Amphibious Vehicle Front Flap Damping and Restoring Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Amphibious vehicles face challenges in effectively absorbing fluid loads of varying cycles due to wave resistance and sailing speed, leading to potential damage to the suspension system, which is inadequate for cycles outside its predetermined range.
Innovation Solution
The incorporation of a damping member, such as a hydraulic damper, and a restoring member, like a compression coil spring, disposed in parallel or series between the vehicle body and the front flap, to absorb fluid loads with different cycles, ensuring effective absorption and reducing damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a suspension device constituted by a cylinder and a piston is used, then the absorption effect for fluid load with predetermined cycle is improved, but the absorption effect for fluid load with other cycles deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines a damping member and a restoring member in a parallel configuration to create a hybrid suspension system. The damping member (hydraulic damper) handles high-frequency fluid loads while the restoring member (compression coil spring) handles low-frequency fluid loads, achieving broad-spectrum absorption capability that neither component could achieve alone.
2Device complexity
If the suspension device is constituted by a cylinder and a piston, then the structure is simple, but the front flap cannot appropriately absorb fluid load leading to potential damage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges a damping member and a restoring member into a parallel suspension system supporting the front flap. This combination provides comprehensive fluid load absorption across multiple cycles, protecting the front flap from damage while maintaining reasonable structural complexity.
3Ease of manufacture
If the damping member and restoring member are disposed in parallel, then the assemblability is improved, but the space usage may be inefficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent nests the compression coil spring around the hydraulic damper, creating a compact parallel suspension system. This nested arrangement maintains the assemblability benefits of parallel configuration while significantly improving space utilization by eliminating wasted empty space between components.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration allows for the effective absorption of fluid loads across a wide range of cycles, reducing vehicle motion and improving ride quality while simplifying the structure and enhancing maintainability.
Implementation Method 1
a damping member which dampens displacement of the front flap with respect to the vehicle body; the damping member is a hydraulic damper
Implementation Method 2
a restoring member which restores a position of the front flap with respect to the vehicle body; the restoring member is a compression coil spring
Data Source
AI summary
This amphibious vehicle is provided with a body (11), a traveling device (12) that causes the body (11) to travel on land, a sailing device (13) that causes the body (11) to sail on water, a front flap (31) of which the distal end is inclined upward and the proximal end is rotatably supported by a horizontal shaft (34) on the front end of the body (11), a hydraulic damper (32) serving as a damping member that damps displacement of the front flap (31) relative to the body (11), and a compression coil spring (33) serving as a restoring member that restores the position of the front flap (31) relative to the body (11).