Title of Invention

FUEL TANK CAP RECEPTABLE IN A MOTORCYCLE

Abstract

The present subject matter relates to a fuel tank cap receptacle for a motorcycle. According to one embodiment of the present subject matter, the motorcycle includes a frame extending longitudinally of the motorcycle. A fuel tank and storage box are i disposed adjacent to each other, on the rear end section of the frame of the motorcycle. A rider seat is pivotally hinged to the frame so as to selectively provide access to the fuel tank. A fuel tank cap detachably secures the fuel tank intake port of the fuel tank, in normal operation. During refuelling operation, the fuel tank cap is detached from the fuel tank port and is placed inside a fuel tank cap receptacle, which is disposed substantially in a horizontal plane along the intake port, in the motorcycle.

Full Text

TECHNICAL FIELD The subject matter described herein, in general, relates to a fuel tank cap receptacle and, in particular, to a fuel tank cap receptacle for a motorcycle with a rider seat disposed above the fuel tank. BACKGROUND Most vehicles and many machines, like generators, are equipped with a fuel tank for holding liquid fuels such as gasoline, kerosene, etc. Such liquid fuels are inherently volatile and highly flammable. The flammable nature of the liquid fuels poses a fire hazard, especially during refueling operations when the fuel cap is removed off the fuel tank intake port of the fuel tank. If the fuel tank cap is not replaced on the fuel tank intake port after refueling, fuel can spill out of the fuel tank intake port and fumes can emanate from the fuel tank opening. This not only leads to wastage of fuel through the fumes that escape to the atmosphere, but can also lead to ignition of fumes escaping from the fuel tank and can cause the fuel in the fuel tank to ignite. Thus, if the fuel tank intake port is accidentally left unsecured, it may lead to many undesirable consequences. Moreover, fuel spilt from the fuel tank intake port may ingress into adjoining areas, like the storage box, and ruin the objects placed therein. Conventional vehicles, and more particularly two-wheeler vehicles in which the fuel tank is disposed beneath the rider seat, have no provision for safe keeping of the fuel tank cap while refuelling. The fuel tank cap has to be kept in hand or placed on some area outside the vehicle. This causes inconvenience to the rider of the vehicle apart from increasing the likelihood of damage to the fuel tank cap or the cap being lost accidentally. Therefore, a challenge exists to minimize the chances of accidentally misplacing a fuel tank cap during refuelling operation and of accidentally leaving a fuel tank intake portion unsecured after the refuelling operation. This will proactively minimize chances of fuel leakage and accidental fire due to fuel spillage. SUMMARY The subject matter described herein is directed to a fuel tank cap receptacle for a motorcycle. The present subject matter proposes a strategic solution which eliminates the chance of accidental removal of fuel tank cap after refuelling operation thereby proactively eliminating chance of accidental escape of fuel fumes and accidental fire due to fuel spillage. The present subject matter also proposes a space within vehicle for keeping fuel tank cap, while refuelling. In accordance with at least one embodiment of the present subject matter, a motorcycle includes a frame disposed longitudinally to the motorcycle and supporting the front and rear wheels on the front and the rear ends, respectively, thereof. A fuel tank is disposed substantially above the rear wheel on the rear end of the frame of the motorcycle. The fuel tank has a fuel intake port, which is detachably secured by a fuel tank cap. A rider seat is pivotally hinged to the frame and is disposed above the fuel tank so as to selectively provide access to the intake port. A locking mechanism is provided for securing the rider seat to the frame of the motorcycle. A fuel tank cap receptacle is disposed beneath the rider seat substantially in a horizontal plane along the intake port of the fuel tank. The fuel tank cap receptacle is shaped complementarily to the fuel tank cap and is adapted to receive the fuel tank cap. According to another aspect of the present subject matter, the locking means includes a lock pin and a locking pin chamber. The lock pin is disposed on the rider seat while the locking pin chamber is disposed on the rear end portion of the frame. The locking pin chamber also has a seat lock, which is capable of securing the locking pin to the frame of the motorcycle. According to another aspect of the present subject matter, a pillion handle mounting bracket is disposed on the rear end portion of the frame. The pillion handle mounting bracket defines a passage that extends to the locking pin chamber, and wherein the passage and the locking pin chamber also defines the fuel tank cap receptacle. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present subject matter will be better understood with reference to the following description and appended claims. This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form. This summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The above and other features, aspects and advantages of the subject matter will be better understood with reference to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings where: Fig. 1 is a schematic side view of a motorcycle in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter. Fig. 2 is a schematic plan view of the rear section of the motorcycle, wherein a fuel tank intake port of a fuel tank is shown secured by a fuel tank cap during normal operation of the motorcycle. Fig. 3 is a schematic plan view of the rear section of the motorcycle, wherein the fuel tank cap is shown placed inside a locking pin chamber while refuelling. DETAILED DESCRIPTION In order to address the aforesaid challenges, according to at least one embodiment of the present subject matter, a two wheeler, more specifically a motorcycle is provided with a fuel tank cap receptacle wherein a fuel tank cap can be placed during refuelling. The motorcycle includes a frame disposed longitudinally to the motorcycle. The frame supports a front wheel and a rear wheel on front end and rear end of the motorcycle. A fuel tank is disposed above the rear wheel on the rear end of the frame of the motorcycle. The fuel tank includes an intake port. The intake port is detachably secured by a fuel tank cap. A rider seat is pivotally hinged to the frame of the motorcycle. The rider seat is disposed above the fuel tank. A locking mechanism is provided for securing the rider seat to the frame of the motorcycle. The locking mechanism comprises a lock pin disposed on the rider seat and a locking pin chamber disposed on the rear end portion of the frame of the motorcycle. The locking pin chamber has a seat lock capable of securing the locking pin to the frame of the motorcycle. The rider seat selectively provides access to the fuel tank while refuelling by releasing the lock and turning the seat in upward direction. A pillion handle mounting bracket is disposed on the rear end portion of the frame. The pillion handle mounting bracket defines a passage that extends to the locking pin chamber. The passage and the locking pin chamber define a fuel tank cap receptacle. The fuel tank cap receptacle is disposed beneath the rider seat in a horizontal plane along the intake port of the fuel tank of the motorcycle. The fuel tank cap receptacle is shaped complementarily to the fuel tank cap and is adapted to receive the fuel tank cap. The fuel tank cap receptacle is provided to prevent the chances of accidentally misplacing the fuel tank cap during refuelling operation and of accidentally leaving the fuel tank intake portion unsecured after the refuelling operation and wherein the fuel tank cap can be placed safely while refuelling. As the fuel tank cap receptacle is also a part of the passage that forms the part of the locking mechanism, accidental locking of the rider seat to the frame of the motorcycle when the fuel tank cap is removed from the fuel tank port is also eliminated. Fig. 1 is a schematic side view of a motorcycle 100 in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter. The embodiments disclosed herein are described in the context of a step through motorcycle. However, the embodiments and the subject matter herein can also be applied to other vehicles, such as scooter-type two or three-wheeled vehicles, all terrain vehicles, step over two wheelers and other vehicles with more than two wheels. As used herein, the terms "front", "rear", "left", "right", "up", and "down" correspond to the direction assumed by a driver of the vehicle. The motorcycle 100 is configured for accommodating two persons, a rider and a pillion rider. The motorcycle 100 includes a frame 105 supporting a handlebar 110 towards a front end thereof, and configured for a rotation about the steering axis. The frame 105 also supports a front wheel 115 and a rear wheel 120 on the front and rear ends, respectively, thereof. Towards the rear end of the motorcycle 100, a rider seat 125 is provided. The rider seat 125 is mounted above a storage box 135 and a fuel tank 130, which are disposed side by side. The rider seat 125 is adapted to selectively open and close, thereby providing access to the storage box 135 and the fuel tank 130. Fig. 2 is a schematic plan view of the rear section of the motorcycle 100 wherein a fuel intake port 140 of the fuel tank 130 is shown secured by a fuel tank cap 145 during normal operation of the motorcycle 100. Fig. 3 is a schematic plan view of the rear section of the motorcycle 100 wherein the fuel tank cap 145 is shown placed inside a locking pin chamber 150 during the refuelling operation. As shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, during normal operation of the motorcycle 100, the fuel tank cap 145 is rigidly attached to the fuel intake port 140 and the rider seat 125 is detachably secured to the frame 105 by a locking mechanism. The locking mechanism includes a locking pin and a locking pin chamber 150. The locking pin chamber 150 is having a seat lock 155 disposed therein. The locking pin is disposed on the rear end of the rider seat 125 while the locking pin chamber 150 is disposed at the rear end of the frame 105. A profile cut on pillion handle mounting bracket 160 defines a passage to the locking pin chamber 150. The pillion handle mounting bracket 160 is disposed on the rear end portion of the frame 105 and a pillion handle 165 is also disposed thereon. During normal operation, the lock pin is secured within the locking pin chamber 150 by the seat lock 155, thereby firmly locking the rider seat 125 along the frame 105 in the horizontal plane. As shown in Fig.l and Fig.3, during the refuelling operation of the motorcycle 100, the rider seat 125 is unlocked from the frame 105, thereby releasing the locking pin and allowing the rider seat 125 to turn upwards through a hinge 170, giving access to the fuel tank 130. The fuel tank cap 145 is detached from the fuel intake port 140 and is placed in the locking pin chamber 150, which also serves the purpose of the fuel tank cap receptacle during the refuelling operation. Thus, during refuelling, the locking pin chamber 150 functions as a fuel tank cap receptacle. The profile cut on pillion handle mounting bracket 160 is shaped complementarily to the fuel tank cap 145, thereby providing a snug fit to the fuel tank cap 145 within the locking pin chamber 150 during refuelling. Thus, during refuelling and thereafter, the presence of the fuel tank cap 145 in the locking pin chamber 150 prevents any accidental locking of the rider seat 125 by obstructing the seat closure process. In another embodiment of the present subject matter, the fuel tank cap receptacle is separately disposed on the rear end of the frame 105, which is independent of the profile cut on pillion handle mounting bracket 160. In yet another embodiment of the present subject matter, the fuel tank cap receptacle is disposed on a separate bracket joined to the rear end of the frame 105. In yet another embodiment of the present subject matter, the fuel tank receptacle and the locking pin chamber 150 are provided at different locations in the pillion handle mounting bracket 160. Further, the fuel tank cap receptacle is made complementarily to the fuel tank cap 145 to provide easy snug fit to the fuel tank cap 145. Although the subject matter has been described in considerable detail with reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof, other embodiments are possible. As such, the spirit and scope of the appended claims should not be limited to the description of the preferred embodiment contained therein. I / WE CLAIM 1. In a two-wheeler, a fuel tank 130 disposed substantially above a rear wheel 120 on a rear end of a frame 105; said fuel tank 130 having a intake port 140 detachably secured by a fuel tank cap 145 characterized by a fuel tank cap receptacle disposed beneath a rider seat 125 substantially in a horizontal plane along said intake port 140 of said fuel tank 130; said fuel tank cap receptacle being shaped complementarily to said fuel tank cap 145 and wherein said fuel tank cap receptacle is adapted to selectively receive said fuel tank cap 145. 2. A motorcycle 100 comprising: a frame 105 disposed longitudinally of said motorcycle 100 and supporting a front wheel 115 and a rear wheel 120 on front and rear ends, respectively, thereof; a fuel tank 130 disposed substantially above said rear wheel 120 on said rear end of said frame 105; said fuel tank 130 having a intake port 140 detachably secured by a fuel tank cap 145; a rider seat 125 pivotally hinged to said frame 105 and disposed above said fuel tank 130 so as to selectively provide access to said intake port 140; a locking mechanism for securing said rider seat 125 to said frame 105; said motorcycle 100 characterized by a fuel tank cap receptacle disposed beneath said rider seat 125 substantially in a horizontal plane along said intake port 140 of said fuel tank 130; said fuel tank cap receptacle being shaped complementarily to said fuel tank cap 145 and wherein said fuel tank cap receptacle is adapted to selectively receive said fuel tank cap 145. 3. The motorcycle 100 as claimed in claim 1, wherein said locking mechanism comprises a lock pin disposed on said rider seat 125; a locking pin chamber 150 disposed on said rear end portion of said frame 105; said locking pin chamber 150 having a seat lock 155 capable of securing said locking pin to said frame 105 of said motorcycle 100. 4. The motorcycle 100 as claimed in claim 2, wherein a pillion handle mounting bracket 160 is disposed on said rear end portion of said frame 105; said pillion handle mounting bracket 160 defining a passage that extends to said locking pin chamber 150 and wherein said passage and said locking pin chamber 150 also defines said fuel tank cap receptacle.

Documents:

0126-che-2007 abstract.pdf

0126-che-2007 claims.pdf

0126-che-2007 description (complete).pdf

0126-che-2007 description (provisional).pdf

0126-che-2007 drawings-provisional.pdf

0126-che-2007 drawings.pdf

0126-che-2007-correspondnece-others.pdf

0126-che-2007-description(provisional).pdf

0126-che-2007-drawings.pdf

0126-che-2007-form 1.pdf

0126-che-2007-form 3.pdf

0126-che-2007-form 5.pdf

12-09-2014_IPA2388_Abstract.pdf

12-09-2014_IPA2388_Amended claims_12 Sep 14.pdf

12-09-2014_IPA2388_Amended claims_clean_12 Sep 14.pdf

12-09-2014_IPA2388_Response_12 Sep 14.pdf

126-CHE-2007 POWER OF ATTORNEY 26-12-2014.pdf

126-CHE-2007 EXAMINATION REPORT REPLY RECEIVED 26-12-2014.pdf

126-CHE-2007 FORM-3 14-12-2009.pdf