Patent ID: 8677690

Claim:
A fuel door opening and closing apparatus for a vehicle comprising: a fuel door housing including a hinge axis; a fuel door including a hinge portion rotatably mounted to the fuel door housing about the hinge axis; a motor mounted to the fuel door housing adjacent the hinge axis; a locking rod configured to be moved between a locking position for locking the fuel door to the fuel door housing and a releasing position for unlocking the fuel door from the fuel door housing; and a power transmission operably coupling the motor and the locking rod and configured to receive power from the motor, convert rotation of the motor to linear movement, and transmit the linear movement to the locking rod; wherein the fuel door rotates with respect to the hinge axis when disengaged from the locking rod by the linear movement of the locking rod to the releasing portion; and wherein the power transmission is positioned between the motor and the locking rod and spaced from the hinge axis; wherein a stopper is fixed to the housing of the power transmission under a complex gear and stops rotation of the complex gear by engaging with a step formed on a bottom surface of the complex gear; and wherein an air pocket is formed in the stopper to prevent noise from being generated when the complex gear is impacted by the stopper.