Rotary damper with magnetic seals

A rotary damper comprising:

• a housing including an inner surface defining a chamber therein;
• a rotor mounted in said chamber for rotational movement within said chamber and coupled to a shaft that transmits said rotational motion to said rotor, said rotor including a hub coupled to said shaft and a lobe extending generally radially outwardly from said hub and having an outer surface adjacent to and spaced apart from said inner surface;
• magnetorheological fluid located in said chamber;
• an outer magnet adjacent to a space between said outer surface and said inner surface, whereby fluid flow between said inner and outer surfaces is restricted by a magnetic field generated by said magnet and said rotational movement of said rotor in said chamber is thus damped by said fluid;
• a pair of guide plates located in said chamber adjacent to and spaced apart from said hub;
• and
• an inner magnet located adjacent a space between said hub and said guide plates, said inner magnet restricting the flow of magnetorheological fluid in the space between said hub and said guide plates.