Fuel Nozzle Lever Mechanism With Delayed Valve Opening
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing filling nozzles for pressure fuelling, such as those used for LPG, CNG, LNG, and H2, face challenges in ensuring safe and efficient activation of the main valve and coupling installation, often requiring high force and simultaneous activation, which can lead to safety concerns and user fatigue due to complex lever mechanisms prone to wear.
Innovation Solution
A filling nozzle design featuring a temporally offset activation of the coupling installation and main valve through a coupling joint connected to the hand lever, allowing separate activation ranges for the coupling and valve, ensuring the valve is opened only after a secure connection is established, reducing the required force and enhancing user-friendliness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a lever mechanism with multiple lever elements is used to activate the coupling installation and main valve simultaneously, then both components can be activated in one motion, but the activation requires relatively high force and the mechanism is complex with many small parts prone to wear
Solution Approach 1:
The activation process is segmented into two distinct phases: first activating the coupling installation, then activating the main valve. This is achieved through a single lever element that sequentially engages different components during its movement from initial position to final position, eliminating the need for multiple lever elements while maintaining the benefit of simultaneous activation capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling installation is activated in advance before the main valve. The lever mechanism is designed so that during its movement, the coupling installation is engaged first, establishing a secure connection before the main valve is opened. This preliminary action ensures safety by preventing valve activation before proper coupling.
2Productivity
If the main valve and coupling installation are activated simultaneously, then the fuelling process can start quickly, but the main valve may open before the connection is reliably established, creating safety risks
Solution Approach 1:
The coupling installation is activated in advance before the main valve through the sequential engagement design of the lever mechanism. During lever movement, the coupling components are engaged first, and only after the coupling is established does the mechanism proceed to activate the main valve, ensuring safe operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The lever mechanism incorporates feedback through its mechanical design where the activation of the main valve is dependent on the prior establishment of the coupling connection. The mechanism physically ensures that the valve cannot open until the coupling is properly engaged, providing inherent safety feedback without requiring additional sensors or control systems.
3Ease of operation
If a lever mechanism with many small parts is used, then the activation function can be achieved, but the mechanism is prone to wear and requires more maintenance
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple functions are merged into a single lever element. Instead of using separate lever elements for activating the coupling installation and main valve, the invention uses one lever element that performs both activation functions sequentially during its movement, reducing the number of parts and minimizing wear points.
Solution Approach 2:
The single lever element serves multiple functions: it activates the coupling installation, maintains the activated state, and subsequently activates the main valve. This multi-functional design eliminates the need for multiple specialized lever elements, simplifying the mechanism and reducing maintenance requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a nozzle, which has a main valve arranged in a channel, a coupling device (30) for producing a connection between the nozzle and the connecting piece (15), and an actuating apparatus (17) for actuating the coupling device and the main valve. The actuating apparatus comprises a manual lever (11), which is movable between a closed position and an open position. The actuating apparatus is designed to convert a movement of the manual lever in a region between the closed position and the open position to a temporally offset actuation of the coupling device and of the main valve. A coupling joint (20) connected to the manual lever is connected via operative connections to the coupling device having the main valve. The operative connections for the coupling joint form a guide such that the coupling joint is caused to rotate about a first pivot axis (41) and/or to move in a first direction when the manual lever is activated in a first manual lever region, and that the coupling joint having the manual lever in a second manual lever region is caused to rotate about a second pivot axis (42) and/or to move in a second direction.