JP4487915B2 - Fuel shut-off valve - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a fuel cutoff valve that is attached to an upper part of a fuel tank and that opens and closes a connection passage that connects the inside and outside of the fuel tank to cut off communication between the fuel tank and the outside.

  Conventionally, Patent Documents 1 to 3 and the like are known as this type of fuel cutoff valve. The fuel shut-off valve is mounted on the upper part of the fuel tank, and is moved up and down by increasing / decreasing buoyancy in the valve chamber of the casing provided with a connection passage connected to the outside (canister) and the valve chamber of the casing. The float and the upper valve body mounted on the upper part of the float are provided. The float increases the buoyancy due to the rise in the fuel level in the fuel tank, and the upper valve body rises integrally with the float, thereby closing the connection passage and preventing the fuel from flowing out. In such a fuel shut-off valve, when the connecting passage has a large passage area, if the connecting passage is directly opened and closed by a float, the float is adsorbed and the restart valve characteristic is not good. It has a two-stage valve structure provided with an upper valve body having a connection hole with a passage area.

  However, in the fuel shut-off valve having such a two-stage valve structure, the upper valve body is lifted from the float due to the rising air flow during refueling, the upper valve body is displaced from the float, and the connection hole is completely closed. May occur. Such misalignment of the upper valve body has a problem that the fuel in the fuel tank easily leaks to the outside through the connection hole and the connection passage.

JP 2001-82270 A US Pat. No. 6,918,405 JP 2002-166730 A

  In view of solving the above-mentioned problems of the conventional technology, the present invention provides a casing, a float, and an upper valve core for improving sealing performance in a two-stage valve structure including an upper valve body on the upper part of a float. It is an object of the present invention to provide a fuel shut-off valve that can prevent misalignment with high accuracy with a simple configuration and that can easily configure an upper valve body.

The present invention made to solve the problems
In a fuel cutoff valve that is mounted on the upper part of the fuel tank and that opens and closes a connection passage that connects the inside and outside of the fuel tank to cut off communication between the fuel tank and the outside.
A casing for forming a valve chamber communicating with the inside of the fuel tank and the connection passage by a side wall;
A float that is housed in the valve chamber and moves up and down by increasing or decreasing buoyancy depending on the fuel level in the valve chamber, and has a valve portion on the top thereof, and is placed on the top of the float so as to be lifted and lowered away from the float. A float mechanism having an upper valve body that opens and closes the connection passage by moving up and down,
With
The casing is formed on the inner wall of the side wall portion in the vertical direction and from the upper part to the lower part of the casing, and has a plurality of ribs for guiding the upper valve body and the float in the vertical direction .
The float has a hook-like engagement portion formed at the upper part of the float and radially outward from the valve portion,
The upper valve body is
A valve body;
A connection hole formed through the valve body and having a smaller passage area than the connection passage and opened and closed by the valve portion ;
An engaging claw that protrudes from the lower portion of the valve body and engages with the engaging portion to restrict the vertical movement of the valve body with respect to the float within a predetermined distance;
A guide portion that protrudes from a lower portion of the valve body, and that slides on an outer peripheral portion of the engagement portion to restrict the radial movement of the valve body with respect to the float within a predetermined distance;
The valve body is formed so as to penetrate in the vertical direction, and is disposed on the outer peripheral side of the valve main body, on the outer peripheral side of the engaging claw and the guide part, and on the outer side of the connection passage. And a vent hole formed so as to allow upward airflow from below to escape above the valve body .

  When fuel is supplied to the fuel tank using the fuel shut-off valve according to the present invention and reaches a predetermined liquid level in the fuel tank, the float mechanism rises due to the buoyancy of the float due to the fuel flowing into the valve chamber, that is, the float and the upper part The valve body rises together. As the float mechanism is raised, the upper valve body closes the connection passage, thereby blocking the fuel tank from the outside and preventing the fuel from flowing out from the fuel tank. At this time, the valve portion of the float closes the connection hole. When the float buoyancy is reduced due to fuel consumption and the float mechanism is lowered, the upper valve body moves downward from the float while the movement of the upper valve body is restricted with respect to the float by the restricting part after the valve part opens the connection hole. The connection passage is opened by descending in response to the force of. In this case, since the connection hole has a smaller passage area than the connection passage, the valve portion of the upper valve body first opens the connection hole to reduce the pressure difference in the valve closing direction applied to the upper valve body, and then Since the upper valve body quickly opens the connection passage, the restart valve characteristic is improved.

Moreover, even if the upper valve body receives fuel vapor rising in the valve chamber at the time of refueling on its lower surface, it escapes upward through the vent hole. Therefore, the upper valve body does not receive a large force that separates from the float, and therefore, the upper valve body is integrated with the float without being displaced, and moves while being guided upward by the rib. Therefore, it can be avoided that the upper valve body is tilted or the core is displaced and the sealing is insufficient, that is, the connection hole is kept closed with a higher sealing performance by the upper valve body. Therefore, the fuel does not leak to the outside through the connection hole.
Further, compared to the conventional technique (Patent Document 2), the restricting portion is disposed on the inner diameter side from the vent hole, and the distance between the restricting portions can be reduced, and the dimensional tolerance thereof can be reduced. It is possible to reduce the setting of the clearance with the upper part of the head within a slidable range. Therefore, the misalignment with respect to the float can be further reduced.

  As a preferred aspect of the present invention, the restricting portion is configured as an engaging claw that restricts the movement of the valve body in the vertical direction relative to the float within a predetermined distance by engaging with the upper portion of the float, or It can comprise as a guide part which restrict | limits the movement to the radial direction of the said valve main body with respect to the said float within a predetermined distance.

  In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the valve main body has a disk shape having the connection hole at the center thereof, and the connection hole is formed by lowering or seating the valve part formed at a lower portion of the connection hole. The valve part and the seal part can be configured to be formed of resin. If both the valve part and the seal part are made of resin, even a slight inclination of the upper valve body is likely to cause a seal failure, but such a problem may also occur due to the configuration and action of the vents as described above. Absent. The valve portion may be formed integrally with the float or may be formed separately from the float with rubber or the like.

  Moreover, as another suitable aspect, the said rib can take the structure extended to the lower part of the said casing so that the said float might be guided to an up-down direction. According to this configuration, since one rib guides both the float and the upper valve body, the mold structure during injection molding can be simplified, and the mechanism for guiding the float mechanism can be simplified.

  Furthermore, as another preferred aspect, the side wall portion may have a communication hole that communicates the inside of the fuel tank and the valve chamber between the ribs. According to this configuration, since the outer peripheral portion of the upper valve body is separated from the vent hole by the rib, the upper valve body can be smoothly raised and lowered without being caught by the vent hole.

  The vent hole may be formed adjacent to the outer wall surface of the restricting portion. With this configuration, the restricting portion acts as a barrier that restricts the flow of the rising air flow into the connection hole on the inner diameter side, so that the force for separating the valve portion and the seal portion is reduced.

In order to further clarify the configuration and operation of the present invention described above, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below.
(1) Schematic configuration of fuel shut-off valve 10 The fuel shut-off valve according to one embodiment of the present invention functions as an automatic stop while regulating the outflow to the canister when the fuel in the fuel tank rises to a predetermined liquid level during refueling. It is something to be made. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of the fuel cutoff valve 10. The surface of the fuel tank FT is made of a composite resin material containing polyethylene, and a mounting hole FTb is formed in the tank upper wall FTa. A fuel shut-off valve 10 is attached to the tank upper wall FTa in a state where the lower part thereof enters the attachment hole FTb. The fuel shut-off valve 10 includes a casing 20, a float mechanism 50, and a spring 70 as main components, and these are formed of a resin such as polyacetal. The casing 20 includes a casing main body 30, a bottom plate 35, and a lid body 40. A space surrounded by the casing main body 30 and the bottom plate 35 is a valve chamber 30S, and the valve chamber 30S is supported by a spring 70. The float mechanism 50 is accommodated.

(2) Configuration of Each Part of Fuel Shutoff Valve 10 FIG. 2 is an exploded sectional view of the fuel cutoff valve 10. The casing body 30 has a cup shape surrounded by a ceiling wall portion 31 and a cylindrical side wall portion 32, and has a lower portion as an opening 30a. A passage forming protrusion 31a is formed in the center of the ceiling wall 31 so as to project downward. A connection passage 31b connected to the valve chamber 30S is formed through the passage forming protrusion 31a. Yes. The valve chamber 30S side of the connection passage 31b is a first seal portion 31c. The side wall portion 32 is formed with a communication hole 32a for connecting the valve chamber 30S to the fuel tank FT. The communication hole 32a is arranged so that the upper end thereof coincides with the predetermined liquid level FL1 (see FIG. 6). In addition, an engagement recess 32 c for attaching the bottom plate 35 is formed in the side wall portion 32. A rib 32d is formed on the inner wall of the side wall portion 32 along the vertical direction. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 in FIG. The ribs 32d are ridges for guiding the float mechanism 50 in the up-and-down direction, and are formed at four locations at equal intervals of 90 ° in the circumferential direction. The communication hole 32a is formed between the ribs 32d.
Returning to FIG. 2, the bottom plate 35 is a member that closes the opening 30 a of the casing body 30, and the engagement claw 35 a formed on the outer peripheral portion of the bottom plate 35 engages with the engagement recess 32 c, thereby opening the casing body 30. It is mounted so as to close 30a. The bottom plate 35 is formed with a bottom communication hole 35 b and a spring support portion 35 c for supporting the lower end of the spring 70.

  The lid body 40 includes a lid body 41, a tube body portion 42 projecting laterally from the center of the lid body 41, a flange 43 and a support portion 44 formed on the outer periphery of the lid body 41, and these are integrated. Forming. A tube passage 42a is formed in the tube body portion 42. One end of the tube passage 42a is connected to the valve chamber 30S of the casing body 30 through the connection passage 31b, and the other end is on the canister (not shown) side. Connected. The support portion 44 is a cylindrical body that protrudes from the lower portion of the lid main body 41 and fits the upper portion of the casing main body 30. An engagement hole 44 a is formed in the support portion 44. The engagement hole 44 a is engaged with an engagement claw (not shown) formed in the side wall portion 32 of the casing body 30, so that the lid body 40 holds the casing body 30. Further, a welded portion 43 a that is welded to the tank upper wall FTa of the fuel tank FT is formed at the lower end portion of the flange 43.

  FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing the float mechanism 50. 2 and 4, the float mechanism 50 includes a float 52 and an upper valve body 60 disposed on the top of the float 52. The float 52 has a cup shape having a buoyancy chamber 54 (FIG. 2) opened downward. The buoyancy chamber 54 is a bottomed hole. Further, a substantially conical valve portion 53a projects from the upper portion of the float 52, and a hook-like engagement portion 53b for preventing the upper valve body 60 from being formed is formed below the valve portion 53a. Yes.

The upper valve body 60 is a valve for improving the restart valve characteristics, and is supported on the upper portion of the float 52 so as to be movable up and down, and includes a valve main body 61 and a seal member 65 attached to the valve main body 61. Yes.
The valve main body 61 has a disc shape and is formed so that an outer peripheral portion thereof is guided by a rib 32d (see FIG. 3) of the casing main body 30. The valve body 61 includes a valve mounting portion 61a projecting from the center upper portion, and a connection hole 61b penetrating the central portion of the valve mounting portion 61a is formed. A lower portion of the connection hole 61b is a second seal portion 61c, and the connection hole 61b is opened and closed when the valve portion 53a is seated and separated.
FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the upper valve body 60. 4 and 5, an engaging claw 61d (regulating portion) that engages with the engaging portion 53b of the float 52 projects from the lower portion of the valve body 61, and is engaged between the engaging claws 61d. A guide portion 61e (regulation portion) guided by the outer peripheral portion of the portion 53b is provided. The engaging claws 61d and the guide portions 61e are arranged at two positions every 90 °. A vent hole 62 is formed through the engagement claw 61d and the guide portion 61e in the radial direction, that is, between the outer peripheral edge of the valve body 61 and the engagement claw 61d. The vent hole 62 is a substantially crescent-shaped hole along the circumferential direction, and is a vent path through which the updraft received by the upper valve body 60 is passed.
The seal member 65 is a rubber disc-like valve body, and has a mounting hole 65a at the center thereof, and is mounted on the valve main body 61 by press-fitting the mounting hole 65a into the valve mounting portion 61a. . The upper surface of the seal member 65 is a sheet surface 65b that is attached to and detached from the first seal portion 31c.

(3) Operation of the fuel cutoff valve 10 Next, the operation of the fuel cutoff valve 10 will be described. When fuel is supplied into the fuel tank FT by refueling, as shown in FIG. 1, as the fuel level in the fuel tank FT rises, the fuel vapor that has accumulated in the upper portion of the fuel tank FT becomes the bottom of the bottom plate 35. The valve chamber 30S enters the valve chamber 30S through the communication hole 35b and the communication hole 32a of the side wall 32, and escapes from the valve chamber 30S to the canister side through the connection passage 31b and the pipe passage 42a. At this time, since the vent hole 62 is formed in the upper valve body 60, the fuel vapor flows upward through the vent hole 62 and does not generate a large force that moves the upper valve body 60 upward. Therefore, the upper valve body 60 maintains the state of being placed on the float 52 without rising from the upper part of the float 52.

  As shown in FIG. 6, when the fuel liquid level in the fuel tank FT reaches the predetermined liquid level FL1, the fuel closes the communication hole 32a, thereby increasing the tank internal pressure in the fuel tank FT. When the sensor detects the increase in the tank internal pressure, an auto-stop functioning to stop the fueling of the fueling gun is activated. In this state, the differential pressure between the tank internal pressure and the pressure in the valve chamber 30S increases, and the fuel level rises in the valve chamber 30S. When the fuel level in the valve chamber 30S reaches the height h0, the balance between the buoyancy of the float 52 and the upward force due to the load of the spring 70 and the downward force due to the dead weight of the float 52 and the upper valve body 60 is caused. When the former exceeds the latter, the float 52 and the upper valve body 60 are integrally lifted while being guided by the rib 32d, and the seat surface 65b of the seal member 65 is seated on the first seal portion 31c and connected. The passage 31b is closed. Thereby, at the time of refueling to the fuel tank FT, it is possible to escape the fuel vapor from the fuel tank FT and to prevent the fuel from flowing out of the fuel tank FT.

  On the other hand, when the fuel level in the fuel tank FT decreases and the fuel in the valve chamber 30S is discharged from the bottom communication hole 35b or the like, the float 52 reduces its buoyancy and moves downward as shown in FIG. The valve portion 53a is separated from the second seal portion 61c and opens the connection hole 61b. Due to the communication of the connection hole 61b, the pressure below the upper valve body 60 becomes substantially the same pressure as that in the vicinity of the connection passage 31b, so that the force for closing the upper valve body 60 is reduced, and the engaging portion 53b is engaged with the engaging claw By engaging with 61d, the upper valve body 60 is pulled down, the seal member 65 is separated from the first seal portion 31c, and the connection passage 31b is opened. Thus, the upper valve body 60 opens with a small force by setting the passage area of the connection hole 61b to be smaller than the passage area of the connection passage 31b. Thus, the two-stage valve structure by the upper valve body 60 functions to promote the improvement of the restart valve characteristic.

(4) Actions and effects of the embodiment The following actions and effects are exhibited by the configuration of the above embodiment.
(4) -1 Even if the upper valve body 60 receives the fuel vapor rising in the valve chamber 30 </ b> S at the lower surface during refueling, it escapes upward through the vent hole 62. Therefore, since the upper valve body 60 does not receive a large force that separates from the float 52, the upper valve body 60 is integrated with the float 52 without being displaced with respect to the float 52, and is guided upward by the rib 32d. Moving. Therefore, in the case where there is no vent hole 62 described above, it is possible to prevent the upper valve body 60 from tilting or causing a misalignment as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, since the connection hole 61b is kept closed by the upper valve body 60 with high sealing performance, the fuel does not leak to the outside through the connection hole 61b.

(4) -2 Furthermore, as compared with the conventional technique (Patent Document 2), the engaging claw 61d and the guide part 61e as the restricting part are arranged on the inner diameter side from the vent hole 62, and the distance between them is small. Since these dimensional tolerances can be reduced, it is possible to reduce the setting of the clearance with the upper portion of the float 52 within a slidable range. Therefore, the misalignment with respect to the float can be further reduced.

(4) -3 Since the vent hole 62 is formed adjacent to the outer wall surface of the guide portion 61e, the guide portion 61e acts as a barrier that restricts the flow of ascending airflow into the connection hole 61b on the inner diameter side. To do. Therefore, the force which separates the valve part 53a and the 2nd seal part 61c is reduced.

(4) -4 When both the valve portion 53a of the float 52 and the second seal portion 61c of the valve body 61 are made of resin, even if the upper valve body 60 is slightly inclined, a sealing failure is likely to occur. Such an inconvenience does not occur due to the configuration and operation of the air vents.

(4) -5 A single rib 32d provided on the inner wall of the casing body 30 guides both the float 52 and the upper valve body 60. Therefore, the mold structure at the time of injection molding can be simplified, and the float mechanism 50 The mechanism for guiding can also be simplified.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be implemented in various modes without departing from the gist thereof. For example, the following modifications are possible.
In the above embodiment, the vent hole 62 is disposed adjacent to the outside of the guide portion 61e. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and may be disposed adjacent to the outside of the engaging claw 61d. You may arrange | position along the outer periphery not only the arrangement | positioning adjacent to the outer side of 61 g of claws.

  FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing a float mechanism 50B according to another embodiment. In FIG. 9, the upper valve body 60B includes a seal member 65B mounted in the mounting hole 61Ba of the valve main body 61B. The seal member 65B includes a seal surface 65Ba provided in the upper portion thereof, a second seal portion 65Bb provided in the lower portion thereof, and a connecting cylinder portion 65Bc for connecting them, and the seal surface 65Ba is a first seal portion (FIG. 1). The second seal portion 65Bb is attached to and detached from the valve portion 53Ba formed of the upper plane of the float 52B.

It is sectional drawing which shows the fuel cutoff valve concerning one Example of this invention. It is sectional drawing which decomposed | disassembled the fuel cutoff valve. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 1. It is a perspective view which decomposes | disassembles and shows a float mechanism. It is a bottom view of an upper valve body. It is explanatory drawing explaining operation | movement of a fuel cutoff valve. It is explanatory drawing explaining the operation | movement following FIG. It is explanatory drawing explaining the effect | action of a fuel cutoff valve. It is sectional drawing which shows the float mechanism concerning other Examples.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Fuel cutoff valve 20 ... Casing 30 ... Casing main body 30S ... Valve chamber 30a ... Opening 31 ... Ceiling wall part 31a ... Passage formation protrusion 31b ... Connection passage 31c ... first seal portion 32 ... side wall portion 32a ... communication hole 32c ... engagement recess 32d ... rib 35 ... bottom plate 35a ... engagement claw 35b ... bottom Communication hole 35c ... Spring support part 40 ... Cover body 41 ... Cover body 42 ... Tube part 42a ... Pipe passage 43 ... Flange 43a ... Welding part 44 ... Support Part 44a ... engagement hole 50 ... float mechanism 52 ... float 53a ... valve part 53b ... engagement part 54 ... buoyancy chamber 60 ... upper valve body 61 ... valve Body 61a ... Valve mounting part 61b ... Connection hole 61c ... Second seal part 61d ... Engagement claw 61e ... Guide part 62 ... Vent hole 65 ... Seal member 65a .. .Mounting hole 65b ... Seat surface 70 ... Spring FT ... Fuel tank FTa ... Tank upper wall FTb ... Mounting hole

Claims (5)

A fuel cutoff valve that is mounted on the upper part of the fuel tank (FT) and that opens and closes a connection passage (31b) that connects the inside of the fuel tank (FT) and the outside, thereby disconnecting the fuel tank (FT) from the outside.
A casing (20) in which a valve chamber (30S) communicating with the inside of the fuel tank (FT) and the connection passage (31b) is formed by a side wall portion (32);
A float (52) which is housed in the valve chamber (30S) and moves up and down by increasing or decreasing buoyancy according to the fuel level in the valve chamber (30S ) and having a valve portion (53a) on the upper part thereof, and the float (52) A float mechanism (50) having an upper valve body (60) mounted on the upper portion of the float (52) so as to be movable up and down and opening and closing the connection passage (31b) when the float (52) moves up and down. )When,
With
The casing (20) is formed on the inner wall of the side wall (32) along the vertical direction from the upper part to the lower part of the casing (20), and the upper valve body (60) and the float (52) are moved in the vertical direction. It has a plurality of ribs (32d) for guiding the,
The float (52) has a hook-like engaging portion (53b) formed on the upper portion of the float (52) and radially outward from the valve portion (53a).
The upper valve body (60)
A valve body (61);
The valve is a small passage area than the connecting passage formed through (31b) to the body (61) and the valve unit and the connection hole (61b) opened and closed by (53a),
The valve body (61) protrudes from the lower part of the valve body (61) and engages with the engaging portion (53b) to restrict the vertical movement of the valve body (61) relative to the float (52) within a predetermined distance. Engaging claws (61d) to
The valve body (61) protrudes from the lower part of the valve body (61) and slides on the outer periphery of the engaging portion (53b), thereby allowing the valve body (61) to move in the radial direction with respect to the float (52) by a predetermined distance. A guide part (61e) to be regulated in,
The valve main body (61) is formed so as to penetrate in the vertical direction, and is located on the outer peripheral side of the engagement claw (61d) and the guide portion (61e) in the outer peripheral portion of the valve main body (61) and the connection passage (31b). A vent hole (62) that is disposed radially outward from the outer periphery of the valve body and is formed so as to release upward airflow from below the valve body (61) to the top of the valve body (61);
A fuel cutoff valve characterized by comprising: The fuel cutoff valve according to claim 1 ,
The valve main body (61) has a disk shape having the connection hole (61b) at the center thereof, and is formed at the lower part of the connection hole (61b) so that the valve part is separated or seated. A seal portion (61c) for opening and closing the hole (61b),
The valve part and the seal part (61c) are fuel cutoff valves formed of resin. The fuel cutoff valve according to claim 1 or 2 ,
The side wall (32) is a fuel cutoff valve having a communication hole (32a) for communicating the inside of the fuel tank (FT) and the valve chamber (30S) between the ribs (32d). The fuel cutoff valve according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
The vent hole (62) is a fuel cutoff valve formed adjacent to the outer wall surface of the guide portion (61e) . The fuel cutoff valve according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
The vent hole (62) is a fuel cutoff valve formed adjacent to the outer wall surface of the engagement claw (61d).

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