Fuel injector with sealing member

Abstract

A fuel injector includes a body assembly having a proximal end and a distal end, the distal end including a nozzle; an electronically operated valve within the body assembly, the electronically operated valve comprising a plurality of wires; and a passage configured to cause a wire to pass proximally from the electronically operated valve through the fuel injector and out of the proximal end and outside the body assembly. The fuel injector further includes a seal located within the passage and distal to the proximal end of the passage, the seal surrounding the plurality of wires.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to systems for internal combustion engine components and, more particularly, to a fuel injector including a sealing member. Background Art

[0002] Fuel injectors are used in internal combustion engines to control the delivery of fuel to the combustion cylinder where the fuel is ignited. The timing and operation of the fuel injectors are regulated by a control module that sends electrical signals via physical wires with male / female electrical connectors. However, due to the close proximity of the electrical connectors to the engine pistons, they are subject to severe vibration and are susceptible to leaking fuel, forming pin arcs, or becoming disconnected from the fuel injector assembly.

[0003] U.S. Patent No. 6,939,178 (the "'178 Patent"), issued on September 6, 2005, describes an electrical connector that attaches a fuel injector assembly to a vehicle control assembly. The electrical connector of the '178 Patent includes: a plastic molded body having two integrally formed portions, a base portion and a stem portion; and electrical contacts extending through the body from the stem portion to the base portion. The base is inserted into the fuel injector assembly, where the electrical contacts engage corresponding contacts within the fuel injector assembly. Similarly, the electrical contacts in the stem portion of the connector are attached to corresponding contacts of the control assembly, which provides electrical signals to operate the fuel injector. Although the '178 Patent discloses a connector for a fuel injector assembly, the connector may be subject to unwanted disconnection or fuel leakage caused by vibrations of the engine.

[0004] The fuel injector electrical connection assembly of the present disclosure may solve one or more of the above problems and / or other problems in the prior art. However, the scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims and is not limited by the ability to solve any particular problem. Summary of the invention

[0005] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a fuel injector includes: a body assembly having a proximal end and a distal end, the distal end including a nozzle; an electronically operated valve located within the body assembly, the electronically operated valve including a plurality of wires; and a passage configured to pass wires proximally from the electronically operated valve through the fuel injector and out of the proximal end and outside the body assembly. The fuel injector also includes a seal located within the passage and distal to the proximal end of the passage, the seal surrounding the plurality of wires.

[0006] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a fuel injector includes: a body assembly including a proximal end and a distal end, the distal end including a nozzle; an electronically operated valve located within the body assembly, the electronically operated valve including a plurality of wires having a distal end connected within the body assembly and a proximal end extending outside the body assembly to an electrical connector; and a passage configured to pass the plurality of wires proximally from the electronically operated valve through the body assembly to the proximal end of the body assembly. The fuel injector also includes a seal located within the passage and including a plurality of lumens extending from the seal proximal end to the seal distal end, each of the plurality of lumens receiving a wire from the plurality of wires.

[0007] According to yet another aspect, a fuel injector includes: a body assembly including a proximal end and a distal end, the distal end including a nozzle; an electronically operated valve located within the body assembly, the electronically operated valve including a plurality of wires having a distal end connected within the body assembly and a proximal end extending outside the body assembly to an electrical connector; and a passage configured to pass the plurality of wires proximally from the electronically operated valve through the body assembly to the proximal end of the body assembly. The fuel injector also includes: a seal located within the passage and distal to the proximal end of the passage, the seal including a plurality of separate components; and a plurality of lumens extending from the proximal end of the seal to the distal end of the seal, each of the plurality of lumens receiving a wire from the plurality of wires. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate various exemplary embodiments and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosed embodiments.

[0009] Figure 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a dual-fuel fuel injector according to various aspects of the present disclosure;

[0010] Figure 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a sealing member included in a dual fuel injector according to various aspects of the present disclosure; and

[0011] Figure 3 is a simplified exploded view of a sealing member and surrounding plate of a dual fuel injector according to various aspects of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0012] Both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and illustrative only and do not limit the claimed features. As used herein, the terms "comprise," "comprising," "has," "having," "include," "including," or other variations thereof are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that includes a list of elements includes not only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. In this disclosure, unless otherwise indicated, relative terms, such as, for example, "about," "substantially," and "approximately," are used to indicate a possible variation of ±10% of the stated value.

[0013] Figure 1 An exemplary fuel injector system 10 for an internal combustion engine (ICE) is shown in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The fuel injector system 10 may include a fuel injector body assembly (or fuel injector) 12 electronically connected to a fuel injector controller 14. The fuel injector 12 may be an electronically controlled combination injector that is at least partially operated by the controller 14. Figure 1 As shown in , the fuel injector system 10 can be a dual-fuel type fuel injector system; however, the present disclosure can be used with any type of fuel injector system (e.g., a single-fuel gaseous fuel or a single-fuel diesel fuel injector system). The fuel injector body assembly 12 includes an injector housing 16, which forms an outer body of the fuel injector 12 having a proximal inlet end portion 18 and a distal outlet or nozzle end portion 20. As will be described in more detail below, the fuel injector 12 may include a plurality of stacked plates within the injector housing 16, the plurality of stacked plates providing fuel flow passages and positioning one or more electronic or solenoid type valves. The controller 14 is connected to one or more electronic valves via a wire connection extending through one or more of the stacked plates. The wire connection includes a plurality of wires 56 and a seal 40 to help seal the fuel from leaking from the fuel injector body assembly 12.

[0014] The fuel injector housing 16 may include various passages for the fuel, and not all of the passages are located within the fuel injector housing 16. Figure 1 2 and 3. The various passages for fuel include a high pressure passage, a low pressure passage, and a leakage / drain passage. Electronically operated valves control the opening and closing of the various passages and may include, for example, a spill valve 24 and a control valve 26. As described above, the fuel injector 12 is an example of a dual fuel injector and may include two separate nozzles that facilitate combustion of two different types of fuels, such as a gas outlet nozzle and a liquid fuel outlet nozzle.

[0015] The electronically or solenoid-operated valves (e.g., the relief valve 24 and the control valve 26) of the fuel injector 12 may include one or more solenoids, an armature, a valve member, a valve seat, a spring for biasing the valve, and wires for controlling the one or more solenoids. The one or more solenoids of the electronic valve may be arranged in a plate or valve body of the fuel injector housing 16. As used herein, the term "plate" may include "valve body", "valve plate", and "injector plate", and all of the terms may be interchangeable. The various plates and valve bodies may be stacked together. For example, as Figure 1 As shown in , the control valve 26 may include a control valve body 28 located at a distal end of a portion of the injector housing 16. A solenoid body 30 may be located proximal to the control valve body 28. A relief valve body 32 may be located proximal to the solenoid body 30. A relief plate 34 may be located proximal to the relief valve body 32. A compression nut 36 is located proximal to the relief plate 34. The compression nut 36 may include threads to facilitate fastening to the injector housing 16. Each plate and / or valve body meets at an interface. The interface between the plates may be a fuel leak point.

[0016] The relief valve 24 includes a relief valve body 32 defining a relief valve hole 46. The relief valve 24 can be a normally open valve including a valve member 48 that can move between an open position and a closed position. A spring member 50 can be used to bias the relief valve member 48 to an open position by pushing the relief valve member 48 out of contact with the relief valve seat 74. When the valve member 48 is in the open position, the main fuel passage can be connected to the low-pressure fuel discharge port. When in the closed position, the relief valve 24 can prevent the fuel from leaving the injector 12, thereby achieving pressurization of the fuel. The relief valve 24 can be actuated via a relief valve solenoid 42 that actuates a relief valve armature 52 fixed to the relief valve member 48.

[0017] The control valve 26 may include a control valve member 54 having a non-injection position and an injection position. The control valve member 54 may be configured to connect the low-pressure fuel passage to the control chamber when in the injection position and to block the connection between the low-pressure fuel passage and the control chamber when in the non-injection position. The control valve 26 may be actuated via a control valve solenoid 44 that actuates a control valve armature fixed to the control valve member 54.

[0018] At least some of the stacked injector plates within the injector housing 16 may include passages 38 extending through the plates in a proximal-distal direction. Wires 56 may be routed from the solenoid body 30 through the injector housing 16 via the passages 38 and exit the proximal end of the fuel injector 12 and outside the injector housing 16. The proximal end of the wire 56 may terminate at an electrical connector connected to the controller 14. The wire 56 extends through a seal 40 located within the passage 38. The seal 40 may insulate the wire 56 from the injector plate and may provide a conduit for the wire 56 along the path of the wire between the injector housing 16 and the solenoid body 30. The wire 56 may be connected to the solenoid via a pin and socket connection, or the wire 56 may be soldered to the terminals of the solenoids 42, 44. The wire 56 may be used to control one or more solenoids, including the solenoid 42 that actuates the relief valve 24 and the solenoid 44 that controls the control valve 26. The wire 56 may also be used to transmit information from one or more electronic valves 24, 26 to the controller 14. In some embodiments, two pairs of wires 56 (four wires total) are routed through passageway 38. However, any number of wires may be routed through passageway 38 or seal 40.

[0019] Figure 2 1 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the overflow plate 34, the overflow valve body 32 and the seal or sealing member 40 of the fuel injector 10. The seal 40 may include three separate components (e.g., an upper sealing member 58, a central sealing member 60 and a lower sealing member 62), which are not fastened together, but are forced together so that they abut each other. Although three sealing members are disclosed, it should be understood that the seal 40 may be formed by a single member, two members or more than three members. The upper sealing member 58 may be cylindrical and may be located at the proximal end of the seal 40. The central sealing member 60 includes a cone and is shaped like a truncated cone. The central sealing member 60 is centrally located between the upper sealing member 58 and the lower sealing member 62. The lower sealing member 62 may be cylindrical and located at the distal end of the seal 40. The cylindrical radius of the lower sealing member 62 may be greater than the cylindrical radius of the upper sealing member 58. The cylindrical radius of upper seal member 58 may be the same as the proximal radius of the frustoconical shape of central seal member 60, while the cylindrical radius of lower seal member 62 may be the same as the distal radius of the frustoconical shape of central seal member 60. Each of the three separate seal members includes at least two lumens or guidewire passages extending completely through from the distal end of each member to the proximal end of each member. Figure 3As best shown in FIG. 4 , four wire lumens are included in each seal member. When the individual seal members are forced together, a continuous lumen is formed from the proximal end of the seal 40 to the distal end of the seal 40. However, it should be understood that additional or fewer lumens may be included in the seal 40. The lumen of each of the three individual seal members is aligned to receive an individual wire 56 so that the wire can pass through all three individual seal members 58, 60, 62, extending from the distal end of the seal 40 to the proximal end of the seal 40.

[0020] The lower sealing member 62 is substantially located in the passage 38 of the relief valve body 32. The proximal end of the lower sealing member 62 can extend past or near the interface 33 between the relief valve body 32 and the relief plate 34. The lower sealing member 62 can abut a distal step 64 in the passage 38, which is located in the relief valve body 32.

[0021] The upper sealing member 58 and the central sealing member 60 are also substantially located within the passageway 38, but within the overflow plate 34. The upper sealing member 58 abuts a proximal step 66 in the passageway 38 that is located in the overflow plate 34. In some embodiments, the upper sealing member 58 and the central sealing member 60 may be combined into a single separate member.

[0022] The passage 38 may include a taper within the overflow plate 34 near the interface of the overflow plate 34 and the overflow valve body 32. The taper in the passage 38 may have an angle similar to the taper of the center seal member 60. In some embodiments, the taper in the passage 38 has an angle less than the taper of the center seal member 60 to ensure leak-proof contact.

[0023] The individual components of seal 40 may be formed of different materials. For example, center seal member 60 may be formed of an elastomeric material while upper seal member 58 and lower seal member 62 may be formed of a hard, non-elastic material. In some embodiments, upper seal member 58 and lower seal member 62 may be formed of ceramic or polyetheretherketone (PEEK). However, it is contemplated that individual seal members 58, 60, and 62 may be formed of the same material.

[0024] Figure 3 is a simplified exploded view of a seal 40 and surrounding panels and components according to various aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 3 , the relief valve body 32 is simplified so that elements of the relief valve body 32, such as the relief valve hole 46, the relief valve member 48, or the relief valve armature 52, are not shown. Figure 334 is similarly simplified so that the fuel passages and recesses in the overflow plate 34 are not shown. The three individual sealing members of the seal 40 include an upper sealing member 58, a center sealing member 60, and a lower sealing member 62. The upper sealing member 58 and the center sealing member 60 can fit into the passage 38 in the overflow plate 34 and abut a step 66 in the passage 38 extending through the overflow plate 34. The lower sealing member 62 fits into the passage 38 extending through the overflow valve body 32 and abuts a step 64 in the passage 38. The wire 56 is routed through the passage 38 and through a separate lumen that extends through each individual member of the seal 40. As described above, Figure 3 Two pairs of wires are shown, while more or fewer wires may be used in different embodiments.

[0025] Industrial Applicability

[0026] The fuel injector system disclosed herein may be applied to any internal combustion engine (ICE) that uses an electronically controlled fuel injector. The fuel injector 12 may be used to help generate power in a stationary machine (e.g., a generator or other power generation device), in a mobile machine (e.g., an earth moving device, a haul truck, a drilling machine, etc.), or in other applications where it may be beneficial to operate an engine (including an engine that uses a variety of different fuels). The fuel injection system 10 may generate electricity, power, and / or may provide power for operating one or more associated systems (e.g., a hydraulic system).

[0027] The fuel injector 12 may receive fuel from the main fuel connection 68 prior to a fuel injection event. The fuel may flow through various passages and chambers within the fuel injector housing 16. Electronically controlled valves such as the relief valve 24 and the control valve 26 are operated or controlled via signals sent through the wire 56. The relief valve 24 and the control valve 26 are used to facilitate pressure buildup and flow of liquefied diesel fuel while gaseous fuel bypasses the relief valve 24 and the control valve 26. The relief valve 24 and the control valve 26 are used to facilitate pressure buildup and flow of liquefied diesel fuel while gaseous fuel bypasses the relief valve 24 and the control valve 26. The solenoids 42, 44 housed adjacent to the valves receive electrical signals and power that cause the solenoids 42, 44 to actuate, open or close the associated valves. Closing the valve may build up pressure in the chamber containing the fuel, and opening the valve releases the fuel under pressure. The fuel is ultimately injected through an orifice of the injector, such as one or more nozzles in the nozzle end portion 20. A fuel injector, such as fuel injector 12, may include multiple solenoids to actuate multiple associated valves and may include additional wiring to transmit signals and power to the multiple solenoids. Fuel injector 12 may include one or more sensors that collect data and transmit the data to controller 14. Additional wiring may be included to collect data using multiple sensors.

[0028] Assembly of the fuel injector 12 may include stacking the plates and valve bodies in order within the injector housing 16, starting with the control valve body 28, followed by the solenoid body 30, which includes the solenoids 42 and 44. Wires may extend from the solenoid body 30 toward the proximal end 18 of the fuel injector 12. The remaining stacked elements (e.g., the overflow valve body 32, the seal 40, the overflow plate 34, and the compression nut 36) include and define a passage 38 through which the wires are passed during assembly. After the solenoid body 30 is placed, the overflow valve body 32 is stacked proximal to the solenoid body 30. The lower sealing member 62 of the seal 40 is pushed into the wire passage 38 of the overflow valve body 32 and is fixed in the wire passage against the step 64. The upper sealing member 58 and the center sealing member 60 may be pushed into the overflow plate 34 and fixed in the overflow plate. The overflow plate 34, including the upper sealing member 58 and the center sealing member 60, is stacked proximate to the overflow valve body 32 and the lower sealing member 62 of the seal 40. The upper sealing member 58 and the center sealing member 60 are placed proximate to the lower sealing member 62, and the overflow valve body 32 and the passage 38 in the overflow plate 34 are aligned. The compression nut 36 is screwed into place, which forces all of the components in the injector housing 16 together. Forcing the overflow plate 34 and the overflow valve body 32 together with the seal 40 located between the overflow plate 34 and the overflow valve body 32 and within the passage 38 causes the seal 40 (e.g., the center sealing member 60) to distort under force (e.g., via compression) and effectively seal the passage 38 so that fuel does not leak at the interface between the overflow plate 34 and the overflow valve body 32 or at any point within the passage 38. In addition, the compression of the seal 40 can form an interference fit of the wire 56 within the inner cavity of the seal 40, thereby securing the wire 56 to the seal 40.

[0029] The disclosed fuel injector design with seal 40 can prevent the undesired and / or accidental leakage of fuel between overflow plate 34 and overflow valve body 32. Seal 40 seals the interface between overflow plate 34 and overflow valve body 32, as well as passage 38 for accommodating wire 56. Seal 40 can also be used to anchor wire 56 to avoid undesired movement and pulling of wire 56 (e.g., due to vibration caused by the engine). Such movement and pulling of wire 56 may lead to poor connection and leakage actuation of solenoid, which may lead to injection failure. Seal 40 can also provide isolation of wire 56 from external vibration caused by the engine, such as by absorbing some of the vibration. Absorbing such vibration also increases the sealing ability of seal 40. Using seal 40 in fuel injector 12 can also avoid the need for male / female wire connector. Such use of male / female wire connector may lead to leakage due to poor vibration absorption and lack of appropriate seal.

[0030] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and changes may be made to the disclosed system without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Other embodiments of the system will be apparent to those skilled in the art through careful consideration of the description and practice of the system disclosed herein. The specification and examples are intended to be considered as exemplary only, with the true scope of the present disclosure being indicated by the following claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A fuel injector, comprising: a body assembly having a proximal end and a distal end, the distal end including a nozzle; an electronically operated valve located within the body assembly, the electronically operated valve including a plurality of electrical wires; a passage configured to route electrical wires from the electronically operated valve proximally through the fuel injector and out of the proximal end and external to the body assembly; as well as A seal is located within the passageway and distal to the proximal end of the passageway, the seal surrounding the plurality of wires. 2 . The fuel injector of claim 1 , wherein the body assembly includes a first injector plate and a second plate in a stacked relationship, and wherein the passage extends through the first plate and the second plate in a proximal-distal direction. 3 . The fuel injector of claim 2 , wherein the seal is located within both the first plate and the second plate. 4 . The fuel injector of claim 2 , wherein the first plate includes a first step in the passage, wherein the second plate includes a second step in the passage, and wherein the seal abuts at least one of the first step or the second step. 5 . The fuel injector of claim 4 , wherein the seal abuts both the first step and the second step.

6. The fuel injector of claim 1, wherein the seal includes a plurality of lumens extending completely through the seal from a seal proximal end to a seal distal end.

7. The fuel injector of claim 1, wherein the seal comprises a plurality of separate components.

8. The fuel injector of claim 7, wherein the seal comprises three separate components.

9. The fuel injector of claim 1, wherein the seal includes a cone.

10. The fuel injector of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the seal is formed from an elastomeric material.

Images