US 12,117,003 B2
Flexible crescent for low pressure fuel pump
Amol Yashwant Alsundkar, Pune (IN); Senthil Kumar Selvaraj, Chennai (IN); Nitin Khojare, Amravati (IN); Rashmi Prakash Keskar, Pune (IN); and Jayesh Mahadev Gudekar, Pune (IN)
Assigned to Cummins Inc., Columbus, IN (US)
Appl. No. 17/785,865
Filed by Cummins Inc., Columbus, IN (US)
PCT Filed Dec. 14, 2020, PCT No. PCT/US2020/064852
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jun. 15, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/126766, PCT Pub. Date Jun. 24, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 201911052427 (IN), filed on Dec. 17, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2024/0011481 A1, Jan. 11, 2024
Int. Cl. F04C 2/10 (2006.01); F04C 15/06 (2006.01)
CPC F04C 2/101 (2013.01) [F04C 15/06 (2013.01); F04C 2210/203 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A fuel pump assembly comprising:
a fuel pump housing,
an inner gear comprising inner gear teeth, rotatably coupled to the fuel pump housing;
an outer gear comprising outer gear teeth, rotatably coupled to the fuel pump housing and configured to operably mesh with the inner gear;
a retaining member having a body, comprising at least one coupling member protruding from the body and at least one retaining indent on an outer surface of the body, the retaining member directly coupled to the fuel pump housing through the at least one coupling member and located between the outer gear and the inner gear;
a crescent member comprising at least one outer surface and a gap in the at least one outer surface configured to allow fuel to at least partially flow through the gap into the crescent member, the crescent member being coupled to the outer surface of the retaining member and including at least one protruding indent at an inner surface thereof to interface with the at least one retaining indent of the retaining member, the crescent member being flexible such that a force applied to the crescent by the inner gear teeth or the outer gear teeth causes the crescent member to flex;
an inlet that allows fuel to enter the fuel pump assembly; and
an outlet that allows fuel to leave the fuel pump assembly, wherein the fuel enters the fuel pump through the inlet, increases in pressure due to at least the rotation of the inner gear, and leaves the fuel pump through the outlet.