Patent ID: 7946309

Claim:
A system for automatically controlling the supply of fuel to a fuel dispenser, comprising: a vacuum-actuated shear valve that contains a fuel flow path coupled to a main fuel piping to carry the fuel from the main fuel piping to the fuel dispenser, wherein a vacuum level must be applied to the vacuum-actuated shear valve to open the fuel flow path; at least one fuel-handling component fluidly coupled to the main fuel piping, wherein the at least one fuel-handling component is secondarily contained to form a fuel-handling component interstitial space; and a control system adapted to: activate a vacuum-generating source to generate a vacuum level in the fuel-handling component interstitial space; and after the vacuum level is established, couple the vacuum level in the fuel-handling component interstitial space to the vacuum-actuated shear valve to open the fuel flow path; wherein either a loss of vacuum level in the fuel-handling component interstitial space, or a loss of vacuum level activated by the control system, causes the vacuum-actuated shear valve to automatically close the fuel flow path to cut off the supply of fuel to the fuel dispenser.