Venting cap with splash guard

Abstract

The application relates to a venting cap for oil tanks of machines and machinery, including: a cup fitted with a flange along its outer surface, with this flange bearing coupling elements underneath it with complementary elements provided on the access sleeve of the tanks and at the top of shaped engagement tabs, a lid for closing the cup that is snap-fitted onto the cup, fitted with a flange, wherein: the flanged partition houses on its lower surface an insert with a substantially cylindrical profile, the cup body is associated with a spiral labyrinth on top of which is fitted the means for engaging the cup; and above the flange of the cup there is a collar fitted with an external toroidal groove that engages with a raised toroidal thread along the inner surface of an upper closing lid of the cup.

Claims

1. Venting cap for oil tanks of machines and machinery, comprising: a cup that is fitted with a flange along its outer surface, with said flange bearing coupling elements being provided on an underside of the flange, with complementary elements provided on the access sleeve of said tanks and at the top of shaped engagement tabs, wherein the cup houses an insert secured therein with a substantially cylindrical profile, wherein a lower surface of the cup comprises a cavity; a splash guard, comprising a spiral labyrinth, that is partially received within the cavity, wherein an upper portion of the spiral labyrinth has a means for engaging the insert within the cup, comprising an elastic prong, and wherein a lower portion of the spiral labyrinth is located below the flange and external to the cup; a lid for closing the cup, wherein the lid is configured to be snap-fitted onto the cup, wherein a collar is located above the flange of the cup, the collar having an external toroidal groove, the external toroidal groove being configured to engage with a raised toroidal thread along an inner surface of the lid to thereby snap-fit the lid onto the cup.

2. The venting cap for oil tanks of machines and machinery of claim 1, wherein said cup constitutes, above said flange, a chamber bordered laterally by a cylindrical wall and centrally by said insert.

3. The venting cap for oil tanks of machines and machinery of claim 1, wherein said cup, beneath said flange, is externally provided with a male thread, and is hollow internally, except for a radial partition, a bottom surface of which bears a cavity that acts as an abutment for said spiral labyrinth.

4. The venting cap for oil tanks of machines and machinery of claim 1, wherein said spiral labyrinth is hollow in its centre so as to accommodate an upper portion of a dipstick.

5. The venting cap of claim 1, wherein said insert is comprised of a hollow cylindrical body having on its external surface at least two engagement grooves respectively engaging with said prong of said spiral labyrinth.

6. The venting cap of claim 5, wherein said insert has a grooved internal surface.

7. The venting cap of claim 4, wherein said dipstick is held in stable engagement within the internal cavity of said insert.

8. The venting cap of claim 1, wherein said prong and said insert are engaged by snap-action elements.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) Here below is the description of the cap according to the model, referring to a particular variant thereof, as is depicted in the pictures, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is the front view of the invention, of which

(3) FIG. 2 is the sectional view along the line A-A of FIG. 1

(4) and FIG. 3 is the sectional view along the line B-B of FIG. 2;

(5) FIG. 4 is the view of detail X of FIG. 3;

(6) FIG. 5 is the view of detail Y of FIG. 2;

(7) FIG. 6 is an exploded lateral view of a first embodiment of the cap according to the invention, of which

(8) FIG. 7 is an axial sectional view along the line E-E of FIG. 6;

(9) FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 2, in axial section along the line F-F of FIG. 7.

DESCRIPTION OF EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

(10) According to the first embodiment, the cap comprises a cup 1 which has a substantially cylindrical shape, approximately half-way up which there is a flanged longitudinal partition 2, beneath which there is a threaded portion 3 which engages with the upper extremity of the tank filler pipe (not shown) at the top of the shaped engagement tabs. Above said cup there is a cover 4.

(11) A dipstick 5 is connected to said cup 1, on top of which there is a spiral labyrinth 6 that has a prong 7 on its upper part.

(12) Internally, the cup 1 is made up of a cylindrical body divided longitudinally about half-way up by said flanged partition 2, which has a central hole 8. In correspondence with said central hole 8 there is an insert 9 for housing the top portion of the dipstick 5 and engagement with said prong 7, said insert 9 coming into contact with the inner surface of the cap base 4.

(13) In particular, said coupling 9 comprises a cylindrical body, which is hollow on the inside and has tapered internal walls. Externally, the coupling 9 has a lower groove for housing said prong 7 and an upper groove for housing the means of engagement affixed integrally to the aforesaid cup 1.

(14) Typically, the prong 7 and the means of engagement of said cup are constituted by a highly elastic element, so as to be able to snap on to and engage with the cup 1, integrating itself with it.

(15) In the upper portion, the cup 1 constitutes a chamber 10 bordered laterally by a cylindrical wall 11, and below by the flanged partition 8, and centrally by the insert 9.

(16) In the lower portion, the exterior of the cup 1 has a thread 3, and a radial partition 12, the bottom surface of which bears a cavity 13 that acts as an abutment for the labyrinth 6.

(17) The engagement between the lid 4 and the cup 1 occurs thanks to the presence of a collar 14 equipped with an external toroidal groove 15 for engagement with a raised toroidal thread 16 provided along the inner surface of an upper closing lid of said cup 1.

(18) Between the flange 2 and the collar 14, there is a groove 17, which favours the passage of air in both directions, between the tank and the external environment.

(19) To allow the correct positioning of the dipstick with respect to the body of the cap, the labyrinth 6 is centrally perforated, in such a way that the extremity of the dipstick can fit correctly inside the insert 9.

(20) In the second embodiment, the cap assembly is substantially identical to the one described so far, with the exception of the fact that no dipstick is envisaged: the splash guard 6 is directly connected to the cup.

(21) The structure made in this way is relatively simple to construct; given that it comprises single pieces that do not require processing in the production phase, the assembly can be carried out rapidly, adapting the product to the requirements of the end user. In particular, it will be understood from what is reported below as regards the assembly, that—whichever embodiment is selected—the protected solution can be easily assembled also by the purchaser before application to the tank.

(22) Assembly is relatively simple: the operator takes care to bring the lid 4 into mutual engagement with the cup 1, and to bring the labyrinth 6 and the dipstick 5 into engagement with the cup 1. In particular, the labyrinth 6 fits within the cavity 13, while the dipstick 5 is positioned within the insert 9. If necessary, it is possible to arrange for the association between the labyrinth 6 and the dipstick 5 before positioning the assembly inside the cup 1. In order to ensuring that the dipstick 5 is correctly held in position, it can be shaped with two semi-circular notches at one end, which is opportunely brought inside said insert 9, so that it interferes with it, causing a slight deformation of the internal surface of said insert 9, forming an undercut.

(23) Thus assembled, the whole unit is then brought into engagement with the filler pipe of the tank, in accordance with well-known methods.

(24) Thus, a cap assembly is achieved which is arranged with a labyrinth inside it and at the same time with an external spiral labyrinth, arranged in such a way as to be an appendage of the cup-shaped body which constitutes the main and original component of the labyrinth inside the cap. The interchangeability of the external splash guard element with or without a dipstick means it is possible to make the entire product even more versatile.

(25) In the same way, although it is more complex than existing ones, the labyrinth structure allows the vapours to escape through the loops of the labyrinth, which have a cooling function that causes condensation, with the consequent formation of droplets that drip back into the chamber beneath.

(26) In this way, the sealing of the cap and the cleanliness of the machinery is guaranteed, maintaining the desired properties of a device that is easy to manufacture and which has a much longer working life than currently available caps.

(27) It appears evident that the main purpose of the invention has thus been achieved, namely a cap system that is easy to manufacture and which still maintains excellent sealing properties.

(28) It is understood that the solutions described above are only some of the possible embodiments of this invention, and that there may be several variants that lie within the scope of protection defined by the attached claims.

(29) In particular, it is also possible to provide a cap that includes a cup housing a dipstick, the two semi-circular notches of the dipstick making interference with the internal surface of the insert provided in the cup with the consequent slight deformation of its internal surface and the creation of an undercut.