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US 9,551,328 B2Granted
Seal-less piston pump for liquefied gas
AssigneeDelaware Capital Formation, Inc.
InventorsMichael E Frey, Richard E Foster, Michael D Walters, Jeffrey Jay Sietsema
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A fuel supply system for a vehicle uses a seal-less piston LPG injunction pump which pumps fluid from a storage tank to an engine. The pump uses the vehicle's pneumatic air system, wherein the pressurized air of this system alternatingly drives an actuator magnetically coupled to a piston.
Claims29
A piston pump for a fluid, comprising:
- a housing unit comprising an enclosed, tubular pump housing, which is formed as a pump tube having a tube wall that internally defines an inner pump bore;
- a piston wholly contained within said inner pump bore wherein said piston subdivides said inner pump bore into first and second piston chambers, said piston being reversibly movable within said inner pump bore in a reversible pumping direction so as to alternatingly expand and contract respective first and second volumes of said first and second piston chambers during piston movement;
- a main body located outside of said pump housing, wherein said main body is reversibly movable along said pump housing and is magnetically coupled to said piston through said tube wall solely by a magnetic attraction between said main body and said piston,
- a drive actuator located on said housing unit externally of said pump housing, said drive actuator being operatively connected to said main body to effect reciprocating movement of said main body along said pump housing with said piston moving with said main body within said inner bore to vary said respective first and second volumes;
- and
- said housing unit including inlet and outlet passages for supplying an inlet fluid to an expanding one of said first and second pump chambers and receiving a pressurized fluid from a contracting one of said first and second pump chambers, said housing unit including first and second end caps which include pump housing bores that sealingly seat opposite ends of said pump housing therein, said first and second end caps including said inlet and outlet passages therein which communicate with said first and second pump chambers through said pump housing bores, said housing unit including a plurality of guide tubes extending along and parallel to said pump tube, said main body being slidably supported on said guide tubes so as to reciprocate along said pump tube and said guide tubes having opposite ends seated within guide tube bores formed in said end caps, said guide tubes being hollow and disposed in fluid communication with said said inlet and outlet passages.
3 more elements
A piston pump for a fluid, comprising:
- a housing unit comprising an enclosed, tubular pump housing, which is formed as a non-magnetic pump tube having a tube wall that internally defines an inner pump bore having opposite open ends, and a plurality of elongate guide members extending along and substantially parallel to said pump tube, said housing unit further including axially-spaced, end caps which include pump tube bores and guide member bores that receive opposite ends of said pump tube and said guide members such that said pump tube and said guide members are confined axially between said end caps, said pump tube bores including gaskets for sealing said opposite ends of said inner pump bore;
- a piston contained within said inner bore wherein said piston subdivides said inner bore into first and second piston chambers, said piston being reversibly movable within said inner bore in a reversible pumping direction so as to alternatingly expand and contract respective first and second volumes of said first and second piston chambers during piston movement;
- a main body slidably supported on said guide members so as to reciprocate along an exterior of said pump tube, said main body being reversibly movable along said guide members and being magnetically coupled to said piston solely by a magnetic attraction between said main body and said piston acting through said tube wall;
- a drive actuator located on said housing unit externally of said pump housing, said drive actuator being operatively connected to said main body to effect reciprocating movement of said main body along said pump housing with said piston moving with said main body within said inner bore to vary said respective first and second volumes;
- and
- said end caps including inlet and outlet passages which communicate with said first and second pump chambers through said pump tube bores for supplying an inlet fluid to an expanding one of said first and second pump chambers and receiving a pressurized fluid from a contracting one of said first and second pump chambers, said guide members being formed as hollow guide tubes which are disposed in fluid communication with said inlet and outlet passages.
3 more elements
A piston pump for a fluid, comprising:
- a housing unit comprising a non-magnetic pump tube having a tube wall, which defines an inner pump bore having opposite open ends, and a plurality of elongate, hollow guide tubes which have respective opposite open ends and extend along and substantially parallel to said pump tube, said housing unit further including axially-spaced, first and second end caps joined to said each of said opposite open ends of said pump tube and said hollow guide tubes;
- a piston within said inner bore that subdivides said inner pump bore into first and second piston chambers which open axially towards said first and second end caps through said opposite open ends of said inner pump bore, said piston being reversibly movable within said inner pump bore in reversible, first and second pumping directions so as to alternatingly expand and contract respective first and second volumes of said first and second piston chambers during piston movement;
- a main body slidably supported on said hollow guide tubes so as to reciprocate along an exterior of said pump tube, said main body being reversibly movable along said hollow guide tubes and being magnetically coupled to said piston solely by a magnetic attraction acting through said tube wall between said main body and said piston;
- a drive actuator located on said housing unit and driving said main body to effect reciprocating movement of said main body and said piston together to vary said respective first and second volumes;
- and
- said first and second end caps including inlet and outlet passages which communicate with said first and second pump chambers and said hollow guide tubes through said respective opposite open ends for supplying an inlet fluid to an expanding one of said first and second pump chambers and receiving a pressurized fluid from a contracting one of said first and second pump chambers.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.