JPH0664455A - Fuel vapor flow passage closing control device for fuel tank - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable a fuel vapor flow passage to a fuel vapor exhaust checking means to be surely blocked when fuel is filled in a fuel tank. CONSTITUTION:A normally open closing valve 10 is disposed for a fuel vapor flow passage 6 running from a fuel tank equipped with a fuel filling pipe 2 to the open section 2a of which a cap is attached, down to a fuel vapor exhaust checking means absorbing fuel vapor within the fuel tank. And the device is also provided with a valve closing means (lever 18 and moving member 20) holding the closing valve 10 at its closed position in response to operations of removing the cap out of the fuel filling pipe 2.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device for a fuel tank, and more particularly to a fuel for closing a fuel vapor passage from a fuel tank to a fuel vapor discharge suppressing device when fuel is injected into the fuel tank. The present invention relates to a fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device for a tank.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a vehicle fuel is, for example, highly volatile gasoline, fuel vapor is generated in a fuel tank. In order to prevent the pressure inside the fuel tank from rising due to this fuel vapor, and to prevent the fuel vapor from being released into the atmosphere, a fuel vapor discharge restraining device is mounted. In this general configuration, the fuel vapor is guided to a charcoal canister, and once charcoal, that is, activated carbon is adsorbed, air is introduced into the canister by negative intake pressure during engine operation, and the fuel component adsorbed on the activated carbon is sent to the intake system. There is a device for recovering the adsorption capacity of the above, and it is described in, for example, US Pat. No. 3,884,204.

Further, in order to prevent the fuel vapor in the fuel tank from flowing out to the outside when the fuel is injected into the fuel tank from the fuel inlet, the fuel refueling nozzle is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 63-130324. A normally closed on-off valve that opens during insertion is rotatably arranged in the fuel injection pipe, a valve housing is attached to the outer wall of the fuel injection pipe, and the fuel vapor flow from the fuel tank to the fuel vapor purification device is constantly closed. The mold control valve is rotatably arranged in the valve housing, and when the open / close valve is opened, the control valve is opened to send the fuel vapor in the fuel tank to the fuel vapor purification device.

[0004]

By the way, in recent years, in order to suppress the pressure rise in the fuel tank and to reduce the pressure, the check valve provided in the canister as the fuel vapor discharge restraining device is abolished, and the fuel tank is constantly operated. Attention has been paid to a technique for keeping the inside of the container in communication with a canister via a fuel vapor flow path. Along with this, in order to prevent the release of the fuel vapor from the fuel injection pipe to the outside air when injecting the fuel into the fuel tank, it is considered to attach a means for recovering the fuel vapor to, for example, a fuel injection nozzle for fuel injection. It is being used. When such a fuel vapor recovery means is provided, a large amount of fuel vapor generated at the time of fuel injection is recovered by the recovery means, so the amount of fuel vapor supplied to the canister is small, and therefore the capacity of the canister is particularly reduced. It doesn't have to be big.

However, when the fuel is injected, if excessive fuel is supplied, the fuel may enter the fuel vapor passage, so that means for closing the fuel vapor passage at the time of fuel injection is required. Therefore, for example, a normally-closed on-off valve arranged in the fuel injection pipe described in the above publication is used,
It is conceivable that the opening / closing valve is opened when the fueling nozzle is inserted, and the control valve is driven in conjunction with the opening operation to close the fuel vapor passage. However, when using such an on-off valve and a control valve, the fuel vapor flow path cannot be closed by the control valve unless the on-off valve is opened to some extent. That is, when there is only a head portion of the fueling nozzle in the fuel injection pipe immediately before the completion of fuel injection, which is a particular problem, the opening degree of the opening / closing valve is not sufficient, and therefore the control valve is not driven and the fuel vapor flow The road is not blocked.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device for a fuel tank, which can surely close the fuel vapor passage to the fuel vapor discharge suppressing device when fuel is injected into the fuel tank. And

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a fuel vapor which absorbs fuel vapor in the fuel tank from a fuel tank provided with a fuel injection pipe having a cap attached to the opening. In a fuel vapor flow passage opening / closing control device for a fuel tank that controls the opening / closing of a fuel vapor flow passage leading to an emission control device, a normally open opening / closing valve interposed in the fuel vapor flow passage and a cap of the fuel injection pipe A valve closing means for holding the opening / closing valve in the valve closing position in accordance with the removal operation is provided.

Further, according to the present invention, the opening / closing control of the fuel vapor flow path from the fuel tank having the fuel injection pipe having the cap attached to the opening to the fuel vapor discharge suppressing device for absorbing the fuel vapor in the fuel tank is performed. In the fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device for a fuel tank, which is an opening / closing valve disposed near an opening of the fuel injection pipe to open / close the fuel vapor passage, the opening / closing valve biased in a valve opening direction, An urging member that normally urges the on-off valve in the direction of closing the fuel vapor flow path against the urging force of the on-off valve, and the urging member that can be engaged with the fuel injection pipe. A moving member that supports the inside of the fuel injection pipe so as to be movable in the axial direction in the vicinity of the opening, and drives the biasing member via the moving member when the cap is attached to the fuel injection pipe. Opposed to the on-off valve by a biasing member Releasing the biasing that, when removed the cap from the fuel injection pipe can be said biasing member is configured to return in a direction that urges the on-off valve.

[0009]

In the fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device for the fuel tank having the above structure, when the fuel injection pipe is capped, the opening / closing valve is in the open state and the fuel tank is in the fuel vapor passage. Through which the fuel vapor emission restraining device communicates, and the fuel vapor is absorbed by the device. When the fuel is injected into the fuel tank, the cap is removed from the fuel injection pipe, and the opening / closing valve is held in the closed position by the valve closing means, and the fuel vapor flow path is reliably closed by the opening / closing valve.
Therefore, the communication between the fuel tank and the fuel vapor emission suppression device is cut off. At this time, if the fuel vapor flowing out through the fuel injection pipe is recovered by a predetermined recovery means, the release of the fuel vapor to the atmosphere can be minimized.

In addition, in the case where the urging member and the moving member are provided, the valve closing means is constituted by these, and when the cap is attached to the fuel injection pipe, the moving member is attached by attaching the cap. Since the urging of the opening / closing valve by the urging member is released via the opening / closing valve, the opening / closing valve is in the open position. Then, when injecting fuel into the fuel tank, if the cap is removed from the fuel injection pipe, the urging member returns to the direction of urging the on-off valve to the closed position, and the fuel vapor flow path is secured by the on-off valve. Is blocked by.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 5 show a fuel vapor flow path opening / closing control device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 shows an overall configuration of a fuel tank including the same. First, in FIG. 6, fuel is injected from an opening 2a of a fuel injection pipe 2 provided in the fuel tank 1. When the cap 3 is attached to the fuel injection pipe 2, the opening 2a is sealed. To be done. Also,
A breather tube 4 is provided that connects the vicinity of the opening 2a of the fuel injection pipe 2 and the upper space of the fuel tank 1 so as to communicate with each other.

The upper space of the fuel tank 1 is connected to a charcoal canister 8 (hereinafter simply referred to as a canister 8) via a cutoff valve 5 and vapor tubes 6 and 7. This canister 8 constitutes the fuel vapor discharge suppressing device according to the present invention, and, as is well known, contains charcoal (activated carbon) as a fuel vapor adsorbent,
The upper space communicates with the upper space of the fuel tank 1 through the vapor tubes 6 and 7, and also communicates with the intake pipe (not shown) of the engine through the tube 9. An on-off valve 10 is provided in the vicinity of the opening 2a of the fuel injection pipe 2, and the vapor tubes 6 and 7 forming the fuel vapor flow path are configured to be connected or shut off by the on-off valve 10. . The cut-off valve 5 is provided at the open end of the vapor tube 6 in the fuel tank 1 to prevent the liquid fuel from flowing into the vapor tube 6, and is constituted by a float valve.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, an opening 2b is formed in the side wall of the fuel injection pipe 2, and a housing 11 is provided so as to cover the opening 2b. The housing 11 has an opening 11a in the side wall, and the branch base 12 is joined to the opening 11a. The branch base 12 is formed with a branch flow passage 16 connected to the vapor tube 6 at the center and a branch flow passage 17 connected to the vapor tube 7 on the side thereof. It forms part of the road.

A spring 13 is housed in the end portion 16a of the branch flow passage 16. In addition, a valve body 14 that is in contact with the open end surface of the end portion 16a and closes the fuel vapor flow path is provided, and the valve body 14 is biased by the spring 13 in the valve opening direction. The valve element 14 is supported at the center of a diaphragm-shaped support portion 14a, and the peripheral edge portion of the support portion 14a is sandwiched between the joints between the branch base 12 and the housing 11. Thus, the on-off valve 10 is configured, and the valve chamber communicating with the branch flow paths 16 and 17 is defined between the valve body 14 and the support portion 14a and the inner wall surface of the branch base 12.

On the other hand, on the inner wall surface of the housing 11, a pair of stays 15 extending in the direction of the opening 2b of the fuel injection pipe 2,
15 is fixed, and a lever 18 bent and formed in a substantially V shape is rotatably supported on a shaft 15a provided between the tip portions of these stays 15, 15. Lever 1
8 is arranged so that one end 18a can contact the valve body 14, and the other end 18b is arranged so as to extend into the fuel injection pipe 2 through the opening 2b. It is supported by the shaft 15a at a substantially central portion. Further, as is apparent from FIG. 5, a spring 19 is supported by the shaft 15a, and the lever 18 is urged so that its end portion 18a presses the valve body 14. The pressing force of the lever 18 due to the biasing force of the spring 19 is set to be larger than the biasing force of the spring 13 that biases the valve body 14 in the valve opening direction, so that the valve body 14 is pressed against the lever 18. When it is in the closed position, the branch passage 16 is closed. Therefore,
The lever 18 and the spring 19 constitute an urging member according to the present invention.

On the other hand, a cylindrical inlet retainer 30 is fitted in the opening 2a of the fuel injection pipe 2. The inlet retainer 30 has a cap 3 at one opening 30a.
A screw groove is formed so as to be screwed with each other, and the opening 30b in the fuel injection pipe 2 is formed to have a small diameter. Further, guide holes 31 and 32 are formed in the side wall near the opening 30b of the inlet retainer 30 so as to face each other, and the leg portions 21 and 22 of the moving member 20 are inserted into these guide holes 31 and 32. The fuel injection pipe 2 is supported so as to be slidable in the axial direction.

The moving member 20 is formed by integrally extending legs 21 and 22 from a side of a substantially annular body portion 20a, and a hole 20b of the body portion 20a is indicated by a chain double-dashed line in FIG. It has a diameter sufficient to allow the illustrated refueling nozzle 40 to be inserted. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, when the cap 30 is screwed into the inlet retainer 30, the main body portion 20a of the moving member 20 is arranged so that the tip end of the cap 30 contacts.
As the cap 30 is screwed, the tip of the leg 21 is moved to the lever 18
The end portion 18b is pushed to rotate the lever 18 counterclockwise about the shaft 15a.

3 and 4 in which the cap 3 is screwed into the inlet retainer 30 and the fuel injection pipe 2 is sealed.
In the state shown in (1), the moving member 20 is pressed by the cap 30, and the lever 18 is held by the leg portion 21 while being rotated counterclockwise about the shaft 15a. In this case, the end portion 18a of the lever 18 is separated from the valve body 14, and the valve body 14 is separated from the end surface of the end portion 16a of the branch flow passage 16 by the urging force of the spring 13 to open the opening 11a of the housing 11. Is pressed against the wall surface of the. Thus, the branch flow paths 16 and 17 are in communication with each other,
The fuel vapor in the fuel tank 1 shown in FIG. 6 is adsorbed to the canister 8 via the cutoff valve 5, the vapor tube 6, the branch flow paths 16 and 17 (FIG. 2), and the vapor tube 7.

When the cap 3 is removed to inject fuel into the fuel tank 1, the moving member 20 is unlocked, so that the urging force of the spring 19 causes the lever 18 to rotate in the clockwise direction and the moving member 20 to move. The valve retainer 14 is driven in the direction of the opening 30a of the inlet retainer 30 and is also driven so that the valve body 14 is seated on the opening end surface of the end 16a of the branch flow passage 16. As a result, the vapor tubes 6 and 7
The space is cut off, and the fuel vapor flow path is forcibly closed. Then, as shown by the chain double-dashed line in FIG. 1, the fueling nozzle 40 is inserted from the inlet retainer 30 into the fuel injection pipe 2, and the fuel is injected into the fuel tank 1 via the fuel injection pipe 2. At this time, the fuel vapor in the fuel tank 1 is not sent to the canister 8 side, but passes through the fuel injection pipe 2 and the boots (not shown) surrounding the fuel injection pipe 2 and the refueling nozzle 4
It is recovered by a predetermined recovery means (not shown) connected to 0.

The fuel vapor discharge suppressing device is not limited to the canister 8, but the fuel vapor passage may be directly connected to the intake pipe (not shown) of the engine. Further, in this embodiment, as the valve closing means, the tubular moving member 20 and the biasing member including the lever 18 and the spring 19 are provided. For example, the opening / closing valve 10 is normally opened. Composed of a cap 30
The removal operation may be electrically detected and the solenoid valve may be held at the valve closing position according to the detection result.

[0021]

Since the present invention is constructed as described above, it has the following effects. That is, in the fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device for a fuel tank of the present invention, the fuel vapor passage is closed by the opening / closing valve when the cap is removed from the fuel injection pipe, and the fuel vapor discharge suppressing device and the fuel tank are closed during fuel injection. Since the communication is surely cut off, it is possible to perform the appropriate fuel vapor control without impairing the function of the fuel vapor discharge restraining device. Further, in the case of the one provided with the biasing member and the moving member, it is possible to mechanically drive and control the on-off valve with a simple configuration.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a state of a fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device when a cap is removed in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan sectional view showing a state of the fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device when the cap is removed in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a transverse cross-sectional view showing a state of the fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device when the cap is mounted in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a plan sectional view showing a state of the fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device when a cap is mounted in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of a fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing a fuel supply system including a fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Fuel Tank 2 Fuel Injection Pipe 3 Cap 4 Breather Tube 6,7 Vapor Tube (Fuel Vapor Flow Path) 8 Charcoal Canister (Fuel Vapor Emission Control Device) 10 Open / Close Valve 18 Lever (Biasing Member) 19 Spring (Biasing Member) 20 Moving Member 21, 22 Leg 30 Inlet Retainer 40 Refueling Nozzle

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A fuel tank for controlling opening / closing of a fuel vapor flow path from a fuel tank having a fuel injection pipe having a cap attached to an opening to a fuel vapor discharge suppressing device for absorbing fuel vapor in the fuel tank. In the fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device, a normally open opening / closing valve interposed in the fuel vapor passage, and a closing for holding the opening / closing valve in a closed position in response to an operation of removing the cap from the fuel injection pipe. A fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device for a fuel tank, comprising a valve means. 2. A fuel tank for controlling opening / closing of a fuel vapor flow path from a fuel tank having a fuel injection pipe having a cap attached to an opening to a fuel vapor discharge suppressing device for absorbing fuel vapor in the fuel tank. In the fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device, an opening / closing valve which is arranged in the vicinity of the opening of the fuel injection pipe to open / close the fuel vapor passage, wherein the opening / closing valve is biased in a valve opening direction, and On the other hand, a biasing member that normally biases the fuel vapor passage in the direction of closing the fuel vapor flow path against the biasing force of the on-off valve, and a biasing member that can be engaged with the biasing member and near the opening of the fuel injection pipe. A moving member that supports the inside of the fuel injection pipe so as to be movable in the axial direction, and drives the biasing member via the moving member in accordance with the mounting operation of the cap with respect to the fuel injection pipe. Release the bias to the on-off valve The fuel vapor passage opening / closing control device for a fuel tank, wherein the urging member returns in a direction in which the opening / closing valve is urged when the cap is removed from the fuel injection pipe.