining cushioning member of a generally U-shape in cross section and having an inner surface that engages at least three faces of the fuel tank selected from the rear end face, the right side face, the left side face, the top face and the bottom face of the fuel tank.
In especially preferre
Kamoshita Tadashi
Takahashi Kazunori
Ali Hyder
Baker & Botts LLP
Kioritz & Corporation
Mancene Gene
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