Fuel filter

A fuel filter comprising:

• a metallic frame, said frame being cylindrical with a pair of circular openings at longitudinal ends of said frame, and with said frame including a circumferential wall extending between and defining said circular openings and having solid wall portions and a plurality of apertures;
• and
• a filter membrane;
• said filter membrane comprising a flat wire mesh membrane wrapped about an outwardly facing side of said wall to form an outer cylindrical surface and an inner cylindrical surface, wherein said wall includes a groove on said outwardly facing side of said wall and said filter membrane is disposed in said groove and said solid wall portions support said filter membrane against said wall, wherein said filter membrane is disposed over the plurality of apertures and wherein said frame further includes a separate radially outwardly projecting tab disposed at each of said circular openings, wherein the tabs are unitarily formed with said wall and are deformed to extend along a portion of an axial length of said wall with both said tabs extending over separate portions of said filter membrane to retain said filter membrane about said wall to filter fuel passing through said filter membrane.

A fuel pump assembly, said fuel pump assembly comprising:

• a fuel pump body, said fuel pump body including a fuel passage;
• a proportional inlet valve, said proportional inlet valve having an end inserted into a cavity of said fuel pump body, wherein fuel delivered by said fuel pump assembly passes through said fuel passage to said proportional inlet valve with said proportional inlet valve configured to control an output fuel flow of said fuel pump assembly;
• and
• a fuel filter, said fuel filter being mounted to said end of said proportional inlet valve whereby the fuel delivered through said fuel passage is filtered by said fuel filter;
• said fuel filter comprising a cylindrical frame having a pair of circular openings at longitudinal ends of said frame with said end of said proportional inlet valve being inserted through said pair of circular openings such that said frame is disposed about said end of said proportional inlet valve when said fuel filter is mounted thereto;
• and
• a filter membrane;
• said frame including a circumferential wall having solid wall portions and at least one aperture with said filter membrane being disposed about an outwardly facing side of said wall and disposed over said at least one aperture, wherein said solid wall portions support said filter membrane against said wall, and wherein said filter membrane comprises a flat wire mesh membrane wrapped about said outwardly facing side of said wall to form an outer cylindrical surface and an inner cylindrical surface, and wherein said frame further comprises a radially outwardly projecting first tab disposed at one of said circular openings and a radially outwardly projecting second tab disposed at the other said circular opening, and wherein said first tab and said second tab are unitarily formed with said wall and are deformed to extend along a portion of an axial length of said wall with both said first tab and said second tab extending over separate portions of said filter membrane whereby said filter membrane is retained to said wall of said frame.