Claims
- 1. A vehicle suspension system for coupling a set of wheels to a vehicle body structure, the suspension system comprising:
independently pivotable swing arms attached at one end to a vehicle body structure and at the other end to a respective wheel; a shock absorber assembly mounted to a vehicle structure, the shock absorber assembly including a biasing element, a joining arm arranged to be moveable in a vehicle lengthwise direction and rotateable about an attachment point, and a linkage coupled to the joining arm and the biasing element; and a tie rod connecting each respective swing arm to the joining arm, wherein the joining arm is arranged to move in a vehicle lengthwise direction under control of the biasing element in response to road input to both wheels, and rotate without lengthwise movement to allow the tie rods to translate in opposite lengthwise direction in response to leaning of the vehicle.
- 2. The suspension system of claim 1 wherein the set of wheels comprise a pair of front wheels, the system further comprising independently pivotable steering arms coupled to each respective wheel and a steering mechanism, the steering arms coupled to the steering mechanism so as to pivot cooperatively with the swing arms.
- 3. The suspension system of claim 2 wherein the swing arms comprise lower swing arms, the system further comprising independently pivotable upper swing arms coupled to each respective wheel and a vehicle body structure and arranged to pivot cooperatively with the lower swing arms.
- 4. The suspension system of claim 1 wherein the set of wheels comprise a pair of front wheels and the swing arms comprise lower swing arms, the system further comprising independently pivotable upper swing arms coupled to each respective wheel and a vehicle body structure and arranged to pivot cooperatively with the lower swing arms.
- 5. The suspension system of claim 1 wherein the joining arm is arranged to move by translating in the vehicle lengthwise direction.
- 6. The suspension system of claim 1 wherein the joining arm is arranged to move by rotating the linkage in the vehicle lengthwise direction.
- 7. The suspension system of claim 1 wherein the swing arms comprise lower swing arms.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/435,373 filed on Dec. 20, 2002.
Provisional Applications (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60435373 |
Dec 2002 |
US |