DESC:Technical Field
[0001] The present subject matter described herein generally relates to a motorcycle and particularly relates to an integrated fuel supply system for said motorcycle.
Background
[0002] In order to meet strict emission norms, contemporary motorcycles are seeing carburettors being increasingly replaced by fuel supply systems which are electronically controlled. Typically, said fuel supply systems include a fuel pump, and at least two fuel filters connected to said fuel pump. Further, said fuel pump is connected to a throttle body for supplying fuel to an internal combustion engine. Particularly, in order to ensure that clean fuel is supplied to the internal combustion engine, one of said at least two fuel filters is disposed downstream of said fuel pump. To ensure longer working life of said fuel filter, it is desirable that volume of said fuel filter be sufficiently large, so as to maximize surface area of a filter element disposed within said fuel filter. Moreover, a large volume of said fuel filter also aids in ensuring that a filter element of said fuel filter need not be frequently changed due to clogging. Typically, since a fuel tank does not have enough flat land for receiving said fuel filter having a large volume, therefore, to provide a larger volume for said fuel filter, it is disposed away from said fuel tank and from said fuel pump, at a location where ample space is available for mounting.
[0003] For example, in a known art, said fuel filter is disposed on an upper side of a crankcase, with the fuel pump being disposed outside the fuel tank, on a rear side of an output shaft in said crankcase. Disposing said fuel filter away from the fuel pump results in increased length of hoses emerging from said fuel pump towards said fuel filter. Routing of long hoses emerging from said fuel pump proves to be especially cumbersome in smaller vehicles such as motorcycles which have a densely packed layout. Moreover, lengthy hoses also cause spillage of residual fuel during assembly/disassembly of said fuel tank/fuel pump. Further, there is a possibility that the hoses get squeezed by the nearby parts during assembly, thereby blocking fuel flow. Besides, use of long fuel hoses also results in increased costs, increasing overall cost of production.
[0004] In another disclosed art, said fuel filter is attached to an independent bracket extending outwards from a bottom of said fuel pump, in a manner so that said fuel filter is off-set from the bottom of said fuel pump. Disposing said fuel filter in a manner as described above results in restriction in size of said filter, since the same has to be packaged between other surrounding parts such as cylinder head of engine, a throttle body etc. Due to constraints in increasing size of said fuel filter, surface area of said fuel filter available for filtration gets restricted, thereby affecting useful life of said fuel filter. Tendency of said fuel filter to get clogged earlier increases due to availability of lesser surface area, and thereby affecting life of said fuel filter.
Summary of the Invention
[0005] The above invention has been made in view of the above circumstances.
[0006] It is a primary object of the present invention to provide an integrated fuel supply system including an external fuel filter having greater surface area and therefore higher filtration capacity than conventional fuel filters.
[0007] It is an object of the present invention to provide an integrated fuel supply system including a fuel pump unit, and at least an external fuel filter disposed close to said fuel pump unit.
[0008] It is another object of the present invention to provide an integrated fuel supply system which is compact and is adapted to be disposed in motorcycles, including those having a densely packed layout.
[0009] It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an integrated fuel supply system whose configuration aids in having a reduced length of two or more fuel hoses.
[0010] It is one more object of the present invention to provide an integrated fuel supply system which is configured in a manner so as to be easily assembled and disassembled without causing fuel spillage.
[0011] It is still another object of the present invention to provide an integrated fuel system with a low part count, and which can be easily and conveniently serviced without affecting the functionality or serviceability of the adjacent/ interfacing parts.
[0012] Thus, the present subject matter discloses an integrated fuel supply system for a motorcycle. As per an embodiment of the present invention, said integrated fuel supply system includes a fuel pump unit for pumping fuel from a fuel tank into an intake port of an engine, an internal fuel filter to filter fuel entering said fuel pump unit, a throttle body to inject fuel into said intake port through an intake pipe, and at least an external fuel filter to filter fuel passing into said throttle body from said fuel pump unit.
[0013] In the present embodiment, said integrated fuel supply system is mounted to a portion of said fuel tank. As per an aspect of the present invention, in order to maximise a surface area of said external fuel filter, so that filtration capacity of said external fuel filter is maximised, said external fuel filter is accommodated in a dead space formed below a portion of a supporting portion of said fuel pump unit. More particularly, the present invention contemplates utilising said dead space around a feed spout and a return spout projecting from a bottom surface of said fuel pump unit. Thus, as said external fuel filter gets accommodated in said dead space having a significant volume, overall surface area of said external fuel filter is not compromised, thereby ensuring good filtration capacity of said external fuel filter. In the present embodiment, said external fuel filter includes a filter element adapted to take the shape of said external fuel filter, and is arranged within said filter.
[0014] Thus, since the external fuel filter is accommodated close to the fuel pump unit, length of a fuel delivery hose emerging from the fuel pump unit towards the external fuel filter and that of a fuel return hose emerging from said filter towards the fuel pump unit is shortened. Further, a length of a fuel outlet hose emerging from said external fuel filter towards said throttle body is also shortened since said external fuel filter is disposed close to said throttle body. And hence, overall cost effectiveness of said fuel supply system is enhanced.
[0015] Moreover, since said external fuel filter is accommodated in said dead space formed below said supporting portion of the fuel pump unit, overall assembly time of assembling said integrated fuel supply system to the fuel tank decreases significantly, thereby leading to increase in efficiency of manufacturing. Further, since said external fuel filter is supported
[0016] Further, since disassembly of the integrated fuel supply system is also facilitated, serviceability of said integrated fuel supply system as a whole is therefore enhanced.
[0017] Summary provided above explains the basic features of the invention and does not limit the scope of the invention. The nature and further characteristic features of the present invention will be made clearer from the following descriptions made with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Brief Description of Drawings
[0018] The above and other features, aspects, and advantages of the subject matter will be better understood with regard to the following description and accompanying drawings where:
[0019] FIG.1 illustrates a side view of a motorcycle including an integrated fuel supply system as per an embodiment of the present invention.
[0020] FIG.2 illustrates an enlarged view of a front portion of said motorcycle depicting arrangement of said integrated fuel supply system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
[0021] FIG.3a illustrates a bottom view depicting the mounting of at least a portion of the integrated fuel supply system as mounted to a bottom surface of the fuel tank in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
[0022] FIG.3b illustrates a cross sectional view taken along line A-A in FIG.3a.
[0023] FIG.4 illustrates an exploded view depicting mounting of an external fuel filter to a supporting portion of fuel pump unit in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
[0024] FIG.5 illustrates a cross sectional view of said external fuel filter depicting arrangement of a filter element therein.
Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments
[0025] Exemplary embodiments detailing features of the integrated fuel supply system, in accordance with the present invention will be described hereunder with reference to the accompanying drawings. Various aspects of different embodiments of the present invention will become discernible from the following description set out hereunder. Rather, the following description provides a convenient illustration for implementing exemplary embodiments of the invention. Further, it is to be noted that terms “upper”, “lower”, “right”, “left”, “front”, “forward”, “rearward”, “downward”, “upward”, “top”, “bottom” and like terms are used herein based on the illustrated state or in a standing state of the motorcycle with a driver riding thereon unless otherwise elaborated. Furthermore, a longitudinal axis refers to a front to rear axis relative to the motorcycle, while a lateral axis refers to a side to side, or left to right axis relative to the motorcycle. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. Further, it is to be noted that the present invention is applicable to all fuel injected vehicles.
[0026] FIG. 1 illustrates a side view of motorcycle 10 in accordance with the present invention. The motorcycle 10 includes a body frame 11 to support different parts of said motorcycle 10. A head pipe 12 is provided at a front end of the body frame 11. The head pipe 12 supports a steering shaft (not shown) rotatably in a certain range. In an upper portion of the head pipe 12, a handlebar 13 is rotatably integrally connected to the steering shaft. The handlebar 13 is used to steer the motorcycle 10 and is connected to a front wheel 14 through the steering shaft and a front fork assembly 16. An upper portion of the front wheel 14 is covered by a front fender 15 which prevents mud and water from getting deflected towards the steering shaft. Further, the front fork assembly 16 is supported partially on the front fender 15.
[0027] In a front portion of the body frame 11 a fuel tank 18 is arranged immediately behind the head pipe 12 and is disposed above an internal combustion engine, hereinafter ‘engine’ 20. An integrated fuel supply system 19 disposed below said fuel tank 20 is used to supply fuel to the engine 20. A seat 27 is placed behind the fuel tank 18. The seat 27 includes a front rider portion and rear pillion portion.
[0028] The engine 20 is mounted to a front lower portion of the body frame 11 by means of an engine mounting bracket. The engine 20 is equipped with an exhaust system that includes an exhaust pipe (not shown) connected to the engine 20 and a muffler (not shown) connected to the exhaust pipe. The muffler (not shown) extends rearwards along the right side of a rear wheel 40.
[0029] For the safety of the rider and in conformance with the traffic rules, a headlamp unit 28 and a turn signal lamp unit 29 is provided in the front portion of the motorcycle 10. The headlamp unit 28 and the turn signal lamp unit 29 are housed in a headlamp housing assembly 30.
[0030] Suspension systems are provided for comfortable steering of the motorcycle 10 on the road. The front fork assembly 16, which forms the front suspension system, serves as rigidity component just like the body frame. The front fork assembly 16 clamped to the head pipe 12 through a lower bracket 12a and an upper bracket 12b is capable of being moved to the left and right. Further, a rear suspension system, which is a hydraulic damped arrangement, is connected to the body frame 11. The rear suspension system comprises of at least one rear suspension 17 preferably on a left hand side of the motorcycle 10. However, in a motorcycle with two rear suspensions, the same may be disposed on the left side and the right side respectively of said motorcycle.
[0031] Further, a swing arm 35 extending rearwards is swingably connected to a lower rear portion of the body frame 11. The rear wheel 40 is rotatably supported at a rear end of the swing arm 35. Power from the engine 20 is transmitted to the rear wheel 40 through a power drive mechanism, such as a drive chain, so as to drive and rotate the rear wheel 40.
[0032] A rear fender 45 for covering an upper side of the rear wheel 40 is mounted to a rear portion of body frame 11 to prevent mud and water splashed by the rotating rear wheel 40 from entering the muffler, the engine 20 and other parts disposed close by.
[0033] To enhance the overall aesthetics of the motorcycle 10 and to prevent undesired foreign particles from entering parts of the motorcycle, a plurality of rear covers 50 is attached to a rear portion of the body frame 11.
[0034] FIG.2 illustrates an enlarged view depicting a front portion of the motorcycle. As shown in FIG.2, the fuel tank 18 is disposed immediately behind the head pipe 12, and is supported on a pair of main frames 11a of said body frame 11 of the motorcycle. Fuel stored in said fuel tank 18 is supplied to an intake port of the engine 20 through the integrated fuel supply system 19. Particularly, fuel stored in the fuel tank 18 is pumped by the integrated fuel supply system 19, said integrated fuel supply system 19 including a fuel pump unit 19a (shown in FIG.3b), and one or more fuel filters, including an internal fuel filter 19b, and an external fuel filter 19d. More particularly, fuel entering said fuel pump unit 19a from said fuel tank 18 is filtered by the internal fuel filter 19b (shown in FIG.3b) disposed within said fuel pump unit 19a. Further, fuel pumped by the fuel pump unit 19a is received by a throttle body 19c after it is further filtered by the external fuel filter 19d. Thus, to doubly ensure that fuel entering the intake port of the engine 20 is thoroughly filtered, the external fuel filter 19d is disposed downstream of said fuel pump unit 19a. Filtered fuel thereafter passes into the throttle body 19c where it is atomised and injected into the intake port of the engine 20 through an intake pipe. In the present embodiment, while the internal fuel filter 19b is a coarse filter, said external fuel filter 19d is a fine filter.
[0035] FIG.3a and FIG.3b depict the integrated fuel supply system 19 as mounted to the fuel tank 18. In the present embodiment, said fuel pump unit 19a is disposed at least partially within the fuel tank 18 from a bottom side thereof. Particularly, said fuel pump unit 19a is mounted from a bottom side of the fuel tank 18 and is supported to a bottom surface 18a through a supporting portion 19ah of said fuel pump unit 19a. Said supporting portion 19ah comprises a pump mounting bracket 19ae, a sealing member 19af and a compression plate 19ag. In the present embodiment, the pump mounting bracket 19ae is placed abutting the bottom surface 18a of the fuel tank, followed by the sealing member 19af abutting said pump mounting bracket 19ae. Further, the fuel pump unit 19a is inserted through an opening in said bottom surface 18a with at least a portion of said pump unit 19a abutting the sealing member 19af. The compression plate 19ag is provided to underlie said sealing member 19af and at least a portion of said fuel pump unit 19a, thereby compressing said fuel pump unit 19a against the sealing member 19af, and said sealing member 19af against the pump mounting bracket 19ae, therefore ensuring leak proofness of the fuel tank 18. Particularly, said compression plate 19ag is fastened to said pump mounting bracket 19ae using a pair of fasteners 24 from a bottom side of said fuel pump unit 19a. Thus, the compression plate 19ag, the sealing member 19af and said pump mounting bracket 19ae are secured sequentially along with at least a portion of the fuel pump unit 19a to the bottom surface 18a of the fuel tank, when viewed from a bottom side of the fuel tank. Thus, in the present embodiment said compression plate 19ag, said sealing member 19af and said pump mounting bracket 19ae constitute said supporting portion 19ah of the fuel pump unit 19a and enables mounting of said fuel pump unit 19a to the fuel tank 18. Further, as maybe seen in FIG.3b, the internal fuel filter 19b is connected to the fuel pump unit 19a at one end, and is disposed upstream of said fuel pump unit 19a for filtering fuel entering said fuel pump unit 19a from said fuel tank 18.
[0036] Further, the filtered fuel flowing into the fuel pump unit 19a is pumped into the external fuel filter 19d through a delivery hose 19da connected to a feed spout 19das projecting from a bottom surface of said fuel pump unit 19a. A filter check in the form of the external fuel filter 19d is provided to ensure that significantly lesser amount of impurities enter the throttle body 19c. Particularly, filtered fuel from the external fuel filter 19d enters the throttle body 19c through a fuel outlet hose 19dc (shown in FIG.3a). Since only a precise accurate amount of fuel is allowed to flow into throttle body 19c by means of a plurality of control valves present therein, an excess remnant filtered fuel in the external fuel filter 19d is sent back into the fuel pump unit 19a through a fuel return hose 19dd (shown in FIG.3a) connected to a return spout 19dds projecting from the bottom surface of the fuel pump unit 19a. Particularly, the feed spout 19das and the return spout 19dds projecting perpendicularly downwards from the bottom surface of the fuel pump unit 19a up to a predetermined length, are at least partially enclosed by at least a portion of the supporting portion 19ah of the fuel pump unit 19a.In the present embodiment, the supporting portion 19ah includes the compression plate 19ag which is shaped as a disc with a central opening through which at least a portion of the fuel pump unit 19a projects outside the fuel tank 18.
[0037] More particularly, the feed spout 19das and the return spout 19dds extend for the predetermined length below the compression plate 19ag, thereby leading to availability of a predetermined height below the compression plate 19ag. Thus, a dead space 20 (shown in FIG.4) with the predetermined height becomes available below the compression plate 19ag, which otherwise is not utilised for any purpose. In the present embodiment, said dead space 20 is utilised for accommodating the external fuel filter 19d.
[0038] Accommodation of the external fuel filter 19d in the dead space 20 is explained with reference to FIG.4. In the present embodiment, said external fuel filter 19d is disposed downstream of said fuel pump unit 19a and upstream of the throttle body 19c. As per the present embodiment, the external fuel filter 19d is accommodated in the dead space 20 formed around the feed spout 19das and the return spout 19dds. A pair of filter mounting brackets 21 is fastened to the compression plate 19ag through existing plurality of mounting holes provided for sandwich mounting the compression plate 19ag and the pump mounting bracket 19ae to the bottom surface of the fuel tank 18. Thus, since the external fuel filter 19d is attached to the compression plate 19ag which is typically provided in most motorcycles, said external fuel filter 19d may be retro fitted to any existing motorcycle. Particularly, said external fuel filter 19d is detachably attached to said pair of filter mounting brackets 21 through a plurality of flexible straps 22, adapted to be wound around a rubber boot 23, each disposed on the external fuel filter 19d. Thus, said external fuel filter 19d is accommodated on at least a portion of the supporting portion 19ah of the fuel pump unit 19a. Particularly, the dead space 20 includes sufficient flat land for receiving the entire external fuel filter 19d, thereby preventing interference of the external fuel filter 19d with other parts disposed in a bottom side of the fuel pump unit 19a. Therefore, arrangement of the external fuel filter 19d in accordance with the present embodiment aids in ensuring that said filter 19d can be disposed in any motorcycle with a densely packed layout. Moreover, the predetermined height created by the feed spout 19das and the return spout 19dds below the compression plate 19ag, aids in ensuring availability of adequate volume for the placement of the external fuel filter 19d. Thus, placement of the external fuel filter 19d having a higher filtration capacity is ensured.
[0039] In the present embodiment, in order to be accommodated in the dead space 20 formed below at least a portion of the supporting portion 19ah, said external fuel filter 19d is provided in a shape complimentary to that of the compression plate 19ag. Particularly, said external fuel filter 19d has a curved structure complimentary to that of the disc shape of the compression plate 19ag. Curvature of the external fuel filter 19d is attributed to arrangement of a filter element 19df (shown in FIG.5) within said external fuel filter 19d.
[0040] FIG.5 depicts a cross section of the external fuel filter 19d including the filter element 19df. In the present embodiment, said filter element 19df is composed of a filter paper arranged in a manner so as to be bent for taking a shape of a body of the external fuel filter 19d. Particularly, the filter paper is folded in a zig-zag manner which allows the filter element 19df to take the shape of the external fuel filter 19d. In the present embodiment, the external fuel filter 19d is U shaped. Arrangement of the filter paper in the manner as described above also aids in ensuring high filtration surface area of said external fuel filter 19d, and thereby ensures longer useful life of said external fuel filter 19d.
[0041] Thus, the present invention ensures the external fuel filter can be reliably accommodated close to the fuel pump unit, while ensuring that filtration surface area of filters comprised therein is not compromised. The present invention also aids in length of all hoses in the integrated fuel supply system including the fuel delivery hose, the fuel return hose, and the outlet hose is maintained short, thereby simplifying layout and arrangement of said fuel supply system in the motorcycle.
[0042] While the present invention has been shown and described with reference to the foregoing preferred embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that changes in form, connection, and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. ,CLAIMS:I/We Claim:
1. An integrated fuel supply system (19) for a motorcycle (10), wherein said integrated fuel supply system (19) comprises:
a fuel pump unit (19a) adapted to receive fuel from a fuel tank (18) of said motorcycle;
one or more fuel filters (19b,19d) connected to said fuel pump unit (19a);
characterized in that, at least one fuel filter of said one or more fuel filters (19b,19d) disposed downstream of said fuel pump unit (19a), is accommodated in a dead space (20) formed below a supporting portion (19ah) of said fuel pump unit (19a), and has a shape complimentary to that of at least a portion of supporting portion (19ah) of said fuel pump unit (19a), and wherein, said at least one of said one or more fuel filters (19b,19d) includes a filter element (19df) configured to take the shape of said at least one of said one or more fuel filters (19b,19d).
2. The integrated fuel supply system (19) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one of said one or more fuel filters (19b,19d) disposed downstream of said fuel pump unit (19a) is an external fuel filter (19d).
3. The integrated fuel supply system (19) as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein said filter element (19df) is composed of a filter paper arranged in a manner so as to be bent for taking a shape of a body of the external fuel filter (19d).
4. The integrated fuel supply system (19) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said fuel pump unit (19a) is secured to a bottom surface (18a) of the fuel tank (18) from a bottom side of said fuel tank (18) through said supporting portion (19ah) by means of fasteners (24).
5. The integrated fuel supply system (19) as claimed in claim 4, wherein said supporting portion (19ah) comprises of a compression plate (19ag), a sealing member (19af) and a pump mounting bracket (19ae) secured sequentially along with at least a portion (19ab) of the fuel pump unit (19a) to said bottom surface (18a) of the fuel tank (18) when viewed from the bottom side of the fuel tank (18).
6. The integrated fuel supply system (19) as claimed in claim 1 or claim 5, wherein said fuel pump unit (19a) includes a feed spout (19das) and a return spout (19dds) projecting downwards from a bottom surface thereof, and wherein at least a portion of said feed spout (19das) and said return spout (19dds) projects below said compression plate (19ag).
7. The integrated fuel supply system (19) as claimed in claim 2 or claim 6, wherein said external fuel filter (19d) is accommodated in said dead space (20), and wherein said dead space (20) is formed around said feed spout (19das) and said return spout (19dds) and below said compression plate (19ag).
8. The integrated fuel supply system (19) as claimed in claim 7, wherein said external fuel filter (19d) is detachably attached to said compression plate (19ag) through a pair of filter mounting brackets (21).
9. The integrated fuel supply system (19) as claimed in claim 8, wherein said external fuel filter (19d) is secured to said pair of filter mounting brackets (21) through a plurality of flexible straps (22).
10. The integrated fuel supply system (19) as claimed in claim 1 or claim 5, wherein said external fuel filter (19d) has a shape complimentary to that of said compression plate (19ag).