The present invention relates to fuel pump modules which are interfaced with fuel tanks for motor vehicles, and more particularly to a fuel port of the cover flange thereof. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to a fuel port elbow having an overmolded, electrically conductive, truncated insert tube.
Motor vehicle fuel tanks provide not only a reservoir for fuel but also must have accommodation for adding fuel, delivering fuel (i.e., to the engine) and monitoring the amount of the fuel therein. It has become a common practice to combine the fuel delivery and monitoring functions via a fuel pump module which is removably interfaced with an opening of the fuel tank sidewall.
The fuel pump module may be a part of a return fuel system or of a returnless fuel system. With respect to a return fuel system, now used mostly in diesel fuel applications, there are feed and return fuel lines, wherein fuel is constantly pumped, and what is not used by the engine is returned to the fuel tank. In a returnless fuel system, which is used most commonly today, fuel is supplied on demand to the engine, there being no return fuel line, only a feed fuel line connected with the fuel pump module. Returnless fuel systems may be of a mechanical type, commonly referred to as “MRFS” or of an electronic type, commonly referred to as “ERFS”, depending on the control modality of the fuel system.
In order to supply electricity to operate the fuel pump 24 and the fuel level sensor 42, electrical leads 38 are provided: power and ground leads 38a, 38b for the fuel pump and voltage in and out leads 38c, 38d for the fuel level sensor. In view of the electrical interconnections, it is desirable for the fuel pump 24, the connector conduit 28, the fuel filter 30 and the filter conduit 32 to be electrically conductive and be connected, along with the fuel level sensor 42, via for example a grounding lead 38e, to the ground lead 38b (in applications where the fuel pump is absent, grounding is via a ground lead with the fuel level sensor). The guide rods 46 are metallic and also connected to ground.
It is known that conduit surfaces which are exposed to turbulent fuel flow may, under some circumstances, acquire an electrostatic (or static electric) charge. It is further known that electrostatic charge can be removed by electrically connecting a charged object to an electrical ground. In this regard, SAE International report entitled “Surface Vehicle Recommended Practice” regarding “Fuel Systems and Components—Electrostatic Charge Mitigation”, report number SAE J1645 issued February 1994 and revised August 2006, which report is hereby herein incorporated by reference, sets forth a standard for the insulative portions of a fuel system which do not need to be conductive and grounded (see Section A.4 and subsections thereof), provided the fuel flow path is short or if multiple ground paths are provided, wherein “short” is considered to be (see subsection A.4.2) as less than about one-tenth of the product of the highest mean fuel flow velocity times the dielectric relaxation time of the fuel. Irrespective of the foregoing, in the portions of conduits where relatively low fuel flow rates are present, conductive and grounded portions may not be needed as a countermeasure for electrostatic charge accumulation.
Because fuel flowing through the fuel port elbow experiences a 90 degree change in direction, it is possible for fuel flow turbulence to develop thereat. Whether or not that can result in electrostatic charge accumulation, it is the practice in the art to have the fuel port elbow include a conductive material, such as an electrically conductive tube 48 as shown at
The prior art fuel port elbow 34 of
The tube 48 provides a suitable electrical conductivity, but the first tube component 48a is partly above and partly below the cover flange 36, wherein the conductive plastic thereof must be sealed in relation to the non-conductive plastic of the cover flange 36. The prior art sealing solution is to provide a plastic cap flange upper overmold 50 which is inclusive of the elbow tube component 48c, and a plastic cap flange lower overmold 52, wherein the cap flange upper overmold and the cap flange lower overmold are integral with the plastic of the cap flange 36, and each terminate at a respective upper and lower annulus 54, 56 of the tube 48.
Referring next to
At
At
At
While the prior art fuel port elbow 34 works well for fuel feed in a returnless fuel system and for both fuel feed and fuel return in a return fuel system, an external boundary 58 exists at the upper annulus, where the dissimilar plastic materials conjoin with each other, whereat problems could arise related to exposure to the elements of weather external to the fuel tank or fuel vapor permeation to the atmosphere, which problems could be exacerbated by manufacturing tolerances. The other types of prior art fuel port elbows have drawbacks as well. For example, the partly overmolded metal tube fuel port elbow 60 has an exterior dissimilar materials boundary 68; the metal only fuel port elbow 70 requires the cap flange be made out of metal instead of plastic, which is more expensive; and, finally, the all plastic fuel port elbow 80 requires the cap flange and the fuel port elbow to be constructed of relatively expensive electrically conductive plastic.
Accordingly, it would be desirable if somehow the conductivity at the fuel port elbow could be provided, while at the same time eliminating all the drawbacks of the prior art.
The present invention is a fuel port elbow composed of a plastic port body overmolding an electrically conductive, truncated insert tube such that there is no external dissimilar materials boundary.
The fuel port elbow according to the present invention includes an electrically conductive, truncated insert tube having a tube passage. The truncated insert tube includes an insert tube first segment which passes through a cover flange for the fuel tank; an insert tube second segment which is oriented generally perpendicular to the insert tube first segment; and an insert tube elbow segment which joins the insert tube first and second segments. The insert tube second segment is truncated.
The fuel port elbow according to the present invention further includes a plastic port body sealingly connected with the plastic of the cover flange, wherein the port body includes a port body first segment which is sealingly connected to the cover flange, preferably by being integrally formed therewith; a port body second segment which is generally perpendicular in relation to the port body first segment and carries a port body passage; and a port body elbow segment which joins the port body first and second segments.
Above the flange cover (i.e., exterior to the fuel pump module) the insert tube first segment, the insert tube elbow segment and the insert tube second segment are overmolded by the port body, whereby the tube passage aligns and communicates with the port body passage, and the dissimilar materials boundary as between the plastic of the port body and the electrically conductive material of the insert tube is internal to the port body. Below the flange cover (i.e., interior to a fuel pump module), the insert tube first segment is overmolded by a lower overmold to an annulus of the insert tube first segment.
The length of the insert tube second segment, that is, the location of the tube truncation, is predetermined by the location at which fuel flow has exited the highly turbulent turn of the insert tube elbow segment and has now become less turbulent. More particularly, per SAE J1645, Section A.4 thereof, the truncation is disposed such that the adjoining port body passage immediately downstream of the truncation is short (as defined in SAE J1645), straight and has two adjacent internal ground paths (one ground path being the insert tube at one end of the port body passage and a conductive fuel line at the other end of the port body passage), such that the port body second segment (which provides the port body passage) may be insulative.
Advantageously, the fuel port elbow according to the present invention provides an electrically conductive surface at the interior of the elbow portion thereof where turbulent fuel flow may arise, minimizes insert tube material cost, and eliminates an external dissimilar materials boundary.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a fuel port elbow composed of a plastic port body overmolding an electrically conductive insert tube such that there is no external dissimilar materials boundary.
This and additional objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become clearer from the following specification of a preferred embodiment.
Referring now to the Drawing,
A module reservoir 22 is defined by a plastic module sidewall 20a. A fuel pump 24 draws fuel through a fuel strainer 26 in the module reservoir. The pumped fuel F is then sent via a connector conduit 28 to a fuel filter 30, whereupon after filtering, the fuel passes through a filter conduit 32 to a fuel port elbow 34 from which the fuel is delivered to the engine via a feed fuel line 122, which is electrically conductive and grounded. By way of comparison, in a return fuel system the fuel is continuously pumped, and any amount not utilized by the engine is returned to the fuel pump module 20 by a return fuel line (see
In order to supply electricity to operate the fuel pump 24 and the fuel level sensor 42, electrical leads 38 are provided: power and ground leads 38a, 38b for the fuel pump and voltage in and out leads 38c, 38d for the fuel level sensor. In view of the electrical interconnections, the fuel pump 24, the connector conduit 28, the fuel filter 30 and the filter conduit 32 are electrically conductive and connected, along with the fuel level sensor 42, via for example a grounding lead 38e, to the ground lead 38b (in applications where the fuel pump is absent, grounding is via a ground lead with the fuel level sensor). The guide rods 46 are metallic and also connected to ground.
The fuel port elbow 100 includes an electrically conductive insert tube 120 which is electrically connected to the electrical ground lead, via, for example, the electrical connections as between the filter conduit 32, the fuel filter 30 the connector conduit 28 and the grounded fuel pump 24.
As shown at
As additionally shown at
The length of the insert tube second segment 120b, that is, the location of the tube truncation 120b′, is predetermined by the location at which fuel flow has exited the highly turbulent turn of the insert tube elbow segment 120c and has now become less turbulent. More particularly, per SAE J1645, Section A.4 thereof, the truncation is disposed such that the adjoining port body passage 124 immediately downstream of the truncation is short (as defined in SAE J1645), straight and has two adjacent internal ground paths, wherein one ground path is the insert tube 120 at the end of the port body passage (where the truncation is disposed and whereat a dissimilar materials boundary 132 exists), and the other ground path is the conductive fuel line 122 (see
According to a methodology of making, the truncated insert tube is placed into a plastic injection tool, and plastic is injected to form the cap flange and the port body, and, at the underside 102b of the flange cover (i.e., interior to the fuel pump module), the insert tube first segment 120a is overmolded by a lower overmold 126 to the annulus 128 of the insert tube first segment. At the upperside 102a of the flange cover (i.e., exterior to the fuel pump module), the insert tube first segment, the insert tube elbow segment 120c, and the insert tube second segment 120c are overmolded by the port body, whereby the truncation 120b′ of the insert tube second segment 120b flushly abuts 110b′ the port body second segment 110b such that the tube passage 130 is smoothly aligned and communicates with the port body passage 124. The port body second segment 110b overmolding of the insert tube second segment 120b is such that a distal end 110e of the port body second segment is disposed in spaced relation with respect to said tube second segment, whereby the dissimilar materials boundary 132 as between the plastic of the port body and the conductive plastic of the truncated insert tube is internal to the port body.
Turning attention now to
To those skilled in the art to which this invention appertains, the above described preferred embodiment may be subject to change or modification. Such change or modification can be carried out without departing from the scope of the invention, which is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.
The present patent application claims the benefit of provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/036,536, filed on Mar. 14, 2008, which application is presently pending.
Number | Date | Country | |
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61036536 | Mar 2008 | US |