Vehicle having suspension with continuous damping control
First Claim
1. A damping control system for a vehicle having a suspension located between a plurality of ground engaging members and a vehicle frame, the damping control system comprising:
- a plurality of springs coupled between the ground engaging members and the frame;
a plurality of shock absorbers coupled between the ground engaging members and the frame, at least one of the plurality of shock absorbers being an adjustable shock absorber having an adjustable damping characteristic;
a controller coupled to each adjustable shock absorber to adjust the damping characteristic of each adjustable shock absorber;
a user interface coupled to the controller and accessible to a driver of the vehicle, the user interface including at least one user input to permit manual adjustment of the damping characteristic of the at least one adjustable shock absorber during operation of the vehicle, the user interface providing a plurality of selectable driving condition modes, each driving condition mode having different damping characteristics for the at least one adjustable shock absorber based on a type of road or off-road trail on which the vehicle is expected to travel, wherein the user input permits manual selection of one of the driving condition modes, the controller adjusting damping characteristics of the at least one adjustable shock absorber based upon the manually selected driving condition mode, one of the driving condition modes being a first road mode in which the at least one adjustable shock absorber is set at a stiff damping level to minimize transient vehicle pitch and roll through hard acceleration, braking, and cornering and another one of the driving condition modes being a second mode in which the at least one adjustable shock absorber is set at a less stiff damping level compared to the first road mode to allow for absorption of bumps encountered by the vehicle,the at least one adjustable shock absorber includes a moveable piston located within a cylinder, and further comprising a position sensor to indicate a position of the piston of the adjustable shock absorber, the position sensor having an output coupled to the controller, the controller being programmed to stiffen a damping characteristic of the at least one adjustable shock absorbers near an end of a range of travel of the piston within the cylinder to provide progressive damping control.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A damping control system for a vehicle having a suspension located between a plurality of ground engaging members and a vehicle frame includes at least one adjustable shock absorber having an adjustable damping characteristic. The system also includes a controller coupled to each adjustable shock absorber to adjust the damping characteristic of each adjustable shock absorber, and a user interface coupled to the controller and accessible to a driver of the vehicle. The user interface includes at least one user input to permit manual adjustment of the damping characteristic of the at least one adjustable shock absorber during operation of the vehicle. Vehicle sensors may also be coupled to the controller to adjust the damping characteristic of the at least one adjustable shock absorber based on sensor output signals.
301 Citations
34 Claims
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1. A damping control system for a vehicle having a suspension located between a plurality of ground engaging members and a vehicle frame, the damping control system comprising:
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a plurality of springs coupled between the ground engaging members and the frame; a plurality of shock absorbers coupled between the ground engaging members and the frame, at least one of the plurality of shock absorbers being an adjustable shock absorber having an adjustable damping characteristic; a controller coupled to each adjustable shock absorber to adjust the damping characteristic of each adjustable shock absorber; a user interface coupled to the controller and accessible to a driver of the vehicle, the user interface including at least one user input to permit manual adjustment of the damping characteristic of the at least one adjustable shock absorber during operation of the vehicle, the user interface providing a plurality of selectable driving condition modes, each driving condition mode having different damping characteristics for the at least one adjustable shock absorber based on a type of road or off-road trail on which the vehicle is expected to travel, wherein the user input permits manual selection of one of the driving condition modes, the controller adjusting damping characteristics of the at least one adjustable shock absorber based upon the manually selected driving condition mode, one of the driving condition modes being a first road mode in which the at least one adjustable shock absorber is set at a stiff damping level to minimize transient vehicle pitch and roll through hard acceleration, braking, and cornering and another one of the driving condition modes being a second mode in which the at least one adjustable shock absorber is set at a less stiff damping level compared to the first road mode to allow for absorption of bumps encountered by the vehicle, the at least one adjustable shock absorber includes a moveable piston located within a cylinder, and further comprising a position sensor to indicate a position of the piston of the adjustable shock absorber, the position sensor having an output coupled to the controller, the controller being programmed to stiffen a damping characteristic of the at least one adjustable shock absorbers near an end of a range of travel of the piston within the cylinder to provide progressive damping control. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 28, 29, 30, 31)
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26. A damping control system for a vehicle having a suspension located between a plurality of ground engaging members and a vehicle frame, the damping control system comprising:
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a plurality of springs coupled between the ground engaging members and the frame; a plurality of shock absorbers coupled between the ground engaging members and the frame, at least one of the plurality of shock absorbers being an adjustable shock absorber having an adjustable damping characteristic; a controller coupled to each adjustable shock absorber to adjust the damping characteristic of each adjustable shock absorber; and a user interface coupled to the controller and accessible to a driver of the vehicle, the user interface including at least one user input to permit manual adjustment of the damping characteristic of the at least one adjustable shock absorber during operation of the vehicle, the user interface providing a plurality of selectable driving condition modes, each driving condition mode having different damping characteristics for the at least one adjustable shock absorber based on a type of road or off-road trail on which the vehicle is expected to travel, each driving condition mode further including a throttle map that defines a relationship between a throttle input and a throttle, and wherein the user input permits manual selection of one of the driving condition modes, the controller adjusting damping characteristics of the at least one adjustable shock absorber based upon the manually selected driving condition mode, the controller adjusting the throttle map based upon the manually selected driving condition mode, one of the driving condition modes being a smooth road mode in which the at least one adjustable shock absorber is set at a stiff damping level to minimize transient vehicle pitch and roll through hard acceleration, braking, and cornering and another one of the driving condition modes being a normal trail mode in which the at least one adjustable shock absorber is set at a less stiff damping level compared to the smooth road mode to allow for absorption of bumps encountered by the vehicle, the at least one adjustable shock absorber includes a moveable piston located within a cylinder, and further comprising a position sensor to indicate a position of the piston of the adjustable shock absorber, the position sensor having an output coupled to the controller, the controller being programmed to stiffen a damping characteristic of the at least one adjustable shock absorbers near an end of a range of travel of the piston within the cylinder to provide progressive damping control.
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27. A damping control system for a vehicle having a suspension located between a plurality of ground engaging members and a vehicle frame, the damping control system comprising:
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a plurality of springs coupled between the ground engaging members and the frame; a plurality of shock absorbers coupled between the ground engaging members and the frame, at least one of the plurality of shock absorbers being an adjustable shock absorber having an adjustable damping characteristic; a controller coupled to each adjustable shock absorber to adjust the damping characteristic of each adjustable shock absorber; a user interface coupled to the controller and accessible to a driver of the vehicle, the user interface including at least one user input to permit manual adjustment of the damping characteristic of the at least one adjustable shock absorber during operation of the vehicle; and a battery coupled to the controller, the controller being programmed to operate in a demonstration mode activated by a key of the vehicle to permit adjustment of the at least one adjustable shock absorber without starting an engine of the vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34)
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Specification