Hydraulic Damper Spring Valve Axial Projections

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing hydraulic dampers face significant friction issues due to eccentricity and radial dimensional tolerances in valve assemblies, leading to hysteresis and inconsistent damping forces during piston rod acceleration and deceleration, affecting damper performance and production repeatability.

Innovation Solution

The spring seat of the valve assembly features axial projections that perimetrically engage the disc, eliminating the need for guidance and reducing friction by creating a circular gap between the seat and supporting member, ensuring centering and preventing sliding contact, thus minimizing friction and hysteresis.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If the spring seat is disposed slidably around the supporting member to enable axial movement, then the valve assembly can operate with adjustable spring positioning, but friction occurs between the spring seat and supporting member due to eccentricity and radial dimensional tolerances

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveaxial movement of spring seatVSAvoidfriction between spring seat and supporting member
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The invention extracts the guidance function from the supporting member by creating a circular gap between the spring seat and supporting member. The spring seat is now guided only by the disc through axial projections, eliminating the harmful sliding contact with the supporting member while maintaining necessary axial movement capability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The disc acts as an intermediary element that provides guidance for the spring seat through axial projections. This mediator transfers the guidance function from the supporting member to the disc, allowing the spring seat to move axially without direct contact with the supporting member, thus eliminating friction.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Manufacturing precision

If the spring seat slides on the supporting member to maintain position, then axial positioning is achieved, but hysteresis occurs due to friction during piston rod acceleration and deceleration

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveaxial positioning of spring seatVSAvoidrepeatability of damping forces
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The invention removes the supporting member from the guidance function, creating a circular gap that eliminates sliding contact. Positioning is achieved through axial projections on the disc alone, extracting the harmful friction element while maintaining positioning capability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The disc provides self-guidance for the spring seat through its axial projections, eliminating the need for the supporting member to provide guidance. The system uses itself (the disc) to provide the guidance function, avoiding the friction problem entirely.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

3Ease of operation

If axial projections are added to the spring seat for centering, then guidance is achieved without sliding contact, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecentering of spring seatVSAvoidstructure of spring seat
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The axial projections on the disc serve multiple functions: they provide centering guidance for the spring seat, maintain axial positioning, and eliminate the need for sliding contact with the supporting member. This multi-functionality adds guidance capability without proportionally increasing complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

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 design achieves an average 77-82% reduction in the 'force gap' between damping forces during acceleration and deceleration, enhancing damper sensitivity and repeatability while reducing production-specific losses and costs.

Implementation Method 1

a spring preloaded between the spring seat and the supporting member

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectElasticity: Elasticity

Implementation Method 2

the spring seat of said at least one spring valve assembly comprises at least one axial projection perimetrically engaging said at least one disc

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectMechanical constraint: Mechanical Force

Implementation Method 3

the flow of the working liquid is controlled within said tube during the rebound and the compression stroke of the piston body

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectHydraulic damping: Hydraulic Press

Data Source

PatentEP2926023B1Hydraulic suspension damper with a spring valve assembly
Publication Date: 2020.03.18 BEIJING WEST IND CO LTD
  • EP2926023B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP2926023B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4
  • EP2926023B1 patent drawingFigure 5~7

AI summary

A hydraulic damper (2), in particular a motor vehicle suspension damper, comprising a tube (22) filed with working liquid inside of which a slidable piston body (231) attached to a piston rod (21 ) led outside the damper (2) is disposed, wherein the flow of the working liquid is controlled within side tube (22) during the rebound and the compression stroke of the piston body (231) by at least one spring valve assembly (23, 26) provided with an axial member (211, 311) and rebound and compression valve assemblies (28b, 29; 27, 28c) surrounding the axial member (211, 311), wherein said at least one spring valve assembly (28b, 28c) comprises a body (231, 261) provided with through flow channels (282), at least one deflectable disc (281) covering these through flow channels (282), a supporting member (285, 285c) fixed to said axial member (211, 311) for clamping said at least one disc (281) at the inner circumferential part thereof, a spring seat (283b, 283c) disposed around said supporting member (285, 285c) and abutting said at least one disc (281) in at least one radial position (2831, 2832) at the outer circumferential part thereof, and a spring (284) preloaded between the spring seat (283b, 283c) and the supporting member (285, 2851c). In order to minimize friction between cooperating elements of the valve assembly, as well as to achieve comparable working characteristic of all dampers in the line production said spring seat comprises at least one axial projection perimetrically engaging said at least one disc and a circular gap is provided between said spring seat and said supporting member.