JPS6058103B2 - Filler net for fuel tank - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a fuel tank for storing fuel such as gasoline.

More specifically, the present invention relates to a filler neck for a fuel tank that allows the cap to be safely attached and removed from a fuel tank with high internal pressure. Recent vehicles are
In order to prevent air pollution, fuel systems are becoming more airtight, and as the temperature rises, the internal pressure of the fuel tank inevitably increases.

Therefore, when the cap is removed from the filler neck during refueling, if the tank internal pressure is high, there is a risk that the cap will be blown off by the tank internal pressure, or that fuel such as gasoline in the tank may be blown out.
On the other hand, a cap with a key has recently been proposed as a cap to be attached to such a filler neck, but its locking method is as shown in Fig. 7, in which a lock piece b is slid by the rotation of a key cylinder a. The cap e is prevented from coming off by engaging the lock piece b with a stopper d provided on the filler neck c side.

In order to maintain the airtightness of this cap with a key, several seals must be installed between the key cylinder a and the cylindrical part g hanging down from the handle member f, or between the cap body h and the handle member f. Not only the member j is required, but also screws k, etc. are required, and as the number of parts increases, there are many unstable elements in maintaining airtightness (Japanese Patent Publication No. 59-4427013) reference). The present invention was devised in order to eliminate the various drawbacks of the conventional art as described above, and its purpose is to prevent the cap from blowing off and gasoline from blowing out, and also to provide a so-called key locking mechanism that operates the locking mechanism with a key. It is an object of the present invention to provide a filler neck for a fuel tank that can achieve perfect sealing performance while reducing the number of parts of a sealing member even when closing an oil filler port with a cap. In order to achieve this object, the present invention provides an engaging pawl on a cap body with a key that closes an oil filler port opened in a filler neck body, and rotates the cap body to cause the engaging pawl to close. It is configured to engage with the engaged portion of the filler neck main body and pressurize the seal member between the filler neck main body and the cap main body, and when the key is turned on, the lock piece on the cap main body side is locked. In the fuel tank, the upper region of the seal member protrudes radially outward and is engaged with the filler neck body to lock the cap body unrotatably, wherein the filler neck body is connected to an inner cylinder and an outer cylinder. and a first engagement claw and a second engagement claw, the engagement claw being arranged in a predetermined positional relationship on the cap body, and an inner cylinder with which the first engagement claw engages. is formed in a substantially horizontal first guide plate formed by bending the tip inward, a first notch provided in this first guide plate, and a part where the first guide plate is further folded inward. , a cam wall that is gradually inclined from the first notch, and a first stopper provided at the end point of the cam wall, and the outer cylinder that the second engaging pawl engages is inclined from the tip of the inner cylinder. A flange provided at a slightly lower portion, an annular portion held by the flange and protruding beyond the tip of the inner cylinder, a second guide plate provided at the tip of the annular portion, and a second guide plate provided on the second guide plate. and a second notch formed in a predetermined positional relationship with respect to the first notch,
The predetermined positional relationship is such that when the first engaging pawl is in a position to fit into the first notch, the second engaging pawl does not correspond to the second notch and engages with the inner surface of the second guide plate. Further, the lock piece is protruded radially outward by a key to lock the locking portion in the annular portion above the first guide plate to which the seal member is pressed. It is characterized by being provided at the location.

In the present invention configured in this manner, when the cap is removed, even if the first engaging pawl comes off, the second engaging pawl does not come off, but maintains the engaged state, even if the pressure inside the fuel tank is high. This prevents the cap from blowing off or the fuel from blowing out, and when the cap is tightened, both the first engaging claw and the second engaging claw are used to tighten the cap, making it possible to completely tighten the cap. Become.

Moreover, when the key of the cap attached to the filler neck is turned on or off, the lock piece slides on the top of the seal member, so only one seal member is needed to seal between the cap body and the filler neck. This suffices, and the instability of airtightness is extremely reduced, resulting in a more complete seal. Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, to explain the present invention in detail, first engaging claws 16, 16 and second engaging claws 30, 30 are attached to a keyed cap body 27 equipped with a handle 26 shown in FIG. 1, as shown in FIG. As shown schematically, the filler neck main body 1 also has first notches 3, 3 into which the first engaging claws 16 and the second engaging claws 30 fit, respectively. , second notches 9, 9 (fifth
(shown with broken lines in the figure) is provided at a predetermined position, and when removing the cap body 27, first engage the first engaging pawl 16 and the first notch 3 to release the internal pressure of the fuel tank, and then Second
The engaging claw 30 is fitted into the second notch 9, and the cap body 27 is closed.
is removed from the filler neck 1.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. The inner cylinder A that engages with the engaging claw 16 has a tip bent inward to form a substantially horizontal first cylinder.
A guide plate 2 is formed, and first notches 3, 3 are provided at two opposing locations on the first guide plate 2 with a gap of 1800 mm.

The inner circumferential edge of the first guide plate 2 is further folded inward, and as shown in FIG. 3, the first notch 3 is the starting point.
An engaging cam wall 4 is formed that gradually slopes downward after passing through the step portion 3a, and first stoppers 5, 5 that make the first engaging claw 16 immovable are connected to the end point of this cam wall 4. On the other hand, the outer cylinder B with which the second engaging pawl 30 engages has a flange 6 protruding radially outward slightly below the upper end of the first guide plate 2, and this flange 6 has an annular portion. 7 is erected, and its upper end is bent radially inward to form a second guide plate 8.
is formed. This second guide plate 8 is located above the first guide plate 2, as is clear from FIG.
7 second engaging claws 30, etc. are provided.
This second guide plate 8 is provided with second notches 9-, 9 at positions shifted by approximately 900 degrees from the first notches 3, 3 formed in the first guide plate 2, and Notches 9, 9
Stepped portions 10, 10 are provided at positions somewhat spaced apart from the cap to facilitate removal of the cap. Note that this step portion 10 will be described in detail later.

The side wall created by forming the second notches 9 is a second stopper 11, and this second stopper 11 is
It functions as a stopper for preventing reverse rotation, with which the second engaging pawl 30 comes into contact when the cap is reversed. Furthermore, this second
In the vicinity of the stopper 11, protrusions 12 serving as locking portions are provided inside the annular portion 7 at intervals of 180 spacings, with which a lock piece 33, which will be described later, engages to restrict rotation of the cap body 27.

There are various kinds of caps that can be attached to such a filler neck, but for example, a lock type cap having a key as shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 is used.

This cap will be explained in detail.

A cylindrical cover 20 is fixed to the lower surface of the cap body 27 using a plurality of countersunk machine screws 28. The bottom part 18 of this cylindrical cover 20 has a bottom part 13 of the cylindrical bracket 17,
A valve holding member 23 is fixed by spot welding or the like. As shown in FIG.
This is done by sandwiching the bottom part 13 of 7 between the cover 20 and the valve holding member 23, and performing ring projection welding or the like on the abutting part. It may be fixed by welding or the like. A negative pressure valve is provided within the valve holding member 23 to eliminate negative pressure within the fuel tank, but since this negative pressure valve is well known, its description will be omitted. A first engaging claw 16 is formed on the side wall 15 of the cylindrical bracket 17 and projects substantially perpendicularly to the side wall 15 .

Note that a through hole 19 is formed in the bottom surface of the cylindrical bracket 17, and this through hole 19 coincides with the atmospheric air introduction hole 22 of the valve holding member 23. Further, the cylindrical cover 20 is integrally provided with a flange portion 24 at the upper end, and the above-mentioned fixation between the cap body 27 and the cylindrical cover 20 is performed at this flange portion.

The cap body 27 is a lid-shaped body that houses a key cylinder 31 and is placed on the filler neck, and has a handle 26 on its upper surface, and a cylindrical part hanging downward in the center of its lower surface. 26, and is molded from synthetic resin.

In addition, the synthetic resin constituting the cap body 27 is as follows:
Engineering plastics such as polyacetal, polybutylene, terephthalate, nylon, and polyphenylene oxide are used. Further, a second engaging claw 30 is integrally provided at the lower end of the outer peripheral side wall 29 of the cap body 27 and protrudes radially outward. The positional relationship with the engaging claw 16 is on the same straight line as shown in FIG. A metal case 55 is fitted into the cylindrical portion 25 of the cap body 27, and a window 56 is provided in the case 55 at the position of a tumbler that pops out when the key 39 is turned on or off. In addition, this case 55 is provided with partial bent portions 57 (only the lower bent portion 57 is shown in FIG. 2) at the upper and lower portions of the case 55 to prevent vertical displacement, and to prevent rotation of the case itself. For this purpose, a groove 58 (see FIG. 4) is provided in the cap body 27, and bent portions 59, 59 extending in the axial direction of the case 55 are fitted into the groove 58. The key cylinder 31 is inserted into the case 55 and is locked to the cylindrical portion 25 of the cap body 27 by a stopper 60 (see FIG. 2).

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, a cam plate 32 is provided on the upper part of the key cylinder 31, and is in contact with the end of a lock piece 33 provided within the cap body 27. As shown in FIG. 2, the lock piece 33 is a stepped plate that is bent to form a vertical portion 34, and has a guide groove 35 bored in the cap body 27.
Since the vertical part 34 is always biased by a spring 37 fitted into a groove 36 bored in the front part of the vertical part 34, the lock piece 33 is slidably inserted into the vertical part 34.
The end of the cam plate 32 is always in resilient contact with the cam plate 32. The key cylinder 31 is configured to rotate as the key 39 inserted through the key groove 38 of the cylinder 31 rotates, and the cam plate 32 also rotates at the same time, but the key is turned off at times. , as shown in FIG. 4, the lock piece 3 resists the elastic force of the spring 37.
3 protrudes, and even if an attempt is made to rotate the cap body 27, the tip of the lock piece 33 engages with the protrusion 12, and the cap body 27 cannot be rotated.

Note that the upper outer periphery of the cylindrical cover 20 and the flange portion 24
An annular packing 40, which is a sealing member, is provided on the lower surface of the
It is maintained by In order to attach such a cap to a filler neck according to the invention, FIGS.
As shown in the figure, the cap body is placed so that the second engagement claws 30 of the cap body fit into the second notches 9, 9 of the outer cylinder B.

Before the second engagement claw 30 and the second notch 9 are fitted together and the cap body 27 is rotated, the first engagement claw 16 is connected to the first guide plate 2.
When the cap main body 27 is rotated clockwise, the first engaging claw 16 on the cap side, which was initially sliding on the first guide plate 2 of the filler neck main body 1, is rotated clockwise. , 16 fit into the filler neck 1 at the first notches 3, 3 of the inner cylinder A. Here, if the cap body 27 is rapidly rotated, the first engaging pawl 16 may jump over the first notch 3, causing the cap body 27 to rotate idly. Therefore, in this embodiment, the first guide plate 8
Since a stepped portion 10 is formed at a position corresponding to the notched portion 3, when this first engaging claw 16 reaches the position of the first notched portion 3, the second engaging claw 30 is pushed down by this stepped portion 10. The first engaging pawl 16 is forced to fit into the first notch 3. Therefore, even if the cap body 27 is rapidly rotated, the cap body 27 will not idle and will surely fit into the filler neck body 1.

When this first engaging claw 16 is fitted into the first notch 3, the first engaging claw 16 moves along the lower surface of the cam walls 4, 4 as shown in FIG. 27 is pressurized to the first guide plate 2 of the filler neck body 1 while pressurizing the packing 40, and the space between the two gradually becomes airtight.
When further rotated, the first engaging claw 16 moves to the first stopper 5.
It hits and stops. This stopped state is designed to be the optimal state for the oil filler port to be closed. When the key is turned on in this state, the cam plate 32 rotates as the key cylinder 31 rotates, and the lock piece 33 locks into the guide groove 3.
5 and protrudes outward in the radial direction,
Even if you try to rotate the cap body 27 counterclockwise,
It is locked due to the protrusion 12 and cannot be rotated. As a result, as shown in FIG. 2, the cap completely blocks the oil filler port 0, and the fuel tank becomes airtight. To remove the cap mounted in this manner, the key 39 is rotated.

Due to this rotation, the lock piece 33 is biased by the spring 37, so as the cam plate 32 rotates, it slides inward to release the locked state, and the cap body 27 becomes rotatable. . In this state, the cap body 27 is urged upward by the elasticity of the packing 40, etc., but if the cap body 27 is rotated counterclockwise, the first engaging claws 16, 16 are , 4, and becomes free at the first notches 3, 3. in this case,
Although the pressure inside the fuel tank may be high, the first engaging claw 16 gradually rises along the cam wall 4.
This internal pressure is gradually released to the outside. However, when the cap is twisted rapidly, the internal pressure cannot be fully discharged by the cam wall sliding section between the first engaging claws 16 and the first engaging claws 16
If it fits into the first notch 3 and becomes free, this internal pressure may push up the cap body 27, causing the high internal pressure to completely escape to the outside at once.

However, the second engaging pawl 30 remains engaged with the second guide plate 8, and although the high internal pressure cannot be completely discharged, the pressure is lower than when it is sealed. There is no risk of the cap being blown away, and furthermore, since the outer cylinder B is blown off by the internal pressure blowing out, there is no risk of fuel blowing out. When the cap is lifted and the first engaging claws 16, 16 are further rotated counterclockwise on the first guide plate 2, the second engaging claws 30, 30 engage the second notches 9, 9 of the second guide plate 8.
When the cap reaches , the cap can be removed from the filler neck book unit 1 by lifting it upward. FIG. 6 shows another embodiment of the present invention, in which the inner cylinder A of the filler neck main body 101 is shown.
are bent inward to form a substantially horizontal first guide plate 102, and 1800
Between. Separating first notches 103, 103 are provided.

This first guide plate 102 is further folded inward to form engagement cam walls 104, 104 that are inclined from the first notch 103, and first stoppers 105, 1 are formed at the end points thereof.
05 are consecutively provided. On the other hand, the filler neck body 10
The outer cylinder B of No. 1 is provided with an annular part 107 on a flange 106 provided slightly below the upper end of the inner cylinder A, and the upper end thereof is bent outward to form a second guide plate 108.
A lock piece insertion hole 112 is provided in the annular portion 107 directly below the second notches 109, 109, and serves as a locking portion for locking the lock piece 33 of the cap. In addition, 11 in the figure
1 is a second stopper. The cap body attached to the filler neck body 101 configured in this way is
As shown in the figure, the outer circumferential side wall 29 does not fit between the inner cylinder A and the outer cylinder B, but the outer circumferential side wall 29 hangs down the outer cylinder B along the outside, and the second engaging claw 30 has a radius of The structure is such that it protrudes inward.

Note that the other configurations are similar to those shown in FIG. 2 and the like. Since the filler neck for a fuel tank according to the present invention has the above-described configuration, the first engaging claw can be slid along the cam wall of the first guide plate provided at the tip of the inner cylinder. Even if the first engaging claw of the cap fits into the first notch of the filler neck when removing the cap, the second engaging claw provided on the cap body will not fit into the second guide plate of the outer cylinder. Since it is in a hooked state, the cap will not be blown off even when the tank internal pressure is high, and fuel will also be prevented from blowing out.

In addition, in this filler neck, the first and second notches are partially provided on the upper surfaces of the first and second guide plates, so that the cap body can be attached to the first and second notches in the first and second notches. By aligning the two engaging pawls, disengagement and fitting can be easily performed.
In addition, with this filler neck, even when closing the oil filler port with the keyed cap that operates the locking mechanism with a key, the lock piece operates above the sealing member, so the lower surface of the cap body and the filler neck body are Only by providing one sealing member on the upper surface, complete sealing performance can be achieved, resulting in a reduction in the number of parts and an advantage in terms of cost.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a filler neck for a fuel tank according to the present invention and a cap attached to the filler neck, and FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the state in which the key is turned on with the cap attached to the filler neck. Figure 3 is a developed view of the cam wall, Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line ■-■ in Figure 2.
5 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the engaging pawl and the notch, FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a conventional It is a sectional view showing a fuel tank cap. 1... Filler neck, 2... First guide plate, 3... First notch, 4... Cam wall, 5
...First stopper, 6...Flange,
7...Annular part, 8...Second guide plate, 9
...Second notch, 10...Step, 11
...Second stopper, 12...Protrusion, 1
6...First engaging claw, 27...Cap body, 30...Second engaging claw, 31...
Key cylinder, 33...Lock piece, 39.
...Key, 112...Through hole, A...
Inner cylinder, B...Outer cylinder, O...Oil filler port.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. An engaging pawl is provided on a keyed cap body 27 that closes the oil filler port O opened in the filler neck body 1, and by rotating the cap body 27, the engaging pawl closes the filler neck body 1. A sealing member 40 that is engaged with the engaged portion of the neck body 1 and is located between the filler neck body 1 and the cap body 27.
When the key 39 is inserted, the lock piece 33 on the cap body 27 side protrudes radially outward in the upper region of the seal member 40 and locks onto the filler neck body 1. , in a fuel tank in which the cap body 27 is unrotatably locked, the filler neck body 1 is connected to an inner cylinder A and an outer cylinder B.
and a first engaging claw 16, the engaging claw being arranged in a predetermined positional relationship with the cap body 27;
and a second engaging pawl 30, and the inner cylinder A that this first engaging pawl 16 engages has a substantially horizontal first guide plate 2 formed by bending its tip inward; The first notches 3, 3 provided in the guide plate 2 and the first notches 3, 3 formed in a portion where the first guide plate 2 is further folded back inward.
cam walls 4, 4 which are gradually inclined from the cam walls 4, 4;
The outer cylinder B, which has a first stopper 5 provided at the end point thereof, and which the second engaging claw 30 engages with, has a flange 6 provided slightly below the tip of the inner cylinder A, and this flange 6. an annular portion 7 held in the inner cylinder A and protruding from the tip of the inner cylinder A;
A second guide plate 8 provided at the tip of the annular portion 7 and a second notch formed in a predetermined positional relationship with respect to the first notch 3 provided in the second guide plate 8. 9, and the predetermined positional relationship is such that when the first engaging claw 16 is in a position to fit into the first notch 3, the second engaging claw 30 is fitted into the second notch 9. The lock piece 33 is protruded radially outward by the key 39 and locks the locking portion 12, which is engaged with the inner surface of the second guide plate 8. The first member 40 is crimped.
A filler neck for a fuel tank, characterized in that it is provided at a portion of the annular portion 7 above the guide plate 2. 2. The filler neck according to claim 1, wherein the second guide plate 8 is formed by bending the annular portion 7 inward. 3. The second guide plate 8 has a stepped portion 10 that allows the first engaging claw 16 to fit into the first notch 3 by lowering the second engaging claw 30. The filler neck according to item 1 or 2. 4. The filler neck according to claims 1 to 3, wherein the second guide plate 8 is formed by bending the annular portion 7 outward.