Motor Vehicle Water Tank Filler Neck With Independent Overflow Venting
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing filler necks for motor vehicle water tanks often allow air flow when the inlet is closed, necessitating additional venting elements, and do not efficiently manage excess water during filling.
Innovation Solution
A filler neck design with a nozzle element featuring a filling opening, drain opening, vent opening, and an independent overflow opening, allowing for a fully closed cover and targeted discharge of excess water via an overflow pipe connected to the vehicle's bodyshell.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the inlet opening is closed with a cover, then sealing is improved, but air venting capability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The filler neck is divided into functionally independent openings: the filling opening for water intake and the overflow opening for air and excess water discharge. This segmentation allows the cover to seal the filling opening completely while the overflow opening remains open to prevent pressure buildup, resolving the contradiction between sealing and venting capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The overflow opening acts as an intermediary element that mediates between the sealed filling opening and the atmospheric pressure. It provides a controlled path for air and excess water to escape, preventing harmful pressure buildup while allowing the main filling opening to remain sealed when not in use.
2Reliability
If the cover is made fully closed, then sealing is improved, but excess water discharge capability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The filler neck structure separates the water filling function (through the filling opening) from the excess water discharge function (through the overflow opening). This segmentation enables the cover to be fully closed for sealing while the overflow opening independently handles excess water discharge, eliminating the need for openings in the cover.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of providing excess water discharge through the filling opening (which would require the cover to have openings), the invention inverts the approach by providing a separate overflow opening that discharges excess water in the opposite direction, allowing the filling opening to be completely sealed by the cover.
3Productivity
If the filling opening is enlarged, then filling speed is improved, but cover sealing difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The presence of a separate overflow opening allows the filling opening to be enlarged for faster filling without compromising sealing. The overflow opening handles the complexity of excess water management independently, allowing the cover to seal the larger filling opening effectively without additional sealing mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
A filler neck of a water tank of a motor vehicle includes a nozzle element having a filling opening, a drain opening, a drain cylinder arranged at the drain opening, and a vent opening is provided for venting the water tank. The drain cylinder is in operative connection with the water tank. The filling opening is surrounded by a funnel edge of the nozzle element, which is configured to receive a cover. The nozzle element includes an overflow opening configured independently of the filling opening and the vent opening.