A handling strut connects the powertrain of an automobile to a structural member, such as a panel in the engine bay. The handling strut is comprised of two strut members, one connected to the powertrain, the other connected to the structural member. A shaft attached to one strut member, extends through a bushing provided in the other strut member and an air gap is provided between the bushing and the shaft, such that when the engine is idle, or not accelerating, and in the absence of hard cornering, the strut members are decoupled. The isolation of the strut members when not required to control engine roll, reduces/avoids transmission of noise, vibration and/or harshness.

A gas strut active monitoring system for a gas strut includes a gas strut wear monitor connected to a base end of the gas strut and a strut end. The gas strut wear monitor is removable from the gas strut such that the gas strut is replaceable without replacing the gas strut wear monitor. The gas strut wear monitor is configured to monitor an output force of the gas strut, and output a signal indicative of a maintenance recommendation for the gas strut based on the output force.

A power strut includes anisotropic damping device that provides different frictional torque on a rotatable member in response to rotation in opposite rotational directions. The anisotropic damping device includes a shell, the rotatable member, and a torsion spring. The shell includes a through hole, and the rotatable member extends through the through hole and is rotatably connected to the shell. The torsion spring is sleeved on the rotatable member and is in interference fit with the rotatable member, and the torsion spring is provided with a first leg fixedly connected to the shell. The rotatable member may include a shaft sleeve fixed to a rotating shaft, with the torsion spring in interference fit with the shaft sleeve.

Providing an overturn preventing device which has can successfully prevent an article from overturn with a simple structure. A damper of the overturn preventing device has a cylinder, a rod, and a spring. The cylinder is mounted between a top surface of a piece of furniture installed on an installation surface and a ceiling so that a direction of extension/contraction makes a predetermined angle relative to a vertical direction. The cylinder has two ends one of which is open to be formed into an opening and the other of which is closed to be formed into a bottom. The rod is inserted into the cylinder and has a distal end protruding from the opening. The spring is provided between a proximal end of the rod and the bottom of the cylinder. Two bases are rotatably coupled to the bottom of the cylinder and the distal end of the rod, respectively, and the bases abut against the top surface of the furniture and the ceiling, respectively.

A metering unit is provided. The metering unit includes a metering pin analog and a translation shaft. The metering pin analog is configured to translate about the translation shaft in a first direction in response to a load pressure acting on an annular region of a bottom portion of the metering pin analog. The metering pin analog is configured to translate about the translation shaft in a second direction opposite the first direction in response to the load pressure ceasing.

A gas backflow restrictor system as part of an aircraft strut includes the strut defining an inner volume having a first chamber and a second chamber; an orifice plate positioned within the inner volume and separating the first chamber and the second chamber; a standpipe attached to the orifice plate and extending longitudinally within the inner volume, the standpipe having openings extending through a thickness of a wall forming the standpipe, the standpipe further defining an inner channel; and a restrictor mounted within the inner channel, the restrictor having a shelf extending into the inner channel and forming a central opening; the shelf is to reduce gaseous flow through one or more of the openings of the standpipe and toward the orifice plate.

Aircraft support structures, systems, and methods are disclosed. In one embodiment, an aircraft system includes a rotating component and a support (e.g. strut) that supports the rotating component. The support includes a locking assembly (P1) that is configured to lock, automatically, an inner member (214) of the support with respect to an outer member (208) of the support for stiffening the support in response to reaching or exceeding a predetermined threshold amount of displacement, load, stress, or rotation. The aircraft support structures, systems, and methods herein utilize self-locking and self-unlocking supports (e.g. struts) for increasing or decreasing a stiffness of the support.

A gas strut includes a housing, a piston assembly, a dye, and a dye containment seal. The housing includes an inner surface defining a chamber extending along a centerline. The chamber includes a working portion and a dye storage portion disposed axially adjacent to the working portion. The piston assembly is constructed and arranged to reciprocate within the working portion, and the dye is located in the dye storage portion. The dye containment seal is disposed in the dye storage portion, and is constructed and arranged to transfigure from a normal state to a dye release state thereby releasing the dye upon the piston assembly.

Disclosed is a motor vehicle twin-tube damper comprising: a tube filled with a working liquid, a piston assembly disposed slidably inside the tube divides the tube into a rebound chamber and a compression chamber. A compensation chamber is located outside of the tube. A base valve assembly including a rebound valve assembly and a compression valve assembly controls the flow of the working liquid between the compensation chamber and the compression chamber. The rebound valve assembly includes a number of rebound flow channels covered by a main deflective disc. To suppress vibrations generated by the deflective disc due to pressure fluctuations occurring during rapid changes of the damper stroke direction, the rebound valve assembly includes an additional deflective disc disposed over the main deflective disc and separated from it by an annular gap with a thickness (G) that is less than the thickness of the main deflective disc.

A landing gear arrangement may comprise a shock strut, a retraction actuator, and a shrink actuator. The retraction actuator may move the shock strut between a stowed position and a deployed position. The shrink actuator may move between a shrink position and an unshrink position in response to the shock strut moving between the stowed position and the deployed position.