Patent Application
20200256298
The present disclosure relates generally to a fuel injector for an engine and, more particularly, to a seal configuration for a fuel injector.
Under operation, a fuel injector of an engine receives a force from a rocker arm when fuel is to be injected in a cylinder of an engine. The force is generally a longitudinal force on the fuel injector. A problem can occur from the force on the fuel injector causing sideloading on the fuel injector from an engine head of the engine. The sideloading may cause injector fretting and/or a seal formed from a seal ring (e.g., an o-ring) to deteriorate over time, causing fuel to leak into a lubrication chamber of the engine and/or an ignition chamber of the engine.
One approach for a “seal structure” is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 10,107,401 that issued to Monma et al. on Oct. 23, 2018 (“the '401 patent”). In particular, the '401 patent discloses a resin backup ring installed adjacently to a seal ring and at a position further toward a low pressure side than the sealing ring, wherein on a low pressure side of a groove bottom surface of an annular groove, a tapered surface is formed which has a diameter increasing toward the low pressure side.
While the seal structure of the '401 patent includes a resin backup ring, that resin backup ring does not prevent sideloading against a fuel injector and/or against the seal ring of the seal structure.
The seal configuration of the present disclosure solves one or more problems set forth above and/or other problems in the art.
According to some implementations, a seal configuration for a fuel injector of an engine may include a seal ring within a seal groove of the fuel injector, wherein the seal ring is formed from a first material; and a spacer ring within the seal groove of the fuel injector, wherein the spacer ring is formed from a second material, wherein an outer diameter of the spacer ring is greater than a diameter of a fuel injector bore of the fuel injector, and wherein the spacer ring is configured to be adjacent the seal ring within the seal groove to form a seal of a fuel injector slot of an engine head of an engine, wherein the fuel injector slot is configured to support the fuel injector.
According to some implementations, a fuel injector may include a seal groove in a fuel injector bore; and a seal configuration configured to fit within the seal groove, wherein the seal configuration includes a seal ring that comprises a first material; and a spacer ring that comprises a second material, wherein an outer diameter of the spacer ring is greater than a diameter of the fuel injector bore, and wherein the spacer ring is configured to be adjacent the seal ring within the seal groove to form a seal of a fuel injector slot of an engine head of the engine.
According to some implementations, an engine may include an engine head that includes one or more fuel injector slots; and one or more fuel injectors installed within the one or more fuel injector slots, wherein at least one of the one or more fuel injectors includes: a seal groove; and a seal configuration configured to fit within the seal groove, wherein the seal configuration comprises: a seal ring that comprises a first material; and a spacer ring that comprises a second material that has a greater durometer than the first material, wherein the spacer ring has a substantially uniform outer diameter to absorb sideloading from an engine head of the engine, and wherein the spacer ring is configured to be adjacent the seal ring within the seal groove to form a seal of one of the one or more fuel injector slots.
This disclosure relates to a seal configuration for a fuel injector of an engine. The seal configuration has universal applicability to any engine utilizing such a fuel injector. The engine may be any type of engine that utilizes fuel injectors, such as an internal combustion engine, a diesel engine, and/or the like.
Seal configuration 106 of fuel injector 104 is positioned to absorb sideload force 128 to prevent sideloading between engine head 110 and fuel injector bore 124. Seal configuration 106 may be positioned toward a receiving end of engine head 110. As shown, seal configuration 106 includes a seal ring 130 and a spacer ring 132. Spacer ring 132 may be adjacent seal ring 130 within a seal groove 134 of fuel injector 104. Seal groove 134 may be annular and have a height (or length) that is substantially the same as a combined thickness of seal ring 130 and spacer ring 132. In some implementations, spacer ring 132 is positioned on a low pressure side 136 of seal configuration 106, and seal ring 130 may be positioned on a high pressure side 138 of seal configuration 106. Low pressure side 136 may correspond to a lubrication chamber 140 (or have a pressure corresponding to lubrication chamber 140) of engine 102 and high pressure side 138 may correspond to a fuel receiving chamber 142 of engine head 110 and/or cylinder 112 (or have a pressure corresponding to a pressure in fuel receiving chamber 142 and/or cylinder 112). Fuel receiving chamber 142 may be formed within fuel injector slot 108 when fuel injector 104 is installed within engine head 110. Accordingly, seal ring 130 may be configured to prevent fuel from leaking from high pressure side 138 to low pressure side 136 of seal configuration 106.
Seal ring 130 may be formed of a material having a hardness measurement of 75 durometer or less (e.g., a material with a durometer of 75 Shore hardness units or less). For example, seal ring 130 may be formed from a rubber material, a plastic material, and/or the like. Spacer ring 132 may be formed from a material having a greater durometer than seal ring 130. For example, spacer ring 132 may be formed from a polytetrafluroethylene (PTFE) material.
In this way, seal configuration 106 is configured to absorb sideload force 128 and prevent fuel injector bore 124 of fuel injector 104 from experiencing sideloading with respect to engine head 110.
As indicated above,
As shown in
As further shown in
Accordingly, spacer ring 132, when positioned within seal groove 134, may absorb sideload force 128. Accordingly, spacer ring 132 prevents sideloading between fuel injector 104 (e.g., between fuel injector bore 124) and engine head 110.
As indicated above,
As further shown in
Furthermore, spacer ring 132 may include a separable joint 306. Separable joint 306 enables spacer ring 132 to flex apart to permit spacer ring 132 to be installed within seal groove 134 of fuel injector 104. The slope of the first set of chamfers 302 and/or the second set of chamfers 304 may be configured to provide ease of installation of the spacer ring 132 within seal groove 134. For example, the first set of chamfers 302 and the second set of chamfers 304 may remove rigid edges of spacer ring 132 that may grip fuel injector bore 124 during installation of spacer ring 132.
In this way, seal ring 130 and/or spacer ring 132 may be shaped to fit within seal groove 134 to form seal configuration 106 and prevent sideloading between fuel injector 104 and engine head 110, as described herein.
As indicated above,
The disclosed seal configuration 106 may be used with any engine where a proper seal is desired to prevent fuel from a fuel injector leaking into a lubrication chamber of an engine or within a cylinder of the engine. As described herein, the seal configuration 106 may prevent sideloading on fuel injector 104 from an engine head of the engine. The seal configuration 106 may prevent the sideloading due to the diameter of a spacer ring 132 being greater than a diameter of a fuel injector bore 124 of fuel injector 104. Furthermore, the seal configuration 106 may prevent the sideloading due to the material and/or a durometer of the material being greater than a durometer of spacer ring 132 of the seal configuration 106. Moreover, a substantially uniform outer diameter 150 of spacer ring 132 provides an enhanced ability to withstand sideloading on fuel injector 104 from engine head 110. The substantially uniform outer diameter can withstand greater sideloading than a variable or tapered outer diameter because an external surface of spacer ring 132 can receive more force than if spacer ring 132 included a variable or tapered outer diameter. Moreover, seal configuration 106 may be placed on fuel injector 104 at a location of fuel injector 104 (at a location of fuel injector bore 124) that withstands a greatest amount or a high amount of sideloading (e.g., relative to other locations of fuel injector 104) from engine head 110 during operation. For example, seal configuration 106 may be placed at a base of a pressurization chamber 202 and/or between pressurization chamber 202 and a fuel receiving chamber 142 of engine head 110.
Furthermore, seal configuration 106 may provide an improved seal due to the durometer of seal ring 130 being less than or equal to 75 durometer. The relatively low durometer of seal ring 130 enables relatively more compression of seal ring 130 within seal groove 134, against spacer ring 132, and against engine head 110. In this way, fuel is less likely to leak between seal ring 130 and fuel injector 104 and/or between seal ring 130 and engine head 110.
Further, spacer ring 132 may enable relatively simple maintenance, replacement, and/or installation of seal configuration 106 with seal groove 134 of fuel injector 104. For example, separable joint 306 and/or sets of chamfers 302, 304 permit spacer ring 132 to be quickly and efficiently removed and/or installed within seal groove 134 of fuel injector 104. Accordingly, seal configuration 106 can be quickly and efficiently installed, replaced, and/or maintained within seal groove 134 of fuel injector 104.
As used herein, the articles “a” and “an” are intended to include one or more items, and may be used interchangeably with “one or more.” Also, as used herein, the terms “has,” “have,” “having,” or the like are intended to be open-ended terms. Further, the phrase “based on” is intended to mean “based, at least in part, on.”
The foregoing disclosure provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the implementations to the precise forms disclosed. Modifications and variations may be made in light of the above disclosure or may be acquired from practice of the implementations. It is intended that the specification be considered as an example only, with a true scope of the disclosure being indicated by the following claims and their equivalents. Even though particular combinations of features are recited in the claims and/or disclosed in the specification, these combinations are not intended to limit the disclosure of various implementations. Although each dependent claim listed below may directly depend on only one claim, the disclosure of various implementations includes each dependent claim in combination with every other claim in the claim set.
