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US 2023/0407937 A1Published application
Methods and devices for absorbing energy
AssigneeWilliam Marsh Rice University
InventorsDarel Hodgson, Mohammad Salehi, Reginald Desroches
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Abstract
A damping device includes a superelastic element made of an austenitic shape memory alloy and an energy-absorbing element adjacent to the superelastic element, wherein the energy-absorbing element is made of a material selected from a shape memory alloy, a malleable metal or alloy, and a viscoelastic polymer, and wherein deformation of the energy-absorbing element is restrained by the superelastic element.
Claims20
A damping device, comprising:
- a superelastic element made of an austenitic shape memory alloy;
- and
- an energy-absorbing element adjacent to the superelastic element, wherein the energy-absorbing element is made of a material selected from the group consisting of a shape memory alloy, a malleable metal or alloy, and a viscoelastic polymer;
- wherein deformation of the energy-absorbing element is restrained by the superelastic element.
1 more element
A damping device, comprising:
- a first superelastic element;
- and
- a second superelastic element restrained by the first superelastic element;
- wherein the first and second superelastic elements are made of austenitic shape memory alloys;
- and
- wherein one of the first superelastic element and second superelastic element is under an initial strain of at least 1 percent and the other of the first superelastic element and the second superelastic element is under an initial oppositely-signed strain of at least 1 percent.
3 more elements
A method of making a damping device, comprising:
- fabricating a first element from a first austenitic shape memory alloy;
- fabricating a second element from a material selected from the group consisting of a martensitic shape memory alloy, a second austenitic shape memory alloy, a malleable metal or alloy, and a viscoelastic polymer;
- and
- assembling the first and second elements together, such that deformation of the second element is restrained by the first element.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.