Patent EP0202201A2 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
EP0202201A2
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EP
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Lubricating oil filter for internal combustion engines, particularly of motor vehicles, with members for monitoring the degree of clogging of the filtration surface
Assignee: Ital Idee SRL
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Filing: 1986-05-05
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2006-05-05
Abstract
Abstract The lubricating oil filter of the invention comprises an outer casing (1) which houses a filter element (2) through which the oil passes, a pressure relief valve (5) which prevents the oil passing through said filter element (2) in the case of ' excessive pressure drop, and mutually facing metal plates separated by the filter element (2) and arranged to form a capacitor, of which the filter element (2) forms the dielectric, one of the plates being connected to the vehicle earth and the other being connected to an electrical conductor (8) leading to the outside of the filter, the pressure relief valve (5) being provided with means for connecting the electrical conductor (8) to earth in the case of high pressure drop in the oil flow through the filter element, and with further means for connecting the electrical conductor (8) to earth following repeated opening movements of the pressure relief valve (5), there being provided an instrument for measuring the capacitance of said capacitor and for indicating when the electrical conductor (8) has been connected to earth.
Inventors
- 👤 Angelo Cantoni
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-28 20:11
CPC Classifications
B; B01; B01D; B01D27/00; B01D27/10; B01D27/101; B01D27/103; B01D35/00; B01D35/14; B01D35/143; B01D35/147
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
237 words
A lubricating oil filter for internal combustion engines, particularly for motor vehicles, with members for monitoring the degree of clogging of the filtration surface, characterised by comprising an outer casing (1) which is provided with an end cover (4) connectable to the engine lubrication circuit and containing passages for oil inlet and outlet, and which houses a filter element (2) through which the oil passes, there also being provided a pressure relief valve (5) which prevents the oil passing through said filter element (2) in the case of excessive pressure drop, and mutually facing metal plates separated by the filter element and arranged to form a capacitor, of which the filter element (2) forms the dielectric, one of the plates being connected to the vehicle earth and the other being connected to an electrical conductor (8) leading to the outside of the filter, the pressure relief valve (5) being provided with means for connecting the electrical conductor (8) to earth in the case of high pressure drop in the oil flow through the filter element (2), and with further means, for connecting the electrical conductor (8) leading to the outside of the filter to earth following repeated opening movements of the pressure relief valve (5), there being provided an instrument for measuring the capacitance of said capacitor and for indicating when the electrical conductor (8) leading to the outside of the filter has been connected to earth.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
237 words
A lubricating oil filter for internal combustion engines, particularly for motor vehicles, with members for monitoring the degree of clogging of the filtration surface, characterised by comprising an outer casing (1) which is provided with an end cover (4) connectable to the engine lubrication circuit and containing passages for oil inlet and outlet, and which houses a filter element (2) through which the oil passes, there also being provided a pressure relief valve (5) which prevents the oil passing through said filter element (2) in the case of excessive pressure drop, and mutually facing metal plates separated by the filter element and arranged to form a capacitor, of which the filter element (2) forms the dielectric, one of the plates being connected to the vehicle earth and the other being connected to an electrical conductor (8) leading to the outside of the filter, the pressure relief valve (5) being provided with means for connecting the electrical conductor (8) to earth in the case of high pressure drop in the oil flow through the filter element (2), and with further means, for connecting the electrical conductor (8) leading to the outside of the filter to earth following repeated opening movements of the pressure relief valve (5), there being provided an instrument for measuring the capacitance of said capacitor and for indicating when the electrical conductor (8) leading to the outside of the filter has been connected to earth.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
48 words
A lubricating oil filter according to claim 1, characterised in that the filter element (2) is supported internally by a metal grid (7) which forms one of the plates of the capacitor, it being electrically connected to the electrical conductor (8) leading to the otuside of the filter.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
56 words
A lubricating oil filter according to any of claims 1 and 2, characterised in that the outer casing (1) of the filter is of metal material which is electrically isolated from the metal support grid (7) for the filter element (2) and is connected to the vehicle earth, to form the second plate of said capacitor.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
56 words
A lubricating oil filter according to any of claims 1 and 2, characterised in that externally to the filter element (2) and facing the metal grid (7) there is provided a metal element which is electrically isolated from the grid and is connected electrically to the vehicle earth, to form the second plate of said capacitor.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
174 words
A lubricating oil filter according to claim 1, characterised in that the pressure relief valve (5) comprises a cylinder (15, 15a) in which a piston (16, 16a) can slide against friction and has one of its faces in hydraulic communication with the zone (17) upstream of the filter element (2) and its other in communication with the zone (18) downstream of the filter element (2), with respect to the oil path through the filter, there being provided a pair of separated electrical contacts (20-21, 20a-21a) one of which is connected to the vehicle earth ahd the other is connected to the electrical conductor (8) leading to the outside of the filter, they being arranged to come into mutual electrical contact, so closing the circuit which connects the conductor to earth, when the piston (16, 16a) reaches the end of its stroke of travel within the cylinder (15, 15a), this travel being due to the existence of a pressure difference between its faces which produces a thrust exceeding the friction resistance which opposes its sliding.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
144 words
A lubricating oil filter according to claim 1, characterised in that in the pressure relief valve (5) there is a cylinder (25) in which a piston (26) can slide against friction and has one of its faces in hydraulic communication with the zone (18) downstream of the filter element (2), with respect to the oil path through the filter, and its other face in communication with a zone (17) through which the oil passes when the pressure relief valve (5) is open, there being provided a pair of electrical contacts (28, 29) arranged to be urged into mutual contact by said piston (26) when it reaches the end of its stroke of travel within the cylinder (25), this travel being due to successive opening movements of the pressure relief valve (5), and thus closing the circuit which connects the electrical conductor (8) to earth.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
119 words
A lubricating oil filter according to claim 1, characterised in that the means for connecting the conductor (8) to earth following repeated opening movements of the pressure relief valve (5) are formed from a layer (37) of insulating material applied to the sealing surface of the valving member (lla) and electrically separating said valving member (lla) from its closure seat, the valving member (lla) and the closure seat being electrically conducting and connected to the vehicle earth and to the electrical conductor (8) leading to the otuside of the filter, the insulating material forming the layer (37) applied to the valving member (lla) being erodable by the oil flow through the pressure relief valve (5) when this is open.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
87 words
A lubricating oil filter according to any of claims 1 to 7, characterised in that an electrical capacity meter can be connected to the electrical conductor (8) leading to the outside of the filter in order to measure the capacitance of the capacitor, which capacity meter can be calibrated in relation to the electrical characteristics of the type of filter measured, to provide an indication of the effective capacitance of the capacitor, which is variable up to a value which indicates the need for replacing the filter.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
76 words
A lubricating oil filter according to any of claims 1 to 8, characterised in that an instrument for measuring the capacitance of the capacitor and/or for indicating the closure of the electrical contacts can be permanently mounted on the vehicle and connected to said electrical conductor (8), and comprise an electronic circuit arranged to cause a signal to appear on the dashboard when the capacitance of the capacitor passes beyond a predetermined value and/or when said
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
41 words
A lubricating oil filter according to claim 9, characterised in that the electronic circuit causes the warning lamp connected to the oil circuit pressure switch and already present on the motor vehicle dashboard to light, for example with an intermittent signal.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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