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US 9,458,006 B2Granted
Non-pressurized fluid level shutoff for fuel tank
AssigneeAdel Wiggins Group
InventorChristopher Quang
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A non-pressurized fluid level shutoff system for a fuel tank includes a fuel receiver having a flow control valve that opens in a direction opposite a direction of fuel flow, and that cannot be manually overridden. A fuel sensor funnels fuel through a fuel jet outlet orifice to form a stream of fuel across a cutout section, and a supplemental peripheral port connected between an outlet orifice mixing chamber and the interior of the tank is oriented perpendicular to the stream of fuel across the cutout section, to interfere with the stream of fuel when the sensor is submerged in fuel in the tank, to further reduce any residual fluid flow signal when the sensor is fully submerged, allowing the flow control valve in the receiver to close completely.
Claims19
A non-pressurized fluid level shutoff system for a fuel tank, comprising:
- a fuel tank;
- a fuel receiver connected in fluid communication with said fuel tank and configured to be removably connected in fluid communication with a refueling nozzle, said fuel receiver including a receiver body having a receiver inlet, a receiver outlet, and an inlet chamber connected in fluid communication between the receiver inlet and the outlet and defining a main fuel path between said receiver inlet and said receiver outlet with a direction of fuel flow within the fuel receiver toward said receiver outlet, said receiver body including an inlet valve adjacent to the inlet configured to move between a closed position sealing the inlet and an open position allowing fuel to flow into the inlet chamber in the receiver body, said inlet valve being biased toward the closed position, said receiver body including a sensor inlet fuel path and a return fuel path, said return fuel path being connected in fluid communication with a flow control chamber in the fuel receiver including a flow control valve configured to move between an open position and a closed position, said open position of said flow control valve being configured to allow fuel to enter said fuel tank through said main fuel path, and said flow control valve being configured to move to said open position in a direction opposite the direction of fuel flow within the fuel receiver;
- and
- a sensor connected to the fuel receiver and exposed inside the fuel tank, said sensor being configured to detect a level of fuel in the fuel tank, said sensor being connected in fluid communication with said sensor inlet fuel path to provide a flow of fuel from the fuel receiver to the sensor.
1 more element
A non-pressurized fluid level shutoff system for a fuel tank, comprising:
- a fuel tank;
- a fuel receiver connected in fluid communication with said fuel tank and configured to be removably connected in fluid communication with a refueling nozzle, said fuel receiver including a receiver body having a receiver inlet, a receiver outlet, and an inlet chamber connected in fluid communication between the receiver inlet and the outlet and defining a main fuel path between said receiver inlet and said receiver outlet, said receiver body including an inlet valve adjacent to the inlet configured to move between a closed position sealing the inlet and an open position allowing fuel to flow into the inlet chamber in the receiver body, said inlet valve being biased toward the closed position, said receiver body including a sensor inlet fuel path and a return fuel path, said return fuel path being connected in fluid communication with a flow control chamber in the fuel receiver including a flow control valve configured to move between an open position and a closed position, and said open position of said flow control valve being configured to allow fuel to enter said fuel tank through said main fuel path;
- and
- a jet sensor connected to the fuel receiver and exposed inside the fuel tank, said jet sensor being configured to detect a level of fuel in the fuel tank, said jet sensor being connected in fluid communication with said sensor inlet fuel path to provide a flow of fuel from the fuel receiver to the sensor, said jet sensor including a sensor body having a base section and a stem section, said base section including a sensor inlet and a sensor outlet, said stem section including a fuel channel connected in fluid communication between said sensor inlet and said sensor outlet, said fuel channel including a sensor fuel receiving section configured to receive fuel from the sensor inlet and to direct fuel received in the sensor fuel receiving section to a fuel jet outlet orifice, an outlet orifice mixing chamber connected in fluid communication with said fuel jet outlet orifice, a fuel jet inlet orifice connected in fluid communication with said sensor outlet, and a cutout section connected between said outlet orifice mixing chamber and said fuel jet inlet orifice, said fuel jet inlet orifice being configured to conduct fuel received across the cutout section through said sensor outlet to said fuel receiver, and said outlet orifice mixing chamber including a supplemental peripheral port connected between said outlet orifice mixing chamber and said fuel tank.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.