Bicycle Damper Using Segmented Magnetic Field for Smooth Damping Transition
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing bicycle dampers face challenges in providing effective damping for both small and large impacts, with a lack of adjustable transition from low-speed to high-speed ranges, leading to abrupt changes in damping behavior and reduced traction.
Innovation Solution
A damper device with a damping channel divided into sections by a locally inhomogeneous magnetic field, allowing partial exposure to the field, which adjusts the cross-sectional area and field strength, enabling a smooth transition and effective damping across a wide range of impacts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If a permanent magnet is used to generate a magnetic field in the damping channel, then the damping strength can be adjusted by changing the field strength, but a breakaway force must be overcome before the magnetorheological fluid flows through the damping channel, resulting in no damping for smaller impacts
Solution Approach 1:
The damping channel is divided into multiple sections (first damping section, second damping section, third damping section) with different magnetic field strengths. The first section has a weaker magnetic field that allows small impacts to pass through, while the second and third sections have stronger fields for larger impacts. This segmentation enables the damper to respond to both small and large impacts effectively.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sections of the damping channel are exposed to different magnetic field strengths created by multiple permanent magnets arranged at different positions and orientations. The first damping section experiences a weaker local field, while the second and third sections experience stronger local fields, allowing the system to provide appropriate damping for different impact magnitudes.
2Force
If the magnetic field strength is increased to dampen larger impacts, then the damping effectiveness for large impacts improves, but the position of the permanent magnet must be changed for each desired shock strength, making the system complex
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple permanent magnets are pre-positioned at different locations and orientations within the damping channel to create a predetermined gradient of magnetic field strengths. This preliminary arrangement of magnets with different strengths and positions allows the system to handle various impact magnitudes without requiring dynamic repositioning of magnets during operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically transitions between different damping sections based on the impact magnitude. Small impacts are damped in the first section with weaker field, while larger impacts engage the second and third sections with stronger fields, providing adaptive damping without mechanical reconfiguration.
3Device complexity
If a single magnetic field strength is used throughout the damping channel, then the structure is simple, but there is no smooth transition from low-speed to high-speed ranges, causing abrupt changes in damping behavior
Solution Approach 1:
The damping channel is segmented into multiple sections with progressively stronger magnetic fields. The first damping section handles low-speed ranges with a weaker field, while the second and third sections handle high-speed ranges with stronger fields, creating a smooth transition across different operating conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The magnetic field strength parameter is varied across different sections of the damping channel. By changing the field strength from weak in the first section to strong in the second and third sections, the system achieves a smooth transition in damping characteristics across different impact magnitudes and speeds.
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
The solution provides a smooth transition from low-speed to high-speed ranges, ensuring effective damping for small impacts and large impacts, enhancing riding comfort and safety by avoiding abrupt changes in damping behavior.
Implementation Method 1
Magnetorheological fluids, for example, usually consist of a suspension of small, magnetically polarizable particles, which are finely distributed in a carrier liquid. The polarizable particles, mostly consisting of carbonyl iron powder, typically have diameters between 0.1 and 50 micrometers and form chain-like structures under the influence of a magnetic field, so that the viscosity of the magnetorheological fluid increases significantly under the influence of a magnetic field
Implementation Method 2
DE 698 21 799 T2 discloses a controllable valve and a vibration damper for a bicycle, a permanent magnet being used to generate the magnetic field
Implementation Method 3
For damping, the damping fluid is throttled from one damping chamber via a valve to a second damping chamber. The valve can also be spring-loaded. The valve can be designed as an orifice or throttle.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~5
Figure 6~8
AI summary
The device (1) has two damper chambers (2, 3) that are coupled to one another via a valve (5) that includes damping channels (6, 7). A fluid influenced by a field is provided in the damping channels. An adjusting unit (10) is arranged for adjusting the field acting in the damping channels. The adjusting unit adjusts a portion of a cross-section of the damping channels, where the portion is exposed to a field of specific strength such that a part of the cross-section of the damping channels is partially exposed to the field of specific strength.