JP2010221777A - Fuel tank, and manufacturing method for fuel tank - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fuel tank having high heat insulation effect and to provide a manufacturing method for a fuel tank for manufacturing the fuel tank. <P>SOLUTION: A heat insulation member 16 constituted by a lower heat insulation material 18L and an upper heat insulation material 18U divided to two parts at upper and lower sides of a fuel tank body 14 is arranged on a periphery of the fuel tank 12. A joint part 68 of the lower heat insulation material 18L and the upper heat insulation material 18U is heat-welded. Heat insulation can be performed by the heat insulation member 16 over the approximately whole surface so as to surround a periphery of the fuel tank body 14 and the heat insulation effect is enhanced. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a fuel tank provided in a vehicle such as an automobile and a fuel tank manufacturing method for manufacturing the fuel tank.

  In a fuel tank provided in a vehicle such as an automobile, it is preferable to suppress a change in the temperature of fuel contained therein. For example, Patent Document 1 describes a structure in which the lower periphery of a fuel tank is covered with a heat insulating cover via a heat insulating layer.

  However, in the structure of Patent Document 1, since only the lower half of the fuel tank is covered with the heat insulating material, it is difficult to obtain a high heat insulating effect.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 4-90425

  In view of the above facts, an object of the present invention is to obtain a fuel tank having a high heat insulation effect and a fuel tank manufacturing method for manufacturing the fuel tank.

  In the first aspect of the present invention, the fuel tank body is configured to include a fuel tank main body and a plurality of divided heat insulating materials arranged around the fuel tank, and the divided heat insulating materials are thermally welded at the mating portion. And a heat insulating member surrounding the fuel tank body.

  In this fuel tank, a divided heat insulating material is disposed around the fuel tank main body capable of containing fuel, and the heat insulating members are thermally welded at the mating portion to form a heat insulating member surrounding the fuel tank main body. Yes. In other words, it is possible to surround the fuel tank body with the heat insulating material (heat insulating member) by using the heat insulating material (divided heat insulating material) divided in advance and thermally welding the mating portions. Since the fuel tank main body can be surrounded by the heat insulating member in this way, the heat insulating effect is enhanced as compared with the conventional structure in which only the lower half of the fuel tank main body is covered with the heat insulating material. In addition, since the welded portions are thermally welded, the gaps between the divided heat insulating materials can be eliminated, and the heat insulating effect is further enhanced.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, an extension member extending to the outside from the fuel tank main body, and an insertion through which the extension member is inserted and formed in the divided heat insulating material. A hole and a slit formed in the divided heat insulating material to communicate the insertion hole and an outer edge of the divided heat insulating material, and the divided member is inserted in the insertion hole through the slit. The heat insulating materials are thermally welded by the slits.

  The extending member can be inserted into the insertion hole through the slit. And since the division | segmentation heat insulating material of the slit part is heat-welded in the state which inserted the extension member in the insertion hole, the circumference | surroundings of the extension member can be surrounded by a division | segmentation heat insulating material. That is, even in a structure in which the extending member is extended from the fuel tank body to the outside, a high heat insulating effect can be obtained.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the present invention, a pump module in which an upper portion of the module is disposed on an upper surface of the fuel tank body, and the pump module formed on the divided heat insulating material are arranged. An attachment / detachment hole for making the fuel tank body attachable / detachable, and the split heat insulating material partially formed on the upper side of the fuel tank body around the attachment / detachment hole. A vehicle body contact portion that is in contact with the periphery of the opening.

  The upper part of the pump module is arranged on the upper surface of the fuel tank body, but the split heat insulating material has an attachment / detachment hole, and through this attachment / detachment hole (through the attachment / detachment opening of the pump module of the vehicle body), The pump module can be attached to and detached from the fuel tank body.

  Around the attachment / detachment hole, the divided heat insulating material is partially raised above the fuel tank body to form a vehicle body contact portion, and a vehicle body joint (split heat insulating material) is provided around the vehicle body attachment / detachment opening. Can be contacted. Thereby, since the periphery of the module upper part is obstruct | occluded with a heat insulating material and a vehicle body, and a heat transfer can be suppressed, the heat insulation effect becomes high.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the projection is partially protruded outward from the fuel tank body and the tip is used for attachment to a vehicle body. And an exposed hole that is formed in the divided heat insulating material and exposes the tip of the convex portion to the outer surface side of the divided heat insulating material.

  That is, the tip of the convex portion is exposed to the outer surface side of the divided heat insulating material by the exposure hole formed in the divided heat insulating material. Since the split heat insulating material does not exist at the tip of the convex portion, it is possible to reliably perform positioning and attachment to the vehicle body using the convex portion.

  The term “for mounting” here includes not only the case where the fuel tank is attached to the vehicle body using the tip of the convex portion, but also the case where the fuel tank is positioned with respect to the vehicle body when the fuel tank is attached to the vehicle body. .

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth aspect of the present invention, in the fuel tank main body, the contact rubber member that closes the exposed hole from the outer surface side of the divided heat insulating material and contacts the vehicle body, And a step portion that is formed around a convex portion and partially sandwiches the divided heat insulating material with the contact rubber member.

  In this way, it is possible to enhance the heat insulating effect by closing the exposure hole from the outer surface side of the divided heat insulating material with the contact rubber member. In this case, since the tip of the convex portion is also covered with the contact rubber member, the tip of the convex portion is brought into contact with the vehicle body via the contact rubber member, and the fuel tank is attached to the vehicle body.

  Moreover, the state which sealed the circumference | surroundings of the convex part with the division | segmentation heat insulating material can be maintained by pinching | interposing a division | segmentation heat insulating material partially by the rubber member step part and step part for a contact, and the heat insulation effect becomes high.

  In the invention described in claim 6, the fuel tank main body capable of containing fuel and a plurality of divided heat insulating materials arranged around the fuel tank are formed, and the joining portions of the divided heat insulating materials are thermally welded. A fuel tank manufacturing method for manufacturing a fuel tank comprising: a plurality of the divided heat insulating materials arranged at predetermined positions around the fuel tank main body; Inserting a heat-welding member having a temperature equal to or higher than the melting temperature of the divided heat insulating material, and moving the heat-welding member to partially melt the heat-split heat at the mating portion while welding the heat-split heat at the molten portion. To do.

  Thus, by inserting the welding heat member into the mating portion of the divided heat insulating material arranged at a predetermined position around the fuel tank body and moving the welding heat member, the divided heat insulating material can be easily obtained. Can be heat-welded at the mating portion to constitute a heat insulating member.

  Since the present invention is configured as described above, a fuel tank having a high heat insulating effect and a fuel tank manufacturing method for manufacturing the fuel tank are obtained.

It is a perspective view which shows the fuel tank of 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the fuel tank of 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which expands partially the fuel tank of 1st Embodiment of this invention with a part of vehicle body in the cross section equivalent to the III-III line of FIG. It is sectional drawing which expands partially the fuel tank of 1st Embodiment of this invention with a part of vehicle body in the cross section equivalent to the IV-IV line of FIG. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the vicinity of a pipe in the fuel tank according to the first embodiment of the present invention, in which (A) is a cross-sectional view along the longitudinal direction of the pipe, and (B) is a cross-sectional view along the radial direction of the pipe. The vicinity of the specific piping in the fuel tank of 1st Embodiment of this invention is expanded and shown, (A) is the state after welding of a heat insulating material, (B) is the state in the middle of welding. It is a perspective view which shows the state which has welded the joint part of a heat insulating material in the process of manufacturing the fuel tank of 1st Embodiment of this invention. The process of manufacturing the fuel tank of 1st Embodiment of this invention is shown, (A) is the state in the middle of welding of a heat insulating material, (B) is the state after welding.

  FIG. 1 shows a fuel tank 12 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in detail in FIG. 2, the fuel tank 12 includes a fuel tank main body 14 formed in a substantially box shape, and a heat insulating member 16 arranged so as to surround the entire periphery thereof. ing. In this embodiment, the heat insulating member 16 is composed of a lower heat insulating material 18L and an upper heat insulating material 18U which are divided into two parts in the vertical direction. Both the lower heat insulating material 18L and the upper heat insulating material 18U are made of the same material having a higher heat insulating property than the material forming the fuel tank main body 14. The fuel tank 12 having the fuel tank main body 14 and the heat insulating member 16 is attached to the vehicle body by a plurality (two in this embodiment) of tank bands 20.

  As can be seen from FIG. 2, the upper heat insulating material 18 </ b> U has a shape capable of covering the substantially upper half of the fuel tank main body 14, and the lower heat insulating material 18 </ b> L can cover the substantially lower half of the fuel tank main body 14. It is possible shape. In addition, a recess 46 is formed along the tank band 20 in the lower heat insulating material 18L, and the tank band 20 is partially accommodated in the recess 46 of the lower heat insulating material 18L. In the present embodiment, since the two tank bands 20 extending in the vehicle front-rear direction are arranged at an interval in the vehicle width direction, the band recesses 44 are also formed in two places corresponding to this.

  As shown in detail in FIG. 3, a pump module 22 is disposed inside the fuel tank body 14. The pump module 22 has a fuel pump at a lower portion thereof, and the fuel in the fuel tank main body 14 can be sent to the engine (not shown) through the fuel supply pipe 26 by driving the fuel pump. An attachment plate 28 for attachment to the fuel tank main body 14 is provided at the upper part of the pump module 22, and the attachment plate 28 is fixed to the upper surface 14 U of the fuel tank main body 14 by a retainer 30.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, one or more pipes 32 (a vent pipe, a filler pipe, etc. in addition to the fuel supply pipe 26 described above) extend from the upper surface 14U of the fuel tank body 14 as necessary. Has been issued. These pipes 32 are connected to other pipes or the like via connectors 34 having a diameter larger than the pipe diameter. The upper heat insulating material 18U has these pipes 32.

  An attachment opening 36 is formed in the upper surface 14U of the fuel tank body 14. A mounting flange 28F at the periphery of the mounting plate 28 is disposed on the upper end surface 36T of the mounting opening 36 so as to be covered from above. Further, a rubber seal ring 38 surrounding the mounting opening 36 is disposed on the upper end surface 36T, and contacts the mounting flange 28F to seal between them. The fuel supply pipe 26 extends upward through the mounting plate 28, is bent at the bent portion 26 </ b> B, and extends in the lateral direction.

  An attachment / detachment hole 48 is formed in the upper heat insulating material 18U at the same position as the attachment opening 36. As can be seen from FIG. 3, the attachment / detachment hole 48 is also located at the same position as the service hole 50 (attachment / detachment opening) formed in the panel 42 of the vehicle body. Therefore, the pump module 22 can be attached to and detached from the fuel tank body 14 through the attachment hole 48 and the service hole 50. Note that the service hole 50 is closed by the service hole cover 51 in the commuting state.

  Around the attachment / detachment hole 48, the upper heat insulating material 18 </ b> U is partially raised upward to form the vehicle body joint portion 52. As can be seen from FIG. 3, the vehicle body joint 52 is brought into contact with the panel 42 around the service hole 50.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, one or a plurality of convex portions 40 are formed on the upper surface 14 </ b> U of the fuel tank main body 14 so as to partially protrude upward. The tips 40T of the convex portions 40 face the panel 42 of the vehicle body, and the fuel tank 12 is positioned or attached to the vehicle body.

  The upper heat insulating material 18U is formed with an exposure hole 54 at a position corresponding to each of the convex portions 40 so that the tip 40T of the convex portion 40 can be exposed to the outer surface side (upper side) of the upper heat insulating material 18U. Has been. In the present embodiment, the exposure hole 54 is covered with the contact rubber member 56, and the tip 40 T of the convex portion 40 is in contact with the panel 42 through the contact rubber member 56.

  A step portion 58 is formed around the convex portion 40 on the upper surface of the fuel tank main body 14. The step portion 58 partially sandwiches the upper heat insulating material 18U (a portion around the exposure hole 54) with the contact rubber member 56.

  As shown to FIG. 5 (A) and (B), the through-hole 60 is formed in the upper side heat insulating material 18U corresponding to the piping 32, and also the edge (( A slit 62 communicating with the upper edge portion in FIG. 5B is formed. In particular, with respect to the specific pipe 32S, as shown in FIG. 6A, a surrounding portion 64 that partially surrounds the specific pipe 32S is formed. The surrounding portion 64 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and a slit 62 that communicates the inside and the outside of the cylindrical portion is formed along the longitudinal direction of the surrounding portion 64. As will be described later, the upper heat insulating material 18U is partially melted by sliding the welding plate member 66 in the slit 62, and is thermally welded after passing through the slit 62. The surrounding portion 64 is set to a length that does not reach the connector 34.

  Next, the manufacturing method of the fuel tank 12 of this embodiment and the operation of the fuel tank 12 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in the fuel tank 12 of the present embodiment, two lower heat insulating materials 18 </ b> L and an upper heat insulating material 18 </ b> U are disposed from above and below the fuel tank main body 14. At this time, the opposing portions of the upper heat insulating material 18U and the lower heat insulating material 18L are in contact with each other as a mating portion 68. In addition, when arrange | positioning the upper heat insulating material 18U from the upper surface side of the fuel tank main body 14, the piping 32 is accommodated in the through-hole 60 formed in the upper heat insulating material 18U through the slit 62 (For specific piping 32S, Housed in the enclosure 64). That is, the opening area of the through hole 60 and the surrounding portion 64 is substantially increased by the slit 62, so that the pipes 32 and 32S can be accommodated in the through hole 60 and the surrounding portion 64.

  Next, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8A, the welding plate member 66 is inserted between the two lower heat insulating materials 18L and the upper heat insulating material 18U (matching portion 68). The welding plate member 66 is a thin plate-like member heated to a temperature at which the lower heat insulating material 18L and the upper heat insulating material 18U can be welded. The welding plate member 66 moves the welding plate member 66 along the mating portion 68 while welding the lower heat insulating material 18L and the upper heat insulating material 18U at the mating portion 68 (arrow M direction). The lower heat insulating material 18L and the upper heat insulating material 18U themselves have high heat insulating properties. Therefore, the lower heat insulating material 18L and the upper heat insulating material 18U are not inadvertently melted at locations away from the welding plate member 66.

  Immediately after the welding plate member 66 has passed, since the lower heat insulating material 18L and the upper heat insulating material 18U are partially melted in the mating portion 68, as shown in FIG. By bringing them into close contact with each other, the lower heat insulating material 18L and the upper heat insulating material 18U can be heat-welded at the mating portion 68, whereby the integral heat insulating member 16 can be configured. The heat insulating member 16 surrounds the fuel tank main body 14 over substantially the entire surface.

  Further, the welding plate member 66 is also inserted into the slit 62, and the welding plate member 66 is moved along the slit 62 while partially melting the upper heat insulating material 18U on both sides of the slit. By thermally welding the upper heat insulating material 18U on both sides of the slit immediately after passing through the slit 62, the periphery of the pipe 32 can be surrounded by the upper heat insulating material 18U as shown in FIG. In particular, as shown in FIG. 6B, the specific piping 32 </ b> S can be surrounded by a cylindrical surrounding portion 64.

  In this way, in a state where the heat insulating member 16 is configured, heat insulation can be performed over substantially the entire surface so as to surround the periphery of the fuel tank main body 14 from both sides of the upper surface 14U and the lower surface 14L of the fuel tank main body 14. Therefore, the heat insulating effect is enhanced as compared with the configuration in which the heat insulating material is arranged only in a part of the periphery of the fuel tank main body 14.

  Moreover, the upper heat insulating material 18U and the lower heat insulating material 18L are heat-welded at the mating portion 68, and the sealing performance is ensured. Since the gap between the upper heat insulating material 18U and the lower heat insulating material 18L can be eliminated, the heat insulating effect becomes higher. Even around the specific piping 32, the piping 32 is surrounded by the surrounding portion 64 to be thermally insulated. Moreover, since the connector 34 is located outside the upper heat insulating material 18U (the heat insulating member 16), it is possible to connect other pipes or the like to the connector 34.

  The fuel tank 12 thermally insulated by the heat insulation member 16 as described above is attached to the vehicle body by the tank band 20, but in the attached state, the tip 40T of the convex portion 40 of the fuel tank body 14 faces the panel 42 of the vehicle body. Then, the fuel tank 12 is positioned with respect to the vehicle body. In the present embodiment, the tip 40T of the convex portion 40 is exposed to the outer surface side (upper side) of the upper heat insulating material 18U through the exposure hole 54, and a contact rubber member is provided between the tip 40T of the convex portion 40 and the panel 42. 56 is interposed. Since the upper heat insulating material 18U, which is a flexible member, does not exist between the convex portion 40 and the panel 42, the fuel tank 12 can be reliably aligned with the vehicle body and can be firmly attached to the vehicle body.

  Further, since the exposed hole 54 of the upper heat insulating material 18U is covered by the contact rubber member 56, the heat insulating effect is further enhanced as compared with the structure in which the exposed hole 54 is opened.

  In addition, a part of the upper heat insulating material 18U (a portion around the exposure hole 54) is sealed between the stepped portion 58 of the upper surface 14U of the fuel tank body 14 and the contact rubber member 56. Therefore, since the inside of the heat insulating member 16 (between the heat insulating member 16 and the fuel tank main body 14) can be shielded from the outside air, the heat transfer can be suppressed and the heat insulating effect is further enhanced.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the pump module 22 provided in the fuel tank main body 14 can be removed by opening the attachment / detachment hole 48 of the upper heat insulating material 18U and the service hole 50 of the panel 42 of the vehicle body. . In this embodiment, the vehicle body joint 52 formed around the attachment / detachment hole 48 of the upper heat insulating material is brought into contact with the lower surface of the panel 42 around the service hole 50. Also by this, since the inside of the heat insulating member 16 (between the heat insulating member 16 and the fuel tank main body 14) can be shielded from the outside air, the movement of heat can be suppressed, and the heat insulating effect becomes higher.

  In the above description, the divided heat insulating material according to the present invention is divided into the upper heat insulating material 18U and the lower heat insulating material 18L as an example, but the structure of the division and the number of divisions are not limited thereto. For example, it may be divided into three or more, and the pipes 32, 32S and the like may be sandwiched between the divided heat insulating materials. In this case, a semicircular recess for inserting a pipe (when the divided heat insulating material is combined at the mating portion, a circular shape) may be formed in the mating portion of the divided heat insulating material.

  It is not necessary to cover substantially the entire surface of the fuel tank main body 14 with the divided heat insulating material, and a large heat insulating effect can be obtained if at least the fuel tank main body 14 is surrounded in a state where the mating portions of the divided heat insulating materials are thermally welded. Covering substantially the entire surface of the tank body 14 is preferable in order to reliably obtain a heat insulating effect.

  Further, the extending member according to the present invention is not limited to the pipes 32 and 32S described above. That is, if it is a member extended outside from the fuel tank main body 14, it may not be piping.

12 Fuel tank 14 Fuel tank body 16 Heat insulating member 18U Upper heat insulating material 18L Lower heat insulating material 20 Tank band 22 Pump module 26 Fuel supply piping 28 Mounting plate 28F Mounting flange 30 Retainer 32, 32S Piping 34 Connector 36 Mounting opening 40 Convex Part 42 Panel 48 Removable hole 50 Service hole 52 Car body joint part 54 Exposed hole 56 Contact rubber member 58 Step part 60 Through hole 62 Slit 64 Enclosure part 66 Welding plate member 68 Matching part

Claims (6)

A fuel tank body capable of containing fuel; and
A plurality of divided heat insulating materials disposed around the fuel tank, and these divided heat insulating materials are thermally welded at the mating portion to surround the fuel tank body; and
Having fuel tank. An extending member extending outward from the fuel tank body;
An insertion hole formed in the divided heat insulating material and through which the extending member is inserted;
A slit formed in the divided heat insulating material and communicating the insertion hole and the outer edge of the divided heat insulating material;
Have
2. The fuel tank according to claim 1, wherein the divided heat insulating materials are thermally welded to each other in a state where the extending member is inserted into the insertion hole through the slit. A pump module in which an upper part of the module is disposed on an upper surface of the fuel tank body;
An attachment / detachment hole formed in the divided heat insulating material for making the pump module attachable / detachable to / from the fuel tank body,
A vehicle body contact portion formed by raising the divided heat insulating material partially above the fuel tank main body around the attachment / detachment hole, and contacting the periphery of the attachment / detachment opening portion of the pump module in the vehicle body;
The fuel tank according to claim 1 or 2, comprising: A convex portion partially protruding outward from the fuel tank body and having a tip for attachment to the vehicle body;
An exposure hole that is formed in the divided heat insulating material and exposes the tip of the convex portion to the outer surface side of the divided heat insulating material;
The fuel tank according to any one of claims 1 to 3, comprising: A contact rubber member that closes the exposed hole from the outer surface side of the divided heat insulating material and is in contact with the vehicle body;
A step portion formed around the convex portion in the fuel tank main body and partially sandwiching the divided heat insulating material with the contact rubber member;
The fuel tank according to claim 4. A fuel tank body capable of containing fuel; and
A plurality of divided heat insulating materials arranged around the fuel tank, and a heat insulating member formed by thermally welding the combined portions of these divided heat insulating materials;
A fuel tank manufacturing method for manufacturing a fuel tank having
A plurality of the divided heat insulating materials are arranged at predetermined positions around the fuel tank body,
A split heat insulating material is inserted into the mating portion while a welding heat member having a temperature equal to or higher than the melting temperature of the split heat insulating material is inserted, and the heat insulating member is moved to partially melt the split heat insulating material at the mating portion. A fuel tank manufacturing method for welding at a molten portion.

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