Spring-Prestressed Damper Throttle for Idle Stroke Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing dampers for furniture and household appliances suffer from an idle stroke at the beginning of the damping movement, reducing the effective useful length of the damping stroke and having a short service life due to wear and insufficient restoring forces.
Innovation Solution
A damper design featuring a throttle element that can change the cross-section of the flow channel via a spring-prestressed piston ring, which is fixed between a holder and a spring element, allowing for reduced idle stroke and extended service life by ensuring high damping forces when the piston rod is pushed in and low damping forces when extended.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If a displaceable piston ring is used to reduce the flow channel cross section, then high damping forces are generated, but an idle stroke occurs at the beginning of the damping movement
Solution Approach 1:
The throttle element is pre-positioned in the damping position by the spring element before the piston movement begins. This preliminary positioning ensures that the flow channel cross-section is already reduced, eliminating the need for an idle stroke to initiate the damping effect.
Solution Approach 2:
The spring element provides dynamic prestressing of the throttle element, allowing the system to adapt between two extreme positions (damping position and return position) based on the piston movement direction, thereby eliminating idle stroke while maintaining high damping forces.
2Force
If a flexible plate is used to increase the flow channel cross section, then the restoring forces are improved, but the plate wears out quickly and restoring forces are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The spring element is designed as a simple, inexpensive component that can be easily replaced. While the spring may wear out over time, its simple structure and low cost make it economically viable to replace rather than design a complex durable mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses different materials for the spring element and throttle element - the spring can be made from elastic plastic or thin-walled metal, while the throttle element uses rigid material with high surface hardness. This material combination optimizes both service life and functional performance.
3Reliability
If the throttle element is made of rigid material with high surface hardness, then wear is reduced and service life is extended, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The holder serves multiple functions: it provides the mounting structure for the throttle element, acts as a centering guide, and serves as the attachment point for the spring element. This multi-functionality reduces the number of separate components and simplifies manufacturing.
Solution Approach 2:
The system is divided into distinct functional components (holder, throttle element, spring element) that can be manufactured separately and assembled. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while simplifying the overall manufacturing process.
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 damper achieves reduced idle stroke and extended service life by ensuring high damping forces when the piston rod is pushed in and low damping forces when extended, maintaining effective performance over time.
Implementation Method 1
the throttle element being prestressed into the damping position by at least one spring element
Implementation Method 2
in a damping position, keeps the cross section of the at least one flow channel small in order to generate high damping forces
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3A~3B
AI summary
The invention relates to a damper (1) for fittings for furniture or household appliances, comprising a housing (2), in which a piston connected to a piston rod (3) is guided in a linearly displaceable manner, the piston dividing an interior (20) of the housing (2) into two chambers, wherein at least one flow channel (9) is formed on or in the piston, which flow channel connects the two chambers to each other, wherein a throttle element (6) is provided which, in a damping position, keeps the cross-section of the at least one flow channel (9) small when the piston moves in a first direction in order to generate high damping forces and, by means of a movement of the throttle element (6), enlarges the cross-section of the at least one flow channel (9) when the piston moves in the second direction, opposite the first direction, in order to reduce the damping forces, wherein the throttle element (6) is biased into the damping position by at least one spring element (72).