A rimless welded motorcycle fuel tank

Abstract

The present invention discloses a rimless welded motorcycle fuel tank. The fuel tank face consists of a left half and a right half. The upper edges of the left and right half shells are welded and fixed by a first weld seam. The bottom skirts of the left and right half shells are bent inward to form an inner fold of the fuel tank face with a width L = 1mm-50mm. The bottom of the inner fold of the fuel tank face is higher than the bottom edges of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body when viewed from the front. The fuel tank bottom support strap cooperates with the fuel tank bottom support fold of the inner fold of the fuel tank face. The inner fold of the fuel tank face and the fuel tank bottom support fold are welded and fixed by a second weld seam. The second weld seam is higher than the bottom edges of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body when viewed from the front. The fuel tank bottom support of the present invention fits smoothly on the inner fold of the fuel tank face or the plane formed by the edge pressing, forming a welded lap joint with strong welding strength. The position of the welded lap joint is improved so that it is invisible when viewed from the left and right sides of the fuel tank body when viewed from the front, thereby improving the strength and aesthetics of the fuel tank.

Description

Technical field:

[0001] The invention relates to a motorcycle component, in particular to a rimless welded motorcycle fuel tank. Background technology:

[0002] At present, the welding process of seam welding (commonly known as "roll welding") of motorcycle fuel tanks is more and more widely used. The fuel tank body (1) of the existing fuel tank is composed of a fuel tank face (4) and a fuel tank bottom support (5). The fuel tank face (4) is composed of a symmetrically arranged left half (4a) and a right half (4b). The left half (4a) and the right half (4b) are sheet metals punched into shells with inner cavities. The upper edges of the left half (4a) and the right half (4b) shells are welded and fixed by left and right half welding seams (6). The main welding process is to use a pair of roller electrodes to place the stamped fuel tank face and the fuel tank bottom support between rollers and move them, so as to produce a sealed weld with overlapping molten cores to weld the workpieces together, forming a weld with edges (7) higher than the surface of the fuel tank (such as Figure 1 、 Figure 2 As shown at point A, the welding current typically uses AC pulsed current or amplitude modulated current. Three-phase (single-phase) rectified, medium-frequency, or high-frequency DC current can also be used. Seam welding is widely used for welding thin metal sheets (the base metal thickness is generally within 1.0 mm per sheet). However, the thicker the base metal, the more difficult it is to weld and the harder it is to ensure weld quality. This protruding seam weld edge reduces the overall appearance of the fuel tank. Furthermore, the weld joints are weak in strength, low in compressive strength, and the welding process consumes a lot of energy, making it difficult to automate welding and detrimental to operator safety. Consequently, the application of existing seam welding processes for motorcycle fuel tanks is increasingly limited, hindering the improvement of the quality of this product. Therefore, given the significant limitations and shortcomings of the current seam welding process for fuel tanks, the industry is seeking to address the structural challenges of improving the strength of the weld seams around the tanks, significantly enhancing the aesthetics of the tanks, and better matching the aesthetic and style requirements of popular models such as the Retro, Cruise, and Prince series. Summary of the invention:

[0003] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the shortcomings and deficiencies of the above-mentioned prior art and to provide a rimless welded motorcycle fuel tank. While realizing automated welding, it can also effectively solve the application limitations and deficiencies of the seam welding process currently used for fuel tanks. It not only improves the strength of the peripheral welds of the fuel tank, but also significantly improves the aesthetics of the fuel tank. The rimless style fuel tank has a subversive effect on the appearance and style of retro, cruise, prince and other series of models, brings unlimited design space to the vehicle appearance, and reduces the overall design and manufacturing costs of the vehicle.

[0004] The technical solution adopted by the present invention to solve its technical problems is: a rimless welded motorcycle fuel tank, comprising a fuel tank body (1', 1"), a refueling port provided at the upper part of the fuel tank body (1', 1"), and an oil outlet provided at the bottom of the fuel tank body (1', 1"), wherein the fuel tank body (1', 1") is composed of a fuel tank surface (4', 4") and a fuel tank bottom support (5', 5"), the fuel tank surface (4', 4") is composed of a symmetrically arranged left half (4a', 4a") and a right half (4b', 4b"), the left half (4a', 4a") and the right half (4b', 4b") being a shell body with an inner cavity punched from sheet metal, the upper edges of the left half (4a', 4a") and the right half (4b', 4b") shell bodies are welded and fixed by a first weld seam (6', 6"), the left half (4a', 4a") The bottom skirt of the right half (4b', 4b") shell is bent inwardly to form an inner folded edge (8', 8") of the fuel tank surface with a width L=1mm-50mm. The bottom of the inner folded edge (8', 8") of the fuel tank surface is higher than the bottom edge of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body (1', 1") in the front view direction. The fuel tank lower support (5', 5") is a metal plate that is stamped upward and bent inward to form an inverted "U" shape. The bottom of the inverted "U" shape has a fuel tank lower support folded edge (9', 9") that matches the inner folded edge (8', 8") of the fuel tank surface. An oil outlet is provided on the fuel tank lower support (5', 5"); the inner folded edge (8', 8") of the fuel tank surface and the folded edge (9', 9") of the fuel tank lower support are welded and fixed by a second weld seam, and the second weld seam is higher than the bottom edge of the fuel tank body (1', 1"). The bottom edges of the left and right sides are viewed from the front, so no welding points can be seen from the front of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body (1', 1").

[0005] There are two typical designs of flange forms for the inward bend. One of the typical designs is Figure 3-7 As shown, the bottom skirt with a predetermined inward bending width L = 5mm-50mm is directly bent inward according to the bending arc radius R = 3mm-30mm, and the bending inner angle C = 20°-90°, so that the bottom of the end surface of the inner folding edge (8') of the bent fuel tank surface is 0.8mm-10mm higher than the bottom edge of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body (1') in the front view direction, and the thickness of the plate used for the fuel tank surface (4') is 0.8mm-3mm; this structure is suitable for the prince-type fuel tank, which has a smaller space at the bottom of the fuel tank cavity and a relatively small fuel tank capacity.

[0006] Typical Design 2 Figure 8-12As shown, the bottom skirt of the left half (4a") and the right half (4b") shell is pressed upward to form a step. After the edge is pressed, the skirt width L = 1mm-50mm and is horizontal, and the edge pressing depth is 0.8mm-10mm (that is, the height difference between the bottom surface of the skirt and the bottom edge of the left and right sides of the tank body (1") in the front view direction is 0.8mm-10mm; the thickness of the plate used for the tank surface (4") is 0.8mm-3mm;); this structure is suitable for retro fuel tanks, where the bottom space of the tank cavity is large and the tank capacity is relatively large.

[0007] The present invention relates to a non-rim welded motorcycle fuel tank, and also relates to a special welding fixture for non-rim welded motorcycle fuel tanks, such as Figure 13 As shown: the special welding fixture is mainly assembled by the upper cylinder (101), the cylinder connecting rod (102), the upper pressure plate (103), the lower support pressure plate (104), the side cylinder (105), the positioning plate (106), the bottom plate (107), the left and right half body fixing plates (108 and 109) and the support (110). The specific parts are as follows Figure 5 As shown; wherein the middle portion of the left and right half body fixing plates (108 and 109) is a concave body with the outer contour of the oil tank face when it is inverted when the left and right half body fixing plates (108 and 109) are combined, the right half body fixing plate (109) is fixed to the right side of the bottom plate (107), the left side of the bottom plate (107) is connected to a positioning plate (106) outwardly, a side cylinder (105) is fixed on the positioning plate (106), and the output shaft of the side cylinder (105) is connected to the left half body fixing plate (108) matched with the right half body fixing plate (109); erected on the right side of the bottom plate (107) is also A cantilevered support (110) is provided. The top of the support (110) extends outwards to extend above the left and right half-body fixing plates (108 and 109). An upper cylinder (101) is provided on the cantilever of the support (110). The output of the upper cylinder (101) is connected to a cylinder connecting rod (102) extending downwards from the cantilever of the support (110). The end of the cylinder connecting rod (102) is connected to an upper pressure plate (103) and a lower support pressure plate (104) in sequence from top to bottom. The shape of the lower support pressure plate (104) matches the shape of the oil tank lower support. The main working process and principle are as follows: the oil tank face can be inverted and placed into the left and right half-body fixing plates, the side cylinder is opened to push the left half-body fixing plate to press the oil tank face into the tooling and fix it; then the oil tank lower support is placed into the opening of the oil tank face so that the periphery of the oil tank lower support is flush with the inner folding edge of the oil tank face, the upper cylinder is opened to push the lower support pressure plate to press the oil tank lower support into the face, as shown in FIG. Figure 6 , so that the fuel tank support and the inner folding edge of the fuel tank face are flatly fitted and then fastened. The periphery of the fuel tank face is designed with inner folding or pressing edge forming, and the welding with the fuel tank support forms a lap welding method, such as Figure 7 As shown, the welding strength of the weld is effectively improved.

[0008] The following benefits can be achieved by adopting the innovative process of the present invention:

[0009] (1) It can significantly save energy and reduce emissions. The original seam welding machine and trimming machine each had a rated power of 115KW and consumed about 1.2 tons of water per hour. After switching to the edgeless welding process, the total rated power of each set of equipment (including the CO2 gas shielded welding machine and manipulator) is about 9KW, and no water is consumed, which to a certain extent conforms to the development trend of green environmental protection.

[0010] (2) Production efficiency is greatly improved. A robot is used for automated welding around the fuel tank. Under normal circumstances, each set of equipment can produce an average of about 300 pieces per day in 8 hours. Compared with the original seam welding capacity of about 120 pieces in the same time, the production efficiency is improved by 150%.

[0011] (3) Effective labor protection. It can free operators from the heavy and relatively dangerous physical labor of the original seam welding process, effectively reducing labor risks.

[0012] (4) Expand the scope of application of the product. The peripheral seam welding process of the crude oil tank is suitable for welding single-plate base materials below 1.5mm. After changing to the edgeless welding process of the oil tank, it can be applied to metal materials with single-plate base materials greater than 1.5mm, making the scope of application of the product wider, and can effectively break through the original limitation of base material thickness to meet the different needs of the market and users.

[0013] (5) After adopting the above-mentioned welding structure design and welding method, the sealing of the fuel tank and the strength of the weld joints have been effectively improved. According to the statistical comparison and analysis of the airtightness test data of fuel tank welded parts in the past year, the average first-time pass rate of fuel tanks produced by the original seam welding process was about 53%. After adopting the new welding process, the average first-time pass rate has reached about 78%, and the first-time pass rate of airtightness test has increased by 47%.

[0014] In summary, the edgeless welded motorcycle fuel tank of the present invention has an edgeless welding process that replaces the traditional seam welding of the fuel tank face and the lower support with trimming, and instead folds or presses the welding portion between the fuel tank face and the lower support, so that the lower support is flatly fitted on the plane of the inner folded surface or press-formed surface of the fuel tank face, forming a welded lap joint with strong welding strength; since the positions of the welded lap joints are higher than the bottom edges of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body in the front view direction, they are not visible from the front view direction of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body, thereby improving the aesthetics of the fuel tank. Description of the drawings:

[0015] Figure 1 It is a structural diagram of a prior art fuel tank;

[0016] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A partial enlarged schematic diagram;

[0017] Figure 31 is a schematic structural diagram of a fuel tank according to embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0018] Figure 4 yes Figure 3 A partial enlarged schematic diagram of center C;

[0019] Figure 5 1 is a schematic structural diagram of the left half of the fuel tank according to embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 6 yes Figure 5 Cross-sectional view in the middle FF direction;

[0021] Figure 7 yes Figure 6 A partial enlarged schematic diagram of B in the middle;

[0022] Figure 8 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a fuel tank according to embodiment 2 of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 9 yes Figure 8 A partial enlarged schematic diagram of D in the middle;

[0024] Figure 10 2 is a schematic structural diagram of the left half of the fuel tank according to embodiment 2 of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 11 yes Figure 10 Cross-sectional view in the EE direction;

[0026] Figure 12 yes Figure 11 A partial enlarged schematic diagram of G in the middle;

[0027] Figure 13 It is a structural diagram of a special welding fixture for a fuel tank. Specific implementation method:

[0028] Example 1:

[0029] like Figure 3-7As shown, a rimless welded motorcycle fuel tank comprises a fuel tank body 1', a refueling port provided at the upper portion of the fuel tank body 1', and a fuel outlet provided at the bottom portion of the fuel tank body 1'. The fuel tank body 1' comprises a fuel tank face 4' and a fuel tank undercarriage 5'. The fuel tank face 4' comprises a symmetrically arranged left half 4a' and a right half 4b'. The left half 4a' and the right half 4b' are formed by stamping a sheet metal into a shell with an inner cavity. The upper edges of the left half 4a' and the right half 4b' shells are welded together by a first weld seam 6'. The bottom skirts of the left half 4a' and the right half 4b' shells are bent inwardly with a width L=15 The inner folded edge 8' of the fuel tank face is mm, and the bottom of the inner folded edge 8' of the fuel tank face is higher than the bottom edge of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body 1' in the front view direction; the fuel tank lower support 5' is a metal plate that is punched upward and bent inward to form an inverted "U" shape, and the bottom of the inverted "U" shape has a fuel tank lower support folded edge 9' that matches the inner folded edge 8' of the fuel tank face, and an oil outlet is opened on the fuel tank lower support 5'; the inner folded edge 8' of the fuel tank face and the fuel tank lower support folded edge 9' are welded and fixed with a second welding seam, and the welding lines formed by the second welding seam are all higher than the bottom edges of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body 1' in the front view direction, so the welding point cannot be seen when looking from the left and right sides of the fuel tank body 1' in the front view direction.

[0030] The specific operation of bending the bottom skirt of the left half body 4a' and the right half body 4b' shell inward is to directly bend the bottom skirt with a predetermined inward bending width L = 15mm according to the bending radius R = 10mm, and the bending inner angle C = 60°, so that the bottom of the end surface of the inner folded edge 8' of the bent tank face is 2mm higher than the bottom edge of the left and right sides of the tank body 1' in the front view direction, and the thickness of the plate used for the tank face (4') is 1.5mm; this structure is suitable for the prince-type tank, the bottom space of the tank cavity is small, and the tank capacity is relatively small.

[0031] Example 2:

[0032] like Figure 8-12The fuel tank of a motorcycle with a rimless weld is shown in FIG. 1 , comprising a fuel tank body 1 ″, a refueling port provided on the upper portion of the fuel tank body 1 ″, and an oil outlet provided on the bottom portion of the fuel tank body 1 ″, wherein the fuel tank body 1 ″ is composed of a fuel tank face 4 ″ and a fuel tank lower support 5 ″, the fuel tank face 4 ″ being composed of a symmetrically arranged left half 4a ″ and a right half 4b ″, the left half 4a ″ and the right half 4b ″ being a shell body with an inner cavity punched out of sheet metal, the upper edges of the left half 4a ″ and the right half 4b ″ shells being welded and fixed by a first welding seam 6 ″, the bottom skirt edges of the left half 4a ″ and the right half 4b ″ shells being bent inwardly to an inner fold edge 8 of the fuel tank face with a width L = 10 mm, the bottom of the inner fold edge 8 of the fuel tank face being higher than the bottom edges of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body 1 ″ in the front view direction; the fuel tank lower support 5 ″ is a metal sheet punched inwardly to form an inverted “U”-shaped member, the bottom of the inverted “U”-shaped member The bottom belt cooperates with the inner fold 8" of the tank face, and the fuel tank lower support 9" is provided with an oil outlet on the fuel tank lower support 5". The inner fold 8" of the fuel tank face is welded and fixed to the fuel tank lower support 9". The welding lines are all higher than the bottom edges of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body 1" in the straight view direction. Therefore, the welding points cannot be seen from the straight view direction of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body 1". The bottom skirts of the left half 4a" and the right half 4b" shell are bent inward. The specific operation is to press the bottom skirts of the left half 4a" and the right half 4b" shell upward to form a step. After the edge pressing, the skirt width L=10mm and is horizontal. The edge pressing depth is 2mm (that is, the height difference between the bottom surface of the skirt and the bottom edges of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body 1" in the straight view direction is 2mm; the thickness of the plate used for the fuel tank face 4" is 1.5mm;); this structure is suitable for retro fuel tanks with a larger space at the bottom of the inner cavity of the fuel tank and a relatively large fuel tank capacity.

[0033] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and does not constitute any formal limitation on the structure of the present invention. Any simple modification, equivalent change and modification made to the above embodiment based on the technical essence of the present invention shall still fall within the scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

Claims

1. A rimless welded motorcycle fuel tank, comprising a fuel tank body (1', 1"), a fuel filling port provided at the upper portion of the fuel tank body (1', 1"), and an oil outlet provided at the bottom portion of the fuel tank body (1', 1"), characterized in that: The fuel tank body (1', 1") is composed of a fuel tank face (4', 4") and a fuel tank lower support (5', 5"), and the fuel tank face (4', 4") is composed of a symmetrically arranged left half (4a', 4a") and a right half (4b', 4b"), and the left half (4a', 4a") and the right half (4b', 4b") are sheet metal stamped into a shell with an inner cavity, and the left half (4a', 4a") and the right half (4b', 4b") shell The upper edge of the left half (4a', 4a") and the right half (4b', 4b") shell are welded and fixed with a first welding seam (6', 6"); the bottom skirt of the left half (4a', 4a") and the right half (4b', 4b") shell are bent inward to form an inner folding edge (8', 8") of the fuel tank surface with a width L = 1mm-50mm; the bottom of the inner folding edge (8', 8") of the fuel tank surface is higher than the bottom edge of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body (1', 1") in the front view direction; the fuel tank lower support (5', 5") is a metal plate that is punched upward and bent inward to form an inverted The inverted U-shaped part has a bottom with a fuel tank support folding edge (9', 9") that matches the inner folding edge (8', 8") of the fuel tank face, and an oil outlet is provided on the fuel tank support (5', 5"); the inner folding edge (8', 8") of the fuel tank face and the fuel tank support folding edge (9', 9") are welded and fixed by a second welding seam, and the welding line of the second welding seam is higher than the bottom edge of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body (1', 1") in the front view direction; the left half (4a') and the right half ( 4b') The bottom skirt of the shell is bent inwardly by directly bending the bottom skirt with a predetermined inward bending width L = 5mm-50mm at a bending radius R = 3mm-30mm, and the bending inner angle C = 20°-90°, so that the bottom of the end surface of the inner folded edge (8') of the bent fuel tank surface is 0.8mm-3mm higher than the bottom edge of the left and right sides of the fuel tank body (1') in the front view direction. The thickness of the plate used for the fuel tank surface (4') is 0.8mm-3mm.

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