Patent ID: 7748397

Claim:
An assembly comprising: at least two components to be in contact with hydrocarbons, a first of the two components including a fuel tank casing or a retaining member fastened to the fuel tank casing and a second of the two components including an element attached on an inside of the fuel tank casing, the two assembled components each comprising two pairs of tabs positioned so that each tab of said first component interacts with a corresponding tab of said second component when said first and second components are connected to each other, wherein each tab of one component defines an open groove and each tab of the other component slides through a corresponding open groove of the one component such that said components can be assembled together along opposed directions according to a location of the two pairs of tabs, and two tabs of the pair of tabs of the one component are aligned such that the grooves of each of the two tabs of the pair of tabs of the one component extend along a single line of extension, and each of the two tabs of the pair of tabs of the one component includes a stop that opposes translational movement of the one component when the one component is completely assembled on the other component, wherein the stops are positioned between the two tabs of the pair of tabs of the one component and along the single line of extension of the grooves of each of the two tabs of the pair of tabs of the one component, wherein at least one of the two components is made from a material that exhibits a swelling through action of the hydrocarbons, the tabs being arranged such that the swelling of the at least one of the two components through the effect of hydrocarbons tends to reinforce retention of the two components on one another, wherein the fuel tank casing comprises at least one inner layer forming a barrier to said hydrocarbons inside a wall of said fuel tank casing, wherein said inner layer forming the barrier to hydrocarbons reduces hydrocarbon permeation through said fuel tank casing, and the element attached on the inside of the fuel tank casing is attached to said fuel tank casing via said tabs that are attached to an exposed surface of said wall of said fuel tank casing without piercing and without impairing the inner layer forming said barrier inside said wall, and wherein the element attached to the inside of the fuel tank casing and said tabs are entirely contained inside the fuel tank casing without portions extending through holes in the fuel tank casing and without portions extending through holes in the inner layer forming the barrier to hydrocarbons.