Fluid handling – Systems – Tank with internally extending flow guide – pipe or conduit
Reexamination Certificate
1999-07-26
2001-01-23
Lee, Kevin (Department: 3753)
Fluid handling
Systems
Tank with internally extending flow guide, pipe or conduit
C137S565370, C137S574000, C123S468000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06176260
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention concerns a fuel tank, for example for a motor vehicle, incorporating a deformable reservoir within it.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A fuel tank for a motor vehicle may typically comprise a tank body with a reservoir arranged therewithin. The reservoir is normally part of a fuel delivery unit for supplying the engine of the motor vehicle with fuel such as gasoline or diesel. In that respect, the reservoir which is of a volume that is substantially smaller than that of the fuel tank overall is intended in particular to ensure the function that, even under adverse operating conditions, for example when the motor vehicle in which the fuel tank is installed is negotiating a curve or bend of considerable length or when the vehicle with the fuel tank is in a position that is not horizontal, there is always an adequate amount of fuel in the region of the intake for the fuel pump. That presupposes the presence of a certain minimum amount of fuel in the reservoir and thus a corresponding minimum volume for the reservoir itself.
In the case of tanks which are produced in one piece, for example those which are made from thermoplastic material, preferably by means of extrusion blow molding, in many cases the necessity arises for the reservoir to be introduced into the tank, after manufacture thereof, through an opening which is subsequently formed in the wall of the tank body. As for example for reasons of stability and sealing integrity of the opening which is to be closed after the reservoir has been fitted into the tank, it is desirable for the opening to be kept as small as possible, previous tanks of this kind suffer from the disadvantage that the reservoir which is to be fitted into the tank interior through the opening is of a correspondingly small volume which for example can be of the order of magnitude of between 0.5 and 1 liter. In many cases, having regard to the duration of the above-mentioned adverse operating conditions which can occur in a practical context and during which only a small amount of or no fuel flows into the reservoir out of the tank body volume surrounding the reservoir, the above-indicated reservoir volume is too small. It is possible to counter that disadvantage by the reservoir being of a deformable nature, at least over portions of the wall defining same, in such a way that, after it has been inserted into the fuel tank body, it experiences a change in shape which results in an increase in its volume and a change in its cross-section within the tank body. A procedure of that kind can be applied in a practical situation however only when the reservoir with the associated components is designed in a manner which permits easy handling thereof both when fitting the reservoir in the tank and also in terms of the measures which result in the desired increase in the volume of the reservoir.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a fuel tank which is of such a design as to make it possible to use larger reservoirs therein without for that purpose increasing the opening in the wall of the tank for insertion of the reservoir.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a fuel tank for example for a motor vehicle, incorporating a reservoir which including the components associated therewith is to be such that it can be without difficulty handled such as inserted into the tank and moved into the desired definitive position and shape thereof within the tank body without the required function of the reservoir being adversely affected by the handling measures required for the fitting and installation procedure.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a motor vehicle fuel tank incorporating a fuel reservoir therewithin such as to withstand virtually all loadings which may arise in a context of practice operation.
In accordance with the principles of the present invention the foregoing and other objects are attained by a fuel tank for a motor vehicle, comprising a fuel tank body having a wall defining the fuel tank body, the wall having a closable opening therethrough. A reservoir of smaller size than the fuel tank body is disposed therein, being inserted into the tank body through the closable opening in the wall thereof. The reservoir is suitably connected to the tank body. The reservoir is deformable at least over portions of a boundary wall thereof in such a way that after it has been at least partially introduced into the tank body it experiences a change in shape resulting in an increase in its volume within the tank body and a change in its cross-section such that the largest cross-section of the reservoir in its operative position is larger than the cross-section of the opening in the wall of the tank body, that is available for insertion of the reservoir into the tank body. The reservoir is delimited at its first and second ends by firm components and the deformable wall portions of the reservoir are in the region between the said components at the respective ends of the reservoir.
It will be noted at this point that the term ‘firm components’ used in the preceding paragraph and further employed hereinafter is to be interpreted as meaning that those components are of the stiffness and strength which for example at least approximately corresponds to the wall of the tank body. The firm components as defined hereinbefore may also comprise plastic material and can be produced for example by an injection molding procedure. They are at any event markedly less elastically deformable than the wall surfaces of the reservoir, the elastic deformation of which causes the increase in volume thereof, and they are substantially rigid in comparison with those wall surfaces.
The configuration according to the invention makes it possible for the reservoir to be designed in the form of a prefabricated unit which can be introduced into and secured in position on the tank in a simple operating procedure. The presence of the firm components at the two ends means that there is no need to take particular precautions for connecting the reservoir to the wall of the tank body.
The reservoir can also readily be of such a configuration that it delimits a closed space or chamber therewithin, the walls of which are only provided with the usual apertures therethrough for the fuel and the electric lines for pumps, filling level sensors and other similar items of equipment.
Preferably, the reservoir is disposed between the bottom of the tank body and the top wall of the tank body disposed at a spacing from the bottom of the tank body, in such a way that the firm component at the one end of the reservoir is connected to the bottom of the tank body and the firm component at the other end of the reservoir is connected to the top wall of the tank body. The firm components may be fixed to the bottom and top wall of the tank body respectively by being suitably supported thereon, by being mounted thereto or by resting thereagainst. It is then possible for the lateral walls of the reservoir to be adapted to be deformable over a substantial part of the longitudinal extent of the reservoir.
Preferably, the deformation of the reservoir which causes an increase in its volume at least in a transverse direction is achieved by a reduction in the axial extent of the reservoir. In that respect, the arrangement can be such that, before it is introduced into the tank, the reservoir is of a length which is greater than the spacing between the two mutually oppositely disposed wall regions of the tank, that is to say the bottom and the top wall of the tank body, between which in its operative position the reservoir is arranged and possibly also braced. After the reservoir has been subjected to a reduction in its length resulting in the desired increase in volume at least in the transverse direction thereof, in the course of being introduced into the tank, by virtue of being subjected to axially directed forces, then the reservoir can be held by suitable means in its operative position in which it extends between the
Hahner Rainer
Puempel Andreas G. R.
Savoni Lou
Siekmann Jim
Wagner Axel
Kautex Textron GmbH & Co. KG
Lee Kevin
Seidel Gonda, Lavorgna & Monaco, P.C.
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