JP4735423B2 - Fuel tank support structure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a fuel tank support structure for supporting a fuel tank provided in a vehicle such as an automobile on a vehicle body.

  An example of a fuel tank support structure for supporting a fuel tank provided in a vehicle such as an automobile on the vehicle body is described in Patent Document 1. In this fuel tank support structure, a concave portion is formed on the lower surface of the main frame facing the reserve pipe to increase the height of the connection position of the reserve pipe to the fuel tank by increasing the height of the reserve pipe mounting position. It is possible to increase the capacity of the fuel tank.

However, in the structure described in Patent Document 1, for example, even if the upper end of the fuel tank is set upward (for example, set higher than the side member), a volume that cannot be used as the capacity of the vapor volume remains. In practice, it is difficult to ensure a large capacity of the fuel tank body.
Japanese Patent No. 3393671

  In view of the above facts, an object of the present invention is to obtain a fuel tank support structure capable of ensuring a large capacity of the fuel tank body.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a fuel tank main body for storing fuel, a front floor portion constituting member of the vehicle body, and an intermediate floor portion disposed so as to have a vertical component behind the front floor portion constituting member. A front-side fixing point that fixes the fuel tank main body at a first connection portion to which the constituent members are connected, a rear floor portion constituent member of the vehicle body, and a vertical component in front of the rear floor portion constituent member A partition member arranged so as to have a rear-side fixing point for fixing the fuel tank body at a second connection portion to which the partition wall member is connected, and the fuel tank body provided from below at a vehicle body skeleton member constituting the vehicle body comprises a support member for supporting the upper surface of the fuel tank body is a flat in height along the rear floor section structure member, respectively connected to the upper surface of the fuel tank body Firapa Characterized in that it comprises a flop and breather pipe, the.

  Here, in the 1st connection part to which a front side floor part structural member and an intermediate | middle floor part structural member are connected, compared with a front side floor part structural member and an intermediate | middle floor part structural member, rigidity is high. Similarly, also in the 2nd connection part connected with a rear side floor part structural member and a partition member, compared with a rear side floor part structural member and a partition member, rigidity is high. Since the front side fixing point and the rear side fixing point are provided in such a highly rigid portion, the fuel tank body can be fixed securely.

In addition, the fuel tank main body is supported from below by a support member provided on the vehicle body skeleton member. For this reason, the input which acts on a fuel tank main body from a front side fixed point or a back side fixed point becomes small, and a vibration is suppressed. Since the front-side fixing point and the rear-side fixing point can be reduced in size, it is possible to secure a large capacity of the fuel tank body accordingly.
Furthermore, the upper surface of the fuel tank body is flat at a height along the rear floor component, and a filler pipe and a breather pipe are connected to the upper surface of the fuel tank body, respectively, to increase the capacity of the fuel tank. It can be secured even larger.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, a cushion member is provided between the support member and the fuel tank main body, and cushions vibrations from the support member to the fuel tank main body. It is characterized by.

  By reducing the vibration from the support member to the fuel tank body by this cushion member, the front side fixing point and the rear side fixing point can be further reduced in size, and a larger capacity of the fuel tank body can be secured. .

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the present invention, the bulging portion provided in the fuel tank main body and bulged so as to be positioned below the vehicle body skeleton member, It is characterized by having.

  By this bulging portion, the capacity of the fuel tank body can be further increased.

  Since the present invention has the above configuration, it is possible to ensure a large capacity of the fuel tank body.

  1 to 3 show a fuel tank support structure 12 according to a first embodiment of the present invention together with a part of a vehicle body 14 (in the vicinity of a rear wheel). In the drawings, the front side of the vehicle is indicated by an arrow FR, the outer side in the vehicle width direction is indicated by an arrow OUT, and the upper side is indicated by an arrow UP.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle body 14 includes a front floor member 16 that extends from the front of the vehicle body to the center portion. The front floor member 16 constitutes the front floor of the vehicle body 14, and for example, a seat 18 and the like are supported.

  Behind the front floor member 16, a floor slope member 20 that is obliquely rearward and upward is disposed, and the vicinity of the rear end 16 </ b> E of the front floor member 16 and the lower end 20 </ b> L of the floor slope member 20 are connected. The floor slope member 20 is a part of the intermediate floor portion constituting member according to the present invention, and a connection portion between the front floor member 16 and the floor slope member 20 is a first connection portion 21.

  From the vicinity of the upper end of the floor slope member 20, as shown in FIG. 2, two side members 22 facing rearward are arranged substantially in parallel at a predetermined interval in the vehicle width direction. A rear floor member 24 is supported above and behind the side member 22, and the rear floor member 24 is a rear floor. A partition 26 is disposed at a front end position of the rear floor member 24 with a predetermined gap from the floor slope member 20, and the rear floor member 24 and the lower end 26 </ b> B of the partition 26 are connected. This connection portion is the second connection portion 23 according to the present invention. Further, a center floor member 28 is disposed between the floor slope member 20 and the partition 26 with a predetermined distance from the side member 22. The center floor member 28 is set at a position higher than the rear floor member 24 with the partition 26 interposed therebetween, and a step is generated therebetween.

  A transaxle 30 is disposed behind the floor slope member 20 and below the side member 22. As can be seen from FIGS. 2 and 3, the transaxle 30 is disposed at the center in the vehicle width direction (a center line is indicated by a symbol CL), and an exhaust pipe 32 is disposed below the transaxle 30.

  A suspension member 34 constituting a suspension (the whole image is not shown) is disposed behind the floor slope member 20 and below the transaxle 30, and supports the suspension body.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a fuel tank main body 36 that accommodates fuel is disposed behind the floor slope member 20. As can be seen from FIG. 3, the bottom portion of the fuel tank main body 36 has a high position portion 38 </ b> U located above the transaxle 30 and low position portions 38 </ b> L located on both sides of the transaxle 30. That is, the fuel tank main body 36 is a so-called saddle tank, and is disposed so as to straddle the transaxle 30 from above. Thereby, the space between the left and right wheel houses 76 can be effectively used to ensure a large capacity of the fuel tank body 36.

  In the present embodiment, as an example, the fuel tank main body 36 is formed by joining two upper and lower tank members made of resin, and as shown in FIG. 1, a parting line 40 extending from the front lower part to the rear upper part. have. A front-side fixing point 42 that fixes the fuel tank main body 36 on the front side is set in the first connection portion 21 that is a connection portion between the front floor member 16 and the floor slope member 20. Further, a rear side fixing point 44 for fixing the fuel tank main body 36 on the rear side is set in the second connection portion 23 which is a connection portion between the rear floor member 24 and the partition 26. The parting line 40 is located so as to connect the front side fixing point 42 and the rear side fixing point 44.

  Further, the fuel tank main body 36 is partially placed on the suspension member 34 via the cushion material 46, and a part of the load of the fuel tank main body 36 is supported by the suspension member 34. Of the bottom portion of the fuel tank main body 36, the portion in front of the suspension member 34, that is, the portion between the floor slope member 20 and the suspension member 34 is located below the portion supported by the suspension member 34. The bulging portion 48 is bulged.

  A pump main body 52 for sending the fuel in the fuel tank main body 36 to the outside through the main tube 50 is attached to the bulging portion 48 by a pump stay 54. A suction filter 56 is attached to the lower end of the pump body 52, and the suction filter 56 is positioned near the bottom surface of the bulging portion 48.

  Further, a pump retainer 58 and a pump assembly plate 60 are set on the upper surface of the fuel tank main body 36 at a position closer to the front. As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 3, the pump stay 54 is bent inward and rearward in the vehicle width direction on the way from the lower end to the upper end, and the upper end is offset compared to the lower end. . Further, the upper end of the pump stay 54 is joined to the pump assembly plate 60 on the upper surface of the fuel tank body 36. A pump body 52 is supported at the lower end of the pump stay 54. A service hole 62 is formed in the center floor member 28 so that pump maintenance and the like can be easily performed by accessing the pump retainer 58 and the like from above.

  Here, as can be seen from FIG. 1, the pump retainer 58 and a part of the main tube 50 are disposed between the front portion of the side member 22 and the center floor member 28. Therefore, the height of the center floor member 28 is determined in consideration of the height dimension so that the pump retainer 58 and the main tube 50 can be set in the space S1 generated by the step between the center floor member 28 and the rear floor member 24. The capacity of 36 is set to be large. Further, the rear floor member 24 is set to a height that can secure a cargo space 64 above it and that does not affect the transaxle 30.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an upward convex portion 66 is formed on the upper surface of the fuel tank body 36 between the fuel tank body 36 and the center floor member 28. The convex portion 66 is provided between the pump retainer 58 and the partition 26 in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, between the upper surface of the fuel tank main body 36 and the upper end of the main tube 50 in the vertical direction, and in the vehicle width direction of the fuel tank main body 36. It is set to be located between the side surface 36S (see FIG. 3) and the boundary 38E between the low position portion 38L and the high position portion 38U. And the seat surface 70 which attaches the lower end of the filler pipe 68 to this convex part 66 is set. Therefore, the filler pipe 68 passes through the gap between the side member 22 and the center floor member 28, and the lower end thereof is connected to the upper surface of the fuel tank body 36 by the seat surface 70 of the convex portion 66.

  In particular, in the present embodiment, the convex portion 66 is fueled at a portion where the distance from the parting line 40 to the upper surface of the fuel tank body 36 is short (in the shape of the parting line 40 shown in FIG. 1, the portion on the vehicle rear side). The tank main body 36 is partially protruded upward and molded. For this reason, the moldability of the fuel tank main body 36 is improved as compared with the case where the convex portion 66 is formed in a portion where the distance from the parting line 40 to the upper surface of the fuel tank main body 36 is long.

  A breather pipe 72 is disposed on the fuel tank main body 36 so as to be positioned between the convex portion 66 and the partition 26 in the vehicle longitudinal direction and between the upper end of the main tube 50 in the height direction. . One end of the breather pipe 72 is connected to the middle part of the filler pipe 68, and the other end is connected to a breather port 74 provided on the upper surface of the fuel tank main body 36.

  A canister (not shown) is disposed in the vicinity of the fuel tank main body 36, and fuel evaporative gas in the fuel tank main body 36 is sent from a pipe (not shown) and purged by the canister.

  In the present embodiment having such a configuration, the front side fixing point 42 in the vicinity of the first connection portion 21 that is a highly rigid portion and the rear side in the vicinity of the second connection portion 23 that is also a highly rigid portion. The fuel tank main body 36 is fixed by a fixing point 44. In addition, the load of the fuel tank body 36 is supported by the suspension member 34 by placing the fuel tank body 36 on the suspension member 34. As a result, the vibration of the fuel tank body 36 is suppressed, and the input acting on the front side fixing point 42 and the rear side fixing point 44 from the fuel tank body 36 is reduced. Compared to the configuration in which the vibration of the fuel tank main body is not suppressed, the front side fixing point 42 and the rear side fixing point 44 can be reduced in size, so that the capacity of the fuel tank main body 36 can be secured large.

  In particular, in this embodiment, the fuel tank main body 36 is supported by the suspension member 34 via the cushion material 46. Therefore, the vibration input from the suspension member 34 to the fuel tank main body 36 can be reduced as compared with the configuration in which the fuel tank main body 36 is directly supported by the suspension member 34 without using such a cushioning material 46. . That is, since the front side fixing point 42 and the rear side fixing point 44 can be further reduced in size, a large capacity of the fuel tank main body 36 can be secured.

  In the present embodiment, the fuel tank body 36 is provided with a bulging portion 48 whose bottom surface bulges downward. Thereby, compared with the fuel tank main body (general vertical tank etc.) which does not provide the bulging part, a capacity | capacitance can be ensured large.

  In the present embodiment, the pump main body 52 is disposed in the bulging portion 48 so that the suction filter 56 is positioned near the bottom surface of the bulging portion 48. For this reason, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the liquid level is inclined by the inertial force in the vehicle longitudinal direction or the vehicle width direction acting on the fuel tank main body 36 in a state where the fuel in the fuel tank main body 36 is small. Even if the suction filter 56 moves, the suction filter 56 can be maintained in a submerged state (in FIG. 4, the fluctuation liquid level due to the inertial force forward is denoted by LS1, and the fluctuation liquid level due to the inertial force is denoted by LS2 backward. In FIG. 5, the fluctuation liquid level due to the inertial force in the left direction is indicated by a symbol LS3, and the fluctuation liquid level due to the inertial force in the right direction is indicated by a symbol LS4). Since there is no need for a member (such as a reserve cup) to immerse the suction filter in the fuel tank body 36 even when the amount of fuel is low, the number of parts can be reduced, and the weight and cost can be reduced. become. Further, in the configuration having the reserve cup, a part of the pump flow rate of the pump main body 52 is used for pumping up. However, in this embodiment, the pump flow rate for pumping up the reserve cup is not required, so supply to the engine The fuel that can be produced (pump flow rate) can be increased, and the efficiency is improved.

  Further, in the present embodiment, as described above, the filler pipe 68 is connected to the fuel tank main body 36 through the gap between the side member 22 and the center floor member 28 above the side member 22. Since the concave portion for passing the filler pipe 68 through the side member 22 does not require a hole or the like, the rigidity (body rigidity) of the side member 22 can be ensured. Moreover, by forming the convex portion 66 on the upper surface of the fuel tank main body 36, the filler pipe 68 can be smoothly arranged from the upper end to the lower end. For this reason, the fuel injection property is improved, and the fuel can be injected smoothly.

  In the present embodiment, the breather pipe 72 can also be arranged at a high position on the upper surface of the fuel tank body 36 by the above configuration. For this reason, compared with the structure which has arrange | positioned the breather piping 72 in the lower position, the capacity | capacitance of the fuel tank main body 36 can be ensured large.

  In the present embodiment, the upper end of the pump stay 54 is joined to the fuel tank main body 36, and the pump retainer 58 and the like can be accessed from above through the service hole 62 to be attached and detached. If the mounting portion of the pump main body 52 is set downward, so-called fuel removal (operation for removing fuel from the fuel tank main body 36) is required when performing these operations. Work is unnecessary and workability is improved.

  6 to 8 show a fuel tank support structure 112 according to the second embodiment of the present invention together with a part of the vehicle body 114 (in the vicinity of the rear wheel). Hereinafter, only the configuration different from the first embodiment will be described in the second embodiment, and the same configuration will be denoted by the same reference numeral and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

  In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, an ORVR canister 116 that is larger than the canister (not shown) of the first embodiment is disposed on the vehicle rear side of the fuel tank body 36. As shown in FIG. 8, an ORVR valve 118 is provided in the fuel tank main body 36 and in the vicinity of the upper surface of the fuel tank main body 36. To the ORVR canister 116.

  In the second embodiment, a circulation pipe 122 that communicates the upper surface of the fuel tank body 36 and the filler pipe 68 is provided. The inner diameter of the circulation pipe 122 is smaller than the inner diameter of the breather pipe 72 of the first embodiment. Therefore, in the second embodiment, most of the fuel evaporative gas generated in the fuel tank main body 36 can be sent to the canister (ORVR canister 116) at least in a larger amount than in the first embodiment. .

  As in the second embodiment, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained even in the configuration in which the fuel evaporative gas in the fuel tank body 36 can be sent to the ORVR canister 116 and purified. That is, the fuel tank main body 36 is fixed by the front side fixing point 42 and the rear side fixing point 44 which are highly rigid parts, and the fuel tank main body 36 is placed on the suspension member 34 to support the load. Therefore, the vibration of the fuel tank main body 36 is suppressed, and the input acting on the front side fixing point 42 and the rear side fixing point 44 from the fuel tank main body 36 is reduced. Since the front side fixing point 42 and the rear side fixing point 44 can be reduced in size, a large capacity of the fuel tank main body 36 can be secured. The fuel tank main body 36 is provided with a bulging portion 48 whose bottom surface bulges downward. Thereby, compared with the fuel tank main body (general vertical tank etc.) which does not provide the bulging part, a capacity | capacitance can be ensured large.

  In the second embodiment, it is possible to arrange the vent line 120 and the circulation pipe 122 at a high position on the upper surface of the fuel tank main body 36. Also in this respect, it is possible to ensure a large capacity of the fuel tank main body 36. It has become.

  In each of the above embodiments, the suspension member 34 is given as an example of the vehicle body skeleton member according to the present invention, and a configuration in which a part of the load of the fuel tank main body 36 is supported by the suspension member 34 has been described. The support member that supports the load of the main body 36 is not limited to the suspension member 36, and may be another body frame member.

It is a schematic side view which shows the fuel tank support structure of 1st Embodiment of this invention with a part of vehicle body. It is a schematic plan view which shows the fuel tank support structure of 1st Embodiment of this invention with a part of vehicle body. 1 is a schematic rear view showing a fuel tank support structure of a first embodiment of the present invention together with a part of a vehicle body. It is a schematic side view which shows the state from which the liquid level of the fuel of the fuel tank main body changed in 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic rear view which shows the state from which the liquid level of the fuel of the fuel tank main body fluctuated in 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic side view which shows the fuel tank support structure of 2nd Embodiment of this invention with a part of vehicle body. It is a schematic plan view which shows the fuel tank support structure of 2nd Embodiment of this invention with a part of vehicle body. It is a schematic rear view which shows the fuel tank support structure of 2nd Embodiment of this invention with a part of vehicle body.

Explanation of symbols

12 Fuel tank support structure 14 Vehicle body 16 Front floor member 16E Rear end 18 Seat 20 Floor slope member 20L Lower end 21 First connecting portion 22 Side member 23 Second connecting portion 24 Rear floor member 26 Partition 28 Center floor member 30 Transaxle 32 Exhaust pipe 34 Suspension member (support member)
36 Fuel tank body 36S Side surface 38U High position portion 38L Low position portion 38E Boundary 40 Parting line 42 Front side fixing point 44 Rear side fixing point 46 Cushion material 48 Swelling portion 50 Main tube 52 Pump body 54 Pump stay 56 Suction filter 58 Pump retainer 60 Pump assembly plate 62 Service hole 64 Cargo space 66 Projection 68 Filler pipe 70 Seat surface 72 Breather pipe 74 Breather port 76 Wheel house 112 Fuel tank support structure 114 Car body 116 Canister 118 Valve 120 Vent line 122 Circulation pipe

Claims (3)

A fuel tank body for containing fuel;
The fuel tank main body at the first connecting portion to which the front floor portion constituting member of the vehicle body and the intermediate floor portion constituting member arranged so as to have a vertical component behind the front floor portion constituting member are connected. A front side fixing point to be fixed;
The fuel tank body is fixed at a second connecting portion to which a rear floor component of the vehicle body and a partition member arranged to have a vertical component in front of the rear floor component are connected. A rear side fixing point to
A support member provided on a vehicle body skeleton member constituting the vehicle body and supporting the fuel tank body from below;
Have
The upper surface of the fuel tank body is flat at a height along the rear floor component member,
A fuel tank support structure comprising a filler pipe and a breather pipe respectively connected to the upper surface of the fuel tank body . A cushion member disposed between the support member and the fuel tank main body to reduce vibration from the support member to the fuel tank main body;
The fuel tank support structure according to claim 1, wherein A bulging portion provided in the fuel tank body and bulging so as to be positioned below the vehicle body skeleton member;
The fuel tank support structure according to claim 1, wherein the fuel tank support structure is provided.

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