US1298080A - Fuel-tank. - Google Patents

Description

H. c. MOUGEY Q 1. M. HQJACOBS.

FUEL IANK. l APPLICAION FILED SEP`I|23| l9l8- Patented Mar. 25, 1919.

lilas?? MZESSES cendiary bullets,

UNITED rarnnr carica.

HARRY C. MOG-EY AND JAMES E. H, JJ'ACO-BS, OF DAYTON, OHIO, ASSIGNOBS TO THB `DAYTON METAL PRODUCTS COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

FUEL-TANK.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 25, 1919;

Mumien mea september 23, 191s. sei-iai no. 255,406.

To all Iwhom t may concern:

Bc it known that we, HARRY C. MOUGEY and JAMES M. H. JACOBS, citizens of the United States of America, residing at Dayton, county of Montgomery, State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fuel-Tanks, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description. i

This invention relates to fuel tanks and more particularly to an improved fuel tank especially adapted for use in airplanes.

The principal object of the invention is to provide an improved fuel tank constructed to prevent, under all circumstances, the leakage of fuel onto the airplane, to thus minimize, or entirely eliminate, the danger of having the airplane set on fire by inor otherwise, during flight.

Other objects and advantages of the inv-ention will be apparent from the description thereof set out below, reference being had to the accompanying drawing in which- .Figure 1 is a fragmentary diagrammatic view, in elevation, of a typical'form of airplane containing my improved fuel tank;

Fig. 2v is a transverse sectional view through the tank and airplane body, illustrated in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the device, with parts broken away to more clearly illustrate the construction.

In the drawing, in which like vcharacters of reference designate like parts throughout the several views thereof, 10 is the body, or fuselage, of a conventional airplane having the usual wings landing gear 13. The fuselage, 10 consists veneering 14 which is attached, in the conventionalway, to the vloiigerons 15. Any other type of covering for the body of the fuselage may be used if desired, the precise type of covering being a matter of/indifference so far-as this invention is concerned.

shell of the body, or of va thin sheetV of All the structure thus far described is purely conventional.

Our improved tank erally by the numeral 20. This tank consists of a met-al tank 21 preferably composed of a soft or ductile metal,l such las copper, adapted to contain the fuel. In order to secure the mostdesirable type of tank this metal should be of some material which 11, propeller 12 and is designated gen- -offers comparatively little resist-ance to the passage of the bullet therethrough. Where a metal such as the steel of which fuel tanks are ordinarily made is used it is found that when a bullet passes through the tank the hole in the side of the tankmade vby the bullet on entering will be clean cut and just large enough to permit the passage of the bullet, whereas the hole in the opposite side of the tank will at times be of considerable size, and even where it does not reach large proportions the metal surrounding the hole will often be carried along by the bullet to form outstanding, jagged projections. Where a soft or ductile metal suchas copper is used we have found that the hole made by the bullet on leavingtlie tank is not substantially larger than the hole made on entering the tank. And we have further found that there is practically no tendency for the bullet to form outstanding projections around the' exit hole made in passing through the metal. understood that the metal composing this tank need not necessarily be 4copper as it may bcv an-y desired soft or ductile metal, brass and soft steel giving very good results. Rigidly attached to the shell of the tank are several outstanding lugs or projections 22. As shown there,A are four of these lugs or projections 22 which serve as sup orts for the tank when it is mounted in t e body of the airplane. Any other supporting means desired may be used in place of these lugs. Opening into the tank through the upper end thereof is a passagev 23 lclosed by the cap 24 which is adaptedl to be threaded upon the wall of this passage for closing the tank. -This passage 23 is the conventional filling opening.

Surrounding the metallic tank 21 is a covering or bag of rubber 30. The purpose of using rubber is to secure a covering material adapted to quickly close up anyv holes that may be formed therein. In actual practice it has been found that if a bullet is shot through a rubber covering of substantial thickness, `a quarter of; an inch thick for example, the hole formed by 'such VEbullet will tend to close up, especially in the presence of a fuel such as gasolene, and will prevent the flow therethrough of any subfuel within the tank.

It is preferable that the We wish it expressly A the tank loosely. We have found that where the rubber covering nts the tank closely., as a coating, there is a tendency for the bullet passing through the tank to tear a large hole in the coating on its way out, but that where a loose rubber covering 1s used this tendency is practically eliminated. Surrounding the metallic tank 21 and its l loose rubber covering 30 is a second rubber covering 35 which is spaced from the first rubber covering, leaving a substantial space 31 between them. This covering, as sho-wn in the drawing, consists of three parts, a lower section 36 which covers the lower part ofthe tank, an upper. section 37 which covers the upper part of the tank, and a top section 38 vadapted to t within the upper section, to ti htly close that section, the three sections when in place thus forming what is in edect a one piece tank. As shown in the drawing the projections 22 pass entirely through the -inner rubber coverlng 30. The outer rubber covering, however, is so arranged that the upjper end of the lower section and the lower end of the upper section surround these projections and overlap. Passing through the rojections 22 are bolts 40 which also pass crough the over-.lapping ends of the upper and lower rubber sections 36 and 37 and through the longerons 15 and the cross #beams 4l, which extend between the longe rons and serve as supports for the tank. It is obvious that tightening the bolts e0, to hold the tank securely in position within the airplane, tends to press the over-lapping parts of the sections 36band 37 closely ,toget-her to thus ymake a tight joint and prevent any fuel that may leak intothe space 31 from escaping therethrough onto the parts of the airplane. T-o further insure the prevention of leakage through this joint onto the airplane theover-lapping ends of the rubber sections are so positioned that any fluid .flowing down the inner wall will tend to drain back into the lspace 31 and to not escape to the outside of the tank. The

. ysole reason for making the outer covering 35 whole is adapted to prevent leakageo in sections is to permit of easier assemblage. Obviously this covering may be made in one piece, or in ahy numberof pieces, if'desired so long as, when assembled, the covering as a fuel therethrough. The lower rubber section 36 has through the bottom thereof an outlet opening 45 adapted to permit the escape ltherethrough of any fuel that may leak into the space 31. Filling the space 31 is fibrous,

or some analogous material 32 adapted to cause any fuel that may leak into the space to drain through such material to the bottom ofthe space where it may escape through the i opening 45. In actual practice'we have used excelsior to llthe space 31. This material need not necessarilyv be absorbent but should be ofl such character that 'it will cause any incenso fuel leaking into the space to drain toward the openingin the bottom of the outer covering 35.

The purpose of this construction is thought obvious from the above description. The use of -a ductile metal tank prevents the bullet from tearing big holes in such tank and further prevents it from forming jagged outstanding projections around the 4exit hole. In the `absence of these objectionable features the bullet as it passes through the loose fitting rubber covering 30 normally makes a hole therein no larger than is necessary for permitting passage of the bullet. A hole of this size is generally quickly closed up by the rubber itself. As a result therefore the passage of a bullet completely through the inner tank and its inclosing rublber covering 30 will generally result in no appreciable leakage of fuel through the bullet holes, and even when such leakage occurs only a small quantity of fuel will escape. The ductile metal tank and its loose fitting rubber covering therefore are designed to prevent any leakage "of fuel from the tank when it is punctured by a bullet. If, however, such leakage does occur the fuel is caught 'by the material within the space 31, which tends `to break up any streams of fuel iiowing through holes in the tank 4to prevent the fuel from escaping through the corresponding holes in the outer covering, and is drained to the bottom of this space where it vcan escape through the opening 45. The eX- celsior or fibrous material also tends to prevent the formation of air currents through the space 31 which of itself minimizes the danger'of any fuel within such space being ignited, as 'by an incendiary bullet.

Coperating with the opening 45 is a funnel shaped member 50 which `is held i ace aga-inst the bottom ofthe section 36, and surrounding the opening 45 thereof, by means of a rubber' pad 51. Thispad 51 is located between the bottom of the section 36, and the funnel shaped member 50, and the bottom of the fuselage and is adapted to hold the funnel shaped member 50 tightly `against the bottom of the lower rubber section 36'to thus prevent leakage at this point. Obviously any other desired type of material may be used .for constituting this pad, but if desired it may be entirely dispensed with and some other desired means of connecting the funnel shaped member tightly to the rubber section 36 may be provided. Connected to the funnel shaped member 50 is a drain pipe 52 the lower end ofwhich terminates adjacent the lowest point of the landing gear 13. This pipe is also preferably of it too is punctured. It has been found in actual practice that where a drain pipe has its lower, or outlet, .end thus positioned any rubber, to minimize leakage in case is in ight will not be sprayed upon, the

parts'of the machine, but will be diipated into the atmosphere. And obviously while the machine is at rest none of the fuel will escape thereonto. It is not necessary that the drain pipe terminate adjacent the lowest part` of the landing gear, although we have found this location the most desirable one. It is only necessary that the outlet end of the drain pipe be so positioned that any fuel escaping therethrough shall not get upon the body or other parts of' the airplane. The common practice in aerial warfare is to use incendiary bullets. If one of these bullets passes through a part of an airplane saturated with gasolene the machine will be immediately set on fire and it is estimated that a large percentage of the fatalities in aerial warfare, probably above 75%, result from airplanes being thus set on fire. It is obvious that the location'of'the drain pipe terminal need only De such that it will prevent the escape of the fuel onto the parts of the airplane in case of leakage of fuel into the space 3l. A

From the above description the method of functioning of this apparatus isthought quite clear. The ductile metal tank and its loose covering, as stated above, are adapted to prevent any leakage of fuel. In case any such leakage should occur, however, the outer rubber covering with the material intermediate the two coverings is adapted to prevent the escape of any of this leaking fuel to the outside except through the drain pipe. And the drain pipe is so arranged that any fuel that may pass therethrough will be fed into the atmosphere at such a point that none of it will get upon the airplane or its parts. If desired the inner covering 3() may be dispensed with. Under such circumstances there will be nothing to prevent the escape into the space 31 of fuel in case the tank is punctured, but the .outer covering and fibrous material will be affective in catching such fuel and draining it away, without 'is mounted, being set on fire from incendiary bullets, or other causes, during flight.

While the form of mechanism herein shown and described constitutes a preferred form of embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopted, all coming within the scope of the claims which follow.

ObviouslyV What we claim is l. A fuel tank for airplanes comprising a thin metal tank adapted to contain the fuel; a loose covering of rubber inclosing 2. A fuel tank for airplanes comprising i a tank of ductile metal adapted .to contain the fuel ;l a loose cover of rubber inclosing said tank; and a second covering of rubber, inclosing the firstl mentionedcovering and spaced therefrom.

3.A fuel tank forairpla-nes comprising a thin ductile metal tank adapted lto contain the fuel; a loose covering of rubber inclosing said tank; and a second covering of rubber, inclosing the first lmentioned covering and spaced therefrom.

4. Al fuel tank for airplanes comprising a thin metal tank ladapted to contain the fuel; a loosev covering `of rubber inclosing said tank; a second covering of rubber inclosing the first mentioned covering and spaced therefrom; and adrain, opening through the outer covering, connecting the space between the two coverings, at its lowest points, with the atmosphere.

5. A fuel tank for airplanes'comprising a ductile metal tank adapted to contain the fuel; .a loose covering of rubber inclosing said tank; a second covering of rubber inclosing the firs-t mentioned covering and spaced therefrom; and a drain Vopening through the outer covering and connecting the space between the two coverings with the atmosphere, said drain having its outer end positioned to prevent the escape onto the airplane of any fuel escaping therethrough.

6. A fuel tank for airplanes comprising a ductile metal tank adapted to contain the fuel; a loose covering of rubber inclosing said tank; a second covering of rubber inclosing the rst mentioned covering and spaced\ therefrom; and a draln opening through the outer covering and connecting the space between the two coverings at its lowest point, with the atmosphere, said drain terminating adJacent the owest point of the landing gear of the airplane.

7. A fuel tank for airplanes comprising a ductile metal tank adapted to contain the fuel; a loose covering of rubber inclosing said tank; a second covering of rubber inclosing the first mentioned covering and spaced therefrom; .material within said space adapted to drain any fuel that may 'escape thereon to the bottom of said space;

and a drain opening through the outer covering and connectmg said space, at its vlowest point, with the atmosphere.

- 8. In an airplane, a fuel tank, constructed to prevent leakage of fuel onto thevairplane, comprisinga metal tank adapted to contain the fuel; a loose covering of rubber inolosing said tank; a Seooncl ooveringof ruhber inelosing the first mentioned covering and spaced therefrom; and a drain oonf Heating said space with the atmosphere.

9. ln an airplane, a fuel tank, oonstruoecl to prevent leakage of fuel onto the airplane, comprising a thin metal .tank adaptedL to contain the fuel; a loose covering of rubber inolosing said tank; a second covering of ruhher inolosing the tank and spaced there from; and a drain oonneoting the space to the atmosphere, the outer enel of said drain being positioned to prevent the escape onto the airplane of any fuel passing themal through.

l0.. A fuel tank for airplanes comprising a metal tank adapted to contain the fuel; a covering inolosing saicl tank and spaoecl therefrom, hrous material Within the space between the tank and covering; and a drain through said covering connecting the space with the atmospheres.

l1. A. fuel tank for airplanes comprising a metal` tank adapted to contain the fuel;

ineaeeo 4a rubber covering inolosing said tank and spaced therefrom, fibrous material, such as enoelsior, Withinv the space between the tank and covering; and a drain through said covering connecting the space, at its lowest point, with the atmosphere.

l2. In an airplane, a fuel tank, construotecl to prevent leakage of fuel onto the airplane, oomprising 'a tank adapted to oontain the fuel; a rubber covering nolosing said tank and spaced therefrom, ibrous Inaterial, suoli as excelsior, within the space between the tank and covering; and a drain through the covering connecting4 the spaoe to the atmosphere, the outer end of said drain being positioned to prevent the escape onto the airplane of any fuel passing therethrough.

our signaln testimony whereof We alix tures.

HARRY C. MOUGEY. JAMES M. H. JACOBS. itnesses: Y

L. CLEMENTS, 'lnornas Ninerlnr, Jr.

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