Cadillac Gage Company

James D Crabtree

Theodore A Jackson

Irving Appelblatt

Peter Krawiecki

A suspension system for wheeled vehicles, particularly adapted to extended travel suspension systems for armored wheeled vehicles in which each of the front and rear vehicle wheel assemblies is mounted on a trailing arm suspension. The front suspension system includes an axle housing supported at either outboard end by a bell crank assembly, each including a trailing arm pivotally mounted to the axle housing at one end and at the other to a pivotal support on the vehicle hull or frame with a second shorter crank arm acting on a coil spring to resist arm motion by compression of the spring. Within each coil spring is disposed a stack of rubber bumper elements compressed with the spring while a pair of rubber bushings is provided at each pivot point of each of the trailing arms, the damping action of the stack bumpers and bushings performing a shock absorbing function. The rubber bushings also act as torsional springs and to accommodate limited tilting motion of the axle housing. The trailing arms each are inclined inwardly to closely position the coil springs, which extend generally horizontally within the nose of the vehicle hull to minimize the overhead clearance required and provide ready access to the coil springs. An independent trailing arm suspension supports the rear wheels, with a bell crank assembly compressing respective coil springs with driving power delivered by means of universal joints from a fixed differential gear unit.

Suspension system for wheeled vehicles

A hatch for an armored vehicle having a viewing block integral therewith to be moved with the hatch as the hatch is opened and closed. The hatch is mounted for guided movement on a downwardly sloping surface of the armored vehicle so as to move down and away from the hatch opening to allow viewing from the hatch opening downwardly over the opened hatch. The open and closing guides include a three-point roller guide rail support configured to allow the weight of the hatch to be carried by the rollers after an initial upward movement of the hatch from compressive engagement with a peripheral seal installed about vehicle openings and thence slid downwardly on the guide rails away from the opening. The three-point roller guide rail support provides for effective guidance of the hatch movement throughout its range of opening and closing movements and includes two support arms secured to the hatch interior and extending into the hatch opening carrying two of the rollers and a third roller mounted to a hatch exterior surface guided in a guide rail mounted on the surface of the vehicle. A locking pin arrangement is provided to secure the hatch in the open and closed position, while clamping hooks are utilized to hold the hatch down securely on the peripheral seal. The hatch design is particularly adapted to cover the vehicle driver's station with a two-position driver seat utilized for viewing either through the viewing blocks with the hatch closed or at a higher point with the driver's head positioned through the hatch opening.

Hatch for armored vehicles

An armored wheeled vehicle configured for maximum resistance to penetration by frontally directed weapons fire while affording excellent visibility at the driver station and an extended field of fire for the weapon observation station, having an armored hull with an extended upper oblique frontal surface, sloping to a point rearward of the midpoint of the vehicle. The driver station is located approximately at the midpoint of the vehicle with the sloping frontal surface affording good visibility for the driver and includes a driver's hatch positioned over a driver station hull opening, the hatch adapted to be moved down and forwardly to provide an unobstructed driver view. The armament observation station is located to the rear and above the driver station, while the vehicle power plant is located along side the driver station. The front suspension includes a trailing arm type suspension minimizing the hull depth at the front wheels to allow the oblique frontal surface to be extended. The front wheel assemblies are disposed within wheel wells recessed within each side of the hull and covered by displaceable fairing panels which are normally disposed and overlie the wheel wells to provide an upper surface in conformity with the frontal surface of the hull.

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St. Clair Shores, MI, United States of America

James D Crabtree