Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

Ford Motor Company Limited

William Michael Sanderson

Justin Craft

Theodore Beyer

Milos Milacic

Jody Michael Slike

Kurt David Osborne

Mathew Hintzen

Donald Charles Franks

Fred G Brighton

Charles Joseph Patanis

Richard Allen Scholer

Anthony Hale

Jon Beasley

Timothy Comer

Methods and systems are provided for a coolant pump. In one example, the coolant pump may be a dual-volute coolant pump with an impeller driving circulation of coolant through the pump and a seal disposed around a shaft of the impeller. A set of anti-vortex structures may be arranged within an inner chamber of the pump, the structures generating a pressure differential in the inner chamber that drives a cross-flow of coolant, thereby convectively cooling the seal.

Dual volute coolant pump

A pump is provided with a pump housing defining a volute chamber positioned between a central inlet and an impeller face, with the housing defining a recess intersecting the face and surrounding an aperture, and the housing defining sequentially first and second ramps, a wall section, and a protrusion extending into the recess. An impeller is positioned within the chamber adjacent to the face, with the impeller connected to a drive shaft extending through the aperture. A method is provided for cooling a drive shaft sealing member by controlling fluid flow through the pump.

Coolant pump for an internal combustion engine

A vehicle fluid line for transporting high and low pressure fluids of an engine includes a rigid pipe having opposing ends configured to fixedly couple with the engine. An adjustable joint divides a length of the rigid tube into first and second segments. The adjustable joint has a cylindrical housing coupled with the first segment and having an inner diameter. A stop feature protrudes from an outer diameter of the second segment and interfaces with the cylindrical housing to prevent disengagement of the second segment from the housing. An elastomeric grommet is seated between the inner and outer diameters and is configured to maintain a fluid seal that allows the second segment to rotate axially, pivot radially, and slide longitudinally within the cylindrical housing.

Engine fluid line with flexible joint

An engine has a cylinder head with a deck face defining first and second chambers adjacent to one another and separated by a bore bridge. The body defines a first cooling jacket and a second cooling jacket configured to operate at a lower pressure than the first cooling jacket. The first cooling jacket is positioned substantially between the deck face and the second cooling jacket. The first cooling jacket has a series of passages intersecting the deck face and configured to receive coolant from a cylinder block cooling jacket. The second cooling jacket has an inlet passage intersecting the deck face adjacent to the bore bridge and configured to receive coolant from the cylinder block cooling jacket to cool the bore bridge.

Bore bridge and cylinder cooling

A method of removing moisture from a fuel cell stack. The presence of liquid water in a fuel cell stack is especially undesirable should the temperature drop below freezing since the structures within the fuel cell are subject to degradation. One method includes measuring the temperature in the vicinity of a fuel cell vehicle when the fuel cell vehicle has been shut down and measuring the time elapsed since fuel cell vehicle shut off, and then flowing a moisture-removing medium through the fuel cell when the ambient temperature drops to a predetermined temperature and a time delay condition is satisfied. The moisture-removing medium is flowed through the fuel cell for a sufficient time to remove a sufficient amount of the water to inhibit degradation by freezing of water. A system which implements the method of the present invention is also provided.

Temperature-based vehicle wakeup strategy to initiate fuel cell freeze protection

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Ypsilanti, MI, United States of America

William Michael Sanderson