Actuating fluid delivery system for a fuel injector

A connector for fluidly coupling a fluid conveying rail to a fuel injector, the connector being rotatable about a longitudinal axis and translatable in the first longitudinal axis with respect to the rail and having a single ball and socket being shiftable in a plane that is disposed in an orthogonal relationship to the first longitudinal axis when the connector is coupled to the rail and to the fuel injector.

A fluid delivery system for servicing a plurality of fuel injectors by delivering a supply of a fluid from a fluid source to the plurality of fuel injectors, comprising:

• a rail assembly for conveying a fluid, the rail assembly being positionable proximate the plurality of fuel injectors and including a rail having a fluid passageway defined therein, the fluid passageway being in fluid communication with the source of fluid;
• and
• a connector assembly being in fluid communication with both the rail assembly and with a certain fuel injector of the plurality of fuel injectors for fluidly connecting the rail assembly to the fuel injector, the connector assembly being moveable in three orthogonally disposed axes for accommodating static tolerances existing between the rail assembly and the fuel injector and having a single ball and socket for accommodating dynamic relative motion between the rail assembly and the fuel injector.

A fluid delivery system for servicing a plurality of fuel injectors by delivering a supply of a fluid from a fluid source to the plurality of fuel injectors, comprising:

• a rail assembly for conveying a fluid, the rail assembly being positionable proximate the plurality of fuel injectors and including a rail having a fluid passageway defined therein, the fluid passageway being in fluid communication with the source of fluid;
• and
• a connector assembly being in fluid communication with both the rail assembly and with a certain fuel injector of the plurality of fuel injectors for fluidly connecting the rail assembly to the fuel injector, the connector assembly being moveable relative to the fuel injector for accommodating static tolerances existing between the rail assembly and the fuel injector and having a single ball and socket for accommodating dynamic relative motion between the rail assembly and the fuel injector.

A coupler for fluidly coupling a rail assembly including a fluid conveying connector to a fuel injector, the fuel injector having a fluid passageway defined therein, the injector fluid passageway being fluidly communicable with a rail fluid passageway by an interconnecting generally tubular rail component, the coupler comprising:

• a seal being annularly disposed with respect to the fluid conveying connector component and being disposable in an inner circumferential surface of a receiver component, the receiver component being operably coupled to the fuel injector;
• and
• a capped nut being annularly disposed with respect to the fluid conveying connector component, the capped nut having a seal engaging surface and having a first set of threads engageable with a second set of threads defined on the receiver component, whereby threadedly engaging the first and second set of threads acts to force the seal engaging surface into engagement with the seal in an annular space defined between the fluid conveying connector component and the inner circumferential surface of the receiver to form a substantially fluid-tight seal between the fluid conveying connector component and the fuel injector.

The method of 65 further including the step forming the capped nut with a chamfered face accommodating shifting of the connector relative to the fuel injector.