U.S. patent application number 12/851840 was filed with the patent office on 2011-12-01 for pressure regulator for a fuel supply unit and method for production of a pressure regulator.
This patent application is currently assigned to Siemens AG. Invention is credited to Detlev Diesing, Karl Eck, Rene Schmid.
Application Number | 20110290347 12/851840 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 35311773 |
Filed Date | 2011-12-01 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110290347 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Diesing; Detlev ; et
al. |
December 1, 2011 |
Pressure Regulator for a Fuel Supply Unit and Method for Production
of a Pressure Regulator
Abstract
A pressure regulator for a fuel supply unit on a motor vehicle.
A membrane is connected to an annular element of a housing and a
moving piston by a laser welding technique. A reliable sealing of
the membrane is thus guaranteed even at temperatures below
0.degree. C. The region above the piston is thus reliably separated
from the region below the piston.
Inventors: |
Diesing; Detlev;
(Hattersheim, DE) ; Eck; Karl; (Frankfurt, DE)
; Schmid; Rene; (Frankfurt/Main, DE) |
Assignee: |
Siemens AG
|
Family ID: |
35311773 |
Appl. No.: |
12/851840 |
Filed: |
August 6, 2010 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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11664122 |
Mar 30, 2007 |
7828010 |
|
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PCT/EP05/54560 |
Sep 14, 2005 |
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12851840 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
137/508 ;
219/121.64 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F02M 69/54 20130101;
Y10T 137/7793 20150401; Y10T 29/494 20150115; Y10T 137/7836
20150401; Y10T 137/7834 20150401 |
Class at
Publication: |
137/508 ;
219/121.64 |
International
Class: |
F16K 27/10 20060101
F16K027/10; B23K 26/00 20060101 B23K026/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Oct 1, 2004 |
DE |
10 2004 048 392.2 |
Claims
1. A pressure regulator for a fuel supply unit of a motor vehicle,
with a valve for producing a joining of a connection to an outlet
above a designated pressure in the connection, with a movable
piston and with a membrane, which is held on a fixed annular
element, for sealing the piston in relation to the annular element,
characterized in that the membrane is welded to the annular
element.
2. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 1, characterized in
that the membrane is welded to the piston.
3. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 1, characterized in
that the membrane has a recess for a valve seat arranged in the
piston.
4. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 1, characterized in
that the annular element, the membrane, and the piston are
manufactured from plastic.
5. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 4, characterized in
that the plastic of the membrane, the piston and the annular
element is polyphenylene sulfide.
6. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 4, characterized in
that the plastic has inserts of glass fibers.
7. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 1, characterized in
that the membrane or the component to be welded to the membrane is
manufactured from a material permeable to a laser beam and the
respectively other component is manufactured from a material
impermeable to a laser beam.
8. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 1, characterized in
that the annular element is clamped in a housing in a sealing
manner.
9. A method for production of a pressure regulator for a fuel
supply unit of a motor vehicle, in which a piston of a valve is
joined to a fixed annular element in a sealing manner via a
membrane, characterized in that the membrane is welded to the
annular element.
10. The method as claimed in claim 9, characterized in that the
welding takes place by a laser welding technique.
11. A pressure regulator for a fuel supply unit of a motor vehicle,
comprising: a fixed annular element; a housing including: a first
housing portion; and a second housing portion, the second housing
portion being attached to the first housing portion, the housing
configured to retain the annular ring between the first and second
housing portions; an inlet on the housing; an outlet on the
housing; a valve for producing connection between the inlet and
outlet above a designated pressure in the inlet; a movable piston
arranged in one of the first and second housing portions; and a
membrane that is welded to the fixed annular element and configured
to seal the piston in relation to the annular element.
12. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 11, wherein the
membrane is welded to the moveable piston.
13. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 11, wherein the
membrane has a recess for a valve seat arranged in the piston.
14. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 11, wherein the
annular element, the membrane, and the piston are manufactured from
plastic.
15. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 14, wherein the
plastic of the membrane, the piston and the annular element is
polyphenylene sulfide.
16. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 14, wherein the
plastic has inserts of glass fibers.
17. The pressure regulator as claimed in claim 11, wherein the
annular element is sealing clamped with respect to at least one of
the first and second housing portions.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 11/664,122, filed Mar. 30, 2007, which claims
priority from an application filed in Germany on Oct. 1, 2004, No.
10 2004 048 392.2. The disclosures of which are incorporated herein
by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The invention relates to a pressure regulator for a fuel
supply unit of a motor vehicle, with a valve for producing a
joining of a connection to an outlet above a designated pressure in
the connection, with a movable piston and with a membrane, which is
held on a fixed annular element, for sealing the piston in relation
to the annular element. Furthermore, the invention relates to a
method for production of a pressure regulator for a fuel supply
unit of a motor vehicle, in which a piston of a valve is joined to
a fixed annular element in a sealing manner via a membrane.
[0003] Pressure regulators of this type are frequently used in
motor vehicles today to regulate a pressure in a forward flow line
leading to an internal combustion engine, and are known from
practice. The membrane is clamped between two annular elements of
the housing and separates the region above the piston from the
region below the piston. The connection opens into the region below
the piston. The required tensioning force of the membrane is
generally produced by flanging an edge of the annular element.
[0004] A drawback of the known pressure regulator is that the
sealing of the membrane is insufficient, in particular in the
temperature range below 0.degree. C., in order to keep the
designated pressure at which the pressure regulator is to open
within an exacting tolerance range. The pressure regulator may
frequently fail completely due to leakages at the outer edge.
[0005] The invention is based on the problem of developing a
pressure regulator of the type mentioned at the beginning in such a
manner that reliable tightness between the membrane and the annular
element is ensured. Furthermore, the invention is based on the
problem of designing a method for production of the pressure
regulator in such a manner that it ensures particularly reliable
sealing of the membrane in relation to the annular element.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The problem mentioned first is solved according to the
invention in that the membrane is welded to the annular
element.
[0007] This design enables the membrane to be joined to the annular
element with a cohesive material joint. This ensures reliable
tightness in particular in the temperature range below 0.degree. C.
Settling gaps between the membrane and the annular element, which
may result in leakages after a certain operating time of the
pressure regulator according to the invention, are likewise
reliably avoided. This ensures reliable tightness between the
membrane and the annular element.
[0008] In the case of a pressure regulator according to the
invention and designed as a throughflow valve, the tightness
between the region below the piston and the region above the piston
can be further increased if the membrane is welded to the
piston.
[0009] Flow through the piston above the designated pressure can be
ensured in a simple manner, according to another advantageous
development of the invention, if the membrane has a recess for a
valve seat arranged in the piston.
[0010] Welding the membrane to the piston and the annular element
turns out to be particularly cost-effective, according to another
advantageous development of the invention, if the annular element
and the piston are manufactured from plastic.
[0011] Permanent tightness of the welded joint is ensured,
according to another advantageous development of the invention, if
the plastic of the membrane, the piston and the annular element is
polyphenylene sulfide.
[0012] According to another advantageous development of the
invention, the membrane, the annular element and the piston have a
particularly high degree of stability if the plastic has inserts of
glass fibers.
[0013] The welded joint of the membrane can be produced
particularly cost-effectively, according to another advantageous
development of the invention, if the membrane or the component to
be welded to the membrane is manufactured from a material permeable
to a laser beam and the respectively other component is
manufactured from a material impermeable to a laser beam. This
design enables the membrane to be welded by means of the laser
beam. This results in particularly low manufacturing costs in
particular in series manufacturing of the pressure regulator
according to the invention. In addition, the manufacturing can be
automated.
[0014] The annular element could be, for example, an edge of a
housing guiding the piston. However, in order to set the
prestressing force of the spring element against the piston, the
housing of the pressure regulator according to the invention is
preferably manufactured from an easily plastically deformable
material. According to another advantageous development of the
invention, the housing can be manufactured from an easily
deformable steel sheet and the membrane from plastic if the annular
element is clamped in a housing in a sealing manner.
[0015] The problem mentioned second, namely the provision of a
method for production of the pressure regulator with particularly
reliable sealing of the membrane in relation to the annular
element, is solved according to the invention in that the membrane
is welded to the annular element.
[0016] By this means, settling gaps which arise during the flanging
operation, as in the case of the known annular element, are
reliably avoided. Owing to the invention, the membrane is joined to
the annular element with a cohesive material joint. This leads to
particularly reliable sealing of the membrane in relation to the
annular element in particular in the range below 0.degree. C. In
the case of a pressure regulator designed as a straight-way valve,
the piston can be welded to the membrane in an analogous
manner.
[0017] According to an advantageous development of the invention,
the method according to the invention turns out to be particularly
cost-effective if the welding takes place by a laser welding
technique.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018] The invention permits numerous embodiments. To further
clarify its basic principle, two of these are illustrated in the
drawing and will be described below. In the drawings
[0019] FIG. 1 shows a longitudinal section through a pressure
regulator according to the invention and designed as a throughflow
valve,
[0020] FIG. 2 shows a longitudinal section through a pressure
regulator designed as a cutoff valve.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0021] FIG. 1 shows a pressure regulator according to the invention
and designed as a throughflow valve with a housing 1 and a piston 2
arranged displaceably in the housing 1. The pressure regulator
serves to limit a maximum pressure in a forward flow line (not
illustrated) of a fuel tank of a motor vehicle. The housing 1 has
two housing parts 4, 5 which are kept at a distance by an annular
element 3. The pressure regulator has a connection 6 for a pressure
line, and an outlet 7. The piston 2 is prestressed with a valve
seat 9 against a valve body 10 by means of a spring 8 designed as a
spiral spring.
[0022] A membrane 11 joined to the annular element 3 and the piston
2 seals the region below the piston 2 from the region above the
piston 2. This ensures that, at a pressure in the connection 6, the
piston 2 is loaded counter to the force of the spring 8 and, above
a designated pressure, the piston 2 is moved such that the valve
seat 9 lifts off from the valve body 10. Above the designated
pressure, fuel from the connection 6 can therefore escape through
the outlet 7. The housing parts 4, 5 are manufactured from steel
sheet and are joined to each other by flanging 12. The flanging 12
prestresses a sealing ring 13 between the annular element 3 and the
lower housing part 5. An edge 14 of the upper housing part 4, which
edge holds the spring 8, is of plastically deformable design and
serves to calibrate the pressure regulator and therefore to set to
the designated pressure at which the join between the connection 6
and the outlet 7 is produced. The annular element 3, the piston 2
and the membrane 11 are manufactured from the plastic polyphenylene
sulfide. The membrane 11 is joined to the annular element 3 and the
piston 2 by a laser welding technique.
[0023] FIG. 2 shows a pressure regulator designed as a cutoff
valve. Said pressure regulator differs from that from FIG. 1 in
particular by an outlet 15 being arranged on the same side as a
connection 16, as seen from a piston 17. A membrane 18 is welded to
an annular element 19 exclusively in the radially outer region and
covers the entire cross section of the piston 17. Furthermore, the
membrane 18 forms a valve body 21 bearing against a valve seat 20
of the outlet 15. At a designated pressure in the connection 16,
the piston 17 and the membrane 18 are pressed away from the valve
seat 20 of the outlet 15 such that fuel can flow from the
connection 16 to the outlet 15.
* * * * *