JP6077827B2 - Manufacturing method of resin tank for vehicle - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a resin tank structure for a vehicle.

  Conventionally, in order to install a metal nut for fastening a fuel outlet on the bottom of a resin tank made of blow molding, a base part in which the metal nut is pre-wrapped with resin is formed, and this base part is resin when blow molding There is one that is inserted into a tank and integrally formed (for example, see Patent Document 1). This is because when the metal part is directly inserted by blow molding, the adhesiveness with the parison is poor, and thus the adhesiveness is improved by previously wrapping the metal part with resin.

Japanese Patent No. 3167424

By the way, in the so-called saddle-shaped tank straddling the main pipe extending in the front-rear direction in the vehicle body frame, when fuel is taken out from the lower end portion of the portion extending downward avoiding the main frame, a flat for fastening the fuel cock to the lower end portion A seating surface will be provided. In this case, when trying to secure the size of the seating surface, the chamfering radius of the surrounding corners becomes small, the parison does not follow at the time of blow molding, or the problem that the adhesiveness with the pedestal part deteriorates is there.
Further, even if the parison is made to follow, the chamfer radius at the corner inside the parison becomes small and stress concentration is likely to occur. In addition, the parison is stretched locally and becomes thin and the strength is lowered. If the entire parison is thickened by this measure, the weight of the resin tank increases.
In addition, in order to achieve both an increase in the chamfering radius of the corners around the seating surface and the securing of the seating surface, there is a problem that if the seating surface position is increased, the tank capacity is affected.

  In view of this, the present invention provides a resin tank structure for a vehicle in which a fuel cock is fastened to a lower end portion of a bowl-shaped tank body that is formed by blow molding and straddles the vehicle body frame on the left and right. The purpose is to ensure the size of the mounting seat.

As a means for solving the above-mentioned problem, the invention described in claim 1 is formed by blow molding and has a saddle shape straddling the main frame (12) extending in the front-rear direction in the vehicle body frame (F). A tank main body (41) for storing fuel to be supplied to the fuel tank, a fuel cock (43) attached to a lower end portion of the tank main body (41) that extends downward to avoid the main frame (12), and the tank main body A cock attachment part (53) to which the fuel cock (43) in (41) is attached is formed, and a base part (61) in which a metal nut (N) for bolting the fuel cock (43) is previously wrapped with resin. ), The base part (61) includes a covering portion (62a) for wrapping the metal nut (N), and A bottom portion (62) that forms a cock mounting seating surface (56) that faces the lower side of the tank, and an inner portion (63) that forms an inner side surface (63a) that faces the inner side of the tank to the upper side of the covering portion (62a). And an outer portion (64) that forms an outer surface (64a) facing the outer side of the tank up to an upper side of the covering portion (62a), and the cock mounting portion (53) is formed of the pedestal component (61 ) Is inserted at the time of the blow molding.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, even when the cock mounting portion is provided at the lower end portion of the bowl shape having a narrow left and right width in the tank body, it is possible to form a narrow shape that is difficult to form by blow molding. The size of the cock mounting seating surface can be ensured without widening the left and right widths of the lower end portion of the bowl shape or moving the lower end height upward. Moreover, adhesiveness with a tank main body can be improved by extending the length of the inner side part and outer side part of a base component.

1 is a left side view of a motorcycle according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 3 is a left side view of the fuel tank of the motorcycle. It is a front view of the tank main body of the said fuel tank. It is a bottom view of the tank body. It is VV sectional drawing of FIG. It is VI-VI sectional drawing of FIG. It is VII-VII sectional drawing of FIG. FIG. 3 is a top view of the vicinity of a fuel tank of the motorcycle. It is a top view of the base component attached to the said tank main body. It is XX sectional drawing of FIG.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the directions such as front, rear, left and right are the same as those in the vehicle described below unless otherwise specified. In the drawings used for the following description, an arrow FR indicating the front of the vehicle, an arrow LH indicating the left side of the vehicle, and an arrow UP indicating the upper side of the vehicle are shown.

FIG. 1 is a side view showing the entire saddle riding type vehicle of this embodiment.
The saddle-ride type vehicle of this embodiment is an off-road type motorcycle in which a rear wheel WR is driven by an engine (internal combustion engine) 2. Hereinafter, the saddle-ride type vehicle of this embodiment will be referred to as “motorcycle 1”.

  A body frame F of the motorcycle 1 includes a head pipe 11 disposed at a front end portion, a main frame 12 extending rearward and downward from the upper portion of the head pipe 11, and a steeper slope than the main frame 12 from the lower portion of the head pipe 11. A down pipe 13 extending rearward and downward, a gusset pipe 9 extending between an intermediate portion of the down pipe 13 and an intermediate portion of the main frame 12, and a downward bending portion at the rear portion of the main frame 12. A pair of left and right center pipes 14 branching left and right from the lower end and extending rearward and downward. The lower end portions of the left and right center pipes 14 are joined by a cross pipe 15 extending in the vehicle width direction.

  The vehicle body frame F further includes a pair of left and right seat rails 16 that branch from the rear portion (downwardly curved portion) of the main frame 12 to the left and right and extend rearward substantially horizontally (in detail, slightly tilted rearward). A pair of left and right support pipes 17 extending rearward and upward from the lower part of the left and right center pipes 14 and coupled to the rear parts of the left and right seat rails 16.

  The left and right front forks 3 are pivotally supported on the head pipe 11 via the steering stem 4. A front wheel WF of the motorcycle 1 is pivotally supported at the lower ends of the left and right front forks 3. A steering handle 4 b is attached on the top bridge 4 a of the steering stem 4.

An engine 2 that is a prime mover of the motorcycle 1 is mounted on a portion of the vehicle body frame F surrounded by the main frame 12, the down pipe 13, the center pipe 14 and the like in a side view.
The engine 2 is, for example, an air-cooled single-cylinder engine, and a cylinder 22 is erected above a front portion of a crankcase 21 that constitutes a lower portion thereof. A cylinder head 22 a is attached on the cylinder 22.

  A carburetor 23 is connected to the rear part of the cylinder head 22a via an insulator 23a, and an air cleaner 24 is connected to the rear part of the carburetor 23 via a connecting tube 24a. An exhaust pipe 25 is connected to the front portion of the cylinder head 22a. The exhaust pipe 25 is curved and extends rearward as appropriate, and is connected to a silencer 25a disposed on the right side of the rear part of the vehicle body.

  The front end portion of the crankcase 21 is supported by a bracket 13 a fixed to the lower end portion of the down pipe 13. The rear end of the crankcase 21 is supported by a left and right pivot plate 14 a fixed to the lower front side of the left and right center pipe 14. The engine 2 is fixedly supported on the vehicle body frame F by supporting the front and rear ends of the crankcase 21.

The front end portion of the swing arm 26 is pivotally supported on the left and right pivot plate 14a. A rear wheel WR of the motorcycle 1 is pivotally supported at the rear end of the swing arm 26. A lower end portion of a rear cushion 27 extending up and down in the vicinity of the swing arm 26 is connected to the lower side of the front portion of the swing arm 26.
A transmission (not shown) is accommodated in the rear portion of the crankcase 21, and an output shaft 28 of the transmission projects to the left side of the rear portion of the crankcase 21. The output shaft 28 and the rear wheel WR are connected via, for example, a chain transmission mechanism 29.

  A fuel tank 31 that stores the fuel of the engine 2 is disposed above the engine 2. An occupant seat 32 supported on the left and right seat rails 16 is disposed behind the fuel tank 31. An air cleaner 24 that filters air taken in by the engine 2 is disposed in an inverted triangular area surrounded by the seat rail 16, the center pipe 14, and the support pipe 17 of the vehicle body frame F in a side view below the seat 32.

  Reference numeral 33 in the figure denotes a left and right shroud that covers a range from the lower outer side of the fuel tank 31 to its lower front, and reference numeral 34 denotes a left and right side cover that covers a range from the outer side of the left and right seat rails 16 to its lower side. Is a front fender that is spaced above the front wheel WF and covers the front wheel WF, symbol 36 is a rear fender that is spaced above the rear wheel WR and covers the rear wheel WR, and symbol 37 is the rear wheel WR. The mud guards arranged between the rear cushion 27 are shown.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the fuel tank 31 includes a hollow tank main body 41, a tank cap 42 that is screwed into a fuel supply port 42 a protruding from the upper end of the tank main body 41, and a lower left end of the tank main body 41. And a fuel cock 43 attached to the.

  The tank body 41 is formed integrally with a hollow body by blow molding using, for example, high-density polyethylene as a raw material. On the outer periphery of the tank body 41 as viewed in the vertical direction, a bead 44 is formed over the entire periphery along the parting line at the time of molding. The bead 44 is formed substantially horizontally at the lower side of the tank main body 41 at the side and rear of the tank main body 41, and protrudes upward at the front of the tank main body 41 so as to follow a front end edge of a bowl-shaped plate portion 47 described later. It is formed in a gate shape (see FIG. 3). Hereinafter, a portion of the tank body 41 above the bead 44 is referred to as an upper plate portion 45, and a portion below the bead 44 is referred to as a lower plate portion 46.

  3 and 4 together, the tank body 41 is formed in a bowl shape straddling the circular pipe-shaped main frame 12 from side to side. The lower plate portion 46 of the tank body 41 has a bowl-shaped plate portion 47 that forms a left and right inner plate portion 47a that extends vertically on the left and right sides of the main frame 12 and spans the left and right sides of the main frame 12. Bending from the left and right outer edges of the plate portion 47 to the left and right outer sides, and bending upward from the left and right outer edges of the left and right bottom plate portions 48 and the left and right bottom plate portions 48 forming the bowl-shaped left and right lower edge portions of the tank body 41 And left and right outer side plate portions 49 extending to the left and right side portions of the bead 44. The outside of the lower plate portion 46 is covered with the upper plate portion 45 with a fuel supply space therebetween. Hereinafter, the portion of the tank body 41 that extends downward while avoiding the main frame 12 is referred to as a hanging portion 41a. A line CL in the figure indicates a left-right center line of the vehicle body. A tank body 41 indicated by a chain line in FIG. 2 has a cross-sectional shape along a plane orthogonal to the left-right direction at the left-right position of a pedestal component 61 described later.

  The bowl-shaped plate portion 47 of the lower plate portion 46 is inclined rearward and downward along the inclination of the main frame 12 in a side view, the front end reaches the front surface of the tank main body 41, and the rear end is the rear end of the tank main body 41. Terminate in front. At the rear end of the tank body 41, a bead 44 extends rearward to form a mount flange 44a, and the mount flange 44a is supported by the vehicle body frame F via a mount rubber or the like.

  Left and right bracket attachment portions 51 into which a pair of front and rear metal nuts N are inserted are provided at the front portions of the left and right bottom plate portions 48 of the lower plate portion 46. A mounting bracket (not shown) is fixed to the left and right bracket attaching portions 51. The mount bracket is supported on the vehicle body frame F via a mount rubber or the like. The left and right bracket attaching portions 51 are integrally formed with the tank body 41 by inserting, for example, a pedestal component 52 previously wrapped with a metal nut N with the same resin as the tank body 41 when the tank body 41 is blow molded.

  The tank main body 41 narrows the entire left and right width toward the rear side in order to facilitate the knee grip by the driver. The hook-shaped plate portion 47 is formed with a bulging portion 47b that protrudes right and left outside at the rear portion of the left and right inner plate portion 47a in order to secure a space between the upper rear corner portion of the cylinder head 22a located below the rear portion. . For this reason, the left and right bottom plate portions 48 in the rear portion of the tank main body 41 tend to narrow their left and right widths.

A cock mounting portion 53 for mounting the fuel cock 43 is provided at the rear portion of the left bottom plate portion 48.
The cock attachment portion 53 includes a pair of front and rear fastening portions 54 including a metal nut N inserted into the tank main body 41, and a filter insertion portion 55 provided between the front and rear fastening portions 54. The fuel cock 43 is attached to the cock attachment portion 53 from below. The cock attachment portion 53 forms a cock attachment seat surface 56 that is displaced downward from the substantially horizontal lower surface of the rear portion of the left bottom plate portion 48. In the figure, reference numeral MF denotes a rod-like filter inserted from the filter insertion part 55 into the tank body 41, and reference numeral 55a denotes a seating for fitting a seal at the base end of the filter MF.

As with the bracket mounting portion 51, the cock mounting portion 53 is inserted into the tank body 41 by inserting, for example, a base part 61 in which the metal nut N is wrapped beforehand with the same resin as the tank body 41 when the tank body 41 is blow-molded. It is integrally formed.
As shown in FIGS. 4 to 7, the pedestal component 61 includes a covering portion 62 a that wraps the metal nut N, a bottom portion 62 that forms a cock mounting seat surface 56 that faces the lower side of the tank, and an inner side of the tank in the inner plate portion 47 a. An inner portion 63 that forms a lower inner side surface 63a that is flush with the inner side surface 47c that faces the upper side of the top portion of the covering portion 62a, and an outer side surface 49a that faces the outer side of the tank in the outer side plate portion 49 And an outer side portion 64 that forms 64a above the top of the covering portion 62a.

  A chamfered shape R having a relatively small diameter is formed at the corner around the bottom 62 in order to secure the cock mounting seat surface 56. The pedestal component 61 is, for example, an injection-molded product, and can form a chamfered shape R having a smaller diameter than a minimum radius shape (indicated by a symbol R ′ in the drawing) that can be formed by blow molding in a state where a metal nut N is inserted. .

On the left and right outer sides of the upper end portion of the inner portion 63, an inner inclined surface 63b is formed to reduce the thickness of the inner portion 63 toward the upper side. Thereby, the parison which forms a site | part above the base component 61 at the time of the blow molding of the tank main body 41, and the upper end part of the inner side part 63 merge smoothly, and are continued.
On the left and right inner sides of the upper end portion of the outer portion 64, an outer inclined surface 64b is formed to reduce the thickness of the outer portion 64 toward the upper side. Thereby, like the upper end part of the inner side board part 47a, at the time of the blow molding of the tank main body 41, a parison and the upper end part of the outer side part 64 join together smoothly.

  A front part 62b and a rear part 62c of the base part 61 are connected to the front and rear of the bottom part 62, respectively. The front part 62 b and the rear part 62 c extend forward and rearward of the bottom part 62 along the outer surface of the tank body 41. Thereby, the adhesive strength with the tank main body 41 in the front part 62b and the rear part 62c of the base component 61 long in the front-back direction like the hanging part 41a increases.

  As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, a plurality of small holes 72 and extension grooves 73 are formed on the bonding surface 71 (including the inner and outer inclined surfaces 63 b and 64 b) of the pedestal component 61 with the tank body 41. Each small hole 72 penetrates from the adhesive surface 71, which is the inner surface of the pedestal component 61, to the outer surface of the pedestal component 61, and suppresses air accumulation between the pedestal component 61 and the tank body 41 (parison) during blow molding. Each extension groove 73 extends a part of the bonding surface 71 of the plurality of small holes 72 in a straight line along the bonding surface 71 and widens the opening on the bonding surface 71 of the small hole 72. A line C <b> 1 in the figure indicates a pedestal center line that passes through the shaft centers of both metal nuts N and the filter insertion portion 55 in a plan view of the pedestal component 61.

The fastening flange 65 of the fuel cock 43 comes into contact with the cock mounting seat surface 56 of the base part 61 from below.
Referring also to FIG. 8, the fuel cock 43 has bolt insertion holes 66 for the fastening bolts B before and after an elliptical fastening flange 65 that is long in the front-rear direction when attached to the tank body 41. The fuel cock 43 is fastened and fixed to the tank body 41 by inserting fastening bolts B before and after the fastening flange 65 and screwing them into the front and rear metal nuts N of the pedestal component 61.

  A cock body 68 that can switch the internal path by operating the path switching lever 67 is provided continuously below the front and rear center of the fastening flange 65. A path switching lever 67 that rotates about a substantially horizontal axis is disposed on the left side (the tank outer side) of the cock body 68 in the direction (flange orthogonal direction) orthogonal to the major axis t of the fastening flange 65. An L-shaped fuel hose joint 69 for mounting a fuel hose extending to the carburetor 23 is disposed on the right side of the cock body 68 in the flange orthogonal direction (the tank inner side).

  The front and rear metal nuts N of the cock mounting portion 53 are arranged such that the rear metal nut N is positioned on the left and right outer sides with respect to the front metal nut N. As a result, when the fuel cock 43 is attached to the tank main body 41, the path switching lever 67 on the outer side of the tank faces obliquely forward, and the fuel hose joint 69 on the inner side of the tank faces obliquely rearward. .

  When the driver looks into the vicinity of the fuel cock 43, the fuel cock 43 is viewed from the diagonally front outer side, so that the path switching lever 67 is easily visible to the driver by the above arrangement of the path switching lever 67. The carburetor 23 is positioned obliquely rearward of the fuel cock 43, and the hose connection between the fuel hose joint 69 and the carburetor 23 is facilitated by the arrangement of the fuel hose joint 69.

  As described above, the resin tank structure of the vehicle in the above embodiment is formed by blow molding and has a saddle shape that straddles the main frame 12 extending in the front-rear direction in the vehicle body frame F, and supplies fuel to the engine 2. A tank main body 41 to be stored, and a fuel cock 43 attached to a lower end portion of a portion of the tank main body 41 that extends downward by avoiding the main frame 12, and a cock attaching portion 53 to which the fuel cock 43 in the tank main body 41 is attached is provided. In addition, a base part 61 in which a metal nut N for bolting the fuel cock 43 is pre-wrapped with a resin is inserted and formed at the time of blow molding. And a bottom 62 that forms a cock mounting seating surface 56 facing the lower side of the tank, and an inner side of the tank An inner portion 63 that forms a lower inner surface 63a that faces the upper side of the covering portion 62a, and an outer portion 64 that forms a lower outer surface 64a that faces the outer side of the tank to the upper side of the covering portion 62a, The cock mounting portion 53 has a chamfered shape R having a radius smaller than the minimum radius that can be formed by blow molding in the tank body 41.

  According to this configuration, even when the cock attachment portion 53 is provided at the bottom end of the tank body 41 having a narrow left and right width, a narrow shape that is difficult to form by blow molding can be formed. The size of the cock mounting seating surface 56 can be ensured without widening the left and right widths of the lower end portion or moving the lower end height upward. Moreover, the adhesiveness with the tank main body 41 can be improved by extending the length of the inner side part 63 and the outer side part 64 of the base component 61.

  In the vehicle resin tank structure, the fuel cock 43 has the bolt insertion holes 66 for the fastening bolts B before and after the fastening flange 65 in contact with the pedestal component 61 in the state of being attached to the tank body 41, and the fastening flange 65. The cock body 68 protrudes below the intermediate portion of the cock body 68, the path switching lever 67 is disposed on the left and right outer sides of the cock body 68, the fuel hose joint 69 is disposed on the left and right inner sides of the cock body 68, and the cock mounting portion 53 is By arranging a pair of metal nuts N to which the fastening bolts B are screwed before and after that, and arranging a metal nut N on the rear side of the front side metal nut N on the left and right outer sides, the fuel cock 43 is attached to the tank body 41. When installed, the route switching lever 67 faces diagonally forward, making it easier for the occupant to visually recognize the route switching lever 67 and the fuel hose joystick. By bets 69 is positioned on the left and right inside the cock body 68, it is possible to enhance the direction setting flexibility of the fuel hose and the joint.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, vehicles to which the present invention is applied include not only motorcycles (including motorbikes and scooter type vehicles) but also three-wheelers (front one wheel and rear two wheels). In addition, a vehicle having two front wheels and one rear wheel is also included.
And the structure in the said embodiment is an example of this invention, A various change is possible in the range which does not deviate from the summary of the said invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Motorcycle 2 Engine 12 Main frame 31 Fuel tank 41 Tank main body 41a Hanging part 43 Fuel cock 53 Cock attachment part 56 Cock attachment seat surface 61 Base part 62 Bottom part 62a Cover part 62b Front part 62c Rear part 63 Inner part 63a Lower inner side surface (Inside)
64 Outer part 64a Lower outer side (outer side)
65 Fastening flange 66 Bolt insertion hole 67 Path switching lever 68 Cock body 69 Fuel hose joint 71 Adhesive surface 72 Small hole (hole)
73 Extension groove (groove)
F Body frame N Metal nut B Fastening bolt

Claims (1)

A tank body (41) for storing fuel to be supplied to the engine (2) in the form of a saddle straddling the main frame (12) extending left and right in the body frame (F) formed by blow molding;
A fuel cock (43) attached to a lower end portion of a portion of the tank body (41) that extends downward to avoid the main frame (12);
A cock mounting portion (53) to which the fuel cock (43) is mounted in the tank body (41) is formed, and a pedestal in which a metal nut (N) for bolting the fuel cock (43) is previously wrapped with resin. In a method for manufacturing a resin tank of a vehicle comprising the component (61),
The pedestal part (61) includes a covering portion (62a) for wrapping the metal nut (N), a bottom portion (62) forming a cock mounting seating surface (56) facing the lower side of the tank, and an inner surface facing the inner side of the tank. An inner portion (63) that forms (63a) above the envelope portion (62a), and an outer portion that forms an outer surface (64a) that faces the outer side of the tank above the envelope portion (62a). (64)
On the left and right outer sides of the upper end portion of the inner portion (63), an inner inclined surface (63b) is formed to reduce the thickness of the inner portion (63) toward the upper side,
On the left and right inner sides of the upper end portion of the outer portion (64), an outer inclined surface (64b) that reduces the thickness of the outer portion (64) toward the upper side is formed,
The front part (62b) and the rear part (62c) of the pedestal part (61) extend back and forth along the outer surface of the tank body (41),
The method of manufacturing a resin tank for a vehicle, wherein the cock attaching portion (53) is formed by inserting the pedestal part (61) during the blow molding.

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