Carburetor control device

Claim 1

In a carburetor for controlling the air/fuel mixture available to an internal combustion engine, which carburetor includes, a throttle body, a throttle valve carried by said throttle body, a throttle lever for controlling the movement of said throttle valve between a closed position and an open position, a linkage for operatively moving said throttle lever, and biasing means normally urging said throttle to the closed position, an improved device for modulating the rate of opening of said throttle valve during opening movements of said linkage and for dampening rapid or erratic opening movements of said linkage, said improved device comprising: (a) a resiliently deformable member for receiving and storing energy in response to opening movement of said linkage and for transmitting said energy to said throttle lever for opening said throttle valve; (b) pneumatic restrictor means opposing the movement of said throttle lever and regulating the speed at which said throttle valve opens, said restrictor including: (i) a hollow housing; (ii) a flexible diaphragm hermetically sealed to said housing to form an airtight chamber therein, said diaphragm being movable in a first direction to increase the volumetric capacity of said chamber and movable in a second direction to decrease the volumetric capacity of said chamber; (iii) biasing means normally urging said diaphragm in said first direction; (iv) one-way check valve means for the introduction of ambient air into said chamber as said diaphragm moves in said first direction; and (v) air bleed means for controlling the rate of discharge of air from said chamber as said diaphragm moves in said second direction. (c) coupling means extending between said flexible diaphragm and said throttle lever, said coupling means operatively interconnecting said flexible diaphragm and said throttle lever when said throttle lever is moved toward an open position, to oppose and modulate the opening of said throttle, said coupling means disconnecting said flexible diaphragm and said lever when said throttle means is moved toward a closed position whereby said throttle lever is free to move to said closed position independent of said pneumatic restrictor.