Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Carl H Sherwood

Charles H Covert

William E Gifford

Kenneth W Turner

Joseph Fornuto

Roy A Giacomazzi

Kenenth W Turner

Jeffrey Allan Rock

Otto Muller-Girard, Jr

Karen M Meyer

Peter Ronald Wendt

Richard W Wagner

Gregory P Weilnau

Patti S DuBois

Daniel Nolan

A vapor storage canister has an improved carbon bed loading pressure maintenance mechanism. A pressure plate is driven up indirectly, through a threaded shaft turned by a radially wound spiral spring, rather than by an axially compressed helical spring. This takes better advantage of the space available between the carbon bed and the lower end of the canister.

Vapor canister with carbon loading maintenance

A tank vapor vent valve for a vehicle on board fuel emissions vapor recovery system has a liquid-vapor separator integrated into its design. A blocking valve is held closed when the tank is not being filled, but springs open when the nozzle is inserted to fill the tank, allowing venting flow out of the tank. A cup suspended below the valve catches entrained liquid fuel to keep it out of the canister line, and pulls the blocking valve shut when full. When the nozzle is removed, a drain plug at the bottom of the cup is automatically pushed open.

Vapor-liquid separator for evaporative emissions control system

A tank mounted vapor vent valve is actuated from the filler door by a pair of bellows, a primary bellows operated by the filler door, and a secondary bellows moved by the primary bellows to open and close the valve, joined only by a flexible, easily routed air hose.

Remotely actuated fuel tank vapor vent valve

A tank vapor vent valve assembly mounted to the top of the tank wall has a piston actuated by a source of engine vacuum which maintains a fill vapor exit closed until the gas cap is removed to relieve the vacuum and allow the piston to open.

Vacuum actuated tank vapor vent valve

A seal assembly for a vehicle fuel tank filler neck includes a seal lip bordered by a seal casing rim on one side, and a shelf of the filler neck on the other, so as to protect the seal lip against side loading from the nozzle that it seals against.

Seal assembly for vehicle filler neck

A tank vapor vent valve assembly uses a spring loaded sealing flapper door located below a normally open float chamber. The flapper door spring is specifically designed to open when the tank pressure falls, allowing make up air to pull the flapper door down and draw in make up air through the canister inlet.

Vehicle tank vapor vent valve assembly

A TVVA with a buoyant overfill protection float contains the float closely and axially slidably within a sleeve, and feeds a negative pressure created by the rapid flow of fill vapors over the outside of the sleeve into the sleeve to hold the float down and prevent it from corking.

Tank vapor vent valve assembly with improved overfill protection

Exhaust gas recirculation valve cover

A vapor venting means for a vehicle fuel system in which one ball valve serves both the close off function between fuel fills, and the automatic shut off function during fuel fill, but does not depend upon falling under its own weight in order to open the vapor vent path to the canister. The ball valve is indirectly loaded against a lower valve seat, which is spaced from an upper spring seat, through the use of a spring loaded carrier that normally traps the ball valve against the lower seat. Then, when the nozzle is inserted, the carrier is pushed up so that the ball valve is freed without having to fall under its own weight. Since the ball valve is not confined or limited, it can also float up against the upper spring seat in the event of fuel overfill.

Vapor venting valve for vehicle fuel system

A fuel tank protection valve includes a pendulum type weight that hangs within a bearing socket located below the vent line opening in a fuel tank vapor collection dome. When the vehicle tilts significantly from the horizontal, the weight pivots within the socket, kicking a float ball up to seal the vent line opening. The closing angle of the valve may be easily varied, without changing the shape or size of the bearing socket, by varying the offset from the socket pivot point of the bearing socket of an extension of the weight that actually engages the float ball.

Fuel tank protection valve

A fuel pressure regulator base has a fuel chamber adapted for plug-connection directly to the fuel rail to receive fuel from the rail, a flexible diaphragm closes the chamber, a cover forms a pressure chamber with the diaphragm, and the pressure regulator base further has a pressure passage adapted for plug-connection directly to the inlet manifold and extending to the pressure chamber to transfer the manifold pressure to the pressure chamber. The diaphragm thereby senses the difference between the fuel pressure and the manifold pressure and operates a valve to discharge excess fuel from the fuel chamber and the fuel rail and thus maintain the fuel in the rail at the desired pressure.

Self-contained fuel pressure regulator

In a vehicle fuel system having a fuel tank with a filler pipe having an upper end closable by a removable cap and opening to the atmosphere when the cap is removed to receive an inserted object and a fuel vapor storage canister, a venting means that allows the cap to be removed while preventing pressurized fuel vapors generated in the tank when the filler pipe is closed from reaching the atmosphere. When the cap is removed, a valve is opened, while a seal means independent of the cap remains closed. Thus, vapors are blocked from the atmosphere, but allowed to exit past the valve to the canister. In addition, the seal means engages a conventionally sized fuel nozzle, providing another seal so that fuel fill vapors are similarly controlled.

Fuel tank venting

A fuel tank filler neck has a partition providing a vent orifice for vapor flow from a fuel introduction tube to a vapor discharge fitting. A ball valve guided beneath the orifice is adapted to float into engagement across the orifice to prevent liquid fuel from passing through said orifice. A filler neck restrictor plate is carried on an actuating arm that has a cam surface engaging the ball valve. The cam surface engages the ball valve across the orifice to inhibit flow of fuel vapor through the orifice when the restrictor plate inhibits introduction of fuel through the filler neck, and permits the ball valve to drop away from the orifice to permit flow of fuel vapor through said orifice when the restrictor plate permits introduction of fuel through the filler neck.

A fuel tank filler neck has a plate that pivots between a position restricting the filler neck and a position permitting introduction of fuel through the filler neck. A vent housing secured on the filler neck has a vapor inlet fitting and a vapor outlet fitting connected through a vent orifice, a pressure relief orifice, and a vacuum relief orifice. A diaphragm vent valve controls flow through the vent orifice. An actuating arm pivoted with the restrictor plate engages the vent valve across the vent orifice when the restrictor plate restricts the filler neck, and permits the vent valve to allow vapor flow from the vapor inlet fitting through the vent orifice to the vapor outlet fitting when the restrictor plate permits introduction of fuel through the filler neck. A diaphragm valve controls flow through the pressure relief orifice, and an umbrella valve controls flow through the vacuum relief orifice.

Growing community of inventors

Brockport, NY, United States of America

Carl H Sherwood