The invention relates to a transferable service station, especially fuelling station, provided with liquid storage means and control and service facilities located in a common housing, the housing being constructed of a welded frame with a cover jacket and divided into a liquid storage room and a room for the control and service facilities

Standard stationary service stations, especially fuelling stations, feature construction of service building and underground storage tanks, the construction of which is time consuming and expensive. Such stations also need arrangements for preventing fuel leakage and environment contamination. Also personnel, at least at the desk, are necessary for servicing customers. If a station has non-stop service hours, even more staff is necessary. It is a different situation when a temporary station is to be opened, as the case may be on a detour road, when a permanent station is out of operation and the next one is far away. In a document DE 101 39 353 there is described a transferable liquid dispensing station provided with liquid storage means and control and service facilities located in a common housing, the housing being constructed of a reinforced frame with a jacket and a vertical wall dividing the common housing inside space into a liquid storage room and a room for the control and service facilities. Similar station is known from WO2002/202393 dealing with a transportable dispensing station furnished with a delivery stand containing a delivery hose and a delivery nozzle, control unit and a servicing unit having means for handling a pay-card and data transfer block. Further there is known a transferable service station described in DE 102009 057876 B3. This station for dispensing of liquids is provided with liquid storage means and control and service facolities located in a common housing the housing being constructed of a welded frame with a cover jacket aand divided into a liquid storage room and a room for control and service facilities. Problems with transportation and installation of such a station on a site and associated problems regarding respective standards and regulations, especially an improvement of the rigidity of the housing and location of individual equipment are solved by the embodiment of a dispenser station installed in a container described in WO2003/000584. Further improvement of safe operation of a container type station is achieved according to EP 1848657. A double jacket of the housing minimizes the danger of possible leakage of liquids disposed from the station. Nevertheless such a danger still exists.

It is an object of the invention to further increase safety of operation of the station and provide sufficient information for a distant control centre.

The object of the invention is achieved by a service station provided with liquid storage means and control and service facilities located in a common housing, the housing being constructed of a welded frame with a cover jacket and divided into a liquid storage room and a room for the control and service facilities, wherein according to the invention subject matter the welds at the housing inner walls at least within the storage room of the station, are covered by a protecting jacket, the protecting jacket defining a covered safety space along each of the welds, wherein the safety space is gas proof. In a preferred embodiment the housing is at least within the storage room provided with an additional inner jacket spaced apart from the outside jacket wherein the protecting jacket covers the welds of the inner jacket. Further according to the invention the space between the cover jacket and the inner jacket and/or the covered space along the welds is under pressure lower than ambient pressure. Depending on an application at least one built-in storage tank may be installed inside the liquid storage room. In a preferred embodiment such a storage tank may be attached to the bottom part of the housing frame by means of a pair of diagonally arranged fixed holders and a pair of diagonally arranged feet, the feet being provided with means for a resilient seating of the storage tank. The room for control and service facilities is provided with a unit of hydraulics, a filling unit and a control unit, the units being provided with elements for manual handling, arranged at least at one of the vertical walls of the housing. According to a further aspect of the invention the control unit the control unit is provided with a control block having a first port inter-connected with a communication port of a block of mechanics, a second port inter-connected with a communication port of a measurement block, a third port inter-connected with a communication port of a detection block, a fourth port inter-connected with a communication port of a block of a customer and a fifth port inter-connected with a communication port of a block of data transmission, wherein the block of mechanics is provided with an output of signal to control of mechanical elements, output of signals to control hydraulic elements, wherein the measurement block is provided with an input of signals of a liquid volume change and an input of minimum volume signal, wherein the detection block is provided with an input of a signal of electric energy source level, an input of a signal of outside danger situation and an input of a signal of inside danger situation and an input of a signal of the station position, wherein the customer block is connected with a card reader, keyboard and a display and wherein the block of data transmission is provided with means for data telecommunication.

According to one aspect of the invention the improved design of the service station housing provides for high safety of operation of the station, no matter if a single or double jacket is used. According to another aspect of the invention the service station provides for a fully self-service operation, the control centre being permanently fully informed about the station status. The station may be used both for all kinds of fluids, liquids and gases, there may be supplied even one or more different fluids.

By way of examples the invention will be now described with reference to the accompanying drawing. Fig. 1 presents an axonometric view on the container type station with top and front jackets being removed. Fig. 2 shows the station according to Fig. 1 in a side view. Fig. 3 offers the station in a cutaway view A-A according to Fig. 2. Fig. 4 shows a detail view on a weld protecting jacket. Fig. 5 depicts a schematic block diagram of the control unit.

As presented in Fig. 1 the transferable service station according the invention has a housing consisting of a welded frame and a cover jacket 1 covering each of the walls defined by the frame. The frame consists of vertical beams 2, mutually connected by longitudinal beams 3 and transversal beams 4. The longitudinal beams 3 are reinforces by vertical struts 5 with a T-shaped cross-section. The cover jacket 1 and the frame are airtight welded together. The struts 5 may be, but not necessarily, made of solid material. They may be provided with relieving openings, such openings are not shown on the drawings. The housing inner space is divided into a room 6 for the control and service facilities and a liquid storage room 7. The room 6 for the control and service facilities includes hydraulic equipment for charging and discharging the stored liquid and equipment controlling such a procedure, including a control unit controlling complete operation of the station and providing for communication with the control centre.

The room 6 for the control and service facilities and a liquid storage room 7 are mutually divided by an intermediate wall 8, The intermediate wall 8 is in its upper part provided with technology openings 9 allowing for hydraulic and electric interconnections of both rooms 6, 7.

In the embodiment shown on Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4 the complete liquid storage room 7 is provided with an inner jacket 10. The inner jacket 10, providing for the housing inner walls, is spaced apart from the cover jacket 1 thus defining a closed circumferential spaces 11 between the said two jackets 1, 10. The space between the cover jacket 1 and the inner jacket 10 is mechanically secured by inner ribs 15. The ribs 15 may be made of a solid material thus dividing the circumferential space 11 along each wall into partial circumferential spaces 11. Alternatively each of the ribs 15 may be furnished with multiple openings, providing for a single circumferential space 11 along each of the walls. Similarly to the cover jacket 1 the inner jacket is also hermetically welded to the frame and the ribs 15. All welds along the inner jacket 10 are covered by a protecting jacket 12. The protecting jacket 12 being spaced apart from the welds defines closed safety spaces 13 along the welds and separates the welds from the inner space of the storage room 7. Inside the circumferential spaces 11 and the safety spaces 13 the pressure is lowered under the ambient, atmospheric pressure. During operation of the station a level of this inner pressure is checked by sensors. Such sensors may be, but not necessarily, positioned in all the circumferential spaces 11 and safety spaces 13. The sensor outputs are lead to the control unit. Any increase of pressure within the circumferential spaces 11 or safety spaces 13 signals a possibility of a danger situation, like a leakage from the station inside liquid storage room 7. The sensor data are part of information transmitted to the control centre. Application of such sensors as such is known and is not part of the invention. The sensors are not shown on the attached drawings.

The protecting jacket 12 may be provided along all the welds of the inner jacket 10 or only along circumference of the inner jacket 10.

In a case no inner jacket 10 is applied, the inner side of the cover jacket 1 provides for the housing inner wall and the protecting jacket 12 is applied along the welds of this inner wall.

Though the application of the inner jacket 10 is above described only with respect to the liquid storage room 7, it may be installed also within the room 6 for control and service facilities. In this case the inner jacket 10 shall be a part of protection against undesired entry into this room.

The above described embodiment has a liquid storage room 7 which completely serves for storage of liquid, without any separate tanks being installed inside. It may be divided by one or more partition walls 14 into separate compartment allowing for different liquids to be disposed from one station. In the presented embodiment only one partition wall 14 is used. In a special embodiment of the station the partition wall 14 may be designed in a manner allowing for separation of the liquid storage room 7 and the room 6 for control and service facilities. Such a solution shall make transportation of a station to the site easier.

Nevertheless in such a liquid storage room 7 one or more separate built-in tanks may be installed. In such a case the inner jacket 10 may not be used, depending on further circumstances of the station application. In this case the inner jacket 10 is missing and the protecting jacket 12 is applied on the welds of the cover jacket 1. The built-in storage tank may attached to the bottom part of the housing frame by means of a pair of diagonally arranged fixed holders and a pair of diagonally arranged feet, the feet being provided with means for a resilient seating of the storage tank.

The above described constructions of the liquid storage rooms 7 are limited neither by size and/or weight of the respective station nor by equipment it is furnished with. It may be interconnected with another similar station. Such further station may comprise one or more liquid storage rooms 7 with all the liquid storage rooms 7 being serviced from one room 6 for the control and service facilities.

In general the service facilities are provided with a unit of hydraulics, a filling unit and a liquid delivery unit. All the units are provided with equipment for customer manual handling, which are arranged at one or more of the vertical walls of the housing.

The control facilities are provided for by a control unit. As seen from Fig. 5 the control unit is provided with a control block 70, a block 20 of mechanics, a measurement block 30, a detection block 40, a customer block 50 and a data transmission block 60. The control block 70 has its port 71 inter-connected with a communication port 21 of a block 20 of mechanics, a second port 72 inter-connected with a communication port 31 of a block 30 of measurement, a third port 73 inter-connected with a communication port 41 of a detection block 40, fourth port 74 inter-connected with a communication port 51 of a customer block 50 and a fifth port 75 inter-connected with a communication port 61 of a data transmission block 60.

The block 20 of mechanics is provided with an output 22 of signal to control mechanical elements, and an output 23 of signals to control hydraulic elements. In a case the liquid storage room 7 is divided into several compartments or comprise several tanks the block 20 of mechanics is further provided with an output 24 of signals for switching between the individual compartments or the tanks.

The measurement block 30 is provided with a second port 32 inter-connected with a second port 52 of the customer block 50. The measurement block 30 is further provided with an input 33 of signals of a liquid volume change and an input 34 of minimum volume signal. To improve service comfort the measurement block 30 may be further provided with an input of signal of ambient light level, while the block 20 of mechanics is provided with an output 25 of signals to control an automatic outside light source.

The detection block 40 is provided with an input 42 of a signal of electric energy source level, an input 43 of a signal of outside danger situation, an input 44 of a signal of inside danger situation and an input 45 of a signal of the station position,

The customer block 50 is by its third port 53 inter-connected with a card reader 56 by a fourth port 54 with a keyboard 57 and by a fifth port 55 with a display 58.

The data transmission block 60 is provided with means for data telecommunication to the control centre through GSM network supporting GPRS transmissions. A remote control and a status check are thus performed on-line.

All the blocks may be provided for by electronic means with application of processors and computer technologies. Their design and construction is based on well-known technologies and therefore are not described in more details. Communication between the blocks in the majority of case is performed via the control block 70. The measurement block 30 and the detection block 40 provide for station operation data. They may be included in a single block but for better understanding they are presented as two separate blocks, the first one actively obtaining the data and the second one checking if pre-set or acceptable levels have not been reached or exceeded.

The service station having such a control unit may operate in fully self-service mode under remote control. The station may operate with one or more separate tanks or with the storage room 7 divided into separate storage compartments. Any loss of energy supply is immediately reported to the 5control centre. Apart from monitoring current service the control unit reports even possible inner or outer danger situation. Such an inner danger situation includes a leakage from the storage room 7 or creation of combustible or explosive vapours or overload of the station. Among outer danger situations belong first of all any attempts to damage or remove the station. Position of the station is permanently monitored and in a case of any unauthorized manipulation the station operation is automatically blocked.by the control unit 70.

The station may be furnished with own lighting facilities which are switched on or off with regard to the level of the ambient light.

The transferable service station according to the invention is designed for transportation and self-service dispensing of liquids and gasses, with a possibility of additional retail sell of goods. The stations of the kind may be combined to create large units.