Suspension Actuator for a Roll Control System
First Claim
1. A hydraulically operated actuator for controlling a roll of a vehicle, said actuator being connected between a first mass of said vehicle and a second mass of said vehicle, said actuator comprising:
- an upper mount assembly coupled to said first mass of said vehicle;
a lower mount assembly coupled to said second mass of said vehicle;
a high pressure chamber disposed between said lower mount assembly and said upper mount assembly, said high pressure chamber having a variable volume of hydraulic fluid disposed therein for selectively dampening said movement between said upper mount assembly and said lower mount assembly;
a low pressure accumulator including a first portal for selectively receiving hydraulic fluid from said high pressure chamber; and
an anti-aeration assembly for minimizing gas bubbles from transitioning between said high-pressure chamber and said accumulator, said anti-aeration assembly being disposed within said accumulator.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A hydraulically operated actuator is provided for controlling a roll of a vehicle that includes an actuator connected between a first mass and a second mass of the vehicle. An upper mount assembly is coupled to the first mass and a lower mount assembly is coupled to the second mass. A high-pressure chamber is disposed between the lower mount assembly and the upper mount assembly. The high-pressure chamber has a variable volume of hydraulic fluid disposed therein for selectively restricting the movement between the upper mount assembly and the lower mount assembly. A low-pressure accumulator includes a portal for receiving hydraulic fluid from the high-pressure chamber.
40 Citations
63 Claims
-
1. A hydraulically operated actuator for controlling a roll of a vehicle, said actuator being connected between a first mass of said vehicle and a second mass of said vehicle, said actuator comprising:
-
an upper mount assembly coupled to said first mass of said vehicle; a lower mount assembly coupled to said second mass of said vehicle; a high pressure chamber disposed between said lower mount assembly and said upper mount assembly, said high pressure chamber having a variable volume of hydraulic fluid disposed therein for selectively dampening said movement between said upper mount assembly and said lower mount assembly; a low pressure accumulator including a first portal for selectively receiving hydraulic fluid from said high pressure chamber; and an anti-aeration assembly for minimizing gas bubbles from transitioning between said high-pressure chamber and said accumulator, said anti-aeration assembly being disposed within said accumulator. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
-
-
20. An actuator assembly for controlling vehicle suspension rigidity, said actuator including an upper mount assembly coupled to a suspension member and a lower mount assembly coupled to a vehicle frame, a piston assembly including a piston rod and a piston, said piston rod being coupled to said upper mount assembly for maintaining a variably spaced relationship between said upper mount assembly and said lower mount assembly, said actuator assembly comprising:
-
an accumulator disposed between said upper mount assembly and said lower mount assembly for storing a variable amount of hydraulic fluid, said accumulator including a first portal for receiving hydraulic fluid flow into said accumulator; a high-pressure chamber containing hydraulic fluid, said high-pressure chamber being selectively compressible; a solenoid valve interposed between said high pressure chamber and said accumulator for selectively controlling pressure within said high pressure chamber by controlling said fluid flow from said high pressure chamber to said accumulator, and said solenoid valve when in an open position allows fluid flow from said high pressure chamber to said accumulator as said high pressure chamber is compressed; and a flow diverter for directing a flow of hydraulic fluid flow, from said high-pressure chamber to said accumulator, within said accumulator, said flow diverter minimizing said hydraulic fluid flow into said accumulator from forming gas bubbles in said hydraulic fluid. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
-
-
39. An anti-aeration system for a gas and fluid filled reservoir in a hydraulic suspension actuator, said actuator is hydraulically operated for controlling a roll of a vehicle, said actuator being connected between a first mass of said vehicle and a second mass of said vehicle, said actuator including an upper mount assembly coupled to said first mass of said vehicle, a lower mount assembly coupled to said second mass of said vehicle, a high pressure chamber disposed between said lower mount assembly and said upper mount assembly, said high pressure chamber having a variable volume of hydraulic fluid disposed therein for selectively dampening said movement between said upper mount assembly and said lower mount assembly, a low pressure accumulator including a first portal for selectively receiving hydraulic fluid from said high pressure chamber and a second portal disposed on a bottom surface of said accumulator for allowing hydraulic fluid to exit from said accumulator to said high pressure chamber, said anti-aeration system comprising:
-
a flow diverter for redirecting a flow of hydraulic fluid within said accumulator wherein said flow diverter minimizes the formation gas bubbles in said hydraulic fluid within said accumulator; a fence portion disposed around said second portal for minimizing gas bubbles suspended in said hydraulic fluid of said accumulator from entering said second portal.
-
-
40. A hydraulic actuator for controlling a roll of a vehicle, the actuator being connected between a first mass of the vehicle and a second mass of the vehicle, the actuator comprising:
-
an upper mount assembly coupled to the first mass of the vehicle; a lower mount assembly coupled to the second mass of the vehicle; a chamber disposed between the upper mount assembly and the lower mount assembly, the chamber having a variable volume of hydraulic fluid disposed therein for selectively controlling the movement between the upper mount assembly and the lower mount assembly; and an accumulator for receiving hydraulic fluid from the chamber; wherein the actuator further comprises an anti-aeration assembly disposed within the accumulator for minimizing aeration of hydraulic fluid transitioning between the chamber and the accumulator. - View Dependent Claims (41, 42)
-
-
43. A hydraulic actuator for controlling a roll of a vehicle, the actuator being connected between a first mass of the vehicle and a second mass of the vehicle, the actuator comprising:
-
an upper mount assembly coupled to the first mass of the vehicle; and a lower mount assembly coupled to the second mass of the vehicle; wherein the upper and lower mount assemblies are joined by a metal fused component. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45)
-
-
46. A hydraulic actuator for controlling a roll of a vehicle, the actuator being connected between a first mass of the vehicle and a second mass of the vehicle, the actuator comprising:
-
an upper mount assembly coupled to the first mass of the vehicle; a lower mount assembly coupled to the second mass of the vehicle; and a piston assembly including a rod and a piston controlling the movement between the upper mount assembly and the lower mount assembly; wherein at least one end of travel of the rod is dampened by a portion of hydraulic fluid. - View Dependent Claims (47, 48, 49, 50)
-
-
51. A hydraulic actuator for controlling a roll of a vehicle, the actuator being connected between a first mass of the vehicle and a second mass of the vehicle, the actuator comprising:
-
an upper mount assembly coupled to the first mass of the vehicle; a lower mount assembly coupled to the second mass of the vehicle; and a piston assembly including a rod and a piston controlling the movement between the upper mount assembly and the lower mount assembly; wherein the piston assembly includes a cushion that dampens travel of the piston as the piston moves toward an end of a piston housing. - View Dependent Claims (52, 53, 54, 55)
-
-
56. A hydraulic actuator for controlling a roll of a vehicle, the actuator being connected between a first mass of the vehicle and a second mass of the vehicle, the actuator comprising:
-
an upper mount assembly coupled to the first mass of the vehicle; a lower mount assembly coupled to the second mass of the vehicle; and a piston assembly including a rod and a piston controlling the movement between the upper mount assembly and the lower mount assembly, the piston assembly disposed in a piston housing; wherein a collar disposed in the piston housing cooperates with the piston to create a pocket of dampening hydraulic fluid within the housing to dampen the travel of the piston as the piston moves toward an end of the housing. - View Dependent Claims (57, 58)
-
-
59. A hydraulic actuator for controlling a roll of a vehicle, the actuator being connected between a first mass of the vehicle and a second mass of the vehicle, the actuator comprising:
-
an upper mount assembly coupled to the first mass of the vehicle; a lower mount assembly coupled to the second mass of the vehicle; and a piston assembly including a rod and a piston controlling the movement between the upper mount assembly and the lower mount assembly; wherein the piston assembly includes a check valve assembly in an end of the piston for controlling fluid flow into and out of an end of the piston - View Dependent Claims (60, 61, 62, 63)
-
Specification