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US 8,562,217 B2Granted
Compact non-contact mechanical coupling, damping and/or load bearing device
AssigneeSmartin Technologies LLC
InventorMartin Sentmanat
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A compact, noncontact mechanical coupling, damping, and/or load bearing device comprising an internal load bearing member and an external load bearing member that are mated in an interdigitated relation while maintaining a gap therebetween is described. In some embodiments, the gap between the internal and external load bearing members is maintained by hydrostatic means, hydrodynamic means, electrorheological fluids, magnetorheological fluids, electric fields, and/or magnetic fields.
Claims17
A compact non-contact load bearing device, comprising:
- an internal load bearing member having a plurality of digits joined by a linking portion, the linking portion defining a space between adjacent digits, the space having a predetermined thickness and shape;
- at least one external load bearing member having a plurality of digits joined by a linking portion, the linking portion defining a cavity between adjacent digits, said cavity adapted to receive a digit of the internal load bearing member such that the internal load bearing member mates with the external load bearing member in an interdigitated relation while leaving a gap between interdigitated surfaces of the internal load bearing member and the external load bearing member;
- and
- a means for maintaining the gap.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.