Apparatus for providing additional lift in a retractable suspension
AssigneeLear Siegler Truck Products Corp.
InventorWilliam J. Hicks
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An improved lift mechanism is provided in an air spring trailing arm suspension comprising control arms pivotally mounted to a frame and adapted to carry ground-engaging wheels. An air spring is mounted between the control arms and the frame. A plate member mounted for vertical displacement on guide rods secured to the frame carries an upper portion of the air spacing so that the air spring can be vertically displaced relative to the frame. A lower portion of the air spring engages a piston which is kept in a generally upwardly facing orientation by a parallelogram linkage. A ratchet and pawl mechanism locks the control arms in the retracted position, and a latch mechanism locks the plate member to the frame when the plate member is vertically displaced to a lower limit of vertical movement.
Claims28
In a suspension for a vehicle comprising a frame, said suspension including a pair of control arms pivotally mounted to the frame for swinging movement relative thereto, an axle rigidly mounted to and between the control arms for carrying wheels, a collapsible spring between the control arms and the frame for cushioning the swinging movement of the control arms relative to the frame, and lift means for moving the control arms and the wheels away from a ground-engaging position toward a retracted position relative to the frame, the improvement comprising:
- a member mounted to the frame for movement relative thereto between an upper limit and a lower limit;
- said spring having a first portion connected to the control arms and a second portion connected to the member;
- whereby the wheels can be moved a greater degree away from the ground-engaging position when the lift means is energized and the member is moved toward the upper limit than by collapsing the spring.
In a suspension for a vehicle comprising a frame, a pair of control arms pivotally mounted to the frame for vertical swinging movement relative thereto, an axle rigidly mounted to and between the control arms for carrying ground-engaging wheels, and spring means between the control arms and the frame for cushioning the swinging movement of the control arms relative to the frame, the improvement comprising:
- movable means mounting a lower portion of the spring means to the control arms for maintaining a predetermined orientation thereof with respect to the frame as the control arms swing through an arc.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.