U.S. patent application number 09/791834 was filed with the patent office on 2001-10-18 for fuel dispensing system.
Invention is credited to HYMERS, RONALD ROBSON, White, John G..
Application Number | 20010029998 09/791834 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 3804687 |
Filed Date | 2001-10-18 |
United States Patent
Application |
20010029998 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
White, John G. ; et
al. |
October 18, 2001 |
Fuel dispensing system
Abstract
Dispensing system for automotive fuel including a casing mounted
within the ground and containing a fuel flow meter and an
associated valve. The meter is linked by a fuel line to a fuel
tank. An above-ground structure is provided for supporting a
dispensing hose to which the meter and associated valve within the
casing are linked by a delivery line passing externally of the
casing. The casing is adjacent to but separate from the
above-ground structure whereby the aboveground structure is mounted
independently of the casing.
Inventors: |
White, John G.; (Victoria,
AU) ; HYMERS, RONALD ROBSON; (MIDDLESEX, GB) |
Correspondence
Address: |
NIXON & VANDERHYE P.C.
8th Floor
1100 North Glebe Road
Arlington
VA
22201
US
|
Family ID: |
3804687 |
Appl. No.: |
09/791834 |
Filed: |
February 26, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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09791834 |
Feb 26, 2001 |
|
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09570952 |
May 15, 2000 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
137/234.6 ;
141/94; 141/98 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B67D 7/04 20130101; Y10T
137/3802 20150401; Y10T 137/6995 20150401; B67D 7/84 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
141/98 |
International
Class: |
B65B 003/04; B67C
003/02; B65B 001/04 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Nov 14, 1997 |
AU |
PP0407/97 |
Nov 11, 1998 |
GB |
PCT/GB98/03374 |
Claims
We claim:
1. A dispensing system for automotive fuel, said system comprising
a casing mounted within the ground and containing a fuel flow meter
and an associated valve, said meter being linked by a fuel line to
a fuel tank, said dispensing system further comprising above-ground
structure supporting a dispensing hose to which the meter and
associated valve within the casing are linked by a delivery line
passing externally of the casing, the casing being adjacent to but
separate from the above-ground structure whereby the above-ground
structure is mounted independently of the casing.
2. A dispensing system for automotive fuel, said system comprising
a casing mounted within the ground and containing a fuel flow meter
and an associated valve, said meter being linked by a fuel line to
a fuel tank, said dispensing system further comprising above-ground
structure supporting a dispensing hose to which the meter and
associated valve within the casing are linked by a delivery line
passing externally of the casing, the casing being adjacent to but
separate from the above-ground structure whereby the above-ground
structure can be located in a selected position independent of the
position of the casing.
3. A dispensing system for automotive fuel, said system comprising
a casing mounted within the ground and containing a fuel flow meter
and an associated valve, said meter being linked by a fuel line to
a fuel tank, said dispensing system further comprising above-ground
structure supporting a dispensing hose to which the meter and
associated valve within the casing are linked by a delivery line
passing externally of the casing, the casing being adjacent to but
separate from the above-ground structure whereby the structure can
be located in a selected position wholly to one side of the
casing.
4. A dispensing system for automotive fuel, said system comprising
a casing mounted within the ground and containing a fuel flow meter
and an associated valve, said meter being linked by a fuel line to
a fuel tank, said dispensing system further comprising above-ground
structure supporting a dispensing hose to which the meter and
associated valve within the casing are linked by a delivery line
passing externally of the casing, the casing being adjacent to but
separate from the above-ground structure whereby each is supported
from the ground independently of the other.
5. A dispensing system for automotive fuel, said system comprising
a casing mounted within the ground and containing a fuel flow meter
and an associated valve, said meter being linked by a fuel line to
a fuel tank, said dispensing system further comprising above-ground
structure that is a column supporting a dispensing hose to which
the meter and associated valve within the casing are linked by a
delivery line and wherein the delivery line for the or each hose
passes externally of the casing and upwardly along the column and
the hose is suspended from a fitting at an upper end of the
delivery line.
6. A system according to claim 1 wherein the casing has a bottom
wall and a side wall and the delivery line passes through the side
wall of the casing.
7. A system according to claim 1 wherein access to the interior of
the casing is via a removable top cover.
8. A system according to claim 7 wherein the upper surface of the
top cover is substantially at ground level and the strength of the
cover is sufficient to carry the weight of a vehicle driven over
the cover.
9. A system according to claim 1 having multiple outlets, wherein
the casing includes a meter and associated valve for each outlet
and the above-ground structure carries a hose for each outlet, the
respective hoses being coupled to the associated valve and meter by
a separate delivery line.
10. A system according to claim 1 wherein the above-ground
structure comprises a column.
11. A system according to claim 10 wherein the delivery line for
the or each hose passes externally of the casing and upwardly along
the column and the hose is suspended from a fitting at an upper end
of the delivery line.
12. A system according to claim 11 wherein the column acts as a
support for an overhead canopy of the forecourt.
Description
[0001] The present invention relates to fuel dispensing systems and
more particularly to fuel dispensing systems for dispensing
gasoline, liquefied petroleum gas or diesel engine fuel for
automotive use.
[0002] Conventionally, filling stations for dispensing fuel for
automotive use comprise a series of pumping or dispensing units on
the forecourt of the filling station. Each unit is connected to a
remote storage tank from which fuel is withdrawn when a user
removes the filling nozzle from a storage cradle on the dispensing
unit and actuates the dispensing trigger on the nozzle. The
dispensing unit may have a single outlet or multiple outlets. For
each respective outlet the dispensing unit includes a meter and an
air eliminator/solenoid valve within the fuel line upstream of a
connector for the dispensing hose. The meter accurately records the
amount of fuel dispensed at each operation with corresponding data
being transmitted to a display at or adjacent to the dispensing
unit and, usually, also to a cashier's unit. The air eliminator
acts to eliminate air from the fuel line while the solenoid valve
opens or closes the fuel line to control the flow of fuel to the
dispensing hose.
[0003] Traditionally, each dispensing unit is mounted above-ground
on a suitable base, with the meters and air eliminator/solenoid
valves and other pumping-associated equipment being installed
within the lower part of the casing of the dispensing unit. As a
result, the casing of the dispensing unit at least in its lower
part is relatively bulky. The bulkiness of the casing restricts
access to the dispensing unit and as a result access is normally
restricted to a predetermined position in a lane at one or both
sides of the dispensing unit. Also, the dispensing unit is prone to
damage by careless drivers, resulting in the necessity for
relatively frequent repair of the casing and of components within
the casing which might be damaged as a result of low speed impact
by a vehicle.
[0004] According to the present invention, there is provided a
dispensing system for automotive fuel, said system comprising a
casing mounted within the ground and containing a fuel flow meter
and an associated valve, said meter being linked by a fuel line to
a fuel tank, said dispensing system further comprising above-ground
structure supporting a dispensing hose to which the meter and
associated valve within the casing are linked. Preferably the meter
and associated valve within the casing are linked to the dispensing
hose by a delivery line passing externally of the casing, the
casing being adjacent to but separate from the above-ground
structure whereby the above-ground structure is mounted
independently of the casing.
[0005] Further according to the invention, there is provided a
dispensing system for automotive fuel, said system comprising a
casing mounted within the ground and containing a fuel flow meter
and an associated valve, said meter being linked by a fuel line to
a fuel tank, said dispensing system further comprising above-ground
structure supporting a dispensing hose to which the meter and
associated valve within the casing are linked by a delivery line
passing externally of the casing, the casing being adjacent to but
separate from the above-ground structure whereby the above-ground
structure can be located (and preferably is located) in a selected
position independent of the position of the casing.
[0006] Still further according to the invention, there is provided
a dispensing system for automotive fuel, said system comprising a
casing mounted within the ground and containing a fuel flow meter
and an associated valve, said meter being linked by a fuel line to
a fuel tank, said dispensing system further comprising above-ground
structure supporting a dispensing hose to which the meter and
associated valve within the casing are linked by a delivery line
passing externally of the casing, the casing being separate from
the above-ground structure whereby the structure can be located
(and preferably is located) in a selected position wholly to one
side of the casing.
[0007] Still further according to the invention, there is provided
a dispensing system for automotive fuel, said system comprising a
casing mounted within the ground and containing a fuel flow meter
and an associated valve, said meter being linked by a fuel line to
a fuel tank, said dispensing system further comprising above-ground
structure supporting a dispensing hose to which the meter and
associated valve within the casing are linked by a delivery line
passing externally of the casing, the casing being adjacent to but
separate from the above-ground structure whereby each is supported
from the ground independently of the other. There may be more than
one above-ground structure (supporting the hose), and at least one
of said structures may be supported by the ground independently of
another.
[0008] The casing may also be described herein as a housing.
[0009] When the dispensing system has multiple outlets, the housing
within the ground usually includes a meter and associated valve for
each outlet, and the above-ground structure usually carries a hose
for each outlet, each hose being coupled to the associated valve
and meter by a separate delivery line.
[0010] Advantageously, the housing within the ground has a
removable cover at or adjacent ground level, the cover preferably
being of sufficient strength to carry the weight of a vehicle.
[0011] Advantageously, the above-ground structure can be in the
form of a column especially with the delivery line for the or each
hose passing externally of the casing and upwardly along the column
and the hose is suspended from a fitting at an upper end of the
delivery line.
[0012] An embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way
of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in
which:
[0013] FIG. 1 is a schematic vertical section of a dispensing
system in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention
and comprising an in-ground housing and above-ground structure;
and
[0014] FIG. 2 is a plan view showing schematically the arrangement
of components within the in-ground housing.
[0015] The dispensing system of the preferred embodiment of the
invention has conventional flow meters 2 and air
eliminator/solenoid valves 4 housed within a casing or sump 6
within the ground and closed by a cover 8 substantially at ground
level, the casing 6 having a bottom wall 6a and a side wall 6b. The
casing 6 may also contain associated electronic components such as
electrical switching boxes and junction boxes. With this
arrangement the substantive structure of the dispensing system
situated above ground level adjacent to the casing 6 can then
simply consist of structure 10 sufficient to carry the dispensing
hoses 12 and cradles 14 for the nozzles, and also a display 16 for
viewing by the user, e.g. of sales information such as volume
and/or sales price of fuel. More particularly, the structure 10 can
thus be in the form of a relatively slender column 18, and/or may
be a hollow structure comprising a support framework or column
having external cladding 26 as shown. As shown, fuel lines 20
extend from the casing 6 downstream of the air eliminator/solenoid
valves 4 and pass through the column foundation 24 via flexible
connections 28 and then upwardly along the column 18, or preferably
through the column 18 especially inside the cladding 26, to upper
hose connectors 22, the fuel lines 20 preferably exiting the casing
6 by passage through the side wall 6a. The dispensing hoses 12
hanging downwardly from the connectors 22 have conventional nozzles
at their outlet ends and the lower part of the structure 10 simply
needs to be of sufficient size to accommodate a respective cradle
14 for the or each of the nozzles.
[0016] The system just described is designed for dispensing
gasoline or diesel fuel. A corresponding system for dispensing
liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) will be substantially the same as
that described but with the meters and associated valving with the
casing 6 being of a design appropriate to that particular fuel.
[0017] By the step of mounting the fuel meters, air
eliminator/solenoid valves and possibly other components in a
separate casing beneath the ground rather than in an above-ground
casing, the area of the above-ground structure can be significantly
reduced, particularly the area of the lower part thereof. This
provides a number of significant advantages. The reduced area of
the lower part of the above-ground structure enables greater access
to vehicles within a given forecourt area which can, in turn, lead
to the possibility of significant redesign away from the
traditional concept of filling lanes arranged in parallel. In other
words it provides far greater versatility in the design of the
layout of the forecourt enabling within the area of the forecourt a
greater number of dispensing outlets and/or quicker access of
vehicles to and from each outlet, particularly when the upper
surface of the cover 8 is at ground level and is designed to carry
the weight of a vehicle whereby vehicles could possibly be driven
across the cover 8. Also the location of the meters and air
eliminator/solenoid valves in a separate casing underground removes
these relatively sensitive components from the risk of damage
arising from low speed impact by a vehicle. Although the dispensing
system still has above-ground structure which might be damaged by a
vehicle, that structure is not usually enclosing damage-sensitive
components. At most, damage arising from vehicle impact is likely
to involve replacement of one or two relatively inexpensive metal
or plastics panels which may have been used for cladding in the
above-ground structure e.g. the column. It would be possible for
the above-ground structure just to consist of a substantially solid
column for supporting the hoses, nozzles, and display and which
could be almost totally resistant to most low speed vehicle impacts
which are likely to occur in practice.
[0018] It will be noted from FIG. 1 that due to the separation of
the in-ground casing 6 and above-ground structure 10 these
components are separately mounted to the ground with the structure
10 being to one side of the casing 6. This means that there is
added versatility in the relative placement of the casing 6 and
above-ground structure 10 to suit the required design of the
forecourt. Also as there is no structural relationship between the
casing 6 and above-ground structure 10, the casing 6 does not
impose constraints on the design of the structure 10 and, hence,
there is significant versatility in the design of the structure 10;
for example although as previously discussed the structure 10 could
consist of a column which could be quite slender if it is just
supporting the hoses, nozzles and display, the structure 10 could
form a more substantial column which also acts as a support for the
overhead canopy or roof of the forecourt. There may also be a
canopy or roof (not shown) but with at least one above-ground
structure (supporting the hose 12) independent thereof and not
supporting the canopy or roof.
[0019] The embodiment has been described by way of example only and
modifications are possible within the scope of the invention.
[0020] Throughout this specification and claims which follow,
unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise", and
variations such as "comprises" or "comprising", will be understood
to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or group of integers or
steps but not the exclusion of any other integer or group of
integers.
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