Jet Sensor Fuel Shutoff Preventing Residual Signal
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current refueling systems for large vehicles face issues with fuel spills and over-pressurization due to the need for pressurized fuel tanks, which can lead to catastrophic failures and are not suitable for lighter vehicles. Non-pressurized systems lack closed-loop control, making them prone to overflow and overfilling, and existing sensors with moving parts are susceptible to wear and failure.
Innovation Solution
A non-pressurized fluid level shutoff system with a dual valve receiver and a jet sensor with no moving parts, connected to a relief valve vent, which uses a closed-loop design and a flow control valve that opens opposite to the fuel flow direction to prevent manual override, ensuring safe and accurate refueling by maintaining pressure for shutoff without relying on nozzle pressure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a pressurized refueling system is used to quickly fill large fuel tanks, then refueling speed is improved, but the fuel tank must be structurally designed to withstand internal pressures up to 10 psi, making it unsuitable for lighter vehicles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a hydraulic signal system where a jet sensor detects fuel level by sensing fluid flow dynamics. The system employs hydraulic pressure signals transmitted through a signal hose to trigger automatic shutoff, enabling fast fill refueling without requiring the tank itself to withstand high pressures. The dual valve receiver maintains a small pressurized chamber for signaling while the main tank remains non-pressurized.
2Extent of automation
If a conventional jet sensor is used to sense fuel level, then automatic shutoff is achieved, but the sensor transmits significant residual hydraulic signal even when fully submerged, preventing complete valve closure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the signal transmission system into multiple components: a jet sensor for detection, a signal hose for transmission, and a dual valve receiver for action. The receiver includes a main fuel flow path with a flow control valve and a separate signal path, allowing the sensor to trigger shutoff without its residual signal preventing complete valve closure. The signal path is hydraulically coupled but functionally separate from the main fuel flow.
3Device complexity
If a single signal hose and float valve are used in non-pressurized refueling, then system simplicity is maintained, but if the signal hose is damaged or float valve fails to seat, fuel flow will not shut off and tank overflow can occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates a dual valve receiver with a flow control valve that opens opposite to fuel flow direction, preventing manual override. The system is designed with redundant pathways: the jet sensor triggers the flow control valve, and the automatic shutoff nozzle provides an additional shutoff mechanism. This ensures that if one component fails, the other can still prevent overflow, creating a fail-safe system.
4Productivity
If operators force automatic shutoff nozzles open to completely fill pressurized tanks, then tank filling is completed, but frequent fuel spills occur through overflow valve or vent
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables automatic shutoff through the jet sensor detecting when the tank is full and triggering the flow control valve to close. The automatic shutoff nozzle also self-activates when tank back pressure builds up. This eliminates the need for operators to force nozzles open, and the controlled shutoff prevents fuel spills through overflow valves or vents.
5Ease of operation
If a flow control valve opens in the direction of fuel flow is used, then valve operation is simple, but manual override can occur preventing safe shutoff
Solution Approach 1:
The flow control valve in the dual valve receiver is designed to open opposite to the direction of fuel flow within the receiver. This inverted operation prevents manual override because the valve opens against the fuel pressure rather than with it, ensuring that fuel flow cannot force the valve open when it should be closed, thereby guaranteeing safe automatic shutoff.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system effectively prevents fuel spills and over-pressurization by ensuring accurate shut-off and maintaining tank safety, even if the signal hose is damaged or the float valve fails, and reduces wear and maintenance needs due to the absence of moving parts in the sensor.
Implementation Method 1
a jet sensor used to sense a fuel level and automatically shut off flow of fuel through a fuel receiver commonly transmits a significant residual hydraulic signal
Implementation Method 2
a relief valve vent in fluid communication with the fuel tank to vent the fuel tank and to relieve pressure that may otherwise build up inside the fuel tank during refueling
Data Source
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AI summary
A non-pressurized fluid level shutoff system for a fuel tank includes a fuel receiver having a flow control valve that opens in a direction opposite a direction of fuel flow, and that cannot be manually overridden. A fuel sensor funnels fuel through a fuel jet outlet orifice to form a stream of fuel across a cutout section, and a supplemental peripheral port connected between an outlet orifice mixing chamber and the interior of the tank is oriented perpendicular to the stream of fuel across the cutout section, to interfere with the stream of fuel when the sensor is submerged in fuel in the tank, to further reduce any residual fluid flow signal when the sensor is fully submerged, allowing the flow control valve in the receiver to close completely.