US 8,104,591 B2Granted

Magnetic valve for shock absorbers

AssigneeEko Sport, Inc.

InventorDarek C. Barefoot

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Abstract

A shock absorber having a valve controlling the flow rate of fluid between a compression chamber and a rebound chamber in a housing and separated by a piston. The valve has an orifice component and a blocker component, one of which has a permanent magnet, and the other of which has a magnetically permeable material. Upon the application of sufficient fluid pressure, the blocker component is forced away from the orifice component, despite the magnetic bias that tends to attract the two structures. Because the magnetic force decreases as the two components are spaced farther apart, the shock absorber has excellent performance characteristics. Alternatively, a mechanical spring urges the blocker closed, and magnetic attraction between the blocker and a spaced opener mitigates the increased force of the compressed spring tending to close the valve.

Claims10

Dependent claims

A shock absorber having a housing with a cylindrical sidewall, a piston slidably mounted for reciprocating through a piston stroke in, and sealingly engaging, the sidewall, a compression chamber formed on one side of the piston within the housing and containing fluid, a rebound chamber in the housing containing fluid, a reservoir chamber accommodating a variable volume of fluid, said reservoir chamber in fluid communication with the compression chamber, the shock absorber comprising:

(a) a valve in a fluid communication path between the compression chamber and one of the chambers selected from the group consisting of the rebound chamber and the reservoir chamber, the valve having an orifice portion and an orifice blocker portion, wherein at least one of said valve portions is moveable relative to the other of said valve portions between at least (i) an open valve position in which fluid can flow through the orifice and (ii) a closed valve position in which the blocker substantially obstructs fluid from flowing through the orifice;
(b) at least one non-electromagnetic biasing element disposed in the valve that exerts a biasing force urging said at least one moveable valve portion toward said closed valve position and contributes to a total biasing force that urges said at least one moveable valve portion already in the closed valve position to remain in said closed valve position;
and
(c) wherein every component of said total biasing force is applied by non-electromagnetic structures and every component of said total biasing force that is controlled is controlled only by at least one device selected from the group consisting of non-electrical pneumatic, non-electrical hydraulic and non-electrical mechanical devices;
and wherein when the valve is in the open valve position the biasing force urging said at least one moveable valve portion back to the closed valve position is no greater for any particular piston stroke position than said corresponding total biasing force at said particular piston stroke position.

2 more elements

(a) a valve in a fluid communication path between the compression chamber and one of the chambers selected from the group consisting of the rebound chamber and the reservoir chamber, the valve having an orifice portion and an orifice blocker portion, wherein at least one of said valve portions is moveable relative to the other of said valve portions between at least (i) an open valve position in which fluid can flow through the orifice and (ii) a closed valve position in which the blocker substantially obstructs fluid from flowing through the orifice;
and
(b) a non-electromagnetic permanent magnet in at least one of said valve portions and a magnetically permeable body in the other of said valve portions, wherein the magnetically permeable body is selected from the group consisting of non-electromagnetic permanent magnets and iron-containing bodies that are not electromagnets, whereby the valve portions are urged toward the closed valve position in a direction opposite a fluid flow direction through the orifice by at least a magnetic bias formed by the permanent magnet and the magnetically permeable body, the magnetic bias contributing to a total biasing force, every component of which is applied by non-electromagnetic structures, that urges the valve portions in the closed valve position to remain in said closed valve position, and upon sufficient force applied by fluid in one of said chambers the magnetic bias is exceeded, thereby forcing the valve portions from the closed valve position toward the open valve position.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 11/501,996Filed 10 Aug 2006 · us provisional application
Priority: 11 Aug 2005
Published: US 2007/0034464 A115 Feb 2007
Granted: 31 Jan 2012
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification4 codes

F16F 9/34
Details: special valve constructions ; Shape or construction of throttling passages
F16F 9/461
Allowing control from a distance , i.e. location of means for control input being remote from site of valves, e.g. on damper external wall:…
F16F 2222/06
Special physical effects, e.g. nature of damping effects: magnetic or electromagnetic
F16F
Springs