Fuel pump

Abstract

A side feed fuel pump with a tube for fixing a fuel filter is developed in that the tube is formed as a portion of an overall housing for jointly enclosing a pump section and a motor section for driving the pump section. The tube that projects laterally from the side feed fuel pump is formed of the overall housing that jointly encloses both the pump section and the motor section. Inner space of the tube forms an intake port, and the intake port communicates a side intake passage formed in the pump casing with an exterior of the fuel pump. A fuel filter can be easily attached to the tube. The tube may be formed by pressing metal plate or integrally molded with a main portion of the overall housing by resin material.

1 . A fuel pump comprising: 
 a pump section comprising a pump casing and an impeller enclosed within the pump casing;    a motor section for rotating the impeller; and    an overall housing for jointly enclosing the pump section and the motor section, the overall housing comprising a cylindrical main body and a tube projecting laterally from the cylindrical main body, wherein:    the impeller is formed in a substantially disk-like shape,    a plurality of recesses is formed at an upper face and a lower face of the impeller along an outer peripheral region of the impeller,    a pair of grooves for forming fuel pressuring passages with the plurality of recesses of the impeller is formed in inner faces of the pump casing, the pair of the grooves extending from an upstream end to a downstream end along the direction of rotation of the impeller,    a side intake passage is formed along a radius direction of the pump casing for communicating an exterior of the pump casing with the upstream end of the fuel pressuring passages,    a discharge passage is formed for communicating the downstream end of the fuel pressuring passage with the exterior of the pump casing, and    an inner space of the tube of the overall housing communicates with the side intake passage formed in the pump casing.    
   
   
       2 . A fuel pump as defined in  claim 1  further comprising a fuel filter, wherein 
 the fuel filter is mounted on the tube.    
   
   
       3 . A fuel pump as defined in  claim 1 , wherein 
 the cylindrical main body and the tube are integrally formed of metal plate.    
   
   
       4 . A fuel pump as defined in  claim 1 , wherein 
 the cylindrical main body and the tube are integrally molded by resin material.    
   
   
       5 . A fuel pump as defined in  claim 1 , wherein 
 the cylindrical main body and the tube are formed independently and bonded together.