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US 10,377,446 B2Granted
Rear suspension assembly for a snowmobile
AssigneeBombardier Recreational Products Inc.
InventorsSebastien Thibault, Berthold Fecteau, Gabriel Dessureault
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A rear suspension assembly for a snowmobile has a front suspension arm, a rear suspension arm, a pair of slide rails, at least one shock absorber, and at least one suspension coupler. The at least one suspension coupler couples the rear suspension arm with the front suspension arm. The at least one suspension coupler generates a coupling force to continuously couple the front and rear suspension arms with each other during a full range of movement between the fully extended position and the fully compressed position. A snowmobile having the rear suspension assembly is also disclosed.
Claims31
A snowmobile comprising:
- a chassis including a tunnel, the tunnel having a longitudinal direction;
- an engine connected to the chassis;
- at least one ski connected to the chassis by a front suspension;
- an endless drive track disposed below the tunnel and operatively connected to the engine for propulsion of the snowmobile;
- and
- a rear suspension assembly supporting and tensioning the endless drive track, the rear suspension assembly having a fully extended position and a fully compressed position, the rear suspension assembly including:
- a front suspension arm having an upper end and a lower end, the upper end of the front suspension arm being pivotally connected to the tunnel;
- a rear suspension arm having an upper end and a lower end, the upper end of the rear suspension arm being pivotally connected to the tunnel;
- a rocker arm having a first end pivotally connected to the lower end of the rear suspension arm;
- a pair of slide rails pivotally connected to the lower end of the front suspension arm and to a second end of the rocker arm;
- at least one shock absorber connected between the tunnel and the pair of slide rails, the at least one shock absorber biasing the pair of slide rails away from the tunnel;
- and
- at least one suspension coupler coupling the rear suspension arm with the front suspension arm, the at least one suspension coupler including at least one spring generating a force that progressively resists pivoting of the rocker arm toward a rear of the snowmobile through a plurality of positions relative to the pair of slide rails such that upon movement of the front portion of the pair of slide rails toward the tunnel the rear portion of the pair of slide rails is forced toward the tunnel to continuously and progressively couple the front and rear suspension arms with each other, the at least one suspension coupler biasing the first end of the rocker arm toward a front of the snowmobile through the plurality of positions.
10 more elements
A rear suspension assembly for a snowmobile, the snowmobile having a tunnel, the rear suspension assembly having a fully extended position and a fully compressed position, the rear suspension assembly comprising:
- a front suspension arm having an upper end and a lower end, the upper end of the front suspension arm being configured to be pivotally connected to the tunnel;
- a rear suspension arm having an upper end and a lower end, the upper end of the rear suspension arm being configured to be pivotally connected to the tunnel;
- a rocker arm having a first end pivotally connected to the lower end of the rear suspension arm;
- a pair of slide rails pivotally connected to the lower end of the front suspension arm and to a second end of the rocker arm;
- at least one shock absorber configured to be connected to the tunnel and connected to the pair of slide rails, the at least one shock absorber being configured to bias the pair of slide rails away from the tunnel;
- and
- at least one suspension coupler coupling the rear suspension arm with the front suspension arm, the at least one suspension coupler including at least one spring generating a force that progressively resists pivoting of the rocker arm toward a rear of the snowmobile through a plurality of positions relative to the pair of slide rails such that upon movement of the front portion of the pair of slide rails toward the tunnel the rear portion of the pair of slide rails is forced toward the tunnel to continuously and progressively couple the front and rear suspension arms with each other, the at least one suspension coupler biasing the first end of the rocker arm toward a front of the snowmobile through the plurality of positions.
4 more elements
A rear suspension assembly for a snowmobile, the snowmobile having a tunnel, the rear suspension assembly having a fully extended position and a fully compressed position, the rear suspension assembly comprising:
- a front suspension arm having an upper end and a lower end, the upper end of the front suspension arm being configured to be pivotally connected to the tunnel;
- a rear suspension arm having an upper end and a lower end, the upper end of the rear suspension arm being configured to be pivotally connected to the tunnel;
- a rocker arm having a first end and a second end, the first end of the rocker arm being pivotably connected to the lower end of the rear suspension arm;
- a pair of slide rails pivotally connected to the lower end of the front suspension arm and to the second end of the rocker arm;
- at least one shock absorber configured to be connected to the tunnel and connected to the pair of slide rails, the at least one shock absorber being configured to bias the pair of slide rails away from the tunnel;
- and
- at least one suspension coupler coupling the rear suspension arm with the front suspension arm, the at least one suspension coupler including at least one spring generating a force that resists pivoting of the rocker arm with the pair of slide rails such that upon movement of the front portion of the pair of slide rails toward the tunnel the rear portion of the pair of slide rails is forced toward the tunnel to continuously and progressively couple the front and rear suspension arms with each other.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.