Bicycle air shock assemblies with tunable suspension performance
AssigneeTrek Bicycle Corporation
InventorsJose L. Gonzales, Gregory Paul Buhl, James Colegrove
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A bicycle air shock absorber assembly that includes a hollow piston rod that is telescopically associated with a hollow compression rod. The piston rod and compression rod are positioned within the casing of the shock assembly. A piston is supported by the piston rod and divides the volume of the compression rod to form a negative air spring chamber and a positive air spring chamber that includes the volume of the piston rod. An optional coil spring is positioned within the casing and contributes in parallel with the positive air spring chamber to resist compression of the shock assembly.
Claims19
A shock absorber assembly comprising:
- a compression tube associated with a first mounting point;
- a piston including a piston rod wherein the piston is positioned within the compression tube and the piston rod is associated with a second mounting point,
- wherein the piston rod includes a first portion and a second portion and the second portion of the piston rod is configured to translate with respect to the first portion of the piston rod;
- a negative air spring volume defined at least by a first side of the piston, an interior surface of a first portion the compression rod, and an exterior surface of a portion of the piston rod;
- and
- a positive air spring volume including:
- a first chamber defined at least by a second side of the piston, and a second portion of the interior surface of the compression tube;
- and
- a second chamber located in the piston rod;
- wherein the positive air spring volume is fluidly isolated from the negative air spring over a majority of a translation range of the piston in the compression tube.
An apparatus comprising:
- a shock including:
- a cylinder associated with a first mounting point of the shock, wherein the cylinder comprises a coupler;
- and
- a piston associated with a second mounting point of the shock, wherein the piston is located in the cylinder;
- wherein:
- the piston divides the cylinder into a first gas spring volume and a second gas spring volume;
- the first gas spring volume is isolated from the second gas spring volume while the piston is translating in a first range of the cylinder;
- and
- the coupler fluidly couples the first gas spring volume and the second gas spring volume while the piston is translating in a second range of the cylinder.
An apparatus comprising:
- a cylinder associated with a first mounting point;
- and
- a piston including a piston tube associated with a second mounting point;
- wherein:
- the piston is located in the cylinder;
- the piston divides the cylinder into a first gas spring volume and a second gas spring volume;
- and
- the piston tube is hollow defining a piston tube volume;
- the first gas spring volume includes the piston tube volume of the piston tube;
- the first gas spring volume and the second gas spring volume are fluidly isolated over a first predetermined translation range of the piston in the cylinder;
- and
- the first gas spring volume and the second gas spring volume are fluidly coupled over a second predetermined translation range of the piston in the cylinder.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.