Energy absorber for motor vehicle steering column

An energy absorber and a motor vehicle steering column having a mast jacket with a longitudinal centerline coincident with a longitudinal centerline of said steering column,

• characterized in that said energy absorber comprises:
• a yoke mounted on a body structure of said motor vehicle for pivotal movement about a lateral centerline of said body structure,
• a bore in said yoke closely receiving an outer cylindrical wall of said mast jacket and cooperating therewith in supporting said mast jacket on said yoke with said longitudinal centerline of said mast jacket intersecting said lateral centerline for linear translation in the direction of said longitudinal centerline of said mast jacket and for pivotal movement as a unit with said yoke about said lateral centerline and in preventing tipping of said mast jacket relative to said yoke before and during linear translation of said mast jacket relative to said yoke,
• a convex anvil means on said mast jacket,
• a J-shaped flat metal strap having a concave web bearing against said convex anvil means and a first leg rigidly attached to said yoke and a second leg juxtaposed a wall of said mast jacket parallel to said longitudinal centerline of said mast jacket, linear translation of said mast jacket relative to said yoke in the direction of said longitudinal centerline of said mast jacket in response to an impact on said steering column being operative to effect relative sliding of said flat metal strap across said convex anvil means to plastically deform said metal strap and convert into work a fraction of the kinetic energy of said impact on said steering column, and
• guide means operative to maintain substantial parallelism between said second leg of said metal strap and said longitudinal centerline of said mast jacket during linear translation of said mast jacket relative to said yoke.