WO1990005838A1

WO1990005838A1 - Marine drive with improved inboard engine oil drain system

Info

Publication number: WO1990005838A1
Application number: PCT/US1989/005363
Authority: WO
Inventors: Gary L. Meisenburg
Original assignee: Brunswick Corporation
Priority date: 1988-11-23
Filing date: 1989-11-21
Publication date: 1990-05-31

Abstract

A marine drive includes an engine (5) mounted inboard of a boat (3). An oil pan (7) is suspended beneath the engine, and is connectable through a flexible tube (15) to a collapsible shape-conforming oil-receiving and storage bladder (10) which is adapted to be easily placed in the confining space (9) between the oil pan and the boat floor. The bladder will conform to the shape of essentially any support, such as upwardly extending projections (21, 22) of various contours, and in the present embodiments includes a grasping handle (23, 26) for convenience. A flow control device (14) is disposed between the oil pan and bladder. Furthermore, the connecting tube is mounted adjacent the bottom (8) of the oil pan.

Description

MARINE DRIVE WITH IMPROVED INBOARD ENGINE OIL DRAIN SYSTEM

Background of the Invention

This invention relates to a marine drive having an improved engine oil drain system.

In marine drives with an engine mounted inboard of the boat, an oil pan is often mounted beneath the engine and extends downwardly toward the bottom of the boat.

Heretofore, when it has been desired. to change the engine oil, it has usually been necessary to utilize a pump which sucks the oil out of the oil pan, thus requiring that the boat be in dock and often out of the water. Furthermore, pumping the oil out has created problems of access to the pan and has been found not to remove all of the oil and undesirable contaminants from the pan itself.

It is an object of the invention to eliminate the. need for connecting an oil-removal pump to the oil pan, and to provide a system of oil removal such that the engine oil can be easily changed, even when the boat is in the water and away from the dock. It is a further object to provide for easy access to the oil pan as well as storage of the drained oil, such as in the normally confined space between the oil pan and the boat floor, regardless of any projections extending upwardly from the floor. An additional object is to be able to remove essentially all of the oil and any contaminants from the oil pan.

The present invention therefore provides a marine drive arrangement for a boat, the combination comprising, an inboard engine, an oil pan disposed on said engine, collapsible oil storage means adapted to be supported within the boat, said oil storage means being shape conforming to the shape of essentially any support within the boat on which said oil storage means rests, and means connecting said oil storage means with the interior of said oil pan.

The present invention further provides for use with a marine drive arrangement for a boat and wherein said arrangement includes an inboard engine having an oil pan, collapsible flexible oil storage means adapted to be fluidly connected to the interior of the said oil pan for receiving used oil from the latter, said oil storage means being shape conforming to the shape of essentially any support within the boat on which said oil storage means rests.

In the preferred embodiment, an oil pan is sus¬ pended beneath the engine, and is connectable through a flexible tube to a collapsible shape-conforming oil- receiving and storage bladder which is adapted to be easily placed in the confining space between the oil pan and the boat floor. The bladder will conform to the shape of essenti¬ ally any support, smch. as upwardly extending projections of various contours, and in another embodiment includes a grasping handle for convenience. For the preferred embodiment, a flow control device is disposed between the oil pan and bladder. Furthermore, the connecting tube is mounted adjacent the bottom of the oil pan.

Brief Description of the Drawings The accompanying drawings illustrate the best mode presently contemplated by the inventor for carrying out the invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a schematic side elevational view of .a marine drive system which incorporates the various aspects of the invention; Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary transverse sectional view of a collapsible bladder disposed between stringers in the bottom of the boat;

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 of a bladder disposed over a stringer; and

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary view of a second embodiment.

Description of the Preferred Embodiments

As best shown in Figure 1 of the drawings, the various aspects of the invention are contemplated for use in connection with a marine drive arrangement which in the present instance includes a stern drive unit 1 adapted to be suitably mounted to the transom 2 of a boat 3 having a bottom floor 4. An internal combustion marine engine 5 is disposed inboard of boat 3, in this instance at the boat stern adjacent transom 2, and includes a drive output 6 which extends through the transom to unit 1 in the usual manner.

The marine drive and engine 5 include the usual circulating oil system, and an oil pan 7 having a bottom 8 is suitably suspended from the engine so that it extends downwardly toward boat floor 4. The space 9 between floor 4 and bottom 8 is often relatively confined.

It is desirable to place an easily manipulatable oil receiving and storage device in space 9. For this, purpose, a collapsible shape-conforming oil-receiving and storage bladder 10 is provided, with bladder 10 having a relatively thin generally flexible main body portion 11 and a thicker enlarged neck portion 12 terminating in an end closure 13. Bladder 10 may be made of any suitable material, such as neoprene. The collapsibility of bladder 10 is such that it may be manually flattened for squeezing into and positioning within space 9. Means are provided to selectively connect bladder 10 with the interior of oil pan 7. For this purpose, an "on-off" control valve 14 is mounted adjacent pan bottom 8 and connected to the interior of the pan. In the present embodiment, valve 14 is manually actuatable and is mounted directly to pan bottom 8. A flexible fluid flow tube 15 is suitably connected at one end to valve 14. The other tube end 16 is removably and tightly fit into an opening 17 in bladder end closure 13, In addition, a vent tube 18 is tightly fit within a second opening 19 in closure 13 and permits- communication between the bladder interior and the outside.

Bladder IQ, being disposed within boat 3. and below engine 5, serves as a standby unit which is available at any time for use during an oil change procedure. W en an oil change is desired, control valve 14 is opened which permits oil to flow from oil pan 7 and through, tube 15 and into bladder 10.' As this occurs, air within the hladder vents out through tube 18. Valve 14 is then closed. Bladder 10 subsequently serves, as an oil storage device until there is a convenient place and time for dumping the hladder. At such time, tube 15 is removed and oil is dumped out through opening 17.

The positioning of the upper inlet for fluid flow tube 15 at oil pan bottom 8, as shown, or closely adjacent thereto, assures, that essentially all of the oil and contaminants within the pan will be drained out to the bladder.

The collapsible flexible nature of bladder 10 is such, that it will conform to the contour or shape of essentially any support within the boat including the boat floor and anything sitting on and projecting upwardly from the floor itself. This is true whether bladder 10 is empty or full. As shown in Figure 2, bladder 10 is positioned so that its main body 11 is conformingly disposed in a pocket 20 formed by boat floor 4 and a pair of spaced parallel longitudinal stringers 21. In Figure 3, bladder 10 is shown as draped over a single stringer 22.

It is contemplated that bladder 10 includes a manually graspable handle for ease of manipulation. For this purpose, and in the embodiment of Figure 2, end closure portion 13 on the bladder neck is provided with a peripheral enlargement 23 which in and of itself forms a suitable handle. Figure 4 illustrates another embodiment wherein a somewhat smaller peripheral enlargement 24 is disposed in association with closure 13, and a separate ring 25 is disposed therebeneath and mounts a bail-like handle 26.

The various aspects of the invention provide a unique drain system for inboard mounted marine engines.

Claims

1. In a marine drive arrangement for a boat, the combination comprising an inboard engine (5) , an oil pan (7) disposed on said engine, collapsible oil storage means (10) adapted to be supported within the boat, said oil storage means being shape conforming to the shape of essentially any support within the boat on which said oil storage means rests, and means (15) connecting said oil storage means with the interior of said oil pan.

2. The combination of claim 1, wherein said connecting means comprises a fluid flow tube (15) , and means (14) for selectively controlling the flow of fluid through said tube from said oil pan to said oil storage means.

3. The combination of claim 1 or 2, wherein said oil storage means comprises a flexible bladder.

4. The combination of claim 3, including handle means (23, 26) on said bladder (10) for facilitating manual bladder manipulation.

5. The combination of claim 3, wherein said bladder (10) includes a neck portion (12) terminating in an end closure (13) , and an opening (17) disposed in said end closure for tightly receiving an end (16) of said connecting means.

6. The combination of claim 3, wherein said bladder (10) is placeable in a confined space (9) formed between the bottom (8) of said oil pan (7) and the bottom (4) of the boat.

7. The combination of claim 6, wherein said bladder is disposable in a pocket (20) formed by the bottom of the boat and spaced parallel stringers (21) on the boat bottom.

8. The combination of claim 6, wherein said bladder is disposable over a stringer (22) on the boat bottom.

9. For use with a marine drive arrangement for a boat (3) and wherein said arrangement includes an inboard engine (5) having an oil pan (7) collapsible flexible oil storage means (10) adapted to be fluidly connected to the interior of the said oil pan for receiving used oil from the latter, said oil storage means being shape conforming to the shape of essentially any support within the boat on which said oil storage means rests.