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US 9,453,550 B2Granted
Landing gear systems having shear-thickening and shear-thinning fluid responses
AssigneeGoodrich Corporation
InventorsKenneth D. Smith, Enrico Manes
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A shock damper is disclosed. The shock damper may have a shear control apparatus through which a shear-thickening fluid may flow. In this manner, the shock damper may compress at different rates for different applied impulse forces, in response to the changing viscosity of the shear-thickening fluid.
Claims20
A shock damper comprising:
- a cylinder;
- a piston housed at least partially radially within the cylinder;
- a shear control apparatus housed at least partially radially within the cylinder, the shear control apparatus comprising a fixed orifice,
- wherein a shear-thickening fluid (STF) travels through the fixed orifice in the shear control apparatus in response to the piston at least one of extending or compressing,
- wherein the STF comprises a liquid phase and a solid phase, and
- wherein the STF is configured to have a decreasing viscosity in response to a first range of shear rates and an increasing viscosity in response to a second range of shear rates.
3 more elements
A method of operating a shock damper comprising:
- translating a piston to at least one extend or retract the piston;
- directing a shear-thickening fluid (STF) into a fixed orifice in response to the translating,
- the STF comprising a liquid phase and a solid phase;
- varying a viscosity of the STF in response to the directing, wherein the varying comprises decreasing the viscosity of the STF and increasing the viscosity of the STF;
- and
- damping the translation in response to the varying.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.