The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 17, 1983
Filed:
Aug. 12, 1980
Klaus Schnitzius, Rheinbrohl, DE;
Stabilus GmbH, Koblenz-Neuendorf, DE;
Abstract
In the illustrative embodiment of the invention disclosed, a pressurized gas spring is arranged to provide three different damping-rate states as the piston rod is progressively urged axially outward of the cylinder. A first damping-rate stage is provided by an axially movable ring carried by the piston structure, a second stage is provided by an axially movable sleeve member slidably mounted on the piston rod for engagement at its inner end with the piston structure, and a third stage is provided by entry of the outer end of the sleeve member into a damping cylinder mounted adjacent the end wall of the cylinder through which the piston rod extends. The three damping-rate stages act cumulatively increasingly to slow outward movement of the piston rod. In the disclosed embodiment, the gas spring is mounted so as to be in the rod-down orientation when the piston rod is fully retracted, and the sleeve member is moved by gravitational force into engagement with the piston structure, thereby initiating the second damping-rate stage, when the gas spring moves to the rod-up orientation during use.