Evaporated fuel gas purging system

• US 5,088,466 A
• Filed: 07/05/1991
• Issued: 02/18/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/1990
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha (Mitsubishi Electric Corporation)
• Inventors: Tada, Yasuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Cross, E. Rollins
• Assistant Examiner(s): Moulis, Thomas N.
• Application Number:
  US07/726,082
• Time in Patent Office: 228 Days
• Field of Search: 123/494, 123/516, 123/518, 123/519, 123/520, 123/521, 55/270, 55/18, 55/462, 55/387, 55/418
• US Class Current: 123/519
• CPC Class Codes: F02M 25/0809 Judging failure of purge control system
• CPC Class Codes: F02M 25/0836 Arrangement of valves controlling the admission of fuel vapour to an engine, e.g. valve being disposed between fuel tank or absorption canister and intake manifold

Abstract

An evaporated fuel gas purging system comprises a chamber having a case and a cap, the chamber being divided into a plurality of sub-chambers by partitioning plates each having through holes; a pair of electrodes provided in one of the sub-chambers, the one of sub-chambers being filled with an adsorbent and communicating with the other sub-chambers having an inlet port, an outlet port and a purge port, respectively; and a control circuit for detecting changes in electrical characteristics between the electrodes so that the amount of a fuel gas adsorbed by the adsorbent is detected. An evaporated fuel gas purging system further comprises a purging unit for purging the adsorbed gas, a control unit for controlling the purging unit, and a display unit operating in response to quantitative changes in the amount of the adsorbed gas. The display unit is operated in case a preserved difference does not occur in the amount of the adsorbed gas found by comparing the amount of the adsorbed gas detected at the time when the purging unit is not in operation and the amount of the adsorbed gas detected after the elapse of a prescribed duration of time after the control unit operated to put the purging unit into its operation.

Claims

1. An evaporated fuel gas purging system, comprising:

a chamber having a case and a cap, said chamber being divided into a plurality of sub-chambers by means of partitioning plates each having through holes;

a pair of electrodes provided in one of said sub-chambers, said one of sub-chambers being filled with an adsorbent and communicating with the other sub-chambers having an inlet port, an outlet port and a purge port, respectively; and

a control circuit for detecting changes in electrical characteristics of said adsorbent between said electrodes so that an amount of a fuel gas adsorbed by said adsorbent is detected.

2. An evaporated fuel gas purging system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said pair of electrodes are provided so as to be opposite to each other so that changes in electrical resistance or capacitance of said adsorbent between said electrodes are detected by said control circuit.

3. An evaporated fuel gas purging system as claimed in claim 2, wherein said control circuit is a bridge circuit using the electrical resistance of said adsorbent between said electrodes as one side of said bridge circuit.

4. An evaporated fuel gas purging system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a purging means for purging said adsorbed fuel gas adsorbed by said adsorbent, a control means for controlling said purging means, and a display means operating in response to quantitative changes in the amount of said adsorbed gas,

wherein said display means is operated in case a preserved difference does not occur in the amount of said adsorbed gas found by comparing the amount of said adsorbed gas detected at the time when said purging means is not in operation and the amount of said adsorbed gas detected after the elapse of a prescribed duration of time after said control means operated to put said purging means into its operation.