Claims
- 1. A damper for dampening vibrations of a rotatable steering shaft of a motor vehicle, the damper comprising:
a rotor; means for rotating the rotor at a rate proportional to and greater than rotation of the steering shaft; and a magnetorheological fluid disposed at least partially around the rotor, the magnetorheological fluid having a viscosity variable to vary a load on the rotor.
- 2. The damper of claim 1 wherein the means for rotating includes a drive member rotatable with the steering shaft and a driven member rotatable with the rotor.
- 3. The damper of claim 2 wherein the drive member has a diameter greater than a diameter of the driven member.
- 4. The damper of claim 2 further comprising a gear loading bracket retaining the driven member with the drive member.
- 5. The damper of claim 4 wherein the gear loading bracket includes a spring support.
- 6. The damper of claim 2 wherein the drive member includes a gear.
- 7. The damper of claim 2 wherein the driven member includes a gear.
- 8. The damper of claim 2 wherein the drive member includes a gear and the driven member includes a gear, and the drive member has more teeth than the driven member.
- 9. A damper for dampening vibrations of a steering shaft of a motor vehicle, the damper comprising:
a drive member rotatable with the steering shaft, the drive member having a first diameter; a rotor having a driven member engaged with the drive member, the driven member having a second diameter less than the first diameter; and a magnetorheological fluid disposed around the rotor, the magnetorheological fluid having a viscosity variable to vary a load on the rotor.
- 10. The damper of claim 9 further comprising a gear loading bracket retaining the driven member with the drive member.
- 11. The damper of claim 10 wherein the gear loading bracket includes a spring support.
- 12. The damper of claim 9 wherein the drive member includes a gear.
- 13. The damper of claim 9 wherein the driven member includes a gear.
- 14. The damper of claim 9 wherein the drive member includes a gear and the driven member includes a gear, and the drive member has more teeth than the driven member.
- 15. A damper for dampening vibrations of a steering shaft of a motor vehicle, the damper comprising:
a driver rotatable with the steering shaft, the driver having a plurality of pins; a wheel assembly mounted on each pin; a rotor engaged with the wheel assemblies; and a magnetorheological fluid disposed at least partially around the rotor, the magnetorheological fluid having a viscosity variable to vary a load on the rotor.
- 16. The damper of claim 15 further comprising a housing, the housing engaging the wheel assemblies.
- 17. The damper of claim 16 wherein the housing is fixed to the vehicle.
- 18. The damper of claim 15 wherein the wheel assembly includes an elastomeric wheel.
- 19. The damper of claim 15 further comprising a flexible bearing supporting each wheel assembly on its associated pin.
- 20. The damper of claim 15 wherein the rotor includes a projection, and the projection is engaged with the wheel assemblies.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is related to U.S. patent applications Ser. No. 09/821,870 filed Mar. 30, 2001; Ser. No. 09/851,464 filed May 8, 2001; Ser. No. 09/865,938 filed May 25, 2001; and Ser. No. 09/968,060 filed Oct. 2, 2001. The disclosure of each of these applications is hereby incorporated by reference.