Automotive Products, Inc.

Julie A Hartig

Keith V Leigh-Monstevens

Richard A Nix

Leslie P Branum

Michael L Schwartz

Darrin F Wilber

A damper for use in a hydraulic clutch actuator to attenuate vibrations transmitted from the crankshaft of the engine of the associated vehicle to the clutch pedal. The baffle includes an elongated cylindrical housing positioned in the conduit interconnecting the master and slave cylinders of the actuator coaxial with the axis of the conduit and including a spring biased piston mounted in the bore of the housing. The housing is open at its rear end and closed at its front end by an end wall defining an outlet port for the damper and the piston includes a central through passage defining the inlet port of the damper at the rear end of the through passage. A baffle is provided at the front end of the piston to provide a circuitous path between the central passage of the piston and the outlet port of the damper. The front face of the baffle includes a hemispherical surface which deflects attenuations entering the housing from the slave cylinder and routes the attenuations through the circuitous path defined by the baffle.

Damper for hydraulic clutch actuator

A damper for use with a hydraulic clutch actuator of the type including a master cylinder and a slave cylinder with a conduit interconnecting the outlet of the master cylinder and the inlet of the slave cylinder. The damper is positioned in the conduit between the master cylinder and slave cylinder and includes a diaphragm having a front face constituting a barrier wall of the hydraulic system so that the diaphragm can deflect in response to vibrations transmitted through the hydraulic fluid in the system to effect damping of the vibration and further includes a structure confronting but spaced from the rear face of the central region of the diaphragm which operates to limit the deflection of the central region of the diaphragm to a predetermined maximum magnitude to limit the stress at the center of the diaphragm to an acceptable level and thereby improve the fatigue life of the diaphragm. The limiting structure may comprise an upset portion on the cover; an elastomeric button on the inner face of the cover; a Belleville spring between the rear face of the diaphragm and the inside face of the cover; or a suitable liquid in the space between the rear face of the diaphragm and the inner face of the cover. The space between the limiting structure and the rear face of the diaphragm may be selectively varied to accommodate hydraulic control systems of varying hydraulic characteristics.

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Waterford, MI, United States of America

Julie A Hartig