JP2005098459A - Tank cap - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve responsiveness by reducing the flow path resistance of a pressure control valve 50 stored in a fuel cap 10 and to reduce cost by reducing the number of parts. <P>SOLUTION: In this tank cap, a positive pressure valve 60 constituting the pressure control valve 50 is stored in a valve chamber forming body 20b of a cap body 20. The positive pressure valve 60 has a positive pressure valve body 61 for opening/closing a first valve flow path 25d and a first spring 68. The first spring 68 is supported at one end by a valve holding member 65 so as to energize the positive pressure valve body 61 and supported at the other end by a spring locking end 20g which is formed by thermally caulking an opening end 20h at the upper part of the valve chamber forming body 20b. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a tank cap provided with a pressure regulating valve that adjusts the internal pressure of the tank.

  Conventionally, as this type of tank cap, a fuel cap that opens and closes an inlet of a fuel tank of an automobile is known (for example, Patent Document 1). The fuel cap includes a casing forming a valve chamber, a lid having a handle, a pressure regulating valve housed in the valve chamber, and an inner lid that closes an upper opening of the valve chamber. The pressure regulating valve regulates pressure in the fuel tank so as to be within a predetermined pressure range, and includes a valve body and a spring that applies a biasing force to the valve body. One end of the spring is supported so as to urge the valve body, and the other end is supported by the inner lid. The inner lid is a resin plate having a communication hole for communicating the valve chamber with the outside, and is fixed to the upper end of the opening of the casing by an ultrasonic welding method or the like.

  When the pressure inside the fuel tank exceeds the specified range and the differential pressure applied to the valve body exceeds the load of the spring, the valve body opens and the inside of the fuel tank is exposed to the outside through the valve passage and the inner lid communication hole. The pressure is adjusted by communicating with.

  However, in the conventional fuel cap, the inner lid is provided with a communication hole. However, the inner lid has a large flow resistance at a portion other than the communication hole, which causes a decrease in responsiveness. Further, the inner lid is used only as a spring pressing member, and it has been required to reduce the number of parts by eliminating this, thereby reducing the cost.

JP-A-10-278958

  The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems of the conventional technique, and provides a tank cap that can reduce the flow resistance of the pressure regulating valve to increase responsiveness and reduce the number of parts to achieve cost reduction. With the goal.

The present invention made to solve the above problems
In the tank cap that opens and closes the tank opening,
A closing body that opens and closes with the tank opening sealed;
A valve chamber forming body that is provided in the closing body and forms a valve chamber that connects the tank and the outside;
A pressure regulating valve that is housed in the valve chamber and regulates the pressure in the tank by opening and closing a valve passage formed in the valve chamber;
With
The pressure regulating valve includes a valve body that opens and closes the valve flow path, and a spring that biases the valve body in a closing direction,
One end of the spring is supported so as to urge the valve body, and the other end is a spring lock formed by caulking the open end 20h formed at the upper part of the valve chamber forming body with heat. It is supported by the end.

  In the tank cap according to the present invention, a pressure regulating valve is provided in a valve chamber formed in the closing body. The pressure regulating valve is energized by a spring, and when the differential pressure applied to the valve exceeds the set load of the spring, the valve is opened to adjust the internal pressure of the tank. One end of the spring is supported by the valve body so as to urge the valve body, and the other end is supported by a spring locking end formed in the valve chamber forming body. By forming the opening end of the valve chamber forming body by heat caulking, the spring locking end need not close the opening of the valve chamber over a wide range, and can reduce the flow resistance of the fluid flowing through the valve chamber. it can.

  Further, since the spring locking end is formed by heat caulking the opening end portion of the valve chamber forming body, the inner lid as described in the prior art becomes unnecessary, and the cost can be reduced by reducing the number of parts. .

Another invention is a method of manufacturing a tank cap,
Storing the valve body in the valve chamber, and setting one end of the spring to urge the valve body;
Temporarily fixing the other end of the spring with a temporary fixing jig so as to compress the spring;
Forming the spring locking end by heat caulking the opening end of the valve chamber forming body; and
Removing the temporary fixing jig from the other end of the spring and supporting the other end of the spring by a spring engaging end;
It is provided with.

  The present invention is a preferred method of assembling a pressure regulating valve to a tank cap, and the other end of the spring is supported by the following steps. That is, the other end of the spring is temporarily fixed by the temporary fixing jig before being supported by the spring locking end. In this temporarily fixed state, the spring locking end is formed by heat caulking the opening end of the valve chamber forming body. Therefore, when the spring locking end is formed from the opening end portion of the valve chamber forming body, the spring locking end is not applied to the opening end portion, so that the spring locking end can be easily formed.

(1) Schematic Configuration of Fuel Cap 10 FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a fuel cap 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, a fuel cap 10 is attached to a filler neck FN having an inlet FNb (tank opening) for supplying fuel to a fuel tank (not shown), and a cap body 20 (made of a synthetic resin material such as polyacetal). A closure body), a lid body 40 having an operation portion mounted on the upper portion of the cap body 20 and formed of a synthetic resin material such as nylon, a pressure regulating valve 50 housed in the valve chamber 25, a torque mechanism 80, A gasket GS that is attached to the upper outer periphery of the cap body 20 and seals between the filler neck FN is provided.

  The cap body 20 includes a substantially cylindrical outer tube body 20a having a cap-side engaging portion 21 that is engaged with the inner peripheral portion of the filler neck FN, and the valve chamber 25 provided in the outer tube body 20a. And a valve chamber forming body 20b. The valve chamber forming body 20b forms the valve chamber 25. The pressure regulating valve 50 housed in the valve chamber 25 includes a positive pressure valve 60 and a negative pressure valve 70, and adjusts the pressure in the fuel tank within a predetermined range.

  A gasket GS is sheathed on the lower surface of the flange portion 22 at the top of the cap body 20. The gasket GS is interposed between the seal holding portion 24 of the flange portion 22 and the inlet FNb of the filler neck FN. When the fuel cap 10 is tightened into the inlet FNb, the gasket GS is pressed against the seal holding portion 24. To achieve a sealing action. At this time, the operator receives a click feeling when the predetermined rotational torque is exceeded during the operation of closing the fuel cap 10 by the torque mechanism 80, and can confirm that the tightening is performed at a predetermined rotational torque or more.

(2) Configuration of Pressure Regulator 50 FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the vicinity of the pressure regulator 50. The pressure regulating valve 50 includes a positive pressure valve 60 and a negative pressure valve 70. The positive pressure valve 60 is disposed in the upper chamber 25a of the valve chamber 25, and the negative pressure valve 70 is disposed in the lower chamber 25b. A first seat portion 20f is formed between the upper chamber 25a and the lower chamber 25b and in a portion inclined from the inside of the valve chamber forming body 20b. The first valve channel faces the first seat portion 20f. 25d is formed. The first valve flow path 25d communicates with a communication hole 25c formed in the bottom portion 20d, and the communication hole 25c is connected to a fuel tank through a filler pipe (not shown).

(2) -1 Configuration of Positive Pressure Valve 60 The positive pressure valve 60 includes a positive pressure valve body 61 that opens and closes the first valve flow path 25d, a valve holding member 65, and a first spring 68. The positive pressure valve body 61 includes a disc-shaped positive pressure valve main body 62 formed of fluorine rubber or the like, and a through hole or a projection for performing a valve function is formed in the positive pressure valve main body 62. That is, the positive pressure valve main body 62 is formed with a seat portion 63a that closes the first valve flow path 25d by being seated on the first seating portion 20f. In addition, a second valve channel 63c connected to the first valve channel 25d is formed through the central portion of the positive pressure valve main body 62. Furthermore, a second seating portion 63d is formed on a lower surface of the positive pressure valve main body 62 and facing the second valve flow path 63c. The second seating portion 63d functions as a seating surface of the negative pressure valve 70 as will be described later.

  A cylindrical fitting portion 63f is provided upright at the center of the positive pressure valve body 61 so as to surround the second valve flow path 63c. A side support recess 63g is formed in the side portion of the fitting portion 63f, and the positive pressure valve body 61 is attached to the valve holding member 65 by being inserted into the fitting hole 65a of the valve holding member 65. ing. A spring support portion 65 b is formed on the upper surface of the valve holding member 65, and this spring support portion 65 b supports one end portion of the first spring 68. The first spring 68 is suspended between the spring support portion 65b by being supported by a spring locking end 20g formed at the upper portion of the valve chamber forming body 20b. As will be described later, the spring locking end 20g is formed by bending the opening end 20h of the valve chamber forming body 20b by ultrasonic processing. Also, guide ribs 20i are formed at equal intervals on the inner wall of the valve chamber forming body 20b and facing the upper chamber 25a. The guide protrusion 20i is for maintaining the posture of the positive pressure valve body 61 horizontally by guiding the peripheral edge of the valve holding member 65.

(2) -2 Configuration of the Negative Pressure Valve 70 The negative pressure valve 70 includes a negative pressure valve body 71 made of resin, and a second spring that is stretched between the negative pressure valve body 71 and the bottom portion 20d and biases the negative pressure valve body 71. 78. The negative pressure valve body 71 includes a cup-shaped negative pressure valve main body 72 formed from an upper wall plate portion 72a and a cylindrical side wall portion 72b protruding from the outer peripheral portion of the upper wall plate portion 72a. On the upper wall plate portion 72a of the negative pressure valve main body 72, a seat portion 73a that closes the second valve channel 63c by being seated on the second seat portion 63d of the positive pressure valve body 61 is formed in a circular mountain shape.

(3) Assembly Process of Pressure Regulator 50 FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the assembly process of the pressure regulator 50. In order to assemble the pressure regulating valve 50 in the valve chamber 25, first, the second spring 78 and the negative pressure valve body 71 are accommodated in the lower chamber 25b. Subsequently, the positive pressure valve body 61 assembled with the valve holding member 65 is placed on the upper surface of the negative pressure valve body 71, and the lower end of the first spring 68 is placed on the spring support portion 65b. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 4, the first spring 68 is compressed by the temporary fixing jig JG. FIG. 5 is a perspective view for explaining the upper portion of the valve chamber forming body 20b and the temporary fixing jig JG. On the upper part of the valve chamber forming body 20b, open end portions 20h are projected upward at eight positions at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. A gap 20j is formed between these open end portions 20h. The temporary fixing jig JG includes a ring-shaped ring main body JGa and a pressing portion JGb projecting from the ring main body JGa toward the inner periphery. The holding part JGb is formed with a width narrower than the gap 20j so that it can be inserted into the gap 20j. As shown in FIG. 4, the pressing portion JGb of the temporary fixing jig JG is inserted into the gap 20j, and the first spring 68 is pressed. Then, as shown in FIG. 6, when the ultrasonic horn UH is pressed against the opening end 20h and ultrasonically pressurized, the sharpened opening end 20h is softened and directed inward as shown in FIG. Thus, a bent spring locking end 20g is formed. Then, when the temporary fixing jig JG is removed, the first spring 68 extends and the upper end thereof contacts the spring locking end 20g. Thus, the first spring 68 is stretched between the spring locking end 20g and the valve holding member 65 so as to urge the positive pressure valve body 61.

(3) Operation of the pressure regulating valve 50 In the above configuration, the pressure regulation in the fuel tank by the positive pressure valve 60 is performed by the following operation. That is, when the fuel cap 10 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is attached to the filler neck FN, when the pressure in the fuel tank becomes a positive pressure exceeding the first pressure value, the state shown in FIG. The positive pressure valve body 61 and the valve holding member 65 rise against the urging force of the spring 68, and the fuel tank passes through the flow passage such as the valve chamber 25, that is, the filler pipe, the communication hole 25c of the bottom portion 20d, the first valve. It goes to the direction where the positive pressure state in the fuel tank is eliminated by communicating with the outside air through the flow path 25d, the outer peripheral gap of the positive pressure valve body 61, and the upper opening of the valve chamber forming body 20b. When the differential pressure applied to the positive pressure valve body 61 is less than the biasing force of the first spring 68 due to communication with the outside air, the positive pressure valve body 61 is lowered by the biasing force of the first spring 68 as shown in FIG. Close the valve. Thus, the positive pressure valve body 61 opens and closes so that the pressure in the fuel tank does not exceed the first pressure value.

  On the other hand, when the pressure in the fuel tank becomes lower than the second pressure value, the negative pressure valve body 71 moves downward against the urging force of the second spring 78 as shown in FIG. It leaves | separates from the 2nd seating part 63d of the positive pressure valve body 61. FIG. At this time, the positive pressure valve body 61 is seated on the first seating portion 20f, and a passage is formed between the negative pressure valve body 71 and the positive pressure valve body 61 in order to maintain this state. As a result, the fuel tank communicates with the atmosphere through the second valve flow path 63c, the first valve flow path 25d, and the communication hole 25c of the bottom portion 20d so that the negative pressure state in the fuel tank is eliminated. When the differential pressure applied to the negative pressure valve body 71 is less than the biasing force of the second spring 78, the negative pressure valve body 71 is closed.

(3) Actions and effects of the embodiment The configuration of the above embodiment provides the following effects in addition to the effects described above.
(3) -1 The upper end of the first spring 68 is supported by a spring locking end 20g formed by heat caulking the opening end 20h of the valve chamber forming body 20b, and the upper opening of the valve chamber 25 is not closed over a wide range. Therefore, the flow path resistance of the fluid flowing through the valve chamber 25 can be reduced.

(3) -2 Since the spring locking end 20g is formed by heat caulking the opening end 20h of the valve chamber forming body 20b, the inner lid as described in the prior art becomes unnecessary, and the number of parts is reduced. Cost reduction can be realized.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be implemented in various modes without departing from the gist thereof. For example, the following modifications are possible.

(1) In the above-described embodiment, the configuration using the positive pressure valve and the negative pressure valve for the fuel cap has been described. However, the configuration is not limited to this, and a configuration using either a positive pressure valve or a negative pressure valve may be used.

(2) In the embodiment, the configuration applied to the fuel cap has been described. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and a cap having a pressure regulating valve for regulating the tank may be used.

(3) As a process of forming the spring locking end 20g by heat caulking, various methods that can plastically deform the resin by heat, such as heating by a hot plate, can be used in addition to ultrasonic processing as described above. .

It is sectional drawing which shows the fuel cap concerning one Example of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the vicinity of a pressure regulation valve. It is explanatory drawing explaining the assembly | attachment process of a pressure regulation valve. It is explanatory drawing explaining the assembly | attachment process following FIG. It is a perspective view explaining the upper part of a valve chamber formation body, and a temporary fixing jig. It is explanatory drawing explaining the assembly | attachment process following FIG. It is explanatory drawing explaining the valve opening operation | movement of a positive pressure valve. It is explanatory drawing explaining the valve opening operation | movement of a negative pressure valve.

Explanation of symbols

10 ... Fuel cap 20 ... Cap body (closed body)
20a ... Outer tube body 20b ... Valve chamber forming body 20d ... Bottom portion 20f ... First seating portion 20g ... Spring locking end 20h ... Open end portion 20i ... Guide protrusion 20j ... Gap 21 ... Cap side engaging part 22 ... Flange part 24 ... Seal holding part 25 ... Valve chamber 25a ... Upper chamber 25b ... Lower chamber 25c ... Communication Hole 25d ... 1st valve flow path 40 ... Cover body 50 ... Pressure regulating valve 60 ... Positive pressure valve 61 ... Positive pressure valve body 62 ... Positive pressure valve body 63a ... Seat part 63c. ..Second valve flow path 63d ... second seating portion 63f ... fitting portion 63g ... side support recess 65 ... valve holding member 65a ... fitting hole 65b ... spring Support portion 68 ... First spring 70 ... Negative pressure valve 71 ... Negative pressure valve body 72 ... Negative pressure valve body 72a ... Upper wall plate portion 72b ... Side wall portion 73a ... Seat portion 78 ... second spring 80 ... torque mechanism FN ... filler neck FNb ... inlet (tank open )
GS ... Gasket JG ... Temporary fixing jig JGa ... Ring body JGb ... Part UH ... Ultrasonic horn

Claims (2)

In the tank cap that opens and closes the tank opening,
A closing body that opens and closes with the tank opening sealed;
A valve chamber forming body (20b) provided in the closing body and forming a valve chamber (25) connecting the tank and the outside;
A pressure regulating valve (50) that is housed in the valve chamber (25) and performs pressure regulation in the tank by opening and closing a valve flow path (25d) formed in the valve chamber (25);
With
The pressure regulating valve (50) includes a valve body (61) that opens and closes the valve flow path (25d), and a spring (68) that biases the valve body (61) in a closing direction,
One end of the spring (68) is supported so as to urge the valve body (61), and the other end caulks the opening end (20h) of the upper portion of the valve chamber forming body (20b) by heat. A tank cap, characterized in that the tank cap is supported by a spring locking end (20 g) formed thereby. In the manufacturing method of the tank cap of Claim 1,
Storing the valve body (61) in the valve chamber (25) and setting one end of the spring (68) to urge the valve body (61);
Temporarily fixing the other end of the spring (68) with a temporary fixing jig (JG) so as to compress the spring (68);
Forming the spring locking end (20g) by heat caulking the open end (20h) of the valve chamber forming body (20b);
Removing the temporary fixing jig (JG) from the other end of the spring (68) and supporting the other end of the spring (68) by a spring locking end (20g);
A tank cap characterized by comprising:

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