JP2001063387A - Fuel inlet - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fuel inlet which does not increase the cost required to mount it in a vehicle body in a relatively movable manner, and which has a simple structure. SOLUTION: This fuel inlet 10 is provided with a substantially outer-tube- shaped flange part 12, not as a separate body but as an integral body, made by radially extending an end edge 11b on the side where a filler cap C is screwed in and then axially folding it back. When the fuel inlet 10 is press-fitted from the side of a fuel tank, into a fuel-inlet support hole 15 provided in a vehicle body B, it is fixed with the flange part 12 in pressure-contact with the fuel-inlet support hole 15. Because the flange part 12 is formed by extending the fuel inlet 10 itself, the number of component items is not increased and a process for assembling them is not necessary. The cost can be reduced as compared with causes where a conventional cylindrical cover is used, and the structure is simplified.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fuel inlet which is press-fitted into a fuel inlet supporting hole provided in a vehicle body so as to be movable relative to the vehicle body.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When fuel is injected into a fuel tank of an automobile, a fuel inlet 101 as shown in FIG. 5 is used. A connection pipe J is attached to an end of the fuel inlet 101 on the fuel tank T side.
A breather tube 103 communicating with the fuel tank T is provided near the fuel inlet of the fuel inlet 101. At the time of refueling, the fuel inlet 10
A fuel supply nozzle (not shown) is inserted from the first fuel supply port, and fuel is supplied to the fuel tank T via the fuel inlet 101 and the connection pipe J. When the fuel starts to be supplied to the fuel tank T, the air in the fuel tank T is pushed out to the fuel inlet side of the fuel inlet 101 via the breather tube 103. Then, when the fuel is continuously supplied, the fuel stored in the fuel tank T reaches the opening height of the breather tube 103, and thereafter, the fuel flows into the breather tube 103.
The inside of the breather tube 103 finally overflows from the opening of the breather tube 103 on the fuel filler side. The fueler confirms this and stops the fueling work.

As shown in FIG. 6, there is known a structure in which a fuel inlet 101 is press-fitted into a fuel inlet support hole 15 provided in a vehicle body B and fixed (for example, see Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 6-259). In particular,
The fuel inlet 101 having a resin-made cylindrical cover 105 wound around the fuel filler opening is press-fitted into the fuel inlet support hole 15 from the fuel tank T side, so that the cylindrical cover 105 and the fuel inlet support hole 1 are formed.
5 is pressed. According to this structure, since the vehicle body B and the fuel inlet 101 can move relative to each other, even if a large load is input to the vehicle body B, for example,
Since the vehicle body B is dented or swelled independently of the fuel inlet 101, the large load does not affect the fuel inlet 101 as it is. Further, since the outer diameter of the refueling lid C is designed to be smaller than the outer diameter of the cylindrical cover 105, even if the vehicle body B is deformed so as to swell with respect to the fuel inlet 101, the refueling lid is formed by the swelled portion. C is not lifted off.

[0004]

However, the structure shown in FIG. 6 has a problem that the material cost of the cylindrical cover 105 is increased because the material is made of resin, and as a result, the cost for fixing the fuel inlet 101 increases. there were.
In addition, since the cylindrical cover 105 is used as a separate component, it is necessary to separately manufacture the cylindrical cover 105, and a step of attaching the cylindrical cover 105 to the fuel inlet 101 is required.
There is a problem that the cost for fixing 01 is increased.

Further, a locking mechanism for preventing the cylindrical cover 105 from being displaced in the axial direction with respect to the fuel inlet 101 when the fuel inlet 101 around which the cylindrical cover 105 is wound is pressed into the fuel inlet supporting hole 15. Was needed. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, a locking mechanism is employed in which a concave groove 105a provided on the inner periphery of the cylindrical cover 105 is hooked on a bead 101a provided on the outer periphery of the fuel inlet 101. . Since such a locking mechanism complicates the configuration of the fuel inlet 101, there is a problem that the fuel inlet 101 cannot be easily manufactured.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and has as its object to provide a fuel inlet which does not increase the cost of fixing the fuel inlet relative to the vehicle body and has a simple structure. .

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention is directed to a fuel inlet which is press-fitted into a fuel inlet support hole provided in a vehicle body so as to be fixed relative to the vehicle body. In the fuel inlet, a substantially outer cylindrical flange portion which extends outward in a radial direction from an end edge on a side where the refueling lid is screwed and is turned back along the axial direction is provided not as a separate body but as the same body, and the fuel inlet is provided. The flange portion is pressed against the fuel inlet support hole when press-fitted into the support hole.

In the fuel inlet of the present invention, the substantially outer cylindrical flange portion plays a role of a conventional cylindrical cover. That is, when the fuel inlet is pressed into the fuel inlet support hole provided in the vehicle body from the fuel tank side, the flange portion is fixed in a state where the flange portion is pressed against the fuel inlet support hole. Since the flange portion is formed by extending the fuel inlet itself, the number of components does not increase, and a step of assembling the fuel inlet into the fuel inlet is not required. Therefore, the cost can be reduced as compared with the case where the conventional cylindrical cover is used. Further, when the fuel inlet is press-fitted into the fuel inlet support hole, there is no possibility that the flange portion is displaced in the axial direction with respect to the fuel inlet, so that there is no need to provide a locking mechanism as in the related art, and the configuration is simplified. . As described above, according to the fuel inlet of the present invention, the cost for fixing the fuel inlet relative to the vehicle body is not increased, and the structure is simplified.

[0009] In the fuel inlet of the present invention,
The flange portion may be provided with a cut (for example, a slit formed along the axial direction) so that the flange portion can be elastically deformed in the radial direction. In this case, when the flange portion is pressed into the fuel inlet support hole, the flange portion is pushed in a radially inward direction. By this pushing, a springback is generated and an elastic force acts in a radially outward direction. Therefore, the fuel inlet is reliably supported by the fuel inlet support hole.

[0010] In the fuel inlet of the present invention,
A vibration absorber such as glass wool may be loaded in the gap surrounded by the substantially cylindrical flange. In this case, since the vibration of the vehicle body is absorbed by the vibration absorbing material, the vibration does not adversely affect the fuel inlet. When the vibration absorbing material is loaded in the gap surrounded by the flange, a part or all of the free end of the flange may be folded inward to hold the vibration absorbing material.

[0011] In the fuel inlet of the present invention, the free end of the flange portion and the outer peripheral surface of the inlet pipe may be separated or in contact with each other. Further, the flange portion may be formed by any method as long as the flange portion is substantially the same as the outer cylindrical shape of the fuel inlet.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. [First Embodiment] FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of this embodiment.
The fuel inlet 10 according to the present embodiment includes an inlet pipe 11 and a retainer 13.

The inlet pipe 11 is formed by processing a metal pipe, and is provided with a spiral groove 11a in the vicinity of an open end, into which a screw-in type oil supply lid C can be screwed.
A substantially outer cylindrical flange portion 12 is provided outside the vicinity of the opening end.
Are provided separately from the inlet pipe 11 instead of as separate bodies. The flange portion 12 is formed by extending an end edge 11b of the inlet pipe 11 on the side where the fuel filler lid C is screwed out in a radially outward direction, and then folding it back along the axial direction. The free end 12a of the flange 12 is
It extends farther than the position where the spiral groove 11 a is provided, and is separated from the outer peripheral surface 11 c of the inlet pipe 11. The flange portion 12 has a substantially outer cylindrical shape, but has an outer diameter larger than the outer diameter of the fueling lid C. In addition, the fuel inlet 10 is connected to the flange 1
2 has an air gap 14 surrounded by it.

The rear end (not shown) of the inlet pipe 11 is connected to a connecting pipe J shown in FIG. 5, and is connected to the fuel tank T via the connecting pipe J. The edge 11b of the inlet pipe 11 comes into contact with the fuel filler lid C and serves to seal the inside of the fuel inlet 10.

The retainer 13 is formed by processing a metal pipe, and is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the inlet pipe 11 on the inner side of the spiral groove 11a by brazing or the like. The opening of the retainer 13 on the fuel tank T side is reduced in diameter to form an interference portion 13a. The interference portion 13a is used in the case of a vehicle for exclusive use of unleaded gasoline, and allows insertion of a fuel supply nozzle for unleaded gasoline, but prohibits insertion of a fuel supply nozzle for unleaded gasoline. It is. The retainer 13 also serves to hold a fuel supply nozzle for unleaded gasoline when the nozzle is inserted.

Next, a method for fixing the fuel inlet 10 of the present embodiment will be described. The vehicle body B is provided with a fuel inlet support hole 15. The fuel inlet support hole 15 is provided with a resin seal portion 15a along the inner periphery thereof. In order to press-fit the fuel inlet 10 into the fuel inlet support hole 15, the fuel inlet 1 is inserted from the fuel tank T side.
The zero edge 11b is press-fitted into the seal portion 15a of the fuel inlet support hole 15, and the press-fit ends when the edge 11b reaches a predetermined position. As a result, the flange portion 12 is connected to the fuel inlet support hole 15.
The fuel inlet 10 is fixed to the vehicle body B in a state where the fuel inlet 10 is pressed against the vehicle body B.

In this fixed structure, the fuel inlet 10 is movable relative to the vehicle body B. Therefore, for example, when a load in the direction indicated by a white arrow in FIG. 1 is input to the vehicle body B at the time of occurrence of an accident, the vehicle body B is recessed independently of the fuel inlet 10 and the fuel inlet 1
0 is not directly affected by the load. When a load in the direction indicated by the black arrow in FIG. 1 is input to the vehicle body B at the time of the accident, the vehicle body B is
And the fuel inlet 10 is not directly affected by the load. At this time, since the outer diameter of the refueling lid C is smaller than the outer diameter of the flange portion 12,
There is no possibility that the fueling lid C will come off due to the bulging vehicle body B.

In the fuel inlet 10 of the present embodiment described in detail above, the flange 12 is connected to the inlet pipe 1.
1 is formed by extending itself, the number of parts does not increase, and a step of assembling the fuel inlet 10 into the fuel inlet 10 becomes unnecessary. Therefore, the cost can be reduced as compared with the case where the conventional cylindrical cover is used. When the fuel inlet 10 is press-fitted into the fuel inlet support hole 15, the flange 12 is connected to the fuel inlet 1.
Since there is no risk of displacement in the axial direction with respect to 0, there is no need to provide a locking mechanism as in the related art, and the configuration is simplified. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to obtain an effect that the cost for fixing the vehicle body relative to the vehicle body B is not increased, and the configuration is simplified.

The end 11b of the inlet pipe 11
Plays a role of sealing the inside of the fuel inlet 11 by contacting with the fuel filler lid C, and therefore requires a surface tolerance of a predetermined tolerance. However, the flange portion 12 is formed relatively long toward the fuel tank T. Therefore, an effect is obtained that this request can be easily satisfied.

[Second Embodiment] FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of this embodiment, and the same components as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals. Fuel inlet 20 of the present embodiment
Is composed of an inlet pipe 21 and a retainer 23.

The inlet pipe 21 is formed by processing a metal pipe, and a rear end (not shown) is connected to a connecting pipe J shown in FIG. It is connected to the. The retainer 23 is formed by processing a metal pipe, and is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the inlet pipe 21 by brazing or the like while being exposed from the opening of the inlet pipe 21. The retainer 23 is provided with a spiral groove 23a near the opening end, into which a screw-in type oil supply lid C can be screwed, and a substantially outer cylindrical flange portion 22 is provided separately from the retainer 23 outside the vicinity of the opening end. It is provided as the same body. In other words, the flange portion 22 is formed by extending an end edge 23b of the retainer 23 on the side where the fuel filler lid C is screwed out in a radially outward direction and then folding the same along the axial direction. This flange 2
The two free ends 22a are separated from the outer peripheral surface. The flange portion 22 has a substantially outer cylindrical shape, and the outer diameter thereof is
Is formed to be larger than the outer diameter. Note that the fuel inlet 20 has a space 24 surrounded by the flange portion 22.

The method of fixing the fuel inlet 20 of the present embodiment and the structure in which the fuel inlet 20 is movable relative to the vehicle body B in the first aspect
The description is omitted because it is almost the same as the embodiment.
In addition, the effects obtained by the present embodiment are also substantially the same as those of the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

It should be noted that the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiments at all, and it goes without saying that various forms can be adopted as long as they fall within the technical scope of the present invention. For example, the fuel inlet 10 of the first embodiment
In FIG. 3, the flange 12 may be elastically deformable in the radial direction by providing a slit 12b along the axial direction on the flange 12, as shown in FIG. In this case, the flange 12 is provided with the fuel inlet support hole 15.
Is pressed inward in the radial direction when it is press-fitted, but spring-back occurs due to such pressing, and an elastic force acts outward in the radial direction. Therefore, the fuel inlet 10
Are reliably supported by the fuel inlet support holes 15. Of course, this configuration may be adopted in the second embodiment.

Further, in the fuel inlet 10 of the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, for the purpose of improving the rigidity and the safety during the assembling work, a gap surrounded by a substantially outer cylindrical flange portion 12 is provided. 14 may be loaded with a vibration absorbing material 18 such as glass wool. In this case, since the vibration of the vehicle body B is absorbed by the vibration absorbing material 18,
The vibration of the vehicle body B does not directly adversely affect the fuel inlet 10. Of course, this configuration may be adopted in the second embodiment. In this case, as shown in FIG.
It is preferable that a part or all of the free end 12a of the flange portion 12 be folded inward to hold the vibration absorbing material 18.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view when a fuel inlet of a first embodiment is fixed to a vehicle body.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view when a fuel inlet according to a second embodiment is fixed to a vehicle body.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of another embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of another embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a mounting structure of a fuel inlet.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view when a conventional fuel inlet is fixed to a vehicle body.

[Explanation of symbols]

10: fuel inlet, 11: inlet pipe, 11a: spiral groove, 11b: edge, 1
1c: outer peripheral surface, 12: flange portion, 12a ...
· Free end, 12b · · · slit, 13 · · · retainer, 13a · · · interference section, 14 · · · gap, 15 · · · fuel inlet support hole, 15a ·
..Seal portions, 18 ... vibration absorbing materials, B ... vehicles,
C: Refueling lid.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A fuel inlet, which is press-fitted into a fuel inlet support hole provided in a vehicle body and fixed in a state capable of moving relative to the vehicle body, a radially outer edge of a fuel inlet lid into which a fuel filler cover is screwed. A substantially outer cylindrical flange portion that is extended and then turned back along the axial direction is provided as an integral body instead of as a separate body, and when pressed into the fuel inlet support hole, the flange portion is pressed into contact with the fuel inlet support hole. A fuel inlet characterized by: 2. The fuel inlet according to claim 1, wherein a cut is provided in the flange so that the flange can be elastically deformed in a radial direction. 3. The fuel inlet according to claim 1, wherein a vibration absorbing material is loaded in a space surrounded by the flange portion.