Claims
- 1. A vibration damping system, comprising:
a magneto-rheological fluid disposed in communication with a vibration sensing device; and a controller in operable communication with said magneto-rheological fluid, said controller being configured to receive a signal from said vibration sensing device and to transmit a signal to an actuator configured to variably alter physical properties of said magneto-rheological fluid, thereby providing a damping effect.
- 2. The vibration damping system of claim 1 wherein said transmitted signal is of a frequency that corresponds with a frequency of a vibration from said vibration sensing device.
- 3. The vibration damping system of claim 1 wherein the vibration damping system is configured to provide a damping effect to a steering system of a motor vehicle.
- 4. A linear vibration damping system for a motor vehicle, said linear vibration damping system comprising:
a cylinder; a piston slideably disposed within said cylinder; a magneto-rheological fluid disposed within said cylinder, said magneto-rheological fluid being in fluid communication with said piston; and a magnet disposed in magnetic communication with said magneto-rheological fluid, said magnet being controllable to provide variable control of said magneto-rheological fluid.
- 5. The linear vibration damping system of claim 4 wherein said cylinder is mounted to a chassis of the motor vehicle.
- 6. The linear vibration damping system of claim 4 wherein said piston is mounted to a steering system of the motor vehicle.
- 7. The linear vibration damping system of claim 6 wherein said steering system of the motor vehicle is a rack and pinion mechanism.
- 8. The linear vibration damping system of claim 4 wherein said fluid communication of said magneto-rheological fluid with said piston is maintained between opposing sides of a head of said piston through a conduit.
- 9. The linear vibration damping system of claim 8 wherein said magnet is disposed adjacent said conduit.
- 10. The linear vibration damping system of claim 9 wherein said magnet is mounted in said head of said piston.
- 11. The linear vibration damping system of claim 4 wherein said magnet is variably actuatable in response to a signal from a controller.
- 12. The linear vibration damping system of claim 11 wherein said signal from said controller is configured to correspond to a vibration sensed by said steering system and to effectuate a change in said magneto-rheological fluid such that a frequency of said vibration sensed by said steering system is substantially equal to a frequency of said signal from said controller.
- 13. A rotary vibration damping system for a motor vehicle, said rotary vibration damping system comprising:
a cylinder; a steering shaft extending through said cylinder, a first end of said steering shaft being in mechanical communication with a hand steering device of the motor vehicle and a second end of said steering shaft being in mechanical communication with a steering system of the motor vehicle; a magneto-rheological fluid disposed between an inner surface of said cylinder and an outer surface of said steering shaft; and a magnet disposed in magnetic communication with said magneto-rheological fluid, said magnet being controllable to provide variable control of said magneto-rheological fluid.
- 14. The rotary vibration damping system of claim 13 wherein said magnet is variably actuatable in response to a signal from a controller.
- 15. The rotary vibration damping system of claim 14 wherein said signal from said controller is configured to correspond to a vibration sensed by said steering system and to effectuate a change in said magneto-rheological fluid such that a frequency of said vibration sensed by said steering system is substantially equal to a frequency of said signal from said controller.
- 16. A method of damping vibrations in a motor vehicle, comprising:
disposing a magneto-rheological fluid at a source of vibration and a point of operator intervention in the motor vehicle; controlling said magneto-rheological fluid to effectuate a structural change therein; and subjecting said magneto-rheological fluid to a vibration from said source of vibration.
- 17. The method of damping vibrations of claim 16 wherein said controlling said magneto-rheological fluid to effectuate a structural change therein comprises,
applying an electromotive force to a magnet disposed proximate said magneto-rheological fluid, and forming said magnetizable particles of said magneto-rheological fluid into fibrous structures.
- 18. The method of damping vibrations of claim 17 wherein said forming of said magnetizable particles into fibrous structures comprises aligning said particles into a linear arrangement.
- 19. The method of damping vibrations of claim 18 wherein a degree of alignment of said magnetizable particles can be effectuated through the application of varying quantities of said electromotive force.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of United States Provisional Patent Application No. 60/179,175, filed Jan. 31, 2000, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
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60179175 |
Jan 2000 |
US |