Flow-control valve and damper

A damper comprising a cylinder in which a piston with a piston rod is slidable, an FR fluid-flow passage interconnecting opposite sides of the piston, and first and second flow-control valve assemblies adjacently disposed and oriented so that they respectively control flow of FR fluid through said fluid-flow passage in opposite directions, wherein each of said first and second flow-control valve assemblies comprises:

• an inlet port;
• an outlet port;
• a flow path for the FR fluid extending between the inlet and outlet ports;
• a flow-control valve disposed in the flow path between the ports, said flow-control valve including a valve member which is moveable between a first position in which the valve is open, and a second position in which the valve is closed;
• a flow restrictor disposed in the flow path upstream of the flow-control valve, said flow restrictor including means for applying a field to the FR fluid as it passes through the flow restrictor to enable control of the resistance to flow of the FR fluid therethrough, so as to affect a pressure drop across the valve member, and thereby to control movement of the valve member between it s first and second positions;
• and
• a bypass passage defining a pressure-relief means, which can permit flow between the inlet and outlet ports when the valve member is in the second position, said bypass passage being disposed downstream of the flow restrictor.