FORM 2
THE PATENT ACT, 1970,
(39 OF 1970)
&
THE PATENTS RULE, 2003
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION
(SEE SECTION 10; RULE 13)

“FLUID FILLER NECK SYSTEM FOR AUTOMOTIVE VEHICLE”

MAHINDRA & MAHINDRA LIMITED
AN INDIAN COMPANY,
R & D CENTER, AUTOMOTIVE SECTOR,
89, M.I.D.C., SATPUR,
NASHIK – 422 007,
MAHARASHTRA, INDIA.

THE FOLLOWING SPECIFICATION PARTICULARLY DESCRIBES AND ASCERTAINS THE NATURE OF THIS INVENTION AND THE MANNER IN WHICH IT IS TO BE PERFORMED

FIELD OF INVENTION:

The present invention is related to fluid filler neck system for an automotive vehicle. More particularly the present invention is related to diesel exhaust fluid / urea solution filler neck system to fill urea in the reservoir of an automotive vehicle.

BACKGROUND & PRIOR ART:

Today endorsement norms are making necessary for diesel powered vehicles to meet certain emission norms such as US Tier II Bin 5, Euro 5, etc. One of the practices generally followed to control the NOx emissions is Selective Catalyst Reduction (SCR) in which diesel exhaust fluid (also called aqueous urea solution) stored in the reservoir is injected in the exhaust system of the vehicle.

SCR removes nitrogen oxides through a chemical reaction between exhaust gases, a reductant and a catalyst. A reductant, generally urea solution, is added to the exhaust gas and absorbed onto a catalyst. The reductant reacts with NOx in the exhaust gas to form water vapour and nitrogen gas. Urea is used in conjunction with a catalytic converter of a diesel powered vehicle to improve the emission performance of the vehicle.

Urea solution is stored on-board a vehicle in a urea reservoir which is re-filled as per the requirement by accessing a urea port and its filler neck system located on the vehicle. The effectiveness of the urea filler neck is defined by the efficiency with which it is able to vent out the urea reservoir. The vent location and its opening decides the flow rate at which the diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) / urea solution can be administered in the reservoir. The DEF filler neck of the present invention is designed to carry out efficient receiving of the DEF though various dispensing system but not limited to Pistol Gun, Bottle, Canister, etc.

OBJECTIVES OF THE PRESENT INVENTION:

The main object of the present invention is to provide efficient and novel DEF filler neck for automotive vehicles.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an efficient and novel DEF filler neck that facilitates the easy venting out of the reservoir while filling the DEF.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide efficient and novel DEF filler neck which is compact and does not create any hindrance to receive the dispensed fliud through the filling spout or the bottle or the canister.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide efficient and novel DEF filler neck with its easy assembly access with the hoses.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide novel DEF fill neck on the real wheel housing permitting easy access to fill DEF/urea without disturbing the exterior look of the vehicle.

STATEMENT OF INVENTION:

Accordingly The fluid filler neck assembly for filling aqueous fluid comprising of an upper hollow neck portion configured to receive the a fluid dispensing device and integrated with a base plate and lower neck portion fitted to the base plate at its lower side and in communication with the upper neck portion thus forming the passage for fluid and a cap means removably mounted to the said threaded upper neck;

Wherein the said lower neck portion has a bowl with its lower end slendering in the form of tubing at an angle with respect to the said bowl; wherein a partition means is provided into the said bowl for making two sections therein of different sizes; one of said the sections with the smaller size provided with a vent tube; an individual hose pipe, leading to the DEF tank, attached to the end of the said tubing and the said vent tube;

Wherein the partition wall of the said bowl is provided with U shaped opening for easy and effectively directing over flow of the DEF in the smaller section of the bowl if any towards the larger section;

Wherein the smaller section of the bowl is provided with the vent opening on the sloppy surface for effective venting out of the reservoir tank..

DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES:

The objects and features of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following description of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which,

Figure 1 shows the positional view of the filler neck assembly on the wheel housing of the automotive vehicle.

Figure 2 shows the filler neck assembly fitted with the cap and tether in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 3 shows the exploded view of the filler neck assembly in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 4 shows the lower neck portion of the filler neck assembly in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 5 shows the views of filler neck assembly wherein upper and lower neck portions are joined together.

Figure 6 shows the filler neck assembly in accordance with the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENT INVENTION:

Referring to Figure 1, DEF filler neck assembly (6) is mounted in specially made opening (3) on the wheel housing (2) from inner side of a vehicle cargo (1). After fixing the DEF filler neck assembly (6) in the opening (3), it can be covered with the circular lid (4) to make it invisible from the outside. The circular lid (4) can be made of metal sheet or FRP material or soft wood or combination of thereof fulfilling the functional requirement. The lid (4) can be fitted over the opening (3) with the help of at least two screws (5) as shown in the figure. The screw/s (5) can be unscrewed to remove the lid (4) and have access to the filler neck assembly (6). The lid (4) can be fitted over the opening (3) with the help of at least a hinge or combination of a hinge and screws (5).

Referring to Figure 2 & 3, filler neck assembly (6) comprises of upper neck portion (7) and lower neck portion (8). Upper neck portion (7) has the threaded hollow neck (9) fixed to a base plate (10). The threaded hollow neck (9) of the filler neck assembly (6) is configured to receive a fluid dispensing device. The threaded hollow neck portion (9) holds the DEF refilling gun or bottle or the canister or the like DEF refilling means available at the station. The base plate (10) can be made square or rectangular or circular or any suitable shape depending on the packaging requirement. After refilling the DEF, opening of the filler neck assembly / threaded neck (9) is closed with the closure cap (11) so that the DEF / urea fill in does not come out of it and also to prevent the foreign material from entering the filler neck assembly (6). The threaded neck (9) has external threads that engage internal threads of the closure cap (11). The cap (11) is installed and removed from the threaded neck (9) by twisting. The twisting action, depending on its direction, engages or disengages the internal threads of the cap (11) with the external threads of the threaded neck (9).

The closure cap (11) has a projection (22) formed transverse to and extending away from the top of the cap which permits a user to grip and twist the cap (11) during engaging and disengaging with the threaded neck (9). The closure cap is provided with tether (13) to hold the cap (11) safely in disclosed position while filling the DEF. The ring portion (14) of the tether (13) fits in the groove (12) provided on the closure cap (11) tightly securing it whereas the other end (15) of the tether (13) is fixed to the vehicle body / wheel housing (2) by suitable means. The tether (13) is movable within the groove (12) of the closure cap (11). The tether (13) can be made of flexible metal wire or cotton/nylon string or plastic material or suitable combination of thereof.

Lower neck portion (8) of the filler neck assembly (6) comprises of bowl (16) with its lower end slandering in the form of tubing (17). The bowl (16) and tubing (17) are at a particular angle with each other to facilitate the effective free flow of the DEF / urea in the reservoir (not shown in figure). The most optimized angle for effective free flowing of DEF/urea ranges from 35 to 50 degrees (Fig. 6). The bowl (16) has two sections separated by a partition wall (18). The smaller section is connected to the vent tubing (20) for venting out air from the DEF reservoir while filling the fluid. The partition wall has been provided with U shaped opening (19) which facilitates the easy and effective venting out of the reservoir tank. The U shaped opening (19) also directs the overflow of the DEF effectively, if any, while filling the reservoir.

The lower neck portion (8) is joined to the upper neck portion (7) to form a filler neck assembly (6) as shown in Figure 5 by way of vibration welding, suitable adhesive and like joining mean. Thus, the filler neck assembly (6) is fitted inside the wheel housing (2) wherein the base plate (10) rests over the metal bracket (not shown in figure) inside the wheel housing (2) and it is screwed to the metal bracket with the screws or by any suitable means at location/s (21). To the extreme end of tubing (17) and vent tube (20) hose pipes are attached for easy discharge of the fluid to the DEF reservoir and venting out the air, respectively. The filler neck assembly (6) can be made of high density plastic, steel, casting or any other suitable material fulfilling the engineering properties thereof.

While operating the fluid filler neck system, the lid (4) on the wheel housing is unscrewed; closure cap (11) is removed; the spout of the filling gun is inserted in the threaded neck (9) or fluid bottle is screwed on the threads of the threaded neck(9), as the case is; and DEF/urea solution is filled in reservoir. Once the fluid filling is over, the filling gun is removed from the threaded neck (9); closure cap (11) is screwed over the threaded neck (9) of the filler neck assembly (6) and finally the lid (4) is screwed over the opening of the wheel housing.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited in its application to the details of the construction and to the arrangements of the components as mentioned in the above description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, the terminologies used herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.

ADVANTAGES OF THE PRESENT INVENTION:

• The filler neck assembly is compact in nature and requires less space.
• The hose connections are very easy to assemble.
• It is a cost effective and modular assembly.
• The exterior styling of the vehicle does not get affected.
• The location of the filler neck assembly can be accessed by standing outside the vehicle
• It is lighter in weight leading to weight effective solution.

WE CLAIM:
1. The fluid filler neck assembly for filling aqueous fluid comprising of an upper hollow neck portion configured to receive the a fluid dispensing device and integrated with a base plate and lower neck portion fitted to the base plate at its lower side and in communication with the upper neck portion thus forming the passage for fluid and a cap means removably mounted to the said threaded upper neck;
- wherein the said lower neck portion has a bowl with its lower end slendering in the form of tubing at an angle with respect to the said bowl; wherein a partition means is provided into the said bowl for making two sections therein of different sizes; one of said the sections with the smaller size provided with a vent tube; an individual hose pipe, leading to the DEF tank, attached to the end of the said tubing and the said vent tube;
- wherein the partition wall of the said bowl is provided with U shaped opening for easy and effectively directing over flow of the DEF in the smaller section of the bowl if any towards the larger section;
- wherein the smaller section of the bowl is provided with the vent opening on the sloppy surface for effective venting out of the reservoir tank.

2. The filler neck assembly as claimed in claim 1 wherein the said optimized angle of tubing with respect to the axis of the bowl is from 35 to 50 degrees for efficient flow of the fluid.

3. The filler neck assembly as claimed in claim 1 to 2 wherein the lower neck portion is joined to the upper neck portion to form a filler neck assembly by way of vibration welding, suitable adhesive and like joining means.

4. The filler neck assembly as claimed in claims 1 to 3 wherein the said cap, engaged/disengaged to the said upper neck by twisting, provided with internal threading matching with that of upper neck.

5. The filler neck assembly as claimed in claims 1 to 4 wherein the closure cap provided with a gripping projection formed transverse to and extending away from the top of the said cap.

6. The filler neck assembly as claimed in claims 1 to 5 wherein the said closure cap provided with tether having one end ring portion engaged to the groove on the said cap provided therefor and other end fixed to the vehicle body/wheel housing by suitable means.

7. The filler neck assembly as claimed in claims 1 to 6 wherein the said tether is made of flexible metal wire or cotton/nylon string or plastic material or suitable combination of thereof.

8. The filler neck assembly as claimed in claims 1 to 7 wherein the said filler neck assembly made of high density plastic, steel, casting or any other suitable material fulfilling the engineering properties there for.

9. The filler neck assembly as claimed in claims 1 to 8 wherein the said base plate is having at least two symmetrically formed holes for its mounting on the bracket in the wheel housing.

10. The filler neck assembly as claimed in above claims wherein the filler neck assembly is mounted inside the wheel housing and has access from the inside of the cargo thus leading to efficient utilization of space in the wheel housing.