The present invention relates to a peripheric gas station especially, but not exclusively, suitable for delivering fuel to military vehicles.

Such gas station is intended to operate together with a number of identical stations of protected, concealable fuel delivering installations especially, but not exclu¬ sively, for military plants in which it is necessary to carry out the socalled "hot refuelling", i.e. delivering fuel at the same time to several vehicles with running motors.

The gas station of this invention is more in detail one of the peripheric gas stations of a self-contained con¬ cealable refuelling system to be used especially, but not

exclusively, in military installations such as airports, heliports, armoured division groups and the like. Each system includes: a fuel supplying source such as, for example, the pipe of a delivering piping system or one or more buried tanks; a main controlled delivery station connected to the fuel supplying source including an electropump and an oleodynamic station; a fuel delivering piping system from the main station to each peripheric gas station; a pipe network for delivering the hydraulic fluid operating the mechanical parts of the peripheric gas stations; and an electric system supplying the control units with power.

More particularly, each peripheric gas station is self-contained and includes: an outer metal tank shaped as a parallelepiped; a rectangular cover of such tank formed of a reinforced plate hinged at one side of the tank so as to open like a shutter; a metal frame hinged at the same side of the tank as the above plate so as to pivot about said hinge; a hydraulic jack for lifting and lowering the metal frame; a supplying hose provided with delivery gun; a rotatable take-up reel for said hose supported by the frame; a meter of the delivered fuel; a fuel filter; two gauges; a fire protection device. The metal tank is received and secured to a "hole" digged into the ground, the cover plate being flush therewith, and is surrounded by a gutter protected by gratings for carrying rain away.

The peripheric gas station according to the invention can take on both a rest position because of its structure described above, in which all of the component parts are received into the tank as well as protected by the cover plate and concealed, and an operative position in which

the cover plate is pivoted and the frame projects upwards from the ground so that the hose can be unwound from the take-up reel in order to reach the vehicle to be refuelled, and the refuelling station can be operated and controlled.

As mentioned above, the station drive system is of the oleodynamic type and includes a cylinder and piston assembly which operates between the hinged frame and the wall of the tank. The raising of the frame causes the cover plate to pivot, the arrangement being such fhat the station has a reduced height size in the raised position.

This invention will now be described more in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings which show an embodiment of the invention arranged at an airport.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is the airport lay-out, in which there are shown the fuel tanks, the delivering main station, and four stations according to the invention forming four peripheric refuelling points;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section of a station in the rest position;

Fig. 3 is a similar section of the station but in the opened position; Fig. 4 is a top view of the station in the position of

Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a similar view of the station but in the position of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a similar view as Fig. 4 in which the cover plate is removed;

Figs. 7 and 8 are details of. the hinges of the cover plate and the frame.

For a better understanding of the invention. Fig. 1 shows schematically an embodiment for an airport AEP including the essential components operating together with the refuelling stations of the invention. 5 In the figure references SSI and SS2 designates the fuel tanks for refuelling aircrafts. CCL is the main station; PPR are the peripheric refuelling stations, namelytheobjectof the present invention; RRC is the fuel delivering piping system; RF1 is the piping system for delivering the 0 oleodynamic fluid; and REL is the electric system.

Referring now to Figs. 2 to 5 _? the station includes an outer tank 10 shaped as a rectangular parallelepiped of rugged metal sheet, and a cover 11 formed of a reinforced iron plate hinged at 12 to tank 10. 5 A frame 14 is hinged at 13 to tank 10 under the hinge of cover 11 so as to pivot between the position of Fig. 2 and that of Fig. 3-

Frame 14 is formed of rugged interconnected members of metal section and is intended to support all of the o operating components of the refuelling station. More particularly, frame 14 supports reel 15 about which hose 16 provided with a delivering gun 18 is wound, a hydraulic motor 19 for re-winding reel 15 _? a filter 20, anda control panel 21 provided with relative meters (not shown) .

One end of a hydraulic double-acting cylinder and piston assembly indicated at 24 is hinged at 23 to the wall 22 of tank 10, the other end being linked at 25 to pivoting frame 14 so that the extension and the contraction of ^~ assembly 24 cause frame 14 to raise and to lower, respectively. It should be appreciated that the raising of frame 14 causes cover 11 engaged therewith to pivot.

Furthermore a gutter 26 protected by gratings 27 for carrying rain away to a drain trunk line CS, is provided around tank 10 when the latter is received into hole CR (Figs. 2 and 3).

In practice each peripheric station PPR is opened and operated by known control means controlled by the operator, for example, by a magnetic key or a radio signal or the like which is transmitted by an electric low-voltage (usually 24 Volt) control line to the main station which is then operated in order that: a) the delivering means of PPR can project outwards from or be retracted into the buried metal tank; b) the fuel can be delivered at request;

It is evident that the number of PPR stations supplied by the same main station CCL with fuel and the distance of the former from the latter can be chosen at least theoretically at will, but of course the maximum fuel amount delivered at the same time to the several PPRs by the same main station CCL cannot exceed the maximum fuel delivery rate of the electropump of the main station itself.

Hose 16 wound about take-up reel 15 can be unwound manually (free unwinding) while the re-winding thereof is controlled by an oleodynamic motor 19 supplied with oleodynamic fluid from the main station connected to the concealable PPR stations.

The oleodynamic connection between PPR stations indicated at RF1 consists of a buried two-way piping generally made of copper having a suitable section. Each peripheric fuel-delivering station according to the invention is also provided with a socalled "antishearing" device of the per se known type which is installed under grating 27 and automatically prevents by means of an

electrovalvei the hydraulic cylinder and piston assembly 24 from being operated in case some weight, for example, a human or the hose 16 weighs on the grating. Besides the described feature of fully concealing, the system of the invention with all of its components, which is essential for military installations, the peripheric station according to the invention has two further very attractive features: a) the fully standing up of all components above the ground surface when the station is operated, which assures the best accessibility and visibility for the operator, the best aeration of the station, which is important in case of volatile fuels, and many escape chances for the personnel in case of emergency such as fire; and b) the reduced height of the station in the opened -position (see Fig. 3) which allows the socalled "hot refuelling", i.e. the refuelling of aircrafts and helicopters with running motors without the danger that wings collide with station components.

Although the station according to the invention has been illustrated and described with reference to its instal¬ lation in an airport, it can also be installed in any other military plant in which the refuelling of several vehicles should be carried out at the same time.

Figs. 7 and 8 show the details of the sealing room for cover plate 11 and the upper port of tank 10, in which a member 30 is provided between section 31 and bent portion 32.