PROTECTION FOR A FUEL VALVE

Abstract: The invention relates to a protection for a fuel valve of a fuel delivery column, which fuel valve, which can be mounted on said protection, is built up of a valve housing provided with a bore and a valve body which is movably accommodated in said bore, wherein the position of said valve body and thus the fuel supply through said valve can be adjusted by means of at least one electromagnetic solenoid to be shielded from the valve, which solenoid extends through said protection into an opening formed in said valve housing and being in communication with said bore. The protection according to the invention is characterized in that it is arranged for several fuel valves and in that the required electromagnetic solenoids can be shielded by means of one cover to be mounted on said protection.

Description: Title: Protection for a fuel valve. The invention relates to a protection for a fuel valve of a fuel delivery column, which fuel valve, which can be 5 mounted on said protection, is built up of a valve housing provided with a bore and a valve body which is movably __ accommodated in said bore, wherein the position of said valve body and thus the fuel supply through said valve can be adjusted by means of at least one electromagnetic solenoid to 10 be shielded from the valve, which solenoid extends through said protection into an opening formed in said valve housing and being in communication with said bore. Such a protection is generally known, it is used with a fuel valve in a fuel delivery column for delivering fuels at 15 filling stations. When fuel is to be delivered, a selected type of fuel (petrol or diesel, etc.) is carried from storage tanks disposed some distance away, via a system of pumps and pipes and via the fuel valve, to the fuel delivery column in question. During operation, the supply or the delivery of the 20 fuel is controlled for each fuel valve individually by means of one or two electromagnetic solenoids. One solenoid thereby functions to control the passage and the delivery of fuel, whilst the optional second solenoid functions as a reducing valve. 25 Since such a fuel valve is used in an environment where there is a risk of fire and explosion, it is subjected to various strict European and international construction regulations. In spite of the fact that the current constructions comply with said regulations, the mounting and 30 the protection of the solenoids on the fuel valve remain an uncertain and unsafe factor. Usually, extensive, complicated and expensive provisions are required in order to obtain a construction yet which is spark-proof, fire-proof and explosion-proof and which furthermore requires little 35..maintenance. The object of the invention is to overcome the above drawbacks and to provide a protection wherein a spark-proof, fire-proof and explosion-proof, low-maintenance construction for mounting and shielding the solenoids on such fuel valves is obtained. According to the invention, said protection is characterized in that it is arranged for several fuel valves and in that the required electromagnetic solenoids can be shielded by means of one cover to be mounted on said __ protection. Thus, a strongly simplified and cheaper construction is obtained, wherein the protection enhances the resistance to fire and explosion of several fuel valves. In case of calamities, the damage caused by fire or explosions will be limited to the space shielded by said cover. Said space is moreover readily accessible, which greatly facilitates the carrying out of maintenance and repairs. The advantage of this construction is furthermore the fact that the assembly consisting of the protection and the shielding cover, including the damaged solenoids present therein, can be removed from the various valves and be exchanged for a new assembly with new solenoids in one mounting operation. A construction of this type has appeared to be advantageous when used with a construction comprising several valves and, accordingly, a double number of solenoids. In case of a calamity it is not necessary to check all solenoids, but the whole assembly is exchanged, thus eliminating the risk of omitting to exchange a defective solenoid. Preferably, the cover is provided with only one passage for a common supply cable for all electromagnetic solenoids. As a result of this, not only the construction is greatly simplified, but the risk of cable fracture and of an explosion triggered by a spark is considerably reduced, since only one supply cable is used rather than several supply cables for each fuel valve, as is the case with the current constructions . The invention will now be explained in more detail with reference to a drawing. The drawing successively shows in: Figure la an embodiment of a protection for a fuel valve according to the invention; Figure lb is a right-hand side view of Figure la; Figure lc is a top plan view of Figure la. Figure la shows an embodiment of a protection for a fuel valve according to the invention. Such a fuel valve is used in a fuel delivery column used for delivering fuels in __ filling stations. The figure shows a fuel valve consisting of a valve housing 1, in which a bore 2 built up of bore sections 2a and 2b is formed. Bore sections 2a and 2b terminate on the outside of valve housing 1, at which location the valve housing includes a connection 3a for connecting a fuel supply pipe (not shown) from a fuel storage tank (not shown) and a connection 3b for connecting a fuel delivery pipe to a fuel delivery column (not shown) . Accommodated in bore 2 is a valve body 4. Said valve body is capable of movement over a particular distance in said bore, which makes it possible to control the passage 2c of the bore and thus the fuel supply from 2a to 2b. The position of valve body 4 in bore 2 can be controlled by means of at least one electromagnetic solenoid 5a, which solenoid 5a extends into an opening 6a formed in valve housing 1. Said opening 6a is in communication with bore sections 2a and 2b via a number of bores 11a, lib, etc. Said bores 11a, lib, etc. have a considerably smaller diameter than bore sections 2a and 2b. Solenoid 5a is driven by electric signals via a control unit (not shown) of the fuel delivery column, wherein the electromagnetic valve body of the solenoid moves inside the solenoid. Said movement results in hydraulic pressure changes and volume changes of the fuel present in bores 11a, lib, etc. Valve body 4 will take up a different position inside bore 2 as a result of these changes, until the two sides of valve body 4 are in hydraulic equilibrium again. As a result of this, the passage 2a and the fuel supply will become larger or smaller, depending on the control signal to solenoid 5a. In this embodiment, the fuel valve as shown includes a second, optional solenoid 5b, which extends into a corresponding opening 6b formed in valve housing 1. Said solenoid is likewise driven via electric control signals by the control unit and functions as a reducing valve. Since such fuel valves are used in an environment where there is a risk of fire and explosion, the electromagnetic solenoids must be properly shielded. This in order to prevent a situation where the tiniest spark, which may for example be released when the electromagnetic solenoids 5a or 5b are being electrically driven, will directly result in a serious » calamity (fire, explosion) . To this end, the solenoids are usually shielded by a protection which must comply with strict European and other international regulations. In spite of these regulations, the mounting and protection of the solenoids on the fuel valves remain an uncertain and dangerous factor, and usually extensive, complicated and costly provisions are required in order to obtain a construction which is spark-proof, fire-proof and explosion- proof and which furthermore requires little maintenance. In Figure la, the solenoids 5a and 5b extend through a protection 7 into openings 6a and 6b, with protection 7 being mounted on valve housing 1. Protection 7 is thereby arranged for several fuel valves and the associated electromagnetic solenoids at the same time, which are all shielded by means of a cover 8 to be mounted on protection 7 by means of bolts 9a and 9b. Such a combined protection not only results in a simplified construction and thus a simplified mounting and/or dismounting procedure during maintenance, but in addition a calamity that may occur at one fuel valve is prevented from spreading to another fuel valve. The prevention of such a chain reaction enhances the fire and explosion safety of such fuel valves in a filling station, which is usually visited by a great number of people and which is usually situated beside busy traffic routes. Protection 7 and cover 8 form one assembly, which can be removed from the various valves, including the damaged solenoids present therein, and be exchanged for a new assembly with new solenoids in one mounting operation in case of a calamity. This obviates the need to check all solenoids in case of a calamity, thus eliminating the risk of omitting to exchange a defective solenoid. Figure lb is a side view, and Figure lc is a top plan view of Figure la. Protection 7 is mounted on several fuel valves la, lb, lc and Id. Each fuel valve can serve to supply a particular type of fuel. All solenoids 5a - 5h required for the control of said four valves are shielded by cover 8, which cover 8 is mounted on protection 7 by means of several bolts 9a and 9b. Cover 8 is provided with only central passage 10 for a common supply cable (not shown) for all electromagnetic solenoids. Passage 10 is centrally disposed. This leads to a considerably simplified construction. In addition, the risk of cable fracture and a possible explosion triggered by a spark is considerably reduced as a result of the used of only one supply cable rather than several supply cables per fuel valve. It will be apparent that the invention is not restricted to the illustrated embodiments, and that many variants and combinations of variants are possible without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims: C A I M S 1. A protection for a fuel valve of a fuel delivery column, which fuel valve, which can be mounted on said protection, is built up of a valve housing provided with a bore and a valve body which is movably accommodated in said— bore, wherein the position of said valve body and thus the fuel supply through said valv »e can be adjusted by means of at least one electromagnetic solenoid to be shielded from the valve, which solenoid extends through said protection into an opening formed in said valve housing and being in communication with said bore, characterized in that said protection is arranged for several fuel valves and in that the required electromagnetic solenoids can be shielded by means of one cover to be mounted on said protection. 2. A protection according to claim 1, characterized in that the cover is provided with only one passage for a common supply cable for all electromagnetic solenoids.

Inventors: VAN SCHAIK MARCO, WILLEMSEN HENRICUS JOHANNES AR, VAN SCHAIK, MARCO, WILLEMSEN, HENRICUS, JOHANNES, ARNOLDUS
Applicants: KOPPENS AUTOMATIC FABRIEKEN BV, SCHAIK MARCO VAN, WILLEMSEN HENRICUS JOHANNES AR, KOPPENS AUTOMATIC FABRIEKEN B.V., VAN SCHAIK, MARCO, WILLEMSEN, HENRICUS, JOHANNES, ARNOLDUS
Application year: 1999
Main classification: B67D5
IPC codes: B67D5