Title of Invention

FUEL PUMP

Abstract Disclosed is a fuel pump which is embodied as a side channel pump and is used for conveying fuel into a fuel reservoir of a motor vehicle, and in which a partially annular duct (13) that extends to a discharge duct (8) is configured in a continually expanding manner. A partially annular duct (12) that is connected to an intake duct (7) tapers in the direction of flow. Blade chambers (10) that are disposed within an impeller (6) form a conveying chamber (14) along with the partially annular duds (12,13) Said conveying chamber (14) along with the partially annular ducts (12,13). Said conveying chamber (14) extends from the intake duct (7) to the discharge duct (8) and is provided with a constant cross section such that the impeller (6) is continuously penetrated by a flow.
Full Text The invention rotates to a fuel pump for delivering fuel into a fuel tank of a motor
vehicle, having a drive impeller rotating in a housing, with rings of guide blade
defining blade chambers arranged on both end faces of the impeller, opposing
blade chambers being connected to one another, with partially annular ducts, which
are arranged in the area of the guide blades in an inlet-side housing part and in an
outlet-side housing part and which together with the blade chambers from a
delivery chamber for delivering a liquid from an inlet duct to an outlet duct, one of
the partially annular ducts being annular ducts to connected to the inlet duct and
the other. The opposing partially annular duct, being connected to the outlet duct.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Such fuel pumps are known as peripheral or side-channel pumps and are often
used in the fuel tanks of present-day motor vehicles. The partially annular ducts
extend over an angular range of approximately 300 to 330°.
A disadvantage of the known fuel pumps is that vortices occur in the area of the
blade chambers as the delivered liquid flows over. These vortices lead to a low
efficiency of the fuel pump and lead, particularly when delivering hot fuel, to
gassing of the fuel. The gassing leads to a further reduction in the efficiency of the
fuel pump.
A prior DE Patent No. 4427874 discloses an invention " IC engine fuel pump
to reserve tank"
the abstract of which recites the opposing ends of the first and second feed
channels (31,33) standing axial to the feed pump chamber (13) are offset to
one another in the pump wheel sense (9) and the entry end (25) of the first
channel (31) as held in the intake cap (17) is offset from the end of channel
(33) housed in the intermediate cover (21) by a defined amount against the
pump wheel rotation. The outlet (27) end of the second feed channel (33) is
otherwise offset from the axially opposing channel (31) end, again by a
defined amount . The offset of the respective channel ends is obtained by
twisting the cap (17) towards the cover (21) round the rotation axis of the
pump shortening the length of the channels at their ends furthest from the
intake and outlet respectively.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
The object of the invention is to design a fuel pump of the type described in the
introductory part so that it has a maximum possible efficiency.
According to the invention this object is achieved in that the partially annular duct
in the inlet-side housing part continuously narrows away from the inlet duct and /
or the partially annular duct in the outlet-side housing part continuously widens
toward the outlet duct, and that the continuous narrowing or widening extends over
at least 80% of the length of the corresponding partially annular duct.
This design allows the liquid being delivered to be continuously transferred from the
partially annular duct in the inlet-side housing part to the partially annular duct in
the outlet-side housing part. This also makes it possible to generate a uniform rise
in pressure increasing toward the outlet duct in the two partially annular housing
parts. This means that there is a uniform flow through the opposing Made
chambers as they move from the inlet duct to the outlet duct. This serves to
prevent the rate of flow as the liquid flows over from one blade chamber into the
opposing Made chambers increasing the closer these Made chambers get to the
outlet duct, as is the case in the known fuel pump. The fuel pump according to the
invention therefore has an especially high efficiency.
Abrupt flow variations in the delivery chamber lead to gassing of the fuel,
particularly when the fuel being delivered is at high temperature. According to
another advantageous further embodiment of the invention such abrupt flow
changes are readily prevented if the narrowing or widening is continuous over the
proposed area of the length of the partially annular duct.
According to another advantageous farther embodiment of the invention the
narrowing or widening of the partially annular ducts is particularly easy to configure
if at least one of the partially annular duct is of wedge shaped design in a section
along the delivery chamber.
In order to further reduce pressure fluctuations in the delivery chamber it is of help,
according to another advantageous further embodiment of the invention, if the
delivery chamber has substantially the same cross-section at any point, the cross-
section of the partially annular duct in the inlet-side housing part being larger in
proximity to the inlet duct than the cross-section of the partially annular duct in the
outlet-side housing part.
The invention permits numerous embodiments. In order to further illustrate its
basic principle, one such embodiment is represented in the drawing and is
described below.
Fig. 1 shows a fuel delivery unit for a motor vehicle having a fuel pump according
to the invention,
Fig. 2 shows a tangential, sectional representation through the fuel pump In the
area of a delivery chamber.
Fig. 1 shows a fuel delivery unit intended to be arranged in a fuel tank of a motor
vehicle and having a housing 1 and a fuel pump 3 in the form of a side-channel
pump driven by an electric motor 2. The fuel pump 3 has an impeller 6 arranged
between an inlet-side housing part 4 and an outlet-side housing part 5. An inlet
duct 7 is ananged in the inlet-side housing part 4 and an outlet duct 8 in the outlet-
side housing part 5. The impeller 6 is fixed on a shaft 9 of the electric motor 2. The
fuel pump 3 has opposing rings of guide blades 11 defining blade chambers 10 on
both end faces of the Impeller 6. The housing parts 4, 5 each have a partially
annular duct 12, 13 in the area of the blade chambers 10. The partially annular
ducts 12,31 together with the blade chambers 10 form a delivery chamber 14
leading from the inlet duct 7 through the impeller 6 to the outlet duct 8. For the
purpose of simplification, the inlet duct 7 and the outlet duct 8 are shown turned
into the plane of projection. As a rule, the delivery chamber 14 extends over an
angular range of approximately 300 to 330°. As the impeller 6 rotates the guide
blades 11 produce a circulatory flow, running transversely to the direction of
movement of the guide blades 11, in the delivery chamber 14. In so doing the
delivered fuel flows over from the inlet-side housing part 4 to the outlet-side
housing part 5 through the interconnected blade chambers 10.
Fig 2, in a tangential section through the fuel pump in Fig. 1 in the area of the
delivery chamber 14, shows that the partially annular duct 12 arranged in the inlet-
side housing part 4 narrows away from the inlet duct 7, viewed in the direction of
flow. The partially annular duct 13 arranged in the outlet-side housing part 5
furthermore widens toward the outlet duct 8 viewed in the direction of flow. In
order to show this more dearly the fuel flows and the direction of movement of the
impeller 6 are identified by arrows in the drawing. The widening and narrowing
extend virtually over the entire length of the partially annular ducts 12, 13 and each
virtually have a wedge shape. The partially annular ducts 12, 13 widen and narrow
to the same degree, so that over the whole area of the partially annular duds 12,
13 the delivery chamber 14 has substantially the same cross-section.
WE CLAIM
A fuel pump for delivering fuel into a fuel tank of a motor vehicle, having a
driven impeller rotating in a housing, with rings of guide blades defining blade
chambers arranged on both end faces of the impeller, opposing blade
chambers being connected to one another, with partially annular ducts, which
are arranged in the area of the guide blades in an inlet-side housing part and
in an outlet-side housing part and which together with the blade chambers
form a delivery chamber for delivering a liquid from an inlet duct to an outlet
duct, one of the partially annular ducts being connected to the inlet duct and
the other, the opposing partially annular duct, being connected to the outlet
duct,characterized in that the partially annular duct (12) in the inlet side
housing part (4) continually narrows away from the inlet duct (7) and/or the
partially annular duct (13) in the outlet side housing part (5) continually
widens up to the outlet duct (8) viewed in the direction of flow and that the
narrowing or widening extends over at least 80% of the length of the
corresponding partially annular duct (12,13).
2. The fuel pump as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the narrowing or
widening is continuous over the proposed area of the length of the partially
annular duct (12,13).
3. The fuel pump as claimed in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that at least one
of the partially annular ducts (12,13) is of wedge-shaped design in a section
along the delivery chamber.
4. Te fuel pump as claimed in at least one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that the delivery chamber (14) has substantially the same
cross-section at any point, the cross-section of the partially annular duct (12)
in the inlet side housing part (4) being larger in proximity to the inlet duct
(7) than the cross section of the partially annular duct (13) in the outlet-side
housing part (5).
Disclosed is a fuel pump which is embodied as a side channel pump and is used for
conveying fuel into a fuel reservoir of a motor vehicle, and in which a partially
annular duct (13) that extends to a discharge duct (8) is configured in a continually
expanding manner. A partially annular duct (12) that is connected to an intake
duct (7) tapers in the direction of flow. Blade chambers (10) that are disposed
within an impeller (6) form a conveying chamber (14) along with the partially
annular duds (12,13) Said conveying chamber (14) along with the partially annular
ducts (12,13). Said conveying chamber (14) extends from the intake duct (7) to
the discharge duct (8) and is provided with a constant cross section such that the
impeller (6) is continuously penetrated by a flow.

Documents:


Patent Number 223814
Indian Patent Application Number 02557/KOLNP/2005
PG Journal Number 39/2008
Publication Date 26-Sep-2008
Grant Date 23-Sep-2008
Date of Filing 09-Dec-2005
Name of Patentee SIEMENS AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT
Applicant Address WITTELSBACHARPLATZ 2, 80333 MUNCHEN
Inventors:
# Inventor's Name Inventor's Address
1 PETER MARX SCHLESIERRING 8, 38553 WASBUTTEL
2 JOERG DEUBNER NUMBERGER STRASSE 24, 36179 BEBRA
PCT International Classification Number F04D 5/00, 23/00
PCT International Application Number PCT/EP2004/052162
PCT International Filing date 2004-09-14
PCT Conventions:
# PCT Application Number Date of Convention Priority Country
1 10 348008.0 2003-10-15 Germany