Abstract:
A gravity refilling system for adding water to wet cell batteries. The system is for one or more batteries and utilizes apparatus mounted to the underside of a golf car seat. The apparatus includes a reservoir tank, a valve assembly, a disconnect assembly and cell plugs that will automatically prevent overfilling of battery cells. The valve assembly has mechanism for individually controlling a plurality of refilling operations. The system does not require the operator to have any physical contact with the batteries as they can be acidic and potentially hazardous.

Description:
My application Ser. No. 09/358,353, relates generally to a battery cell plug, which is used to safely refill wet cell batteries and to control the electrolyte level of each cell. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to a system for the safe refilling of battery cells to a predetermined level. More particularly, the present invention pertains to a new and improved system and apparatus for refilling the liquid levels of golf car batteries. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     The batteries of an electric golf car need to be recharged after a designated period of use. Most course maintenance programs charge the batteries every day, if the golf car was used for 18 holes of play, however, there is an inherent danger in refillng the electolyte levels of wet cell batteries. The constant charging and discharging cycle will result in loss of battery electrolyte due to evaporation. If the level of electrolyte in a given battery cell drops below the tops of the electrolyte plates, irreparable damage to the plates can occur. Also, there is an increased corrosion of active material, which leads to the detriment of cell life. Quite often there is an increased risk of arcing between exposed (and possibly faulty) plates which could ignite any inflamable gases present. High temperatures in the cells will also cause expansion of the electrolyte. It is thereby important, to not only allow for expansion of the electrolyte in the cells by venting and dispensing of explosive gaseous mixtures, but also to periodically add electrolyte to the cells to compensate for these inherent losses. 
     Maintenance personnel at golf courses are often relatively inexperienced. It is common for golf courses to hire teenagers for a summer job. Therefore, safety is of paramount importance. Presently, refilling a battery requires the removal of the plugs, which in the case of a golf car having six heavy duty batteries would total 18 cell plugs. While refilling there is the danger of accidental splashing of sulfuric acid electrolyte on clothes, skin or eyes. The present invention seeks to provide a system, whereby the danger to personnel is virtually eliminated, and the refilling operation reduced to a fraction of the time presently required. This is a very important when some golf courses have upwards of 60 to 80 golf cars. Currently there seems to be no system or apparatus that addresses these concerns. There are however, some prior art patents that discuss the refilling of multiple battery packs. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 3,434,887 issued to Seckinger on Mar. 25, 1969, teaches the use of an apparatus to refill electric golf cart batteries. Seckinger describes the use of an automatic refill system that utilizes a pump to circulate the water flow. He also describes, in detail, methods for determining how long the procedure should take to refill the cells. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,453,334 issued to Melichar on Sep. 26, 1995, discloses an automatic battery watering system that relies on a reversible pump to circulate the flow. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,002,100 issued to Frederick on Mar. 26, 1991 describes an apparatus which relies on a gravity water feed to the cells. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,284,176 issued to Campau on Feb. 8, 1994, discloses a battery refill system for filling a multitude of batteries from a single source. The three-way valve shown hereinis not like the three cylinder valve of the present invention. 
     Evans, Woodbridge, Swain et al., Menger, and Sartakoff (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,289,176, 1,967,800, 1,942,800, 1,471,048 and 1,469,963 respectively) are examples of other methods of feeding water to batteries. 
     The concepts of the present invention are suggested for a host of possible applications. Electrically powered golf cars are used as the primary application example, but many other possible applications are readily seen. Another application would be in the material handling field where many electric driven forklift trucks could be found in a single warehouse. Therefore, it will be appreciated that the invention can be utilized by any equipment which is battery powered and using batteries which are intended to be periodically recharged. 
     None of the above inventions, taken either singularly or in combination, are seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a gravity method for permitting wet-cell batteries to be safely refilled with water, whether it be a single battery or multiple battery packs. The present invention does not require any outside power to circulate the refilling water, but rather relies solely upon gravity to feed water from a reservoir tank into each electrolyte cell. The instant invention seeks to provide a refilling system that diminishes the risk of toxic and explosive gas hazards, as well as risk of injury to maintenance personnel. The present invention will require the maintenance personnel to do only the following: fill the reservoir with water; open three valves; and finally close each of the three valves. The system will automatically prevent any overflow of a cell, and will fill every cell without any need of contact by the maintenance personnel with the batteries. The system will utilize an innovative cell plug that will allow oxygen and hydrogen to safely escape into the atmosphere, while insuring that no cell be overfilled. This is critical since if a cell is overfilled, there is the danger that these gases will build-up causing the plates to buckle and provide for a possible explosive condition. 
     The present invention will utilize a new and improved three cylinder valve assembly, capable of feeding three transmission lines individually. Each of the three transmission lines is connected to a pair of in-series batteries. The operator merely has to add water and turn each of the respective valves to open and close the flow of water to the batteries. The system removes the danger of overfilling a cell and allows for the simultaneous filling of a group of batteries with the same effortless ease as that of filling a single battery. Installation of the present invention does not require changes to be made to the battery arrangements of any particular golf car manufacturer, since all parts are snap-fitted into place on the batteries. The apparatus that works the system can be installed to the underside of the seat of any make of golf car utilizing ordinary mechanical skills. 
     Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a refill system which will indicate to the operator, by sight, when to shut off the flow of water to any particular pair of batteries. 
     It is another object of the invention to provide a system which does not require an external power source, but uses gravity to force the liquid through the system. 
     It is an object of the invention to provide a safe refill system, whereby any possible sulfuric acid accumulation will not come into contact with the operator&#39;s skin, eyes or clothing. 
     It is also an object of the invention to provide a system that can be operated by unskilled personel. 
     It is an object of the invention to provide a system whereby the entire process is self contained with only the addition of water to a reservoir tank being required by the personnel. 
     It is another object of the invention to have all parts interchangeable with the battery manufacturer&#39;s original parts. 
     It is yet another object of the invention to have an inexpensive system with virtually all parts manufactured from plastic material. 
     It is a further object of the invention to provide a filling system, wherein all pieces and parts are acid resistant and of a non-arcing material, thereby minimizing the risk of being splashed by acid or having a spark ignite the hydrogen gas which often lurks in an area around the battery. 
     These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is an overview of a typical six battery arrangement of an electric golf car with the seat raised. 
     FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the underside of the seat with the system installed therein. 
     FIG. 3 is a side view of the seat in the raised position. 
     FIG. 4 is an elevational view of a battery having cell plugs shown in series to each other. 
     FIG. 5 is an elevational view of the standard cell plug of the present invention. 
     FIG. 6 is an elevational view of the overflow cell plug of the present invention. 
     FIG. 7 is an elevational view of the water reservoir and accessory elements. 
     FIG. 8 is a side view of the water reservoir. 
     FIG. 9 is an elevational view of the valve assembly depicting three cylinders. 
     FIG. 10 is an elevational view of the valve support. 
     FIG. 11 is a bottom view of the valve support of FIG.  10 . 
     FIG. 12 is a side view of the valve support of FIG.  10 . 
     FIG. 13 is an elevational view of a disconnect unit including cam slide section. 
     FIG. 14 is an exploded frontal elevational view of the disconnect unit of FIG.  13 . 
     FIG. 15 is an exploded side elevational view of the disconnect unit of FIG.  13 . 
     FIG. 16 is a pictorial view of the top section and cam slide. 
    
    
     Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     When batteries are being recharged, the electrolyte solution is dissipated and replacement water must be added at periodic intervals. New and improved battery cell plugs virtually elimiate the hazards of accidental splashing of sulfuric acid, and will also indicate to the operator when the refilling procedure is completed. The present invention will provide the apparatus and system, whereby water will be communicated to the new battery cell plugs. The present invention will require little or no change to conventional golf cars. The main application area for the instant invention lies with golf cars, wherein six batteries are normally employed. Other uses can be found in high powered battery application areas, such as with forklift trucks, and electric personnel carriers. 
     The refilling system of the present invention is generally depicted by the reference numeral  20  in the accompanying FIGS. 1-3. Apparatus for comprising the system  20 , as described in FIGS. 2 and 3, is mounted both, on the underside  21  of a golf car seat  22 , and on the batteries  25  themselves. System  20  includes a reservoir  23 , which when a sufficient pressure head is maintained, will feed water by gravity through a valve assembly  24  to batteries  25 , which are grouped in pairs and are positioned in a in-series relationship to each other. Water flows through plastic tubing  26 , preferably clear in color, therefore the flow will be evident to the operator by visual inspection. Batteries  25  generally have three cells which have a cell plug associated with each cell. The cell plugs are either an “S” type  27  or an overflow type  28 , and are of a new and improved design as shown in FIGS. 4-6. (Cell plugs  27  and  28  are preferably made according to my nonprovisional Application Ser. No. 09/358,353.) Cell plugs  27  and  28  will prevent the cells from being overfilled and will also indicate by an overflow stream from the overflow plug, when the water flow is to be stopped. The water flows into an inlet conduit  29  of the first S-type plug  27  until that cell is saturated, wherein plug  27  automatically stops the flow to that cell, thereby preventing any risk of overfilling the cell. Then the flow is directed through an exit conduit  30  and subsequently to the next cell in series. When all the cells are filled, the water will flow to an inlet conduit  31  of the overflow plug  28  and upon that plug  28  being filled, the water will discharge out of an exit conduit  32 , thereby indicating to the operator that the cells are filled and the appropriate line be closed on the valve assembly  24 . 
     As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, three guard rails  33  are installed on the seat underside  21  to protect the elements of the system  20 . Rails  33  are each secured to underside  21  by three pairs of clamps  34 . Plastic tubing  26  is secured by tubing clips  35 . To insure that the golf car is level while it is being refilled with water, a pair of carpenter levels  36  are mounted to an upper portion of the battery frame  37 . When golf car seat  22  is raised up, as shown in FIG. 3, an adjustable prop rod  38  will maintain it in this position. Prop rod  38  rotatably attached at its proxial end  39  to the underside  21  by a hinge and swivel pin  40 , which allows for prop rod  38  to pivot as necessary. When not supporting the seat  22 , prop rod  38  is stored by a support bracket  41 . 
     As shown in FIGS. 1,  7  and  8 , reservoir  23  has water added to it through an inlet opening  42 , which is covered by a fill cap  43 . Opening  42  is located on the top portion of reservoir  23 . Fill cap  43  has a button type shape which allows it to be attached to a tether line  45 . The tether line  45  being connected to an anchor loop  48 , which is itself located on the side of reservoir  23 . Tether line  45  prevents fill cap  43  from being inadvertently lost or misplaced. The water is drained from reservoir  23  to the batteries  25  by the flow of gravity and exits through a drain opening  49 , which is located at the bottom portion of reservoir  23 . Drain opening  49  having a drain cap  50  supporting valve assembly  24 . After batteries  25  have been filled and the golf car is ready for use, all excess water in reservoir  23  should be drained to prevent freezing in cold weather. The present invention provides a vent opening  51 , located on upper side section of the reservoir, whereby a gromlet  52  is mounted therein for supporting a vent unit  53 . Upon seat  22  being lowered into its normal position, the excess water will drain out to the ground through vent unit  53 . 
     The demand of water from reservoir  23  to batteries  25  is accomplished by the operator&#39;s control of the valve assembly  24 . Valve assembly  24  is one of the new and improved inventive concepts of the present invention and is shown in FIGS. 9-12. FIG. 9 is an exploded view of valve assembly  24 , and while it is to be appreciated that assembly  24  comprises three generally hollow cylinders  54   a,    54   b  and  54   c,  having an upper opening  55  and a lower opening  56 , for clarity, only cylinder  54   a  is shown in complete exploded illustration. Valve assembly  24  has, on one side, a cylindrical interconnector  57 , which serves to connect assembly  24  to drain cap  50  of reservoir  23 . One side of interconnector  57  is friction-fitted to drain cap  50 , while the other side is friction-fitted to a cup section  58  in the main body of assembly  24 . An intake port  59  defined in cup section  58  receives interconnector  57  and integrally connects assembly  24  to reservoir  23 . As an added measure of support for assembly  24 , a rectangularly shaped open loop  60  extends from the other side of the valve assembly  24  and snap-fits into a valve support bracket  61 . Bracket  61  having a resilient penetrating head  62  for snap-fitting into the open rectangular loop  60  of the valve assembly  24 . The details of bracket  61  are best described by FIGS. 10-12. Bracket  61  also has holes  64  for placing bolts  65  which affix bracket  61  to seat underside  21  as shown in FIG.  2 . This braces the valve assembly  24  to the underside  21  of the seat  22 . The three cylinders  54   a,    54   b  and  54   c  are made of plastic material and are interconnected by an internal channel  66 , which communicates through all three cylinders  54   a,    54   b,  and  54   c  for the flow of water. The mechanics of the valve assembly  24  are depicted in the exploded view of cylinder  54   a,  as shown in FIG.  9 . The main units are circular shaped piston rods  67  which each have an insertion end  68 . Each insertion end  68  further having split prongs  69  which serve to create a tight friction-fit into a control cap  70 . The three control caps  70  are the only parts of the system  20  in which the operator need touch to control the flow of water to the batteries  25 . A passageway  71  for water flow extends through piston rod  67 . Piston rod  67  having a middle section  72  defining a spool having a semi-circular cavitation about its diameter for aligning within the cylinder channel  66  for seating within channel  66 , and also a pair of circular cavities  73  on either side of middle section  72  to receive washers  74 , thereby creating a water impermeable seal within channel  66 . Valve assembly  24  is complete by the friction fitting of a distribution cap  75  over each cylinder  54   a,    54   b  and  54   c.  Each distribution cap  75  having a tube port  76  which is of a universal size and shape well known to those skilled in the art. Each port  76  being hooked up with one of the distribution lines  77   a,    77   b  or  77   c  for the delivery of water to batteries  25 , with each distribution line serving a pair of batteries  25  in series. The operator can therefore control all three pairs of batteries  25  by merely lifting the control caps  70  to open the flow or by pushing the control caps  70  to shut off the flow. 
     The method of operating system  20  is extremely simple and it allows for the use of very inexperienced personnel (teenagers on a summer job) to be able to refill batteries of golf cars without having to physically touch any part that may be hazardous. The only elements of contact will be: raising the seat  22  and adjusting prop rod  38 ; removing the reservoir cap  43  for addition of water; lifting up control caps  70  to open flow of water to the appropriate pairs of batteries  25 , pushing down control caps  70  to close flow of water, whereby saturation is visually determined by the overflow of water from the last plug (overflow plug  28 ) in the series; and then lowering seat  22 . This method promotes safety as its primary concern and the present invention provides for a safe refilling of golf car batteries  25 . 
     Occasionally, the seat  22  must be removed for repair or replacement, and the refill system  20  provides another inventive concept for facilitating the removal of the seat  22  without disturbing refill system  20 . A disconnect assembly  80  is provided, having three separate disconnect units  81 , one for each distribution line  77   a    77   b  or  77   c,  depicted in FIGS.  2  and  13 - 15 . Each disconnect unit  81  is comprised of a top section  82 , a bottom section  83 , and a cam slide section  90 . Each top section  82  having a first port  84  which is connected to a respective distribution line  77   a,    77   b  or  77   c,  from valve assembly  24 . Each bottom section  83  having a second port  85  for connecting to a distribution line  77   a,    77   b  or  77   c  which then delivers water to a pair of batteries  25 . Top and bottom sections  82  and  83  respectively, have releasable means for connecting the sections  82  and  83  together. Bottom sections  83 , each having a pair of insertion arms  86 , comprising of triangularly shaped inserts  87  with extension tips  96  for insertion into a correspondingly similarly shaped crevices  88  in top section  82  which is released by the cam slide section  90 , as shown in FIGS. 13 and 16. 
     The cam slide  90  is provided to prevent damage to the insertion arms  86 . Prior to connecting top and bottom sections  82  and  83 , an open end  97  of the slide  90  is sprung over track slots  95  of top section  82 . Cam slide  90  having a sliding surface  94  to allow the slide  90  to have a reciprocating movement within the track slots  95 . Sections  82  and  83  are connected by inserting the arms  86  into top section  82  until the triangular inserts  87  are disposed within crevices  88  and extention tips  96  are seated within apertures  92  of cam slide  90 . Each slide  90  having a finger grip area  91  whereby the user can pull the slide  90  which will cause tips  96  to be biased about a cam surface  93  of the slide  90 , thereby releasing the inserts  87  and disconnecting the sections  82  and  83 . 
     The distribution lines  77   a,    77   b  and  77   c,  are held together by a simple plastic holder  89 , which is fastened to the seat  22  as shown in FIG.  2 . 
     It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses and and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.