GB2568094A

GB2568094A - Filler head body for a reductant reservoir assembly

Info

Publication number: GB2568094A
Application number: GB1718329.4A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Groves John; Lewry Peter
Original assignee: Jaguar Land Rover Ltd
Current assignee: Jaguar Land Rover Ltd
Priority date: 2017-11-06
Filing date: 2017-11-06
Publication date: 2019-05-08
Anticipated expiration: 2037-11-06
Also published as: GB2568094B; GB201718329D0

Abstract

A filler head body 262 comprises an inlet 28 for receiving reductant fluid, a first outlet 263 for attachment to a filler tube 30 through which reductant fluid flows to a fluid reservoir 180, a second outlet 265 for attachment to a breather tube 34 to allow gas to flow between the fluid reservoir and the filler head body, and a vent 380 to allow gas to enter or exit the filler head body. The vent may comprise an aperture covered by a semi-permeable membrane (382, fig 5) and a vent lid 40. A vehicle (10, fig 1) comprises a selective catalytic reduction system (16, fig 1) including a reductant reservoir assembly 220 comprising the filler head body, the fluid reservoir, the filler tube and the breather tube. The position of the vent means that it can be above a wade line of the vehicle, avoids contamination of the vent through contact with reductant fluid and means that the size of the vent can be tuned to the requirements of the system.

Description

(57) A filler head body 262 comprises an inlet 28 for receiving reductant fluid, a first outlet 263 for attachment to a filler tube 30 through which reductant fluid flows to a fluid reservoir 180, a second outlet 265 for attachment to a breather tube 34 to allow gas to flow between the fluid reservoir and the filler head body, and a vent 380 to allow gas to enter or exit the filler head body. The vent may comprise an aperture covered by a semi-permeable membrane (382, fig 5) and a vent lid 40. A vehicle (10, fig 1) comprises a selective catalytic reduction system (16, fig 1) including a reductant reservoir assembly 220 comprising the filler head body, the fluid reservoir, the filler tube and the breather tube. The position of the vent means that it can be above a wade line of the vehicle, avoids contamination of the vent through contact with reductant fluid and means that the size of the vent can be tuned to the requirements of the system.

FIG. 3

At least one drawing originally filed was informal and the print reproduced here is taken from a later filed formal copy.

11 18

1/3

Engine

FIG. 2 (PRIOR ART)

11 18

2/3

FIG. 4

11 18

3/3

FIG. 5

FIG. 6

Filler Head Body for a Reductant Reservoir Assembly

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a filler head body for a reductant reservoir assembly and particularly, but not exclusively, to a filler head body for a urea tank assembly of a selective catalytic reduction system for a vehicle. Aspects of the invention relate to a filler head body, to a filler head, to a reductant reservoir assembly and to a vehicle.

BACKGROUND

Diesel-powered vehicles typically incorporate selective catalytic reduction (SCR) systems to convert nitrogen oxides, or NOx, contained in exhaust gas expelled from a vehicle engine into more benign molecules, such as water or diatomic nitrogen.

In such systems, a reductant - typically an aqueous urea solution in an automotive application - is added to the flow of exhaust gas exiting the engine and then subsequently adsorbed onto a catalyst.

Figure 1 schematically illustrates a typical implementation of this approach, in which a vehicle 10 includes an internal combustion engine 12 that expels the waste products of fuel combustion as exhaust gas through an exhaust gas system 14. An SCR system 16 is attached to the exhaust system 14 to treat the exhaust gas to remove NOx particles in a two-stage process. First, the SCR system 16 injects urea from a urea tank 18 into the exhaust gas, and then the exhaust gas is fed into a catalyst chamber 20 where the urea reacts with the NOx particles to produce the more benign products referred to above. The resulting gas mixture is then purged to atmosphere.

Increasingly stringent emissions requirements have caused a corresponding rise in the rate at which the urea solution of the SCR system 16 is used in modern vehicles. As the size of the urea tank 18 cannot be increased due to size and weight constraints within the vehicle environment, it is no longer possible to refill the urea tank only at annual servicing as had previously been the case. Instead, the user must refill the tank every few months to ensure that urea is available for the SCR system 16 at all times.

Users can use filling stations at petrol stations that have previously been used by lorries, therefore making use of lorry infrastructure.

As the user is now expected to refill the urea tank 18 instead of a technician during servicing, the requirements for the rate at which the tank 18 can be filled have been updated to minimise inconvenience to the user. Typically, a fill rate of up to 40L/min is now expected.

Figure 2 shows a known urea tank assembly 22 that is configured for refilling by a user. The urea tank assembly 22 includes the urea tank 18, which holds a volume of aqueous urea solution to be mixed with exhaust gas in the exhaust system 14, along with a filling assembly 24 that enables a user to put urea into, and thus refill, the urea tank 18.

The filling assembly 24 comprises a filler head 26 that includes an inlet port 28 into which the user may put urea, which then flows to the urea tank 18 through a filler tube 30. A cap 32 covers the inlet port 28 when not in use, to prevent contamination of the urea tank 18 with other materials and to prevent spillage of urea from the urea tank 18. The cap 32 also prevents evaporation of water from the tank 18 through the filler head 26, therefore helping to maintain the urea solution at the required concentration.

A breather tube 34 connects the filler head 26 to the urea tank in parallel with the filler tube 28. The breather tube 34 allows air to escape from the urea tank 18 as the tank 18 fills with urea solution.

The filler head 26 has an enlarged region 36 where the breather tube 34 connects, which is provided to accommodate ‘spit back’, namely fluid returning up the breather tube 34 during filling. Due to the increased fill rate required in modern vehicles, the need for the filler head 26 to include the enlarged region 36 has arisen to avoid urea solution splashing out towards the user during refilling.

It is noted that the volume of the urea contained in the urea tank 18 varies over time. For example, thermal expansion of the fluid when the vehicle 10 is operating may cause the volume of urea to increase, whereas usage of urea by the SCR system 16 decreases the volume of fluid. As the volume of urea contained in the urea tank 18 changes, the pressure inside the tank 18 varies unless the volume of air within the tank varies in a complementary manner. Evaporation of water from the urea solution as it warms also contributes to rising pressure within the tank 18. A vent is therefore required somewhere in the SCR system 16 to regulate pressure in the urea tank 18.

The known system shown in Figure 2 includes a circular vent 38 that is defined by an aperture formed in an upper side of the urea tank 18 that is covered by a semipermeable membrane (not visible in Figure 2). The membrane allows air to pass through it in both directions, but not the liquid urea solution, thus allowing the volume of gas in the urea tank 18 to vary as required.

The arrangement shown in Figure 2 is configured to operate when the urea tank 18 is positioned below a wade line of a vehicle 10, namely a level to which water may rise within and around the vehicle 10 without compromising operation. As the vent 38 cannot operate effectively if submerged, a vent lid 40 is placed over the membrane to seal around the aperture of the urea tank 18, and therefore prevent water from entering the tank 18 if water rises to the wade level. The vent lid 40 includes a port 42 to which a vent tube 44 attaches, so that air can pass between the urea tank 18 and the vent tube 44 through the membrane. The vent tube 44 is attached to the breather tube 34 by a series of clips 46 to follow a generally upward path, so that an open end of the vent tube 44 defining an inlet 48 is held above the wade line of the vehicle 10.

Thus, the vent tube 44 enables effective operation of the vent 38 even though it is positioned beneath the wade line, by preventing the ingress of water or dirt by creating the inlet 48 above the wade line.

A problem arising from positioning the vent 38 on the urea tank 18, as shown in Figure 2, is that the membrane is placed in direct contact with the urea solution held in the urea tank 18. This leads to crystallisation of urea on the membrane, which compromises its performance in that air flow across the membrane is restricted. Also, the requirement for a separate vent tube 44 adds to the overall complexity of the arrangement.

In other prior art, a vent may be integral with the cap 32 of the filler head 26. A disadvantage with such an approach is that the size of the vent is limited to the diameter of the cap 32. This restricts the maximum rate at which air can enter or escape from the tank 18, which is increasingly undesirable as the rate at which air must pass through the vent tends to rise in line with increased usage of the SCR solution. Also, the increased complexity of the cap in such arrangements means that it can be awkward for the user to operate.

Furthermore, integrating the vent with the filler head cap 32 is a relatively expensive arrangement compared to placing it on the urea tank 18, as in Figure 2.

The present invention has been devised to mitigate or overcome at least some of the above-mentioned problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided a filler head body for a reductant reservoir assembly of a selective catalytic reduction system of a vehicle. The filler head body comprises an inlet for receiving reductant fluid, a first outlet for attachment to a filler tube through which reductant fluid flows to a fluid reservoir of the reductant reservoir assembly when attached, and a second outlet for attachment to a breather tube to allow gas, such as air or water vapour, to flow between the fluid reservoir and the filler head body. The filler head body further comprises a vent that allows gas to enter or exit the filler head body.

By positioning the vent in the filler head body, and not in the fluid reservoir tank or in a cap that is attached to the filler head body as in the prior art, various benefits are gained as explained later in some detail. In summary, this arrangement avoids contamination of the vent through contact with reductant fluid such as urea, and simplifies the manufacture the fluid reservoir. It also increases the flexibility in tuning the size of the vent to the requirements of the system compared with integrating the vent with a cap.

The vent optionally comprises an aperture that is covered by a semi-permeable membrane. It is noted that a semi-permeable membrane is a term of art that would be well understood by the skilled person in this context as referring to a membrane that is permeable to gases such as air and water vapour, but not to liquid reductant fluid such as urea.

The filler head body may comprise an internal cavity, which in turn may include at least one splash guard formation disposed between the second outlet and the vent. Alternatively, or in addition, the internal cavity may comprise a tube extending between the inlet and the first outlet.

The filler head body may comprise an enlarged region on which the second outlet is positioned. Such an enlarged region beneficially offers protection against swell during filling of the fluid reservoir.

Another aspect of the invention provides a filler head for a reductant reservoir assembly of a selective catalytic reduction system of a vehicle, the filler head comprising the filler head body of the above aspect.

The filler head may also comprise a cap that is attachable to the inlet to close the inlet.

In some embodiments, the filler head comprises a vent lid that substantially covers the vent.

In another aspect, the invention extends to a reductant reservoir assembly for a selective catalytic reduction system of a vehicle. The reductant reservoir assembly comprises a filler head according to the above aspect. The reductant reservoir assembly further includes a fluid reservoir, a filler tube providing fluid communication between the fluid reservoir and the first outlet of the filler head body, and a breather tube providing fluid communication between the fluid reservoir and the second outlet of the filler head body.

The breather tube provides a route for air and other gases to escape from the fluid reservoir and return to the filler head during filling, when urea solution enters the fluid reservoir through the filler tube. The breather tube also acts as a swell tube, by allowing excess reductant to flow back towards the filler head if the filling rate through the filler tube is momentarily too high.

Conveniently, with the vent located in the filling head, the breather tube also allows for gas to flow between the fluid reservoir and the vent at other times, thereby providing pressure regulation for the fluid reservoir. In this way, the reservoir assembly of this aspect uses the breather tube at times other than during refilling operations, thus improving utilisation of the components of the assembly.

Conventionally, the filler tube and the breather tube are two separate components but it is conceived that the filler tube and the breather tube are formed into a single component in the form of a split tube.

Another aspect of the invention provides a vehicle comprising a selective catalytic reduction system including the reductant reservoir assembly of claim the above aspect. In such a vehicle, the filler head of the reductant reservoir assembly may be positioned above a wade line of the vehicle.

Within the scope of this application it is expressly intended that the various aspects, embodiments, examples and alternatives set out in the preceding paragraphs, in the claims and/or in the following description and drawings, and in particular the individual features thereof, may be taken independently or in any combination. That is, all embodiments and/or features of any embodiment can be combined in any way and/or combination, unless such features are incompatible. The applicant reserves the right to change any originally filed claim or file any new claim accordingly, including the right to amend any originally filed claim to depend from and/or incorporate any feature of any other claim although not originally claimed in that manner.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Figures 1 and 2 show a known urea tank assembly and have already been described. One or more embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like features are assigned like reference numerals, and in which:

Figure 3 is a perspective view of a urea tank assembly according to an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 4 is a detail view of a filler head of the urea tank assembly shown in Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the urea tank assembly shown in Figure 3; and

Figure 6 is a perspective view of an internal feature of the filler head shown in Figure 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Figure 3 shows a reductant reservoir assembly according to an embodiment of the invention in the form of a urea tank assembly 220, which forms part of the SCR system 16 of the vehicle 10 shown in Figure 1.

Like the arrangement of Figure 2, the urea tank assembly 220 of Figure 3 is composed of a urea tank 180 and a filling assembly 240. The urea tank 180 acts as a fluid reservoir for urea solution, which is used as a reductant by the SCR system 16 of the vehicle 10. The filling assembly 240 allows a user to pump urea solution into the urea tank 180 to compensate for consumption of urea solution by the SCR system 16.

As in the known arrangement, in the urea tank assembly 220 of Figure 3 a filler head 260 of the filling assembly 240 communicates with the urea tank 180 through a filler tube 30 and a breather tube 34. The filler head 260 is shown in more detail in Figure 4, which is now referred to alongside Figure 3.

The filler head 260 comprises a filler head body 262 that is formed in two parts: an upper part 262a, and a lower part 262b. The upper and lower parts 262a, 262b of the filler head body 262 may be produced by injection moulding, for example, and then fused or welded together to create a single body.

The filler head body 262 includes an inlet in the form of an inlet port 28 into which a user may put liquid urea solution, which then flows to the urea tank 180 through the filler tube 30. Although not shown in Figures 3 or 4, the inlet port 28 comprises a generally tubular projection having an external male thread.

The filler head body 262 further includes a first outlet 263, to which the filler tube 30 attaches, and a second outlet 265 to which the breather tube 34 attaches.

The filler head 260 comprises a cylindrical cap 32 that covers the inlet port 28 of the filler head body 262 when not in use for refilling, to create an air-tight seal that prevents contamination of the urea tank 180 with other materials and prevents spillage of urea solution from the urea tank 180. As in the prior art arrangement, the cap 32 also prevents evaporation of water from the urea tank 180 through the inlet port 28, therefore helping to maintain the urea solution at the required concentration.

The cap 32 includes an axial bore comprising a female thread, so that the cap 32 can be screwed onto the inlet port 28 of the filler head body 262 to close the port 28.

As in the known arrangement, in the urea tank assembly of Figures 3 and 4 the breather tube 34 allows air to escape from the urea tank 180 as it fills with urea solution fluid that flows into the tank 180 from the filler tube 30. The breather tube 34 also acts as a swell tube by allowing excess urea solution to flow back towards the filler head body 262 during filling without interrupting flow into the urea tank 180 through the filler tube 30.

Similarly to the known arrangement, the filler head body 262 of Figure 3 has an enlarged region 36 to accommodate ‘spit back’, on which the second outlet 265 is formed for the breather tube 34 to connect to. The details of the enlarged region 36 are shown more clearly in Figures 5 and 6, which are described later.

The urea tank 180 shown in Figure 3 is identical to that of the known arrangement shown in Figure 2, except that no vent is defined on the body of the tank 180 shown in Figure 3. Thus, the tank 180 of this embodiment of the invention is simpler than the prior art tank described above, which includes an aperture in its upper wall for receiving the membrane to create the vent.

As most clearly shown in Figure 4, instead of placing a vent on the urea tank 180, or in the cap 32, as in the prior art, in this embodiment a vent 380 is provided on the filler head body 262 of the filling assembly 240. The vent 380 comprises an aperture formed in a wall of the filler head body 262, which in this embodiment is covered by a semipermeable membrane 382 (shown in Figure 5), the membrane 382 in turn being covered by a vent lid 40. The vent lid 40 includes a port 42 that acts as an outlet. It is noted that in other embodiments the membrane 382 and/or the lid 40 may be omitted, as discussed in more detail later.

It is noted that, conveniently, the vent lid 40 and the membrane 383 of this embodiment are identical to those of the prior art arrangement shown in Figure 2, thus minimising the number of new components to be designed to implement this embodiment of the invention.

Figure 5 shows the urea tank assembly 220 in cross-section, although it is noted that the portion of the filler head 260 to the left of the filler tube 30 (in Figure 5) is omitted.

As shown in Figure 5, with the vent 380 positioned on the filler head body 262, gases including air and water vapour can flow between the vent 380 and the urea tank 180 through the breather tube 34. As the breather tube 34 is included in the assembly 220 already for its original purpose of allowing air to exit the urea tank 180 during refilling, this arrangement dispenses with the need to provide a dedicated tube for venting purposes and so makes better use of the available apparatus.

In use, if the volume of the urea contained in the urea tank 180 increases due to thermal expansion, air can be purged from the tank 180 through the breather tube 34 and out of the vent 380. Conversely, when the volume of urea solution contained in the urea tank 180 falls due to thermal contraction or consumption of the urea solution by the SCR system 16, air can enter the vent 380 and travel through the breather tube 34 to reach the tank 180. Also, water vapour given off by the urea solution as it warms can also escape through the vent 380. In this way, the vent 380 of this embodiment acts to regulate pressure within the urea tank 180 in a similar manner to the vent of the prior art arrangement.

As Figure 5 shows, the enlarged portion 36 of the filler head body 262 is hollow and so defines an internal chamber 264, a lower wall of which has an opening 266 defining the second outlet 265 to which the breather tube 34 connects to provide fluid communication between the urea tank 180 and the chamber 264. In use, urea surging up the breather tube 34 during a refilling operation is collected in the chamber 264, before draining back through the breather tube 34 and/or the filler tube 30 into the urea tank 180.

In this embodiment, an internal wall 268, generally semi-circular in cross section, is placed between the membrane 382 and the opening 266 into the chamber 264 of the filler head body 262. The internal wall 268 acts as a guard to prevent urea surging into the chamber 264 from splashing onto the membrane 382.

Figure 6 shows the filler head body 262 as seen from above, with the upper part 262a removed so that internal features of the lower part 262b are visible.

As shown, the filler head body 262 includes an internal tubular formation extending upwardly from a lower wall of the body 262 to define a filler channel 270. The filler channel 270 provides communication between the inlet port 28 and the filler tube 30, which connects to a lower end of the filler channel 270. Thus, the filler channel 270 encloses the flow of urea solution between the port 28 and the filler tube 30, which prevents the solution from entering the chamber 264 of the filler head body 262 during refilling.

Figure 6 reveals a peripheral channel around an upwardly facing edge of the lower part 262b of the filler head body 262, the channel defining a weld interface 272 that engages with a corresponding formation (not shown in the figures) extending from the upper part 262a to aid assembly of the filler head body 262.

As Figure 6 shows, the splash guard 268 is generally semi-circular in cross-section and extends upwardly from the opening 266 that connects to the breather tube 34. The splash guard 268 therefore provides protection against urea solution contacting the membrane 382.

Various benefits arise from locating the vent 380 on the filler head body 262 instead of on the urea tank 180 or the cap 32, as in the prior art.

Firstly, unlike in the Figure 2 arrangement, in the embodiment shown in Figures 3 to 6 the membrane 382 of the vent 380 is not in direct contact with urea solution contained in the urea tank 180, and so the risk of urea crystallising on the membrane 382 and hindering its performance is greatly reduced. Similarly, the vent 380 shown in Figures 3 to 6 is easier to protect from splashing of urea within the filler head body 262 using the splash guards described above than if the vent were positioned on the cap 32, which cannot be obscured.

Beneficially, as the vent 380 is positioned on the filler head body 262, the vent 380 is automatically above the wade line of the vehicle 10 as the filler head 260 is always positioned above the wade line. Therefore, in this embodiment there is no need for a separate vent pipe and the associated clips to move the vent inlet above the vehicle wade line, as in the arrangement shown in Figure 2. Dispensing with these components reduces the weight, cost and complexity of the urea tank assembly 220 of this embodiment relative to the known arrangement described above.

Also, removing the vent from the urea tank 180 improves the usage of the package available for the urea tank 180 within the vehicle 10, as it allows the top surface of the urea tank 180 to be raised, thereby increasing the volume of liquid that the tank 180 can hold. Ensuring that the urea tank 180 is sufficient in size is challenging in view of the package constraints, and so the volume increase offered by the arrangement shown in Figure 3 is a significant benefit. Moreover, there is no need to mount and route a vent pipe on the tank 180 in this embodiment of the invention, therefore reducing the assembly time for the urea tank 180.

Furthermore, as the urea tank 180 of this embodiment is simpler than the prior art tank, and in particular because there is no need to form an aperture in a wall of the tank 180 to create a vent, the complexity of tools required to manufacture the tank 180 is reduced. In turn, the unit cost of the tank 180 is lower than for the Figure 2 arrangement.

Relative to integrating the vent with the cap, the urea tank assembly 220 shown in Figure 3 offers other benefits.

For example, as the filler head body 262 is significantly larger than the cap 32, there is more freedom in the size of the membrane 382 of the vent 380 in the arrangement shown in Figure 3 than for an arrangement in which the vent is integrated with the cap 32, in which case the size of the membrane 382 is limited to the diameter of the cap 32. The increased flexibility in the size of the membrane 382 in the urea tank assembly 220 of this embodiment improves the ability of the membrane 382 to be ‘tuned’ to provide a desired flow rate of air through the vent 380.

In addition, the cap 32 shown in Figure 3 is simpler and therefore cheaper to produce than a cap incorporating a vent. There is also less risk of a user tampering with the membrane 382 than if it were integrated with the cap 32, which the user must handle by necessity during refilling operations.

There is also a reduced chance of fuel contamination with the vent 380 positioned away from the cap 32. When the cap 32 is located within a vehicle filler pocket alongside a fuel filling port, so that a user can access both the urea filler head 260 and the fuel filling port at a common location, that area can become contaminated with fuel during refuelling due to splashing or dripping. If a user were to refuel with a cap having an integral membrane not properly secured and sealed on the inlet port 28 of the filler head body 262, the membrane 382 could become contaminated with fuel. In the embodiment shown in Figures 3 to 6, the membrane 382 is located away from the cap 32 and so it is less likely to be contacted by fuel.

Some cap designs incorporate vent holes to allow air passing through the membrane to vent to atmosphere. These vent holes can become blocked over time by sediment accumulation, which is another disadvantage of the prior art relative to positioning the cap on the filler head body 262.

Many modifications may be made to the above examples without departing from the 5 scope of the present invention as defined in the accompanying claims.

For example, although the invention has been described with reference to a system that uses urea solution as a reductant, the invention is suitable for use with SCR systems 16 that use any type of reductant.

Also, the vent may not include a semi-permeable membrane, and instead may be defined by an aperture of small diameter that allows gas to pass between the filler head body and atmosphere at a restricted rate to regulate pressure within the urea tank, whilst minimising the quantity of water vapour that escapes.

Claims

1. A filler head body for a reductant reservoir assembly of a selective catalytic reduction system of a vehicle, the filler head body comprising:

an inlet for receiving reductant fluid;

a first outlet for attachment to a filler tube through which reductant fluid flows to a fluid reservoir of the reductant reservoir assembly when attached;

a second outlet for attachment to a breather tube to allow gas to flow between the fluid reservoir and the filler head body; and a vent configured to allow gas to enter or exit the filler head body.

2. The filler head body of claim 1, wherein the vent comprises an aperture that is covered by a semi-permeable membrane.

3. The filler head body of claim 1 or claim 2, comprising an internal cavity.

4. The filler head body of claim 3, wherein the internal cavity includes at least one splash guard formation disposed between the second outlet and the vent.

5. The filler head body of claim 3 or claim 4, wherein the internal cavity comprises a tube extending between the inlet and the first outlet.

6. The filler head body of any preceding claim, comprising an enlarged region on which the second outlet is positioned.

7. The filler head body of any preceding claim, wherein the inlet comprises a cap to close the inlet.

8. The filler head body of any preceding claim, wherein the vent comprises a vent lid that at least partially covers the vent.

9. A reductant reservoir assembly for a selective catalytic reduction system of a vehicle, the reductant reservoir assembly comprising:

a filler head body according to any preceding claim;

a fluid reservoir;

a filler tube providing fluid communication between the fluid reservoir and the first outlet of the filler head body; and a breather tube providing fluid communication between the fluid reservoir 5 and the second outlet of the filler head body.

10. A vehicle comprising a selective catalytic reduction system including the reductant reservoir assembly of claim 9.

10

11. The vehicle of claim 10, wherein the filler head of the reductant reservoir assembly is positioned above a wade line of the vehicle.

Intellectual Property Office

Application No: GB1718329.4

Claims searched: 1-11

Examiner: Rachel Smith

Date of search: 21 March 2018

Patents Act 1977: Search Report under Section 17

Documents considered to be relevant:

Category Relevant to claims Identity of document and passage or figure of particular relevance X 1-3, 5, 7- 11 FR 3035828 Al (PEUGEOT CITROEN AUTOMOBILES SA) See figures, WPI abstract accession number 2016-69661S and paragraph 30. X 1,3,5, 7, 9-11 US 2015/167529 Al (HYUNDAI MOTOR CO LTD) See figures and paragraphs 40-47 & 51. X 1, 3-6, 9- 11 US 2016/263991 Al (KAUTEX TEXTRON GMBH & CO KG) See figures and paragraphs 33, 34 & 38. X 1,3,5-11 WO 2014/086826 Al (INERGY AUTOMOTIVE SYSTEMS RES) See figures and page 11 line 22 - page 12 line 15.

Categories:

X Document indicating lack of novelty or inventive step A Document indicating technological background and/or state of the art. Y Document indicating lack of inventive step if P Document published on or after the declared priority date but combined with one or more other documents of before the filing date of this invention. same category. & Member of the same patent family E Patent document published on or after, but with priority date earlier than, the filing date of this application.

Field of Search:

Search of GB, EP, WO & US patent documents classified in the following areas of the UKCX :

Worldwide search of patent documents classified in the following areas of the IPC____________

BOID; F01N_________________________________________________

The following online and other databases have been used in the preparation of this search report WPI, EPODOC

International Classification:

Subclass Subgroup Valid From F01N 0003/20 01/01/2006 BOID 0053/90 01/01/2006 BOID 0053/94 01/01/2006