Fuel metering device

Claim 1

AN IMPROVED LIGHTER COMPRISING, A FUEL CONTAINER CAPABLE OF HOLDING HIGHLY VOLATILE FUEL IN ITS LIQUID STATE ABOVE ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE, A BURNER NOZZLE MOUNTED ABOVE SAID FUEL TANK FOR DIRECTING THE FLOW OF GASEOUS FUEL FROM SAID TANK, A PASSAGEWAY INTERCONNECTING SAID FUEL CONTAINER AND SAID BURNER NOZZLE, AN ELONGATED POROUS ELEMENT CONTAINING THERETHROUGH A MYRIAD OF TORTUOUS INTERCONNECTED PASSAGEWAYS OF A SIZE SUFFICIENT TO PERMIT RESTRICTED BUT POSITIVE FLOW OF LIQUIDS AND FREE FLOW OF GASES, SAID ELONGATED POROUS ELEMENT MOUNTED TO EXTEND FROM A LOWER POINT WITHIN SAID CASING NEAR ITS BOTTOM TO AN UPPER POINT WITHIN SAID TUBULAR PASSAGEWAY LOCATED SUFFICIENTLY ABOVE THE MAXIMUM LIQUID LEVEL CAPACITY OF SAID CONTAINER TO PREVENT CAPILLARY WETTING OF SAID POROUS ELEMENT ABOVE SAID UPPER POINT, SAID ELONGATED POROUS ELEMENT ABOVE BEING PROVIDED OVER ITS ENTIRE LENGTH WITH A FLUID IMPERVIOUS LATERAL SURFACE WHICH IS TIGHTLY SEALED TO SAID TUBULAR PASSAGEWAY.