Off-road vehicle having an actively adjustable suspension
AssigneeArctic Cat Inc.
InventorLucas Grant Purcell
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An off-road vehicle includes a frame assembly, a powertrain, a seat assembly, a plurality of wheels and a rear suspension including first and second shock absorbers that respectively couple first and second rear wheels to the frame assembly. A first remote auxiliary reservoir is in fluid communication with the first shock absorber and has a manual control configured to adjust a damping function of the first shock absorber. A second remote auxiliary reservoir is in fluid communication with the second shock absorber and has a manual control configured to adjust a damping function of the second shock absorber. The manual controls of the remote auxiliary reservoirs are accessible by an occupant of the vehicle, thereby enabling active adjustments to the damping function of the rear suspension.
Claims20
An off-road vehicle comprising:
- a frame assembly;
- a powertrain coupled to the frame assembly;
- a plurality of wheels at least one of which is operatively coupled to the powertrain, the plurality of wheels including first and second rear wheels;
- a rear suspension including first and second shock absorbers, the first shock absorber coupling the first rear wheel to the frame assembly, the second shock absorber coupling the second rear wheel to the frame assembly, the first shock absorber including a first locally mounted exterior fluid reservoir, the second shock absorber including a second locally mounted exterior fluid reservoir;
- a seat assembly coupled to the frame assembly;
- and
- first and second remote auxiliary reservoirs, the first remote auxiliary reservoir in fluid communication with the first shock absorber and having a manual control configured to adjust a damping function of the first shock absorber, the second remote auxiliary reservoir in fluid communication with the second shock absorber and having a manual control configured to adjust a damping function of the second shock absorber;
- wherein, the manual controls of the first and second remote auxiliary reservoirs are configured to be accessible by an occupant of the vehicle.
An off-road vehicle comprising:
- a frame assembly;
- a powertrain coupled to the frame assembly;
- a plurality of wheels at least one of which is operatively coupled to the powertrain, the plurality of wheels including first and second rear wheels;
- a rear suspension including first and second shock absorbers, the first shock absorber coupling the first rear wheel to the frame assembly, the second shock absorber coupling the second rear wheel to the frame assembly, the first shock absorber including a first locally mounted exterior fluid reservoir, the second shock absorber including a second locally mounted exterior fluid reservoir;
- a seat assembly coupled to the frame assembly, the seat assembly having first and second seats in a side-by-side arrangement;
- a cargo box coupled to the frame assembly aft of the seat assembly;
- and
- first and second remote auxiliary reservoirs, the first remote auxiliary reservoir in fluid communication with the first shock absorber and having a manual control configured to adjust a damping function of the first shock absorber, the second remote auxiliary reservoir in fluid communication with the second shock absorber and having a manual control configured to adjust a damping function of the second shock absorber;
- wherein, the first and second remote auxiliary reservoirs are positioned at least partially between the seat assembly and the cargo box and wherein, the manual controls of the first and second remote auxiliary reservoirs are positioned between the first and second seats such that the manual controls of the first and second remote auxiliary reservoirs are accessible by an occupant of the vehicle, thereby enabling active adjustments to the damping function of the rear suspension.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.