TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present disclosure, in general, relates to an assembly for mounting a compressed natural gas (CNG) regulator; and more particularly relates to the assembly that acts as a vibration absorber and also allows the adjustment of mounting position of the CNG regulator, based on space constraint in an engine bay.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior.
[0003] Compressed natural gas (CNG) is becoming more widely used for powering different types of vehicles as CNG is a relatively economical, efficient, and environmentally favorable source of energy.
[0004] In addition, the compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicle has an advantage of good fuel efficiency and emission control over gasoline and diesel vehicles.
[0005] Generally, the compressed natural gas (CNG) based vehicles operate much like gasoline-powered vehicles with spark-ignited internal combustion engines. The engine functions the same way as a gasoline engine. Here, natural gas is stored in a fuel tank, or cylinder, typically at the back of a vehicle. This compressed natural gas in the fuel tank is pulled through a highly pressurized line until it reaches a regulator. Inside the

regulator, pressure acting on the gas is reduced until it matches the amount needed by a fuel injection system of the car's engine. Once the gas has reached an acceptable pressure, the solenoid valve allows the gas to move into the fuel injection system and from there into the engine. Just as with gasoline, once the engine has received the gas, it is ignited in a combustion chamber, and this provides the energy to power the car forward.
[0006] In between the pipe line, a gas filter is also installed to remove the unwanted particles present in the flowing gas as these particles affects working of the meter installed over the pipeline that are used to measure volume and pressure of the gas transferred from one section to other section of the pipeline.
[0007] Amongst the various components shown in the diagram, the CNG regulator plays a major role while maintaining the CNG vehicle NVH (Noise, Vibration, and Harness) performance similar to gasoline vehicles. The main function of the CNG regulator is to convert high pressure CNG gas (filled in CNG cylinder) to low pressure CNG required by the engine. But, while fitting the CNG system in gasoline vehicles (in bifuel vehicles), mainly two challenges have been faced by design engineers as mentioned below.
[0008] Layout (location) constraint:- Due to compactness of engine room, it is difficult to identify appropriate and safe location to mount the regulator. Moreover, to accommodate the CNG regulator, design of various peripheral components need to be changed.
[0009] Passenger discomfort due to noise and vibration:- To
achieve the CNG gas pressure regulation through the regulator, there are several components which move inside the regulator. The frequency of movement of these components depends on the rpm of engine, and so is the vibration excitation frequency. When the regulator is mounted on the

vehicle body, vibration caused by the regulator, is transferred to the vehicle, causing noise and vibration that causes discomfort to the passengers.
[0010] In order to overcome the above-mentioned problems, most of the prior arts related to this field of technology introduced a concept of bracket on which the CNG regulator is bolted. Firstly, the CNG regulator is bolted to the bracket. Thereafter, the bracket along with the CNG regulator is mounted on the vehicle body in the engine bay. Mostly, direct mounting of the regulator is preferred. But, location of mounting is decided based on availability of space in engine room and peripheral components are also modified in accordance with the CNG regulator. But still, the CNG vehicle fails to achieve the NVH (Noise, Vibration, and Harness) performance similar to that of the gasoline vehicles as required.
[0011] In order to over come the above mentioned problems, most of the vehicle manufacturers are constantly refining their CNG regulator mounting assembly. But, such assembly fails to absorb vibration and adjustment of mounting position of the CNG regulator, based on space constraint in an engine bay.
[0012] Hence, there is a requirement of an assembly that absorbs vibration and adjusts mounting position of the CNG regulator, based on space constraint in the engine bay
OBJECTS OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0013] Some of the objects of the present disclosure, which at least one embodiment herein satisfy, are listed herein below.

[0014] It is a general or primary object of the present disclosure to provide an assembly that adjusts mounting position of a CNG regulator, as per space constraint in an engine bay.
[0015] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide the assembly that adjusts the CNG regulator at convenient orientation, as per space constraint in the engine bay.
[0016] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide the assembly that effectively absorbs vibration produced by the CNG regulator.
[0017] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide the assembly easy to installin both newly manufactured vehicles as well as existing vehicles.
[0018] It is further object of the present disclosure to provide the assembly that delivers high performance and reliability.
[0019] It is yet further object of the present disclosure to provide the assembly that improves user experience by reducing vibration and noise.
[0020] These and other objects and advantages will become more apparent when reference is made to the following description and accompanying drawings.
SUMMARY
[0021] This summary is provided to introduce concepts related to an assembly that acts as a vibration absorber and allows adjustment of mounting position of a CNG regulator, based on space constraint in an engine bay. The concepts are further described below in the detailed description. This summary is not intended to identify key features or

essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.
[0022] In an embodiment, the present disclosure provides the assembly for mounting the compressed natural gas (CNG) regulator in the engine bay, the assembly comprising a elastomer mount with a central through hole; an externally threaded rod having a vertical lower portion and a horizontal upper portion, said vertical lower portion being threaded and goes inside through hole of the elastomer mount; a CNG regulator mounting plate having a central through hole incorporating a free end of the horizontal upper portion of the externally threaded rod; and a clamping bracket to clamp the elastomer mount on a wall of the engine bay.
[0023] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the elastomer mount is having a cylindrical shape.
[0024] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the elastomer mount is made of rubber.
[0025] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the vertical lower portion and the horizontal upper portion forms an L-shape structure.
[0026] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the position of the vertical lower portion of the externally threaded rod is adjustable along its length with respect to the elastomer mount.
[0027] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the threaded rod is adjustable at an angle with respect to the wall of the engine bay by fixing fastening units on upper and lower ends of the elastomer mount.

[0028] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the fastening units are nuts.
[0029] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the clamping bracket is a U-shaped bracket made of steel.
[0030] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which a circular hole being formed on elongated flanges provided on both the sides of said U-shaped bracket for mounting the U-shaped bracket on the wall of the engine bay.
[0031] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the CNG regulator mounting plate includes a plurality of circular through holes for mounting the CNG regulator.
[0032] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the plurality of circular through holes formed on CNG regulator mounting plate along the length.
[0033] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the number of circular holes formed on the CNG regulator mounting plate depends upon the CNG regulator.
[0034] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the CNG regulator mounting plate is having a rectangular shape.
[0035] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the CNG regulator mounting plate is adjustable at an angle with respect to a horizontal plane by fixing fastening units in front and rear of the CNG regulator mounting plate with the horizontal upper portion of the externally threaded rod.
[0036] In an aspect, the present disclosure provides the assembly in which the fastening units are nuts.

[0037] Various objects, features, aspects, and advantages of the inventive subject matter will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, along with the accompanying drawing figures in which like numerals represent like components.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0038] The illustrated embodiments of the subject matter will be best understood by reference to the drawings, wherein like parts are designated by like numerals throughout. The following description is intended only by way of example, and simply illustrates certain selected embodiments of devices, systems, and methods that are consistent with the subject matter as claimed herein, wherein:
[0039] FIG. 1 illustrates a CNG system and components of the CNG system installed in a vehicle and the connection between them in accordance with the prior art;
[0040] FIG. 2 illustrates a conventional mounting assembly used for mounting the CNG regulator on an engine bay in accordance with the prior art;
[0041] FIG. 3 illustrates a proposed mounting assembly used for mounting the CNG regulator on the engine bay in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0042] FIG. 4 illustrates the first set of components of the mounting assembly in accordance with the embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0043] FIG. 5 illustrates the second set of components of the mounting assembly in accordance with the embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0044] FIG. 6 illustrates the complete assembly showing the interconnection between the first and the second set of components of the assembly in accordance with the embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0045] FIG. 7 illustrates the working mechanism of the various components of the assembly in accordance with the embodiment of the present disclosure; and
[0046] FIG. 8 illustrates a graph that depicts control in the level of vibration by the proposed assembly used for mounting the CNG regulator in accordance with the embodiment of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0047] The following is a detailed description of embodiments of the disclosure depicted in the accompanying drawings. The embodiments are in such detail as to clearly communicate the disclosure. However, the amount of detail offered is not intended to limit the anticipated variations of embodiments; on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
[0048] Generally, in a CNG system as shown in the FIG. 1, a pressure regulator plays a major role in controlling pressure of the gas transferred through a pipeline. In addition, the pressure regulator is also considered as a major source of vibration and noise in a CNG based vehicle.
[0049] Some of the prior arts tried to overcome this problem but fails to completely damp the vibration and the noise produced by the pressure regulator. One of the prior art proposed a mounting structure 202 in an engine bay for installing pressure regulator as shown in FIG.2 that fails in

completely reducing the vibration and the noise produced by the pressure regulator 102.
[0050] Therefore, the present disclosure proposed an assembly 300 as shown in FIG. 3, wherein the first part of the assembly 300 is attached with a bracket 202 fixed on a vehicle body in the engine bay. The second part of the assembly 300 is attached with the pressure regulator 102.
[0051] FIG. 4 depicts the first set of components of the assembly 300 in accordance with the embodiment of the present disclosure. The first set of components of the assembly 300 comprising an elastomer mount 302 with a central through hole 302-H1 and a clamping bracket 308 to clamp the elastomer mount 302 on a wall of the engine bay. The elastomer mount 302 is made of rubber as it effectively damps the vibration produced by the pressure regulator 102 and reduces vibration transferred to the vehicle body.
[0052] Generally, rubber is considerd as a best material for vibration absorbers, because rubber has a relatively high shear modulus compared to other materials. That means when a rubber material is shear stressed, i.e. stressed parallel to its cross-section, rubber can be stressed more before it becomes permanently deformed.
[0053] In addition, the elastomer mount 302 is of cylindrical shaped structure.
[0054] Moreover, a clamping bracket 308 is of U-shaped structure in which the curved section of the U-shaped clamping bracket 308 covers periphery of the elastomer mount 302 and is used to hold the elastomer mount 302 firmly. The clamping bracket 308 is also having elongated flanges on both left and right side of the bracket. On both the sides, circular holes 308-L and 308-R are also formed on elongated flanges of the

clamping bracket 308 that helps infirmly mounting of the clamping bracket 308 on the wall of the engine bay. The clamping bracket 308 is made of steel as it requires enough strength, hardness, toughness, tensile strength, and yield strength.
[0055] FIG. 5 depicts the second set of components of the assembly 300 in accordance with the embodiment of the present disclosure. The second set of components comprises an externally threaded rod 304 of L-shaped structure having a vertical lower portion 304-V and a horizontal upper portion 304-H joined at an angle of 90°.
[0056] It further comprises a CNG regulator mounting plate 306 of rectangular shaped structure having a central through hole 306-H2 used for incorporating a free end of the horizontal upper portion 304-H of the externally threaded rod 304.
[0057] The horizontal upper portion 304-H of the externally threaded rod 304 is fixed inside the central through hole 306-H2 through a set of fastening units such as a pair of nut is provided on front 304-N4 and rear end 304-N3 of the CNG regulator mounting plate 306 for firmly accommodating the externally threaded rod 304 inside the central through hole 306-H2 of the CNG regulator mounting plate 306. The CNG regulator mounting plate 306 further have circular holes provided along the length direction in a equidistant manner and are used for mounting the CNG regulator 102. The number of circular holes on the CNG regulator mounting plate 306 depends upon the CNG regulator design.
[0058] FIG. 6 illustrates the complete assembly 300 showing the interconnection between the first and the second set of components of the assembly 300 in accordance with the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0059] As mentioned above, the first set of components comprises of the elastomer mount 302 with a central through hole 302-H1 and the clamping bracket 308 to clamp the elastomer mount 302 on the wall of the engine bay.
[0060] The second set of components comprises an externally threaded rod 304 having the vertical lower portion 304-V and the horizontal upper portion 304-H and the CNG regulator mounting plate 306 having a central through hole 306-H2 used for incorporating a free end of the horizontal upper portion 304-H of the externally threaded rod 304.

WE CLAIM:

1. An assembly (300) for mounting a compressed natural gas (CNG)
regulator (102) in an engine bay, the assembly (300) comprising:
a elastomer mount (302) with a central through hole (302-H1);
an externally threaded rod (304) having a vertical lower portion (304-V) and a horizontal upper portion (304-H), said vertical lower portion (304-V) being threaded and goes inside the through hole (302-H1) of the elastomer mount (302);
a CNG regulator mounting plate (306) having a central through hole (306-H2) incorporating a free end of the horizontal upper portion (304-H) of the externally threaded rod (304); and
a clamping bracket (308) to clamp the elastomer mount (302) on a wall of the engine bay.
2. The assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the elastomer mount (302) is having a cylindrical shape.
3. The assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the vertical lower portion (304-L) and the horizontal upper portion (304-H) of the externally threaded rod (304) forms an L-shape structure.
4. The assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the position of the vertical lower portion (304-V) of the externally threaded rod (304) is adjustable along its length with respect to the elastomer mount (302).
5. The assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the threaded rod (304) is adjustable at an angle with respect to the wall of the engine bay by fixing fastening units (302-N1, 302-N2) on upper and lower ends of the elastomer mount (302).

6. The assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the clamping bracket (308) is a U-shaped bracket.
7. The assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the CNG regulator mounting plate (306) includes a plurality of circular through holes for mounting the CNG regulator (102).
8. The assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the CNG regulator mounting plate (306) is adjustable at an angle with respect to a horizontal plane by fixing fastening units (304-N3, 304-N4) in front and rear of the CNG regulator mounting plate (306).