US 6,601,564 B2 · Flexible fuel rail

Abstract

A flexible fuel rail system for fuel injection systems for internal combustion piston engines, particularly for engines having at least one or more banks of aligned cylinders. The fuel rail system incorporates two or more longitudinal fuel rails, connected by one or more crossover sections. The crossover section(s) include(s) one or more sections of enhanced flexibility, preferably corrugations. The fuel rails, crossover sections and sections of enhanced flexibility are preferably all fabricated from metal, preferably monolithically formed from a single piece of metal. The fuel rails preferably are provided with non-circular cross-sectional configurations, so that the walls of the fuel rails will flex, under the influence of fuel pressure pulsations caused by the fuel injectors, so as to substantially reduce or eliminate the negative impacts of such pulsations on the operation of the other injectors in the fuel injection system.

Claims12

Dependent claims

A flexible fuel rail system, for delivery of fuel to the fuel injectors of an internal combustion engine, wherein the internal combustion engine has at least two banks of cylinders, the flexible fuel rail system comprising:

at least two longitudinal fuel rails, each longitudinal fuel rail having an uninterrupted interior volume and being operably configured for delivery of fuel to the injectors for the cylinders of one bank of an internal combustion engine having at least two banks of cylinders, each fuel rail having a closed end and an open end;
at least one crossover section, connecting the open ends of the at least two longitudinal fuel rails in fluid communication with one another;
at least one region of enhanced flexibility, disposed at least in a transition region connecting at least one of the open ends with the at least one crossover section;
the at least two longitudinal rails, the at least one crossover section and the at least one region of enhanced flexibility all being fabricated from metal material.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Flexible fuel rail

Life of this patent

Flexible fuel rail

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims12