Patent Publication Number: US-2015060719-A1

Title: Poppet seal

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This nonprovisional patent application claims priority to the provisional patent application having Ser. No. 61/959,600, filed on Aug. 28, 2013. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     This disclosure generally relates to a valve assembly for a gasoline or gasoline blended with ethanol dispensing nozzle, and more particularly, to an improved poppet seal in a dispensing nozzle to allow a user to control dispensing of fuel through the nozzle. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Gasoline fuel dispensing nozzles are used to controllably regulate the flow of fuel, such as gasoline or gasoline blended with ethanol, from a storage tank into a gasoline tank in an automobile. In order to facilitate the rapid and efficient dispensing of the fuel from a storage tank to a user tank, fuel dispensing systems are designed to operate at a very high fluid flow rate. The fuel is pumped from the storage tank and through a metering system that tracks and records the amount of fuel dispensed by each user. The fuel then flows through a fuel line from the metering system to a dispensing nozzle that is placed in a fuel inlet or fuel filler neck attached to the user tank to enable the dispensing of fuel from the storage tank into the user tank. 
     Generally, a dispensing nozzle includes a handle that actuates a spring-loaded valve or poppet valve within the nozzle. When the handle is squeezed by the user, the valve opens to allow fuel to flow freely through the valve, through the nozzle, and into the user tank. When the handle is released, the spring shuts the valve and thereby shuts off the flow of fuel. A variety of poppet valve configurations are often used for this purpose in existing fuel dispensing nozzles. 
     Due to the desirability of high fuel flow rates, and the need for a reliable, positive shut-off of fuel for safety purposes, the spring that operates the poppet valve in most dispensing nozzles is very strong and requires a substantial force to compress. 
     The handles on dispensing nozzles operate as cantilevers to enable the user to overcome the force of the valve spring. Unfortunately, this flow control scheme is somewhat course, and the arrangement therefore offers the user only limited control over the amount of fuel dispensed through the dispensing nozzle. Historically, while such limited control over the dispensing of fuel was often a nuisance to the user, demand for more precise control did not warrant modification of the fuel dispensing systems. Recently, however, economic conditions and the rising costs of fuel have driven demand for more precise control over the dispensing of fuels. In particular, a customer may want to achieve “penny” dispensing. An example of “penny” dispensing is when the customer has dispensed $9.98 in fuel and wants to get an even $10.00. Without precise control, “penny” dispensing is difficult to achieve. 
     Some storage tanks are used to hold and dispense a fuel that is gasoline blended with a portion of ethanol. One such fuel is known as E85. E85 is an abbreviation for an ethanol fuel blend of 85% denatured ethanol fuel and 15% gasoline or other hydrocarbon by volume. E85 is commonly used by flex-fuel vehicles in the United States and other countries. It is also know to have a blended fuel of gasoline and a lesser percentage of ethanol. Known poppet seal constructions for E85 nozzles consist of two parts, a poppet seal holder and an elastic poppet seal. The poppet seal holder is used to contain and align the elastic poppet seal over a sealing seat to maintain a tight seal. A compressed spring in contact with the poppet seal holder is used to apply force to the poppet seal to maintain leak tight contact with the sealing seat. Since the poppet seal is not securely attached to the poppet seal holder, the seal can move independently during nozzle operation. In addition, there is a gap at the edge of the disc shaped poppet seal separating the seal from the poppet seal holder. Due to the current design of poppet seal constructions for E85 nozzles, the poppet seal is subject to developing cracks through the thickness of the seal at the points of contact with the seal seat. Cracks develop due to a tensile strength failure in the elastic material which is promoted by the gap at the edge of the disc shaped seal. The gap allows the poppet seal material to expand freely during each open and close cycle which eventually leads to material cracking, complete material separation, and finally leaks. 
     The present disclosure is designed to obviate and overcome many of the disadvantages and shortcomings experienced with prior poppet valves for dispensing fuel, such as E85. Moreover, the present disclosure is related to a poppet seal that is designed and constructed to prevent cracking and leaking by having a poppet seal and poppet seal holder in a single part or piece. 
     SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     The present disclosure is a poppet seal which comprises a poppet seal holder comprising a cylindrical base portion and a cylindrical central post extending up from a center of the base portion, the base portion having a bottom having an inner ring, and a fluoroelastomer compound ring molded into the inner ring of the poppet seal holder. 
     In light of the foregoing comments, it will be recognized that the present disclosure provides a poppet seal that is simple to operate and seals against any fuel leaks in a fuel dispensing nozzle. 
     The present disclosure provides a poppet seal that can be easily employed with highly reliable results to be used to dispense fuel, such as E85, at a rapid flow rate. 
     The present disclosure also provides a poppet seal that allows a customer to control the amount of fuel dispensed with more precision then current valve designs afford. 
     The present disclosure further provides a poppet seal that is compatible with, and can be readily incorporated into, existing dispensing nozzles, without the need to reconfigure or modify the existing nozzle design. 
     The present disclosure provides a poppet seal that can be manufactured having the poppet seal and the poppet seal holder as a unitary part or piece. 
     These and other advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art after considering the following detailed specification in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       In referring to the drawings: 
         FIG. 1  is a cross-sectional side view of a dispensing nozzle crusher constructed containing a poppet seal constructed according to the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the poppet seal constructed according to the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 3  is a top view of the poppet seal constructed according to the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the poppet seal constructed according to the present disclosure taken along the plane of line  4 - 4  in  FIG. 3 ; and 
         FIG. 5  is a bottom view of the poppet seal constructed according to the present disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring now to the drawings, wherein like numbers refer to like items, number  10  identifies a preferred embodiment of a poppet seal constructed according to the present disclosure. With reference now to  FIG. 1 , the poppet seal  10  is shown installed within a dispensing nozzle  12 . The nozzle  12  includes a body  14  having an inlet  16  to which a fuel hose (not shown) is connected. The nozzle  12  also has an outlet or spout assembly  18  which is adapted to be inserted into the fill pipe of an automobile fuel tank (all of which are not shown). The poppet seal  10  is disposed within the body  14  between the inlet  16  and outlet  18 . The poppet seal  10  is biased by a spring  20  into a sealing engagement against a poppet valve seat or sealing seat  22 . The poppet seal  10  is mounted to an upper end or a poppet skirt  24  of a valve stem  26 . The poppet seal  10  is located in an upper portion  28  of the body  14 , and the valve stem  26  extends downwardly through the body  14  to a lower end  30 . The lower end  30  of the stem  26  projects through an opening  32  in a base  34  of the body  14  of the nozzle  12 . An operating lever  36  for the nozzle  12  has a pivoting functional end  38  connected to a lower end  40  of an automatic shut-off plunger  42 . The lever  36  has another end  44  that is grasped by a hand of a user, and when squeezed, the upward pressure on the lever  36  forces the valve stem  26  upwardly. This moves the poppet seal  10  off the valve seat  22 , opening the poppet seal  10 , and permitting fuel to flow into the spout assembly  18 . In this position, the poppet seal  10  is in an open position. When the shut-off plunger  42  is operated, the lever  36  is moved to its initial position and the spring  20  forces the poppet seal  10  back into engagement with the valve seat  22 . In this position, the poppet seal  10  is in a closed position and no fuel may flow through the nozzle  12 . 
       FIG. 2  shows a perspective view of the poppet seal  10 . The poppet seal  10  has a cylindrical base portion  50  and a generally cylindrical central post  52  extending up from the center of the base portion  50 . The base portion  50  has a bottom  54 , a side  56 , and a top  58 . A chamfered or beveled edge  60  is formed between the side  56  and the top  58 . The central post  52  has a top  62 , a side  64 , and a chamfered or beveled edge  66  formed between the top  62  and the side  64 . A rounded edge  68  is farmed between the top  58  and the side  64 . The top  58  is sized and shaped to receive the spring  20  due to the spring  20  having an outer diameter that is less than the diameter of the top  58 . The top  58  forms a shoulder or a flange upon which the spring  20  is biased or pressed against. The spring  20  is capable of biasing the poppet seal  10  along the top  58 . Also, the central post  52  is sized and shaped to fit within the spring  20 . The bottom  54  is sized and shaped to engage the poppet valve seat  22 . 
     With reference now to  FIG. 3 , a top view of the poppet seal  10  is shown. The poppet seal  10  is shown having the central post  52  extending up from the base portion  50 . The base portion  50  has the side  56 , the top  58 , and the chamfered edge  60 . The central post  52  has the top  62  and the chamfered edge  66 . The rounded edge  68  is also shown. The top  58  is adapted to receive the spring  20 . The top  58  presents a surface upon which and against which the spring  20  is biased. 
       FIG. 4  illustrates a cross-sectional view of the poppet seal  10 . The poppet seal  10  is formed having a poppet seal holder  80  having a molded ring  82  positioned within an inner ring  84  of the poppet seal holder  80 . The poppet seal holder  80  may be constructed of stainless steel, aluminum, and glass filled PET, as well as any other suitable material. The molded ring may be formed of any elastomer that contains fluorine. Some examples of fluoroelastomers include, but are not limited to, copolymers of i) vinylidene fluoride, hexafluoropropylene and, optionally, tetrafluoroethylene; ii) vinylidene fluoride, perfluoro (methyl vinyl ether) and, optionally, tetrafluoroethylene; iii) tetrafluoroethylene and propylene; and iv) tetrafluoroethylene and perfluoro (methyl vinyl ether). The poppet seal  10  is a single part having the molded ring  82  of the fluoroelastomer compound fused or molded to the inner ring  84  of the poppet seal holder  80 . The fluoroelastomer compound is flexible and the material will withstand exposure to gasoline or other fuels to which it may be exposed. The elastic material will progressively conform to the contour of the sealing seat  22  which increases the contact area, thus sealing integrity between the bottom  54  and the sealing seat  22  after every cycle. Along the bottom  54  of the base portion  50  is a hollow interior or bore  86  that is adapted to receive the-upper end  24  of the valve stem  26 . The bore  86  extends from the bottom  54  into the central post  52 . The bottom  54  is capable of engaging the poppet valve seat  22  when the bias of the spring  20  presses the poppet seal  10  into the closed position to form a liquid tight seal to prevent any fuel or liquid to pass from the inlet  16  to the outlet  18 . A chamfered edge  88  of the molded ring  82  is formed between the bottom  54  and the side  56  by over molding the material that forms the molded ring  82 . Other examples of the material that may be used to form the molded ring  82  are RT/Dygert F-7020 or RT/Dygert FLT-7001. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 5 , a bottom view of the poppet seal  10  is depicted. The poppet seal  10  has the chamfered edge  88  formed between the bottom  54  and the side  56  by over molding. The bore  86  has a top surface  90 , a side  92 , and an edge  94  formed between the side  92  and the bottom  54 . The top surface  90  and the side  92  are adapted for receiving the upper end  24  of the valve stem  26 . 
     Referring again to  FIG. 1 , the poppet seal  10  is movable between a fully closed position in which the poppet seal  10  blocks the flow of fuel through the dispensing nozzle  12 , and an open or raised position in which the poppet seal  10  is clear of valve seat  22  so as to permit the rapid flow of fuel from the inlet  16  to the outlet  18 . When the lever  36  is raised, as by a user desiring to pump gasoline through the nozzle  12 , the lever  36  engages and pushes in an upward direction the valve stem  26 . The upward movement of the valve stem  26  initially pushes the upper end  24  against the bottom  54  of the poppet seal  10 , thereby raising the poppet seal  10  off the sealing seat  22 , and against the pressure exerted by the spring  20  and the fuel pressure. The poppet seal  10  moves to an open position to allow fuel to flow through the nozzle  12 . Accordingly, movement of the lever  36  and the valve stem  26  can be controlled to open the poppet seal  10  to allow a limited flow of fuel between the inlet  16  and the outlet  18  through the nozzle  12 . 
     The poppet seal  10  enables a user to easily, accurately and controllably dispense small quantities of fuel through the same nozzle  12  through which large volumes of fuel may also be dispensed. By merely controlling the degree that the lever  36  and the stem  26  are raised, the user can select between high and low fuel flow rates in the same nozzle  12 . A slower, yet more accurate and controllable dispensing of fuel through the nozzle  12  is achieved by squeezing the lever  36  only slightly so that the stem  26  opens only the poppet seal  10  a corresponding small amount. Rapid, but relatively coarse dispensing of fuel through the nozzle  12  is achieved by squeezing the lever  36  sufficiently such that the stem  26  opens the poppet seal  10  all the way. In this manner of operation, small volumes of fuel can be dispensed through the poppet seal  10  at a low rate so as to allow the user to determine more precisely when to release the lever  36  to shut off the flow of fuel. 
     One advantage of the present poppet seal  10  is that it provides for “penny” dispensing of fuel. In a conventional fuel dispensing nozzle, the flow rate when the conventional fuel flow valve is fully open is approximately 10 gallons per minute (gpm), and the user can controllably reduce this flow rate to approximately 2 gpm when the fuel flow valve is nearly closed. This means that at a price of $1.00 US per gallon, at 2 gpm, the customer is dispensing fuel at a rate of 1 penny every 0.3 seconds. At this flow rate, the customer can attempt to stop the flow of fuel at a desired amount. However, when the price of fuel is $4.00 per gallon, the fuel flow equates to 1 penny every 0.075 seconds and this is too rapid even for an experienced customer to controllably stop the fuel flow at a desired amount. 
     Another advantage of the current invention is that since the seal material is formed of an elastomer, trapped within its cylindrical base portion  50 , when molded therein, after repeated usage and application within the nozzle, the elastomer material has a tendency to conform to the configuration of the poppet skirt  24 , and therefore provide even a greater seal, over the long term, as a result of repeat usage. 
     With known poppet seals consisting of a separate popper holder and a separate poppet seal, fast flowing fuel has a tendency to suck the poppet seal away from the holder near the edges which causes significant fluctuations in flow. The dramatic changes in fuel flow can make it very difficult for the customer to achieve “penny” dispensing. With the poppet seal  10  of the present disclosure, “penny” dispensing is achieved because the seal  10  cannot be sucked down. 
     From all that has been said, it will be clear that there has thus been shown and described herein a poppet seal. It will become apparent to those skilled in the art, however, that many changes, modifications, variations, and other uses and applications of the subject poppet seal are possible and contemplated. All changes, modifications, variations, and other uses and applications which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the disclosure are deemed to be covered by the disclosure, which is limited only by the claims which follow.