The Gates Corporation

Freudenberg-nok General Partnership

The Gates Rubber Company

Vibracoustic North America L.p.

Iljin USA Corporation

Michael L Crabtree

Richard F Stieg

Jeremy S Mercer

Ron J Johnson

Ken Casagrande

Angad Vasant Patil

Young Chun Lee

A spring assembly for a non-rail wheeled or tracked vehicle is provided. The spring assembly includes a piston, and a sleeve with variable thickness. The sleeve is made from an unreinforced synthetic elastomeric material and being free of reinforcing fibers. The sleeve is coupled with a plurality of end components and defines a deformable pressure vessel, and the deformable pressure vessel supplies a support force.

Air springs and methods for making the same

A method for forming an air spring for a vehicle including a frame coupled to the air spring includes heating an elastomeric base material to a melting point of the elastomeric base material, thereby forming a melted elastomeric base material, forming a sleeve from the melted elastomeric base material, the sleeve being substantially free of textile reinforcing fibers, and engaging the sleeve with end components, the sleeve and the end components defining a deformable pressure vessel, where the deformable pressure vessel supplies a supporting force.

An air spring of the type with a sleeve having a first rolling lobe connected at an end to a first piston, a second rolling lobe connected to an end to a second piston, and where the first piston is substantiallyfrustoconicalcylindricaland the second piston is substantiallycylindricalfrustoconicaland where the minimum effective area of thefirstsecondpiston is less than the minimum effective area of thesecondfirstpiston and where the maximum effective area of thefirstsecondpiston is greater than the maximum effective area of thesecondfirstpiston. The frustoconicalfirstsecondpiston allows the air spring to accommodate large angular suspension motion without degrading durability.

Dual lobe airspring

An air spring including a spring seat, and a flexible sleeve connected to the spring seat. The flexible sleeve forms a compression chamber and includes a lobe that rolls along a surface of the spring seat during compression of the flexible sleeve. An annular barrier is disposed on the spring seat between the lobe of the flexible sleeve and the surface of the spring seat to deflect debris and ice from becoming lodged or trapped in the spring seat that may damage the flexible sleeve.

Air spring with debris and ice barrier

An air spring sleeve. The sleeve comprises an elastomer body having two plies. Each ply comprises a cord embedded in the elastomer body. Each cord is wound about the sleeve in an opposing direction from the other and each having a helix angle. The first cord helix angle and the second cord helix angle comprise a cord differential helix angle. The first or inner cord helix angle is greater than a second or outer cord helix angle. The cord differential helix angle is in the range of approximately 0&#xb0; to 2.5&#xb0;.

Airspring sleeve

A side load compensating air spring piston having an elliptical cross-section. The side load compensating air spring comprises an air spring sleeve forming a chamber and having a rolling lobe. One end of the sleeve is attached to a tilted end cap for side load compensation. The other end of the sleeve has a rolling lobe engaged with a piston elliptical outer surface. The piston elliptical outer surface is disposed at a 90&#xb0; angle to an elliptical stress distribution in the sleeve, thereby rendering the stress distribution uniform in the sleeve rolling lobe portion as it rolls on the piston.

Air spring elliptical piston

An air spring of the type with a sleeve having a first rolling lobe connected at an end to a first piston, a second rolling lobe connected to an end to a second piston, and where the first piston is substantially frustoconical and the second piston is substantially cylindrical and where the minimum effective area of the first piston is less than the minimum effective area of the second piston and where the maximum effective area of the first piston is greater than the maximum effective area of the second piston. The frustoconical first piston allows the air spring to accommodate large angular suspension motion without degrading durability.

A vehicle suspension with an airspring of the type with a flexible sleeve forming a chamber portion and a rolling lobe portion. The chamber portion is attached to a tilted closure and the rolling lobe portion of the airsleeve is attached to a piston that is transversely moved which introduces a shear force into the airsleeve and increases a surface area on an upward tilted side of the sleeve so as to provide side load compensation and where the axial length of the rolling lobe is substantially equalized to enhanced flexural life. A method of imparting a side load force with an airspring fastened between a fixed member and reciprocating member of a vehicle suspension, is provided by tilting a closure member of the airspring, transversely moving a piston connected to a rolling lobe portion of the airspring while distorting a chamber portion of the airspring, and eccentrically offsetting the piston in a manner that tends to equalize an axial length of a rolling lobe.

Side load compensating airspring for a vehicle suspension and method

A telescopic strut for a vehicle suspension of the airspring type with a flexible sleeve forming a chamber portion and a rolling lobe portion. The chamber portion is attached to a tilted closure and the rolling lobe portion of the airsleeve is attached to a piston that is transversely moved which introduces a shear force into the airsleeve and increases a surface area on an upward tilted side of the sleeve so as to provide side load compensation and where the axial length of the rolling lobe is substantially equalized to enhanced flexural life.

Side load compensating airspring strut

A method for making an Airspring and Sleeve that each have a chamber portion and rolling lobe portion reinforced with successive layers of embedded cord by winding cord in one layer at opposite helical angles from cord of a second successive layer and winding cord at inconstant helical angles in an annular band portion of at least one of the sleeve portions.

Method for making an airspring and sleeve

An airspring sleeve and airspring that each have a chamber portion and rolling lobe portion reinforced with successive layers of embedded cord where cord in one layer is wound at opposite helical angles from cord of a second successive layer and where the cord is wound at inconstant helical angles in an annular band portion of least one of the sleeve portions.

Growing community of inventors

Arvada, CO, United States of America

Michael L Crabtree