Fuel volume meter

• US 4,250,748 A
• Filed: 08/15/1978
• Issued: 02/17/1981
• Est. Priority Date: 08/19/1977
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Haldex AB A Swedish Joint Stock Company
• Original Assignee: Haldex AB (SAF-HOLLAND SE)
• Inventors: Wallqvist, Sven
• Primary Examiner(s): Goldstein, Herbert
• Application Number:
  US05/933,899
• Time in Patent Office: 917 Days
• Field of Search: 73/247
• US Class Current: 73/247
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 1/04 with fuel-air mixture admission into cylinder
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 3/18 involving two or more cylinders

Abstract

Two pairs of reciprocating pistons are selectively driven by a volume of fluid to be measured. The pairs are perpendicular to one another and connected to a crank for converting the reciprocating motion into rotary motion to magnetically drive a recording means. A valve is driven by the crank for selectively controlling the flow of the liquid into the piston bores. A conical member limits the stroke of one set of the pistons thereby adjusting the stroke of the meter. The member has a bimetal unit which automatically adjusts the stroke in response to the temperature of the liquid.

Claims

1. In a liquid volume meter having a housing (13) through which a volume of liquid to be measured passes, the housing formed with an inner chamber including an inlet (11) and an outlet (12) and having a drive means for driving a recording means in response to the liquid flow through the housing, said drive means comprising:

(a) first reciprocating means comprising a first pair of opposing pistons connected by a first rod located within a first bore in the housing;

(b) second reciprocating means comprising a second pair of opposing pistons connected by a second rod located within a second bore in the housing;

(c) rotary valve means for successively connecting the inlet and outlet to the first and second bores, the liquid flow through said housing as controlled by said valve means imparting a reciprocating motion to said first and second reciprocating means;

(d) transformation means connected to said first and second reciprocating means for converting the reciprocating motion into a rotary motion for driving the recording means;

(e) stroke adjusting means for adjusting a stroke of the reciprocating motion by limiting the stroke of one of the reciprocating means by limiting the stroke of the first rod wherein the first and second rods are connected to the transformation means and the stroke of the second rod is unaffected by said stroke adjusting means and said first rod has an opening therein, the adjusting means including a conical member supported by the housing and projecting into said opening and means for adjusting the depth of the conical member projecting into said opening whereby the stroke of said first rod is adjustable depending upon the penetration of the conical member into said opening.

2. The drive means of claim 1 wherein said first rod is perpendicular to said second rod.

3. The drive means of claim 2 wherein said first rod has a first central transverse elongated opening therein and said second rod has a second central transverse elongated opening (26) therein juxtapositioned over the first opening and wherein a crank is located within said first and second openings and is connected to said valve means.

4. The drive means of claim 3 wherein said first pair of opposing pistons is a first left piston forming a first left chamber (80) within the first bore of an opposing first right piston forming an opposing first right chamber (82) within the first bore;

and said second pair of opposing pistons is a second left piston forming a second left chamber (81) within the second bore and an opposing second right piston forming an opposing second right chamber (83) within the second bore; and

wherein said valve successively exclusively connects the inlet selectively to a given one of said chambers and, in a corresponding manner, said valve means successively exclusively connects the outlet to the opposing chamber of said given chamber.

5. The drive means of claim 4 wherein said housing defines an inner chamber connected (136) to the inlet and having a plane valve surface (134) having a central hole (135) communicating with the outlet;

further including four second holes (70-73) equidistantly arranged about said central hole, each said second hole communicating with one of said chambers (80-83), respectively;

a circular plate valve (20) connected to said crank (33) and disposed over the plane valve surface providing rotational movement in response to said reciprocating motion thereby selectively connecting the inlet and outlet to opposing chambers.

6. The drive means of claim 5 wherein said circular plate valve (20) is a disc having a lower circular recess (53) on the side of the disc contacting the plane valve surface, said recess (53) having a diameter substantially equal to the sum of the distance between central hole (135) and a given one of said second holes (70-73) added to the diameter of said central hole added to the diameter of the given one of said second holes;

and wherein the axis of rotation of said crank coincides with the central axis of the central hole (135) whereby liquid flow through the housing causes reciprocating motion of said pistons which in converted into rotary motion by said crank to drive the recording means.

7. The drive means of claim 3 wherein said crank is magnetically connected to the recording member.

8. The drive means of claim 3 wherein a compression spring (18) interconnects said valve means and said crank.

9. The drive means of claim 1 wherein said transformation means is magnetically connected to the recording member.

10. In a liquid volume meter having a housing through which a volume of liquid to be measured passes, the housing formed with an inner chamber including an inlet and an outlet and having a drive means for driving a recording means in response to the liquid volume flow through the housing, said drive means comprising:

(a) first reciprocating means located within a first bore in the housing;

(b) second reciprocating means located within a second bore in the housing;

(c) valve means for successively connecting the inlet and outlet to the first and second bores, the liquid flow through said housing as controlled by said valve means imparting a reciprocating motion to said first and second reciprocating means;

(d) transformation means connected to said first and second reciprocating means for converting the reciprocating motion into a rotary motion for driving the recording means, wherein said first reciprocating means is a first pair of opposing pistons connected by a first rod and said second reciprocating means is a second pair of opposing pistons connected by a second rod, said first and second rods connected to said transformation means, said first rod is perpendicular to said second rod, said first rod has a first central transverse elongated opening therein and said second rod has a second central transverse elongated opening therein juxtapositioned over the first opening and wherein a crank is located within said first and second openings and is connected to said valve means, said first pair of opposing pistons is a first left piston forming a first left chamber within the first bore of an opposing first right piston forming an opposing first right chamber within the first bore; and

said second pair of opposing pistons is a second left piston forming a second left chamber within the second bore and an opposing second right piston forming an opposing second right chamber within the second bore; and

wherein said valve means successively exclusively connects the inlet selectively to a given one of said chambers and, in a corresponding manner, said valve means successively exclusively connects the outlet to the opposing chamber of said given chamber, said housing defines an inner chamber connected to the inlet and having a plane valve surface having a central hole communicating with the outlet;

further including four second holes equidistantly arranged about said central hole, each said second hole comunicating with one of said chambers, respectively;

a circular plate valve connected to said crank and disposed over the plane valve surface providing rotational movement in response to said reciprocating motion thereby selectively connecting the inlet and outlet to opposing chambers, said circular plate valve is a disc having a lower circular recess on the side of the disc contacting the plane valve surface, said recess having a diameter substantially equal to the sum of the distance between central hole and a given one of said second holes added to the diameter of said central hole added to the diameter of the given one of said second holes; and

wherein the axis of rotation of said crank coincides with the central axis of the central hole whereby liquid flow through the housing causes reciprocating motion of said pistons which is converted into rotary motion by said crank to drive the recording means, said first rod has an opening therein, and further including a calibration means having a conical member supported by the housing and projecting into said opening and means for adjusting the depth of the conical member projecting into said opening whereby the stroke of said first reciprocating means and, consequently, said drive means is adjustable depending upon the penetration of the conical member into said opening, and said means for adjusting is comprised of a temperature compensating means for adjusting the penetration of the conical member in response to the temperature of the liquid within the housing.

11. The drive means of claim 10 wherein said temperature compensating means is located within the inner chamber in direct contact with the liquid and includes a bimetal means (108, 109) which varies the penetration of the conical member as a function of the liquid temperature.

12. The drive means of claim 11 wherein said bimetal means is comprised of two bows of bimetal (108) interconnecting the housing and the conical member.