Acceleration sensitive damping for automotive dampers
AssigneeTenneco Automotive Inc.
InventorKarl Kazmirski
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A shock absorber having a pair of valve assemblies which include an acceleration sensitive valve which couples the working chamber of the shock absorber to the shock absorber's reservoir chamber through a fluid path to provide a soft damping characteristic for the shock when the shock absorber experiences acceleration beyond a specific amount. A compression valve assembly and a rebound valve assembly are also provided which controls the fluid flow through the piston and the base assembly, respectively, to provide a firm damping characteristic for the shock absorber during low acceleration movement.
Claims8
A damper comprising:
- a pressure tube forming a working chamber and defining a damper axis;
- a reservoir tube disposed around said pressure tube, said reservoir tube forming a reservoir chamber between said pressure tube and said reservoir tube;
- a base valve assembly disposed between said working chamber and said reservoir chamber for regulating flow of damping fluid between said working chamber and said reservoir chamber, said base valve assembly comprising:
- an end cap attached to said pressure tube;
- a first pressure responsive valve attached to said end cap, said pressure responsive valve comprising a valve body attached to said end cap, and a valve disk disposed between said valve body and said end cap;
- and
- an acceleration responsive valve disposed between the reservoir tube and the pressure tube, said acceleration valve comprising
- an outer housing defining a cavity in communication with said reservoir chamber and said working chamber, and a valve body disposed within said cavity, said valve body defining a valve axis, said valve body being movable between a first position where said valve axis is not perpendicular to said damper axis and said reservoir chamber is in communication with said working chamber and a second position where said valve axis is perpendicular to said damper axis and said reservoir chamber is not in communication with said working chamber.
A damper comprising:
- a pressure tube forming a working chamber being filled with damping fluid;
- a reservoir tube disposed around said pressure tube, said reservoir tube forming a reservoir chamber between said pressure tube and said reservoir tube;
- a base valve assembly disposed between said working chamber and said reservoir chamber for regulating flow of said damping fluid between said working chamber and said reservoir chamber through a first flow path;
- an acceleration responsive valve disposed between said working chamber and said reservoir chamber for regulating flow of said damping fluid between said working chamber and said reservoir chamber through a second flow path, said second flow path being totally separate from said first flow path, said acceleration responsive valve comprising
- an outer housing defining a cavity in communication with said reservoir chamber and said working chamber, and a valve body disposed within said cavity, said valve body defining a valve axis, said valve body being movable between a first position where said valve axis is not perpendicular to said damper axis and said reservoir chamber is in communication with said working chamber and a second position where said valve axis is perpendicular to said damper axis and said reservoir chamber is not in communication with said working chamber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.