GB2350337A - Fuel tank pick-up arrangement - Google Patents

Fuel tank pick-up arrangement Download PDF

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Publication number
GB2350337A
GB2350337A GB9920191A GB9920191A GB2350337A GB 2350337 A GB2350337 A GB 2350337A GB 9920191 A GB9920191 A GB 9920191A GB 9920191 A GB9920191 A GB 9920191A GB 2350337 A GB2350337 A GB 2350337A
Authority
GB
United Kingdom
Prior art keywords
pick
arrangement
fuel
float
tank
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
GB9920191A
Other versions
GB9920191D0 (en
GB2350337B (en
Inventor
Michael John James
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Individual
Original Assignee
Individual
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Individual filed Critical Individual
Publication of GB9920191D0 publication Critical patent/GB9920191D0/en
Priority to AU50941/00A priority Critical patent/AU5094100A/en
Priority to PCT/GB2000/002165 priority patent/WO2001010662A1/en
Publication of GB2350337A publication Critical patent/GB2350337A/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of GB2350337B publication Critical patent/GB2350337B/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60K—ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PROPULSION UNITS OR OF TRANSMISSIONS IN VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PLURAL DIVERSE PRIME-MOVERS IN VEHICLES; AUXILIARY DRIVES FOR VEHICLES; INSTRUMENTATION OR DASHBOARDS FOR VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENTS IN CONNECTION WITH COOLING, AIR INTAKE, GAS EXHAUST OR FUEL SUPPLY OF PROPULSION UNITS IN VEHICLES
    • B60K15/00—Arrangement in connection with fuel supply of combustion engines or other fuel consuming energy converters, e.g. fuel cells; Mounting or construction of fuel tanks
    • B60K15/03—Fuel tanks
    • B60K15/077—Fuel tanks with means modifying or controlling distribution or motion of fuel, e.g. to prevent noise, surge, splash or fuel starvation
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F02—COMBUSTION ENGINES; HOT-GAS OR COMBUSTION-PRODUCT ENGINE PLANTS
    • F02M—SUPPLYING COMBUSTION ENGINES IN GENERAL WITH COMBUSTIBLE MIXTURES OR CONSTITUENTS THEREOF
    • F02M37/00—Apparatus or systems for feeding liquid fuel from storage containers to carburettors or fuel-injection apparatus; Arrangements for purifying liquid fuel specially adapted for, or arranged on, internal-combustion engines
    • F02M37/0076—Details of the fuel feeding system related to the fuel tank
    • F02M37/0082—Devices inside the fuel tank other than fuel pumps or filters
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60K—ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PROPULSION UNITS OR OF TRANSMISSIONS IN VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PLURAL DIVERSE PRIME-MOVERS IN VEHICLES; AUXILIARY DRIVES FOR VEHICLES; INSTRUMENTATION OR DASHBOARDS FOR VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENTS IN CONNECTION WITH COOLING, AIR INTAKE, GAS EXHAUST OR FUEL SUPPLY OF PROPULSION UNITS IN VEHICLES
    • B60K15/00—Arrangement in connection with fuel supply of combustion engines or other fuel consuming energy converters, e.g. fuel cells; Mounting or construction of fuel tanks
    • B60K15/03—Fuel tanks
    • B60K15/06—Fuel tanks characterised by fuel reserve systems
    • B60K15/061—Fuel tanks characterised by fuel reserve systems with level control
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60K—ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PROPULSION UNITS OR OF TRANSMISSIONS IN VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PLURAL DIVERSE PRIME-MOVERS IN VEHICLES; AUXILIARY DRIVES FOR VEHICLES; INSTRUMENTATION OR DASHBOARDS FOR VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENTS IN CONNECTION WITH COOLING, AIR INTAKE, GAS EXHAUST OR FUEL SUPPLY OF PROPULSION UNITS IN VEHICLES
    • B60K15/00—Arrangement in connection with fuel supply of combustion engines or other fuel consuming energy converters, e.g. fuel cells; Mounting or construction of fuel tanks
    • B60K15/03—Fuel tanks
    • B60K2015/03236—Fuel tanks characterised by special filters, the mounting thereof
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60K—ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PROPULSION UNITS OR OF TRANSMISSIONS IN VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENT OR MOUNTING OF PLURAL DIVERSE PRIME-MOVERS IN VEHICLES; AUXILIARY DRIVES FOR VEHICLES; INSTRUMENTATION OR DASHBOARDS FOR VEHICLES; ARRANGEMENTS IN CONNECTION WITH COOLING, AIR INTAKE, GAS EXHAUST OR FUEL SUPPLY OF PROPULSION UNITS IN VEHICLES
    • B60K15/00—Arrangement in connection with fuel supply of combustion engines or other fuel consuming energy converters, e.g. fuel cells; Mounting or construction of fuel tanks
    • B60K15/03—Fuel tanks
    • B60K15/077—Fuel tanks with means modifying or controlling distribution or motion of fuel, e.g. to prevent noise, surge, splash or fuel starvation
    • B60K2015/0772—Floats in the fuel tank

Abstract

A pick up-arrangement for a fuel tank comprises a float (14) arranged to rise and fall with the level of fuel in the tank, and a fuel pick-up duct, having its free end coupled to the float (14) so that normally the fuel is picked up from a level substantially above the bottom of the tank.

Description

2350337 Fuel tank pick-up arranqements The present invention relates to
fuel tanks and more particularly to a fuel pick-up arrangement for fuel tanks.
In conventional fuel tanks, the fuel is taken from a point adjacent the bottom of the tank: this enables the pick-up 5 of fuel even when the level of fuel in the tank is low. However, it is common for water and/or sediment to accumulate on the bottom of the tank: at all times, therefore, there is the risk of water and/or sediment being taken up with the fuel.
I have now devised a fuel pick-up arrangement which substantially alleviates the above problem.
In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a pick-up arrangement for a fuel tank, comprising a float arranged for rising and falling with the level of fuel in the tank, and a fuel pick-up duct having its free end is coupled to the float.
In one embodiment, the float is mounted to a pivoted arm and the fuel pick-up duct comprises a pipe which is mounted to this pivoted arm. Instead, the pivoted arm may have a hollow interior forming the pick-up duct, or the pick-up duct may comprise a pipe extending along the interior of the arm. A flexible tube connects the pick-up duct or pipe to an outlet of the tank. Preferably the free end of the pick-up duct or pipe is fitted with a filter.
In another embodiment, the float is arranged to slide vertically and the pick-up duct comprises a length of flexible tubing having its free end coupled to the float. Preferably this flexible tubing is coiled around the slide, which may comprise a pair of vertical rods. Preferably the assembly of float, pick-up pipe and slide are enclosed within a filter. 30 Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of examples only and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: FIGURE 1 is a diagrammatic section through a vehicle fuel tank, showing conventional pick-up arrangements; 35 FIGURE 2 is a view of a first embodiment of fuel pickup in accordance with the present invention; and 2 FIGURE 3 is a sectional view of a vehicle fuel tank fitted with a second embodiment of pickup in accordance with the present invention.
Referring to Figure 1 of the drawings, in a conventional fuel tank 10 the fuel pick-up pipe 12 either enters the bottom of the tank (as at A) or enters the top of the tank and extends down to the bottom (as at B). A float 14 is pivoted to a bracket 16 at the top of the tank, via a rotary sensor, to indicate the level of fuel F in the tank. It will be noted that the end of the pick-up pipe 12, for the entry of fuel, is in both cases at a fixed position adjacent the bottom of the tank, such that there is a risk at all times of the fuel picked up being contaminated with water or sediment S which accumulate on the bottom of the tank 10.
is Referring to Figure 2, in one embodiment of the present invention, the fuel pickup pipe 12 is coupled to the pivoted arm 13 of the f loat 14. Thus, the pick-up pipe 10 extends along the arm 13 and is fixed to it, for example by brackets 11. At its lower end, the pick-up pipe 12 is fitted with a filter 15, shown here as cylindrical in form and made of a micro-mesh sheet. At its upper end, the pick-up pipe 12 is connected by a length of flexible tubing 18 to the pipe 20 which fees fuel to the vehicle fuel pump. In a modification, the pick-up pipe may extend along the interior of the arm 13, or the hollow interior of the arm 13 may form the pickup duct.
Referring to Figure 3, in a second embodiment of the present invention, a float 22 is mounted on two vertical rods 24, for sliding movement up and down according to the level of the fuel F in the tank 10. The pick-up pipe 12 comprises a flexible tube which is coiled around the slide rods 24 and has its lower end attached to the float 22 and its upper end attached to the pipe 20 which feeds fuel to the vehicle fuel pump. A cylindrical filter 26, of micro-mesh sheet material, encloses the arrangement of slide rods 24, float 22 and pick-up pipe 10.
It will be appreciated that, in the embodiments of the invention which have been described with reference to Figures 2 and 3, the fuel entry or pick-up end of the pick-up pipe 10 is always adjacent the surface of the fuel F in the tank: for 3 most of the time, therefore, the pick-up point is at a level substantially above the bottom of the tank and therefore free of the risk of contamination from the water and sediment which accumulate on the bottom of the tank.
4

Claims (10)

Claims
1) A pick-up arrangement for a fuel tank, comprising a float arranged for rising and falling with the level of fuel in the tank, and a fuel pick-up duct having its free end 5 coupled to the float.
2) A pickup arrangement as claimed in claim 1, in which the float is mounted to a pivoted arm.
3) A pick-up arrangement as claimed in claim 2, in which the pick-up duct comprises a pipe mounted to the pivoted arm.
4) A pick-up arrangement as claimed in claim 2, in which the pivoted arm has a hollow interior forming the pick-up duct.
5) A pick-up arrangement as claimed in claim 2, in which the pick-up duct comprises a pipe extending along the hollow interior of the pivoted arm.
6) A pick-up arrangement as claimed in any preceding claim, in which a filter is fitted to the free end of the pick up duct.
7) A pick-up arrangement as claimed in claim 1, in which the float is mounted to a slide for vertical movement and the pick-up duct comprises a flexible tube having its free end coupled to the float.
8) A pick-up arrangement as claimed in claim 7, in which the flexible tube is coiled around the slide.
9) A pick-up arrangement as claimed in claim 7 or 8, further comprising a filter which encloses the float, the slide and the flexible tube.
10) A pickup arrangement substantially as herein described with reference to Figure 2 or Figure 3 of the accompanying drawings.
GB9920191A 1999-05-28 1999-08-27 Fuel tank pick-up arrangements Expired - Lifetime GB2350337B (en)

Priority Applications (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
AU50941/00A AU5094100A (en) 1999-05-28 2000-05-30 Fuel tank pick-up arrangements
PCT/GB2000/002165 WO2001010662A1 (en) 1999-05-28 2000-05-30 Fuel tank pick-up arrangements

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GBGB9912418.2A GB9912418D0 (en) 1999-05-28 1999-05-28 Fuel pick-up pipe assembly

Publications (3)

Publication Number Publication Date
GB9920191D0 GB9920191D0 (en) 1999-10-27
GB2350337A true GB2350337A (en) 2000-11-29
GB2350337B GB2350337B (en) 2002-10-23

Family

ID=10854322

Family Applications (2)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GBGB9912418.2A Ceased GB9912418D0 (en) 1999-05-28 1999-05-28 Fuel pick-up pipe assembly
GB9920191A Expired - Lifetime GB2350337B (en) 1999-05-28 1999-08-27 Fuel tank pick-up arrangements

Family Applications Before (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
GBGB9912418.2A Ceased GB9912418D0 (en) 1999-05-28 1999-05-28 Fuel pick-up pipe assembly

Country Status (1)

Country Link
GB (2) GB9912418D0 (en)

Cited By (11)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2446011A (en) * 2007-01-24 2008-07-30 Michael John James Float device for drawing liquid from tank
GB2472181A (en) * 2009-05-26 2011-02-02 Fuel Active Ltd Float device combined with liquid pickup
GB2482956A (en) * 2007-01-24 2012-02-22 Michael John James Float device for drawing liquid from a tank
GB2493847A (en) * 2011-08-17 2013-02-20 Land Rover Uk Ltd Bracket for fuel level sender unit support arm
US8707991B2 (en) 2008-12-30 2014-04-29 Fuel Active Limited Float device
AU2009200063B2 (en) * 2009-01-07 2015-02-19 Fuel Active Limited Float device
DE102014019425A1 (en) * 2014-12-20 2016-06-23 Man Diesel & Turbo Se suction arrangement
FR3051152A1 (en) * 2016-05-10 2017-11-17 Peugeot Citroen Automobiles Sa COMPACT GAUGE-PUMP MODULE FOR LIQUID TANK
GB2565149A (en) * 2017-08-04 2019-02-06 Fuel Active Ltd Fuel pick-up device
WO2020144450A1 (en) 2019-01-11 2020-07-16 Fuel Active Limited Fuel pick-up device
US11852111B1 (en) * 2022-08-31 2023-12-26 Ford Global Technologies, Llc Apparatus preventing fuel starvation on inclined surfaces

Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB370072A (en) * 1931-01-14 1932-04-07 Whitehead & Poole Improvements in or relating to floating outlets for drawing off supernatant liquid
GB1380992A (en) * 1972-02-08 1975-01-22 Whessoe Ltd Liquid skimming device

Family Cites Families (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE19530256C1 (en) * 1995-08-17 1997-01-23 Webasto Thermosysteme Gmbh Suction device to extract fuel from tank

Patent Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB370072A (en) * 1931-01-14 1932-04-07 Whitehead & Poole Improvements in or relating to floating outlets for drawing off supernatant liquid
GB1380992A (en) * 1972-02-08 1975-01-22 Whessoe Ltd Liquid skimming device

Cited By (19)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2446011B (en) * 2007-01-24 2011-10-19 Michael John James Float device
GB2482956A (en) * 2007-01-24 2012-02-22 Michael John James Float device for drawing liquid from a tank
GB2482956B (en) * 2007-01-24 2012-03-28 Michael John James Float device
GB2446011A (en) * 2007-01-24 2008-07-30 Michael John James Float device for drawing liquid from tank
US8707991B2 (en) 2008-12-30 2014-04-29 Fuel Active Limited Float device
US9174150B2 (en) 2008-12-30 2015-11-03 Fuel Active Limited Float device
AU2009200063B2 (en) * 2009-01-07 2015-02-19 Fuel Active Limited Float device
GB2472181B (en) * 2009-05-26 2014-06-25 Fuel Active Ltd Float device
US8826936B2 (en) 2009-05-26 2014-09-09 Fuel Active Limited Float device
GB2472181A (en) * 2009-05-26 2011-02-02 Fuel Active Ltd Float device combined with liquid pickup
GB2493847B (en) * 2011-08-17 2014-04-02 Jaguar Land Rover Ltd Fuel tank assembly
GB2493847A (en) * 2011-08-17 2013-02-20 Land Rover Uk Ltd Bracket for fuel level sender unit support arm
DE102014019425A1 (en) * 2014-12-20 2016-06-23 Man Diesel & Turbo Se suction arrangement
FR3051152A1 (en) * 2016-05-10 2017-11-17 Peugeot Citroen Automobiles Sa COMPACT GAUGE-PUMP MODULE FOR LIQUID TANK
GB2565149A (en) * 2017-08-04 2019-02-06 Fuel Active Ltd Fuel pick-up device
WO2019025817A1 (en) * 2017-08-04 2019-02-07 Fuel Active Limited Fuel pick-up device
WO2020144450A1 (en) 2019-01-11 2020-07-16 Fuel Active Limited Fuel pick-up device
US11872879B2 (en) 2019-01-11 2024-01-16 Fuel Active Limited Fuel pick-up device
US11852111B1 (en) * 2022-08-31 2023-12-26 Ford Global Technologies, Llc Apparatus preventing fuel starvation on inclined surfaces

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
GB9920191D0 (en) 1999-10-27
GB9912418D0 (en) 1999-07-28
GB2350337B (en) 2002-10-23

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Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
711B Application made for correction of error (sect. 117/77)
711G Correction allowed (sect. 117/1977)
711B Application made for correction of error (sect. 117/77)
711K Request for correction not proceed with (sect. 117/1977)
PE20 Patent expired after termination of 20 years

Expiry date: 20190826

732E Amendments to the register in respect of changes of name or changes affecting rights (sect. 32/1977)

Free format text: REGISTERED BETWEEN 20210708 AND 20210714