Nissan Motor Company Limited

Hiroshi Yamahata

Takaaki Uno

Kazuo Chiba

Takahiro Watanabe

Toshio Enomoto

Masao Kiyota

A link mechanism, such as a panhard rod or the like, has a rod section and a collar section at each of its two ends. One collar section is supported on the case side bracket through a bushing. The other collar section is supported on the body side bracket through a bushing. A mass is provided at each collar section for limiting vibrations. Each mass is configured so that its principal inertia axis coincides with the principal elastic axis of its bushing in at least one direction of the bending vibration mode of the rod section so that the nodes of the bending vibration mode of the panhard rod also coincide with the principal inertia axis of the mass and thus the principal elastic axis of the bushing. This significantly dampens the vibrations imparted to the link mechanism.

Link mechanism

A vibration damping insulator for supporting a structural member on a vehicle chassis. The insulator comprises a first tubular member connected to said structural member, a second tubular member disposed coaxially within the first tubular member and connected to the vehicle chassis, a first elastomeric body interconnecting the first and second tubular members and arranged to undergo shear when the tubular members are displace in one direction and compression when the tubular members are displaced in a second direction relative to each other, a stiffening plate disposed in the first elastomeric body between the first and second tubular members, a vibratable mass, and a second elastomeric body separate from the first elastomeric body and interconnecting the vibratable mass and one of the tubular members. The second elastomeric body and the vibratable mass define a dynamic damper having a resonance characteristic which suppresses transmission of vibration from the structural member to the chassis.

Insulator for use in automotive suspension or the like

The present invention features an insulator unit for supporting a suspension arrangement on a chassis or the like. The main elastomeric body of the insulator is arranged to have sufficient rigidity as to limit the displacement of the suspension with respect to the chassis. The device further includes a vibratory mass or masses which upon being excited cancel vibrations which would otherwise be transmitted through the main elastomeric member.

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Zama, Japan

Hiroshi Yamahata