JP5718583B2 - Tank mounting structure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a tank mounting structure for mounting a substantially cylindrical gas tank in a vehicle.

  Conventionally, vehicles that supply gaseous fuel such as natural gas to an internal combustion engine are known. In recent years, a vehicle that supplies gas fuel such as hydrogen gas to a fuel cell and travels by electric power generated by the battery is also known. In these vehicles, it is necessary to mount a gas tank that accommodates gaseous fuel in a high pressure state.

  Here, in many cases, the gas tank mounted on the vehicle has a substantially cylindrical shape. Many techniques for stably mounting the substantially cylindrical gas tank in the vehicle have been proposed. For example, Patent Documents 1 and 2 disclose a technique in which a plurality of bands are wound around a peripheral surface of a gas tank, and the gas tank is attached to the vehicle by fastening the bands to a fixing member in the vehicle.

  Patent Document 3 discloses a technique for fixing a gas tank by holding the gas tank with a plurality of pairs of holding members extending in the axial direction while being in contact with the gas tank, and fastening both ends of the holding member to a fixing member. It is disclosed. Patent Document 4 discloses a support device that supports both ends of the gas tank in the axial direction, and supports the end of the gas tank that does not have a neck portion in the axial direction via an elastic member. ing.

JP 2003-291666 A JP-A-2005-114022 JP 2009-214782 A JP 2004-257413 A

  Although these prior arts have some advantages, they have a problem that they cannot sufficiently absorb the deformation of the gas tank in the long axis direction. That is, it is known that the gas tank expands and contracts, that is, deforms due to the filling and discharging of the fuel gas. If the gas tank is not attached in such a form that absorbs such deformation, an excessive load is applied to the gas tank and the fixture, leading to problems such as a reduction in the service life of the parts. However, in the conventional mounting structure, even if the deformation in the radial direction of the gas tank can be absorbed to some extent, the deformation in the major axis direction cannot be sufficiently absorbed.

  In addition, as in Patent Documents 1 and 2, there is a problem in that the mounting structure using the band makes positioning difficult when mounted on the vehicle or the tank rotates. Moreover, in the conventional mounting structure which supports both ends of a gas tank like patent document 3, 4, there existed a problem that a structure tends to become complicated and cost became high.

  Therefore, an object of the present embodiment is to provide a tank mounting structure that can easily mount the gas tank while sufficiently absorbing deformation in the major axis direction of the gas tank.

The tank mounting structure of the present invention is a tank mounting structure in which a substantially cylindrical gas tank is mounted in a vehicle, and is a pair of support units that support both ends of the long axis direction of the gas tank, each of which is a length of the gas tank. A pair of support units for connecting an axial end and a fixing member in the vehicle, and at least one of the pair of support units is attached to an end of the gas tank, and the gas tank is loaded; A tank-side member that advances and retreats in the major axis direction together with an end of the gas tank when the gas tank expands from a nominal state that is not expanded or contracts from the expanded state to return to the nominal state; and the fixing member together is attached to, and a holding member for movably holding said tank member in the longitudinal direction, and the motor The hook side member is a bolt that is screwed and fastened to the end of the gas tank in a state of projecting from the end of the gas tank in the long axis direction, and the holding side member is a bracket connected to the fixing member. A bracket having a holding portion disposed on an outer periphery of the bolt at an end opposite to the fixing member, and a bush inserted through the bolt and fixed to the end of the gas tank by the bolt. A bush assembled inside the holding portion, and an elastic body disposed between the holding portion and the bush and closely contacting the outer peripheral surface of the bush and the inner peripheral surface of the holding body, When the bushing is moved in the major axis direction with respect to the holding portion, the inner peripheral surface thereof moves in the major axis direction together with the bush, and the outer peripheral surface includes an elastic body that is stationary with the holding portion, In serial nominal state, wherein there is a gap between the end portion of the tank side end portion of the elastic body gas tank, characterized in that.

In a preferred embodiment, in the nominal state, the gap between the end of the gas tank and the tank-side end portion of the elastic member is more than the amount of displacement of the long axis direction of the end portion of the gas tank.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, although it is a comparatively simple structure, the deformation | transformation of the major axis direction of a gas tank can fully be absorbed. Further, according to the present invention, the rotation of the gas tank can be prevented, and the gas tank can be easily positioned.

It is a schematic block diagram of the tank mounting structure which is embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing of the gas tank rear end periphery in a nominal state. It is a schematic sectional drawing of the gas tank rear end periphery in an expanded state. It is drawing which shows 2nd embodiment, and is a schematic sectional drawing of the gas tank rear end periphery in a nominal state. It is drawing which shows 2nd embodiment, and is a schematic sectional drawing of the gas tank rear end periphery in an expanded state.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a tank mounting structure 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The tank mounting structure 10 is a structure for mounting a substantially cylindrical gas tank 100 in a vehicle.

  First, before describing the tank mounting structure 10, the gas tank 100 to be mounted by the tank mounting structure 10 will be briefly described. The gas tank 100 is a tank for storing a fuel gas used as a vehicle fuel such as hydrogen gas or natural gas in a high pressure state. In order to receive the pressure of the filled fuel gas evenly, the gas tank 100 is generally in a substantially cylindrical shape, more precisely, a substantially bowl shape in which substantially hemispheres are connected to both ends of the cylinder. A valve 102 that controls the outflow of the fuel gas from the gas tank 100 is provided at one end 100a of the gas tank 100 in the long axis direction (hereinafter referred to as “front end 100a”). The valve 102 is further connected to a fuel pipe (not shown) for supplying fuel gas to the fuel cell or the internal combustion engine. The other end 100b in the major axis direction of the gas tank 100 (hereinafter referred to as “rear end 100b”) is closed by a hemispherical surface.

  The tank mounting structure 10 of this embodiment is a structure for mounting the gas tank 100 to a fixing member (for example, a frame or a member fixed to the frame) in the vehicle. In the present embodiment, both ends are supported so that both the front end 100a and the rear end 100b of the gas tank are supported and fixed. That is, the tank mounting structure 10 of this embodiment includes a front support unit 12 that supports the gas tank front end 100a and a rear support unit 14 that supports the gas tank rear end 100b.

  Thus, by supporting both ends 100a and 100b instead of the body of gas tank 100, rolling of gas tank 100 can be easily prevented. That is, in some conventional tank mounting structures, a band is wound around the body of a substantially cylindrical gas tank and the band is fixed to a fixing member. In such a configuration, the gas tank rolls with respect to the band at the time of fixing, and there is a problem that positioning at the time of mounting is difficult. On the other hand, when the two ends 100a and 100b of the gas tank 100 are supported by the two support units 12 and 14 as in the present embodiment, the gas tank 100 can be effectively prevented from rolling, Positioning is easy.

  Next, the front support unit 12 will be described. The front support unit 12 supports the gas tank front end 100a, and specifically includes only the front bracket 16. The front bracket 16 is a metal fitting that connects the fixing member and the gas tank front end 100a and supports the front end 100a. By being supported by the front bracket 16, the position of the gas tank front end 100a with respect to the fixing member is fixed. In other words, according to the present mounting structure 10, the position of the gas tank front end 100a remains unchanged. In addition, since the front side support unit 12 (front side bracket 16) can be comprised by a well-known technique, the detailed description about the specific structure is abbreviate | omitted.

  Next, the rear support unit 14 will be described with reference to FIG. 2A. FIG. 2A is a schematic cross-sectional view around the rear end 100b of the gas tank in the nominal state. Here, the nominal state refers to a state where the internal pressure of the gas tank 100 is around atmospheric pressure, no load is applied to the gas tank 100, and no expansion deformation occurs.

  The rear side support unit 14 supports the gas tank rear end 100b, and is roughly divided into a tank side member and a holding side member. The tank-side member is a member attached to the end of the gas tank 100, and specifically includes a bolt 30 that is screwed and fastened to the end of the gas tank. The bolt 30 may be a bolt that has a male screw formed at least at its tip and has a strength sufficient to support the gas tank 100, and a commercially available general-purpose product can be used. The bolt 30 is screwed and fastened to the rear end 100b of the gas tank after being inserted into a bush 22 of a holding side member to be described later. The bush 22 is coupled to the gas tank 100 by tightening the bolt 30 so that the bush 22 is sandwiched between the head of the bolt 30 and the gas tank rear end 100b. Further, by screwing and fastening the bolt 30 to the gas tank rear end 100b in this manner, the bolt 30 is also moved in the long axis direction in conjunction with the displacement of the gas tank rear end 100b in the major axis direction accompanying expansion / reduction of the gas tank 100. To come and go. Of course, a structure for preventing gas outflow is provided around the fastening portion between the bolt 30 and the gas tank rear end 100b.

  The holding-side member is a member that is connected to the fixing member and supports the bolt 30 so as to be movable forward and backward. Specifically, the holding side member is constituted by the rear side bracket 18, the elastic tubular body 24, and the bush 22. The rear bracket 18 is a metal fitting connected to a fixing member, and a cylindrical holding portion 20 that covers the outer periphery of the bolt 30 is provided at the end opposite to the fixing member. A bush 22 is inserted into the holding portion 20, and an elastic tubular body 24 is press-fitted into the gap between the bush 22 and the holding portion 20.

  The bush 22 is a metal tube having an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the bolt 30, and a commercially available general-purpose product can be used. The bush 22 is assembled inside the holding portion 20 and is fixed to the rear end 100b of the gas tank by a bolt 30. The elastic tube body 24 is made of an elastic material such as rubber, and the inner peripheral surface thereof is in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of the bush 22 and the outer peripheral surface thereof is in close contact with the inner peripheral surface of the holding portion 20. The elastic tubular body 24 can be deformed so as to absorb the movement of the bolt 30 that advances and retreats according to the expansion and contraction of the gas tank 100. The elastic tubular body 24, the bush 22, and the rear bracket 18 are configured as one assembled part assembled with each other.

  As is clear from FIG. 2A, the bush 22 is longer than the elastic tube body 24 in a non-deformed state, and the front end and the rear end thereof protrude from the elastic tube body 24 and are exposed. The elastic tubular body 24 is longer than the holding portion 20, and its front end and rear end are exposed from the holding portion 20. Therefore, when the elastic tube body 24 is in a non-deformed state, even if the front end of the bush 22 is brought into contact with the gas tank rear end 100b, there is an appropriate distance between the front end of the elastic tube body 24 and the gas tank rear end 100b. It has come to occur. Here, the appropriate distance means a displacement amount in the major axis direction of the rear end 100b of the gas tank accompanying the filling / releasing of gas.

  When the gas tank 100 is fixedly supported by the rear support unit 14 having such a configuration, first, the bolt 30 is inserted into the bush 22 incorporated in the rear bracket 18. In this state, the bolt 30 is screwed into the gas tank rear end 100b and tightened until the front end of the bush 22 contacts the gas tank rear end 100b. Thereby, the bush 22 is fixed to the gas tank 100. When the bush 22 is fixed to the gas tank 100, the rear bracket 18 is finally fastened to the fixing member. Thus, the rear end 100b of the gas tank is supported by the rear support unit 14.

  The operation when supported by the mounting structure 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2A and 2B. As described above, FIG. 2A is a schematic cross-sectional view around the gas tank 100 in the nominal state. FIG. 2B is a schematic cross-sectional view around the gas tank rear end 100b when the gas tank 100 is filled with gas, the internal pressure is increased, and the gas tank 100 is expanded.

  As shown in FIG. 2A, in the nominal state, the elastic tubular body 24 maintains a prescribed shape without being deformed. On the other hand, consider the case where the gas tank 100 is expanded as shown in FIG. 2B. In this case, since the gas tank front end 100a is supported by the front support unit 12 without changing its position, it is stationary at the same position as in the nominal state. On the other hand, the gas tank rear end 100 b is displaced in the major axis direction as the gas tank 100 expands. With this displacement, the bolt 30 screwed and fastened to the rear end and the bush 22 attached to the gas tank rear end 100b by the bolt 30 also move in the long axis direction. On the other hand, since the rear bracket 18 is attached to the fixing member, it is stationary at the same position as in the nominal state. At this time, the outer peripheral surface of the elastic tubular body 24 tends to be stationary at that position because it is in close contact with the stationary rear bracket 18. On the other hand, the inner peripheral surface of the elastic tubular body 24 tends to move in the major axis direction together with the bush 22 because it is in close contact with the moving bush 22. As a result, the elastic tubular body 24 is deformed as shown in FIG. 2B. The deformation of the elastic tubular body 24 absorbs the displacement of the gas tank rear end 100b, and the gas tank 100 is stably held even when the gas tank 100 is expanded.

  Thereafter, it is assumed that the gas tank 100 shrinks with the release of gas. In this case, the position of the gas tank front end 100a remains unchanged, but the gas tank rear end 100b, and thus the bolt 30 and the bush 22 move to the front side. This movement is also absorbed by the deformation of the elastic tubular body 24 that is returning to the non-deformed state. As a result, even when the gas tank 100 is reduced, the gas tank 100 is stably held.

  As is clear from the above description, according to the present embodiment, since the deformation in the major axis direction of the gas tank 100 can be absorbed, the gas tank 100 can be stably held even with the both-end support configuration. In other words, conventionally, both-end support type mounting structures that support both ends of the gas tank 100 have been known, but there are problems that the structure is complicated and that deformation in the major axis direction cannot be absorbed. If the deformation in the major axis direction cannot be absorbed, an excessive load is applied to the mounting structure and the rear end 100b of the gas tank, resulting in problems such as failure to hold the gas tank 100 stably and a reduction in the service life of parts. On the other hand, according to the present embodiment, since the deformation in the major axis direction of the gas tank 100 can be absorbed, the load on each component can be reduced, so that the gas tank 100 can be stably held and the life of the component can be prevented from being reduced. . Moreover, since the tank mounting structure 10 of the present embodiment has a simple configuration using only the general-purpose product bush 22, elastic tube body 24, and bolt 30, it can be realized easily and at low cost. In addition, because of the both-end support structure, the gas tank can be reliably prevented from rotating, and thus positioning when mounted on the vehicle is facilitated.

  Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 3A and 3B. 3A and 3B are schematic cross-sectional views around the gas tank rear end 100b in the tank mounting structure 10 of the second embodiment. FIG. 3A shows a nominal state, and FIG. 3B shows an expanded state.

  The tank mounting structure 10 of this embodiment also includes a front support unit 12 and a rear support unit 14 as in the first embodiment. The front support unit 12 includes a front bracket 16 that connects the gas tank front end 100a and a fixing member. The front bracket 16 supports the gas tank front end 100a and fixes the gas tank front end 100a at a specified position.

  The rear support unit 14 includes a rear bracket 18 that functions as a holding member and a bolt 30 that functions as a tank member. A commercially available bolt can be used as the bolt 30, and the tip thereof is screwed and fastened to the gas tank rear end 100 b. The bolt 30 also moves in the major axis direction due to the displacement in the major axis direction of the rear end 100b of the gas tank accompanying expansion / reduction of the gas tank 100.

  The rear bracket 18 is a metal fitting connected to a fixing member, and a holding portion 20 through which the bolt 30 is inserted is provided at the end opposite to the fixing member. The holding portion 20 has an inner diameter that is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the bolt 30, and the bolt 30 inserted through the holding portion 20 can slide with respect to the holding portion 20. In order to perform this sliding more smoothly, rollers (spheres) may be arranged on the inner peripheral surface of the holding unit 20 and the holding unit 20 may be configured as a so-called bearing. Moreover, you may give the special coating (for example, ceramic coating etc.) strong against abrasion to the internal peripheral surface of the holding | maintenance part 20. As shown in FIG. In any case, it is desirable that the bolt 30 be formed in a round bar state in which a male screw is formed only at the tip thereof and the range in contact with the holding portion 20 is not formed with a male screw.

  When attaching the gas tank 100, the bolt 30 is inserted into the holding portion 20, and then the bolt 30 is screwed and fastened to the gas tank rear end 100b. Then, the rear bracket 18 is connected to the fixing member in such a positional relationship that an appropriate distance is maintained between the front end of the holding unit 20 and the gas tank rear end 100b. Here, the appropriate distance refers to a distance equal to or larger than the displacement amount in the major axis direction of the gas tank rear end 100b when the gas tank 100 expands.

  In this state, when the gas tank 100 expands and the gas tank rear end 100b is displaced in the long axis direction, the bolt 30 screwed and fastened to the gas tank rear end 100b also moves in the long axis direction. On the other hand, the rear bracket 18 and thus the holding part 20 remain stationary at the same position as the nominal state. Accordingly, when the gas tank 100 is expanded, the bolt 30 slides in the stationary holding unit 20. As a result, the rear bracket 18 is not affected by the movement of the bolt 30 in the long axis direction, and can keep the gas tank 100 stably even if the gas tank 100 is expanded and displaced. Further, even when the gas tank 100 is reduced as the gas is released, the bolt 30 can slide in the holding unit 20 and move to the front side. As a result, even when the gas tank 100 is reduced, the gas tank 100 is stably held.

  As is clear from the above description, the tank mounting structure 10 of the second embodiment can also absorb the deformation in the major axis direction of the gas tank 100, so that the gas tank 100 can be stably held even with the both-end support structure. Can do. Moreover, since the tank mounting structure 10 of the present embodiment has a simple configuration using only the general-purpose bolt 30 and the like, it can be realized easily and at low cost. Furthermore, since the rotation of the gas tank can be prevented, positioning during vehicle mounting is facilitated.

  The configuration described so far is merely an example, and if it includes a tank side member attached to the end of the gas tank and a holding side member that holds the tank side member so as to be movable forward and backward in the major axis direction. Other configurations may be used. In the description so far, in each case, a support unit capable of absorbing the displacement in the major axis direction is disposed only at the rear end 100b of the gas tank. However, a support unit that can absorb the displacement in the long axis direction may be arranged at the gas tank front end 100a or at both the gas tank front end 100a and the gas tank rear end 100b.

  10 tank mounting structure, 12 front support unit, 14 rear support unit, 16 front bracket, 18 rear bracket, 20 holding part, 22 bush, 24 elastic tube, 30 bolt, 100 gas tank, 102 valve.

Claims (2)

A tank mounting structure for fixing a substantially cylindrical gas tank in a vehicle,
A pair of support units for supporting both ends of the gas tank in the long axis direction, each of which includes a pair of support units for connecting a long axis direction end of the gas tank and a fixing member in the vehicle;
At least one of the pair of support units is
The end of the gas tank is attached to the end of the gas tank, when the gas tank is expanded from the nominal state where no load is applied to the gas tank, or when the gas tank is reduced from the expanded state to return to the nominal state. And a tank side member that advances and retreats in the long axis direction,
A holding-side member that is attached to the fixing member and holds the tank-side member so that the tank-side member can advance and retreat in the major axis direction;
Equipped with a,
The tank side member is a bolt that is screwed and fastened to the end of the gas tank in a state of protruding in the long axis direction from the end of the gas tank,
The holding side member is
A bracket connected to the fixing member, the bracket including a holding portion disposed on an outer periphery of the bolt at an end opposite to the fixing member;
A bush that is inserted through the bolt and is fixed to the end of the gas tank by the bolt, the bush being assembled inside the holding portion;
An elastic body that is arranged between the holding portion and the bush and is in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of the bush and the inner peripheral surface of the holding body, and when moving in the major axis direction with respect to the holding portion of the bush, The inner peripheral surface moves in the major axis direction together with the bush, the outer peripheral surface is an elastic body that is stationary with the holding portion,
With
In the nominal state, there is a gap between the tank side end of the elastic body and the end of the gas tank.
A tank mounting structure characterized by that. The tank mounting structure according to claim 1 ,
In the nominal state, the gap between the tank-side end of the elastic body and the end of the gas tank is equal to or greater than the amount of displacement in the major axis direction of the end of the gas tank. Construction.

Images