JP5554055B2 - Fuel supply device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a fuel supply device that supplies fuel in a fuel tank to the outside of the fuel tank.

  2. Description of the Related Art Some conventional fuel supply apparatuses include a fuel pump that is disposed horizontally in a fuel tank, and a fuel filter that is connected to an intake port of the fuel pump and has a flat bag-shaped filter member. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1 describes that the fuel pump and the fuel filter are arranged in series, or that the fuel pump and the fuel filter are arranged vertically.

Special table 2008-533378 gazette

In the fuel supply device described in Patent Document 1, when the fuel pump and the fuel filter are arranged in series, the total length of the device in the axial direction of the fuel pump has to be long. Further, when the fuel pump and the fuel filter are arranged one above the other, the overall height of the device has to be increased. Therefore, in any case, it is difficult to reduce the size of the apparatus.
The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a fuel supply device that can be miniaturized by reducing the overall length of the device and reducing the overall height of the device.

A first invention includes a fuel pump disposed horizontally in a fuel tank, and a fuel filter connected to an intake port of the fuel pump and having a flat bag-shaped filter member, and the fuel in the fuel tank Is a fuel supply device that supplies a fuel pump and a fuel filter in parallel with one side surface in the flat direction of the filter member facing the fuel pump. For this reason, compared with the case where a fuel pump and a fuel filter are arrange | positioned in series, the full length of the apparatus which concerns on the axial direction of a fuel pump can be shortened. Further, the overall height of the apparatus can be reduced as compared with the case where the fuel pump and the fuel filter are arranged vertically. Therefore, the fuel supply device can be reduced in size by reducing the overall length of the device and reducing the overall height of the device.

According to a second invention, in the first invention, a recess is formed in the bottom of the fuel tank, and the lower end of the filter member of the fuel filter is accommodated in the recess. Therefore, even if the amount of remaining fuel in the fuel tank decreases, the fuel pump can suck (suction) fuel as long as the lower end of the filter member of the fuel filter is immersed in the fuel accumulated in the recess. it can. For this reason, the remaining fuel amount at which the fuel pump cannot suck the fuel can be minimized.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the invention, there is provided a horizontal pipe member that communicates a pipe connection port formed on a side surface of the filter member of the fuel filter and an intake port of the fuel pump, The ridgeline of the ceiling part is formed in a horizontal shape from the entrance side to the exit side or in an inclined shape where the entrance side is at a higher position than the exit side. Therefore, the vapor generated in the fuel in the filter member and the pipe member of the fuel filter at the time of high temperature of the engine can be accumulated in the ceiling portion of at least the filter member in the filter member and the pipe member. For this reason, the suction of the vapor accompanying the suction of the fuel by the fuel pump can be prevented. This is effective in preventing a decrease in the flow rate performance of the fuel pump. Further, since the fuel film is stretched on the outer surface of the filter member due to the surface tension of the fuel, the fuel pump can suck the fuel without sucking the vapor even if the vapor accumulates on the ceiling portion in the filter member. In addition, in the case where the ridgeline of the ceiling portion in the pipe member is formed in an inclined shape in which the inlet side is higher than the outlet side, the vapor in the pipe member floats to the inlet side along the ceiling surface, and further in the filter member Therefore, the vapor in the pipe member can be discharged into the filter member using the buoyancy.

1 is a front view showing a fuel supply device according to Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a left view which shows a fuel supply apparatus. It is a right view which shows a fuel supply apparatus. It is a top view which shows a fuel supply apparatus. It is a bottom view which shows a fuel supply apparatus. It is a front sectional view showing a fuel supply device. It is sectional drawing which shows a fuel channel | path. It is a front view which shows a fuel filter. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IX-IX in FIG. 8. 6 is a front view showing a fuel filter according to Embodiment 2. FIG. It is a XI-XI line sectional view taken on the line of FIG. It is a right view which shows the fuel supply apparatus concerning Example 3. FIG. 6 is a front sectional view showing a fuel supply device according to Example 4;

  Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[Example 1]
A first embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, fuel in a fuel tank in a vehicle (for example, a two-wheeled vehicle, an all-terrain vehicle (ATV), a four-wheeled vehicle, etc.) is supplied to the outside of the tank, that is, the engine (internal combustion engine). 1 illustrates a fuel supply device of a base type (also referred to as a bottom-up type) disposed in a. 1 is a front view showing the fuel supply device, FIG. 2 is a left side view, FIG. 3 is a right side view, FIG. 4 is a top view, FIG. 5 is a bottom view, and FIG. It is.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the fuel supply device 10 includes a lid member 12, a fuel pump 14, a casing 16, a fuel filter 18, a pressure regulator 22, a sender gauge 20 (see FIG. 1), and the like. For convenience of explanation, the front, rear, left and right are determined based on the plan view of the fuel supply device shown in FIG. Further, the fuel tank 24 in which the fuel supply device 10 is disposed is made of resin or metal. The fuel tank 24 of the present embodiment is formed by connecting a lower member 25 that forms the lower half of the fuel tank 24 and an upper member (not shown) that forms the upper half of the fuel member 24. A circular opening 26 is formed in the bottom wall 25 a of the lower member 25. Further, a groove-like recess 28 is formed on the right side of the opening 26 to partially lower the bottom wall 25a.

  The lid member 12 is made of resin and has a disk shape (see FIGS. 4 and 5). As shown in FIG. 6, the lid member 12 closes the opening 26 of the bottom wall 25 a of the lower member 25. The lid member 12 is integrally formed with a fuel discharge pipe 30, a fuel passage portion 31, a first electrical connector 33, a second electrical connector 34 (see FIGS. 4 and 5), and the like. The fuel discharge pipe 30 is formed in an L-shape on the lower surface side of the lid member 12 (see FIG. 3). The fuel passage portion 31 is formed in a vertical tubular shape on the lid member 12 (see FIG. 6). The fuel passage 35 in the fuel passage portion 31 communicates with the fuel discharge pipe 30. In addition, a pump connection port 37 that opens to the right and a cylindrical casing connection cylinder portion 39 that surrounds the pump connection port 37 are formed on the right side of the fuel passage portion 31 (see FIG. 7). FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing the fuel passage.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the fuel pump 14 is integrally incorporated in a horizontal cylindrical pump housing 41 with an electric motor portion and an impeller pump portion arranged in parallel in the axial direction. This is an in-tank Wesco electric pump. The pump housing 41 is arranged in a horizontally placed state with the motor portion facing left and the pump portion facing right. A suction port 42 is formed in a protruding shape on the outer end surface (right end surface) of the pump housing 41 on the pump portion side. A discharge port 43 is formed in a protruding shape on the outer end surface (left end surface) of the pump housing 41 on the motor unit side. The fuel pump 14 boosts the fuel sucked from the suction port 42 in the pump unit by driving the motor unit, and then discharges it from the discharge port 43. In addition, since such a fuel pump 14 is a thing of a known structure, detailed description of the structure is abbreviate | omitted.

  The casing 16 is made of resin and has a bottomed cylindrical shape. The fuel pump 14 is held in the casing 16 by being inserted from the pump portion side. A connecting pipe portion 46 is formed at the bottom of the casing 16 to connect the suction port 42 by fitting. The opening side end portion, that is, the left end portion of the casing 16 that holds the fuel pump 14 is coupled to the casing connecting cylinder portion 39 of the lid member 12 by a snap fit. Accordingly, the discharge port 43 of the fuel pump 14 is connected to the pump connection port 37 by fitting. The discharge port 43 and the pump connection port 37 are sealed with an O-ring 45. In this way, the fuel pump 14 is modularized in the lid member 12 and is arranged in a horizontally placed state (horizontal state) with respect to the bottom portion in the fuel tank 24. The fuel filter 18 connected to the connecting pipe portion 46 of the casing 16 will be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a sender gauge 20 is attached to the front side surface of the casing 16. A float 48 is connected to the sender gauge 20 via an arm 47 extending rightward. The sender gauge 20 outputs the position of the float 48 that rises and falls according to the fuel remaining amount in the fuel tank 24 as a fuel remaining amount signal.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a lead wire 49 connected to the electrical wiring of the fuel pump 14 is electrically connected to the first electrical connector 33 of the lid member 12 (see FIG. 2). Moreover, the lead wire 50 connected with the electrical wiring of the sender gauge 20 is electrically connected to the 2nd electrical connector 34 (refer FIG. 4). External connectors (not shown) connected to a power source, ECU, and the like can be electrically connected to lower ends of the electrical connectors 33 and 34, respectively. A fuel supply pipe (not shown) connected to the injector of the internal combustion engine can be connected to the tip of the fuel discharge pipe 30.

The fuel filter 18 will be described. 8 is a front view showing the fuel filter, and FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IX-IX in FIG.
As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the fuel filter 18 includes a filtering member 51 and a pipe member 53. The filtering member 51 is formed in a flat bag shape by a mesh material, for example. Further, the filtration member 51 is formed in a flat direction (thickness direction) in the longitudinal direction horizontally rectangular shape to increase the (left-right direction in FIG. 8) left and right directions as viewed from the front in a state toward the (left-right direction in FIG. 9) Has been. In addition, a protruding portion 51 a that protrudes downward is formed on the right portion of the filtering member 51. Further, a resin frame member (not shown) for holding the filtering member 51 in an enormous state (inflated state) is provided in the filtering member 51. In addition, a circular pipe connection port 55 (see FIG. 9) is formed at the center of the front side surface of the filter member 51. The pipe connection port 55 is formed integrally with the frame member.

  The tube member 53 is made of resin and is formed in a lateral L-shaped tube. The rearward inlet of the pipe member 53 is connected to the pipe connection port 55 of the filtration member 51 (see FIG. 9). Further, the left-facing outlet of the pipe member 53 is connected to the distal end portion of the connection pipe portion 46 of the casing 16 by fitting (see FIG. 6). Moreover, the attachment piece 56 which has the attachment hole 56a is formed in the front side surface of the pipe member 53 (refer FIG. 9). As shown in FIG. 1, the mounting piece 56 is formed by fitting a mounting hole 56 a to the connecting shaft 57 protruding from the bottom plate portion (right side plate portion) of the casing 16 and attaching a snap retainer 58 to the connecting shaft 57. It is prevented from coming off (see FIG. 3). Thus, the fuel filter 18 is integrally attached to the casing 16. Accordingly, the fuel pump 14 and the fuel filter 18 are arranged in parallel in the front-rear direction (see FIGS. 2 to 4). That is, the fuel pump 14 and the fuel filter 18 are arranged in parallel with one side surface (front side surface) in the flat direction of the filter member 51 facing the side surface (rear side surface) of the fuel pump 14. At the same time, the ridgeline 60 (see FIGS. 6 and 9) of the ceiling in the pipe member 53 is formed horizontally from the inlet side (fuel filter 18 side) to the outlet side (fuel pump 14 side). Moreover, the lower end part of the overhang | projection part 51a of the filtration member 51 is arrange | positioned in the recessed part 28 of the lower member 25 of the said fuel tank 24 (refer FIG. 6). The fuel pump 14 and the fuel filter 18 may be arranged in parallel with one side surface (rear side surface) in the flat direction of the filter member 51 facing the side surface (front side surface) of the fuel pump 14.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the pressure regulator 22 is fitted into the upper end opening of the fuel passage portion 31 of the lid member 12, and a cover 62 that prevents the pressure regulator 22 from being detached is joined by a snap fit. Yes. Accordingly, the pressure regulator 22 is disposed above the discharge port 43 of the fuel pump 14.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the pressure regulator 22 is, for example, a relief valve type pressure regulator, which has a fuel introduction port 65 on the lower surface side of the valve housing 64 and an excess fuel discharge port 66 on the upper surface side. ing. The valve housing 64 supports a ball valve 68, a spring seat 70 disposed on the ball valve 68, a valve spring 72 including a compression coil spring disposed on the spring seat 70, and an upper end surface of the valve spring 72. A stopper ring 74 is incorporated. The fuel passage 31 and the valve housing 64 are sealed with an O-ring 75.

  The pressure regulator 22 adjusts the fuel pressure in the fuel passage 31, that is, the fuel pressure discharged from the discharge port 43 of the fuel pump 14, and discharges surplus fuel upward from the surplus fuel discharge port 66. Further, the cover 62 protrudes rightward from a flange portion 76 that covers the vicinity of the upper portion of the surplus fuel discharge port 66. A drooping portion 76 a that hangs downward is formed at the tip (right end) of the collar portion 76. The pressure regulator 22 corresponds to “pressure adjusting means” in the present specification. The pressure adjusting means may be a diaphragm type pressure regulator instead of the relief valve type.

  Next, the operation of the fuel supply device 10 will be described (see FIG. 6). The power of the external power source is supplied from the first electrical connector 33 of the lid member 12 to the motor unit of the fuel pump 14 via the lead wire 49, thereby driving the pump unit. Then, after the fuel in the fuel tank 24 is filtered by the filter member 51 of the fuel filter 18, the pipe member 53 and the connection pipe part 46 of the casing 16 are connected to the pump part from the suction port 42 of the fuel pump 14. Inhaled. The fuel sucked into the pump portion of the fuel pump 14 is boosted and then discharged from the discharge port 43 into the fuel passage 35 of the fuel passage portion 31 of the lid member 12 through the motor portion. The fuel discharged into the fuel passage 35 is supplied to the engine through the fuel discharge pipe 30 and the fuel supply pipe outside the tank.

  The fuel pressure in the fuel passage 35 is adjusted to a predetermined pressure by the pressure regulator 22 (see FIG. 7). That is, when the fuel pressure in the fuel passage 35 is lower than the elastic force of the valve spring 72, the ball valve 68 is closed. When the fuel pressure in the fuel passage 35 becomes higher than the elastic force of the valve spring 72, the ball valve 68 is opened with the fuel pressure. Therefore, surplus fuel in the fuel passage 35 passes through the valve housing 64 and is discharged (discharged) from the surplus fuel discharge port 66. Thus, the fuel pressure in the fuel passage 35 is adjusted to be always constant. The surplus fuel discharged from the surplus fuel discharge port 66 is discharged onto the casing connecting cylinder 39 by being directed rightward by the flange 76 and further directed downward by the hanging portion 76a. Thereby, the peripheral part of the casing connection cylinder part 39 is washed, and the fuel pump 14 is cooled. Further, the flange portion 76 prevents foreign matters floating in the fuel in the fuel tank 24 from flowing down and entering the pressure regulator 22.

  According to the fuel supply device 10, the fuel pump 14 disposed in a horizontally placed state in the fuel tank 24, and the fuel filter 18 connected to the suction port 42 of the fuel pump 14 and having a flat bag-shaped filter member 51, The fuel supply device 10 supplies the fuel in the fuel tank 24 to the engine, and the fuel pump 14 and the fuel filter 18 are parallel to each other with one side surface in the flat direction of the filter member 51 facing the fuel pump. (See FIGS. 2 to 4 and 6). For this reason, compared with the case where the fuel pump 14 and the fuel filter 18 are arrange | positioned in series, the full length (dimension of the left-right direction (left-right direction in FIG. 4)) of the apparatus which concerns on the axial direction of the fuel pump 14 is shortened. Can do. At the same time, it is possible to suppress an increase in the overall width (dimension in the front-rear direction (vertical direction in FIG. 4)) of the device in the arrangement direction of the fuel pump 14 and the fuel filter 18. Further, the overall height of the device (the vertical dimension in FIG. 6) can be reduced as compared with the case where the fuel pump 14 and the fuel filter 18 are arranged vertically. Therefore, the fuel supply device 10 can be reduced in size by shortening the overall length of the device and lowering the overall height of the device.

  A recess 28 is formed in the bottom of the fuel tank 24, and the lower end of the overhang 51a of the filter member 51 of the fuel filter 18 is accommodated in the recess 28 (see FIG. 6). Therefore, even if the amount of remaining fuel in the fuel tank 24 decreases, the fuel pump 14 sucks fuel as long as the lower end of the filter member 51 of the fuel filter 18 is immersed in the fuel accumulated in the recess 28 ( Can be inhaled). For this reason, the remaining fuel amount at which the fuel pump 14 cannot suck the fuel can be minimized.

  Further, a horizontal pipe member 53 that communicates the pipe connection port 55 formed on the side surface of the filter member 51 of the fuel filter 18 and the suction port 42 of the fuel pump 14 is provided, and the ridgeline 60 of the ceiling portion in the pipe member 53 is provided. These are formed horizontally from the inlet side to the outlet side (see FIGS. 6 and 9). Therefore, the vapor generated in the fuel in the filter member 51 and the pipe member 53 of the fuel filter 18 at the time of high temperature of the engine can be stored in the ceiling part in the filter member 51 and the ceiling part in the pipe member 53. . For this reason, the suction of the vapor accompanying the suction of the fuel by the fuel pump 14 can be prevented. This is effective in preventing a decrease in the flow rate performance of the fuel pump 14. Further, since the fuel film is stretched on the outer surface of the filter member 51 due to the surface tension of the fuel, the fuel pump 14 can suck the fuel without sucking the vapor even if the vapor accumulates on the ceiling portion in the filter member 51. .

  A pressure regulator 22 having a surplus fuel discharge port 66 for adjusting the pressure of fuel discharged from the discharge port 43 of the fuel pump 14 and discharging surplus fuel is disposed above the discharge port 43 of the fuel pump 14. (See FIG. 7). Therefore, the vapor generated in the fuel in the fuel passage 35 on the downstream side of the discharge port 43 of the fuel pump 14 is levitated at a high temperature of the engine, and finally the surplus fuel is discharged from the surplus fuel discharge port 66 of the pressure regulator 22. At the same time, it can be discharged into the fuel tank 24.

[Example 2]
A second embodiment of the present invention will be described. Since the present embodiment is a modification of the first embodiment, the changed portion will be described and redundant description will be omitted. 10 is a front view showing the fuel filter, and FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XI-XI in FIG.
In the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the inlet side (fuel filter 18 side) of the pipe member 53 of the fuel filter 18 in the first embodiment is positioned higher than the outlet side (fuel pump 14 side). It is arranged. Thereby, the ridgeline 60 of the ceiling part in the pipe member 53 is formed in an inclined shape in which the inlet side is positioned higher than the outlet side.

  According to the present embodiment, the ridgeline 60 of the ceiling portion in the pipe member 53 is formed in an inclined shape in which the inlet side is higher than the outlet side. Therefore, the vapor in the pipe member 53 can float to the entrance side along the ridge line 60 of the ceiling portion, and can further float to the ceiling portion in the filtering member 51. For this reason, the vapor in the pipe member 53 can be discharged into the filter member 51 using the buoyancy.

[Example 3]
A third embodiment of the present invention will be described. Since the present embodiment is a modification of the first embodiment, the changed portion will be described and redundant description will be omitted. FIG. 12 is a right side view showing the fuel supply device.
In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 12, the fuel discharge pipe 30 (see FIG. 3) of the lid member 12 in the first embodiment is changed to a straight tubular fuel discharge pipe 78 on the lower surface side of the lid member 12. It is.

[Example 4]
Embodiment 4 of the present invention will be described. Since the present embodiment is a modification of the first embodiment, the changed portion will be described and redundant description will be omitted. FIG. 13 is a front sectional view showing the fuel supply device.
In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 13, the pressure regulator 22 (see FIG. 6) in the first embodiment is arranged below the fuel pump 14. Accordingly, a lateral tubular regulator fitting portion 82 is formed on the right side portion of the fuel passage portion 31 of the lid member 12 via a communication passage 83 as a throttle portion. The regulator fitting portion 82 is disposed below the pump connection port 37. Further, the regulator fitting portion 82 is fitted with a pressure regulator 22 and a ring-shaped cover 85 that prevents the pressure regulator 22 from coming off by a snap fit. Accordingly, the pressure regulator 22 is disposed below the discharge port 43 of the fuel pump 14. The upper end opening of the fuel passage 31 of the lid member 12 is closed with a plug 87.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, the present invention is not limited to the bottom-mounted type disposed at the bottom of the fuel tank 24, but may be an top-mounted type disposed at the ceiling of the fuel tank 24, a laterally-mounted type disposed at the side of the fuel tank 24, or the like. Can also be applied. Further, the pressure regulator 22 is disposed above the discharge port 43 of the fuel pump 14 in the first embodiment, or disposed below the discharge port 43 of the fuel pump 14 in the fourth embodiment. Is not limited.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Fuel supply apparatus 14 ... Fuel pump 18 ... Fuel filter 22 ... Pressure regulator (pressure adjustment means)
24 ... Fuel tank 28 ... Recess 42 ... Suction port 43 ... Discharge port 51 ... Filtration member 53 ... Pipe member 55 ... Pipe connection port 66 ... Excess fuel discharge port

Claims (3)

A fuel pump arranged horizontally in the fuel tank;
A fuel filter connected to the suction port of the fuel pump and having a flat bag-shaped filter member,
A fuel supply device for supplying fuel in the fuel tank to an engine,
Said fuel pump and said fuel filter, and arranged along the flat surface of the filtration member and sideways and parallel shape in a state where one side of the flat surface is facing the side surface of the fuel pump,
A recess that partially lowers a part of the bottom wall is formed in the bottom wall of the fuel tank itself,
The fuel supply device is characterized in that only the lower end portion of the filter member is accommodated in the recess without accommodating a connecting portion between the filter member and the fuel pump . The fuel supply device according to claim 1,
A fuel supply device , wherein a protruding portion that partially extends downward is formed on the filter member, and only a lower end portion of the protruding portion is accommodated in the recess . The fuel supply device according to claim 1 or 2,
A horizontal pipe member that communicates the pipe connection port formed on the side surface of the filter member of the fuel filter and the suction port of the fuel pump and flows in the horizontal direction from the inlet side to the outlet side;
A ridge line of a ceiling portion in the pipe member is formed in a horizontal shape from the inlet side to the outlet side or in an inclined shape in which the inlet side is higher than the outlet side.

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