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US 6,662,820 B2Granted
Weldable mount for fuel system component
AssigneeStant Manufacturing Inc.
InventorGary Dunkle
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A vent apparatus includes a valve assembly and a tank mount adapted to support the valve assembly in a mounting aperture formed in a fuel tank. The valve assembly includes a movable vent valve and a valve housing containing the movable vent valve. A labyrinthine boundary is established between the valve housing and the tank mount to provide a low-permeation joint therebetween. The valve housing is made of a non-weldable plastics material and the tank mount is made of a weldable plastics material.
Claims27
A vent apparatus adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank, the apparatus comprising
- a valve housing made of a non-weldable plastics material, the valve housing being formed to include a chamber portion defining an interior region, an outer portion coupled to the chamber portion and formed to include an aperture, and a venting outlet coupled to the outer portion at the aperture and provided to conduct fuel vapor from the interior region of the chamber portion to a destination outside the valve housing,
- a valve positioned to lie within the interior region of the chamber portion and arranged to move within the interior region to open and close the aperture defined by the outer portion, and
- a tank mount made of a weldable plastics material, the tank mount including a housing mount coupled to the valve housing, an annular base coupled to the housing mount and adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank to support the chamber portion within a mounting aperture formed in the fuel tank, and a plurality of annular flanges appended to an exterior surface of the housing mount and arranged to lie in series in spaced-apart relation to one another and in mating relation to the outer portion of the valve housing to define a labyrinthine boundary between the tank mount and the outer portion of the valve housing.
A vent apparatus adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank, the apparatus comprising
- a valve housing made of a non-weldable plastics material, the valve housing including an outer portion having an annular top wall and an annular side wall depending from the top wall,
- a valve positioned to lie within an interior region formed in the valve housing and arranged to move within the interior region to open and close a vent aperture formed in the valve housing,
- a tank mount made of a weldable plastics material, the tank mount including a housing mount arranged to mate with the annular top and side walls and an annular base coupled to the housing mount and adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank to support at least a portion of the valve housing within an interior region formed in the fuel tank, and wherein the annular side wall of the valve housing is arranged to surround the housing mount,
- wherein the housing mount includes a radially outwardly facing exterior wall contacting the annular side wall of the valve housing and an axially upwardly facing exterior wall contacting the top wall of the valve housing, and
- wherein the tank mount further includes a spaced-apart pair of radially outwardly extending annular flanges appended to the radially outwardly facing exterior wall of the housing mount and arranged to mate with the side wall of the valve housing to define a radially outer section of a labyrinthine boundary between the tank mount and the valve housing.
2 more elements
A vent apparatus adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank, the apparatus comprising
- a valve housing made of a non-weldable plastics material, the valve housing including an outer portion having an annular top wall and an annular side wall depending from the top wall,
- a valve positioned to lie within an interior region formed in the valve housing and arranged to move within the interior region to open and close a vent aperture formed in the valve housing,
- a tank mount made of a weldable plastics material, the tank mount including a housing mount arranged to mate with the annular top and side walls and an annular base coupled to the housing mount and adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank to support at least a portion of the valve housing within an interior region formed in the fuel tank, and wherein the annular side wall of the valve housing is arranged to surround the housing mount,
- wherein the housing mount includes a radially outwardly facing exterior wall contacting the annular side wall of the valve housing and an axially upwardly facing exterior wall contacting the top wall of the valve housing, and
- wherein the tank mount further includes a spaced-apart pair of axially outwardly extending annular flanges appended to the axially upwardly facing exterior wall of the housing mount and arranged to mate with the top wall of the valve housing to define an axially outer section of a labyrinthine boundary between the tank mount and the valve housing.
2 more elements
A vent apparatus adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank, the apparatus comprising
- a valve housing made of a non-weldable plastics material, the valve housing including an outer portion having an annular top wall and an annular side wall depending from the top wall,
- a valve positioned to lie within an interior region formed in the valve housing and arranged to move within the interior region to open and close a vent aperture formed in the valve housing,
- a tank mount made of a weldable plastics material, the tank mount including a housing mount arranged to mate with the annular top and side walls and an annular base coupled to the housing mount and adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank to support at least a portion of the valve housing within an interior region formed in the fuel tank, and wherein the annular side wall of the valve housing is arranged to surround the housing mount, and
- wherein the tank mount further includes a spaced-apart pair of axially extending annular flanges appended to the housing mount and arranged to mate with the outer portion of the valve housing to define a labyrinthine boundary between the housing mount and the outer portion of the valve housing.
1 more element
A vent apparatus adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank, the apparatus comprising
- a valve housing made of a non-weldable plastics material, the valve housing including an outer portion having an annular top wall and an annular side wall depending from the top wall,
- a valve positioned to lie within an interior region fanned in the valve housing and arranged to move within the interior region to open and close a vent aperture fanned in the valve housing,
- a tank mount made of a weldable plastics material, the tank mount including a housing mount arranged to mate with the annular top and side walls and an annular base coupled to the housing mount and adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank to support at least a portion of the valve housing within an interior region formed in the fuel tank, and wherein the annular side wall of the valve housing is arranged to surround the housing mount,
- wherein the annular base underlies the housing mount and the annular side wall of the valve housing lies above a radially outer portion of the annular base, and
- wherein the housing mount further includes a pair of radially outwardly extending annular flanges cantilevered to the housing mount to lie above the radially outer portion of the annular base and mate with the annular side wall of the valve housing.
2 more elements
A vent apparatus adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank, the apparatus comprising
- a valve assembly including a valve housing made of a non-weldable plastics material and a valve arranged to move within an interior region formed in the valve housing to open and close a vent aperture fanned in the valve housing and
- a tank mount made of a weldable plastics material and adapted to support the valve housing within a mounting aperture fanned in a fuel tank, the tank mount including an annular base adapted to be coupled to a fuel tank and mount means for supporting the valve housing on the annular base and for mating with an interior wall defining an annular channel in the valve housing to establish a labyrinthine boundary lying between the tank mount and the valve housing in the annular channel and extending along radially outwardly facing and axially upwardly facing exterior walls of the tank mount.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.