The present disclosure relates to a hydraulic damper comprising a main tube, a piston assembly, a base valve assembly, and at least one hydraulic compression stop assembly cooperating with a compression valve assembly, and comprising a pin disposed slidably within the piston rod and biased to project an activating tip towards the compression chamber. Said compression valve assembly comprises at least one deflectable or floating disc covering compression flow passages, and biased by a piston member slidable along said axis and normally abutting a retaining surface, and a pressure chamber having one surface defined by a surface of said piston member abutting said retaining surface, wherein said pin upon sliding inside the piston rod facilitates a flow of the working liquid from the compression chamber into said pressure chamber to increase biasing load on said at least one deflectable or floating disc.

The present invention relates to a hydraulic damper, comprising a tube, a piston assembly comprising compression and rebound valve assemblies, and a controllable solenoid valve. The piston assembly further comprises a housing; first, second and third partition members; first, second, third and fourth check valves; and one or more radial channels; wherein said first partition member has a first axial opening and the solenoid valve has a valve member provided with at least one inlet in fluid communication with said first axial opening, and one or more outlets in fluid communication with said first internal chamber, wherein said second partition member has a second axial opening; wherein said first axial opening and said second axial opening allow the working liquid to flow from said third internal chamber to said at least one inlet of the solenoid valve bypassing said second internal chamber.

A hydraulic damper includes: a cylinder having a cylinder tube; a piston slidingly movable within the cylinder tube; a piston rod integrally movable with the piston; a first chamber and a second chamber into or from which fluid flows by sliding movement of the piston relative to the cylinder tube; a piston port portion connecting the first chamber and the second chamber; a damping force generating device disposed downstream of the piston port portion through which the fluid flows; and a sub-valve disposed upstream and/or downstream of the damping force generating device. The sub-valve is provided with a sub-valve port portion that is connected to a flow path of the piston port portion. A total cross-sectional area of a flow path of the sub-valve port portion is smaller than a total cross-sectional area of the flow path of the piston port portion.

A method for controlling vehicle motion is described. The method includes accessing a set of control signals including a measured vehicle speed value associated with a movement of a vehicle. A control signal associated with user-induced input is also accessed. The method compares the measured vehicle speed value with a predetermined vehicle speed threshold value to achieve a speed value threshold approach status, and then compares the set of values to achieve a user-induced input threshold value approach status. The method monitors a state of a valve within the vehicle suspension damper, and determines a control mode for the vehicle suspension damper. The method also regulates damping forces within the vehicle suspension damper.

A magnetorheological damper, wherein the damper comprises a housing that is at least partially filed with a magnetorheological fluid, and a magnetorheological valve disposed within the housing. The valve includes a magnetically permeable core having at least one coil reservoir formed therein, and at least one conductor coil, wherein each conductor coil is disposed around a portion of the core within a respective one of the coil reservoir(s). The valve additionally includes a fluid flow path adjacent the conductor coil(s). The fluid flow path is structured and operable to allow the magnetorheological fluid to flow adjacent the conductor coil(s). The valve further includes at least one coil cover, wherein each coil cover is disposed over a respective one of the coil(s) such that the respective coil is protected from exposure to magnetorheological fluid flowing through the fluid flow path.

A shock absorber for a vehicle includes a pressure tube containing a hydraulic fluid. The shock absorber further includes a piston rod extending within the pressure tube along a longitudinal axis, and including a piston end disposed within the pressure tube. The piston rod includes a rod chamber defined within the piston rod and extending along the longitudinal axis from an upper chamber end distal to the piston end to a lower chamber end proximal to the piston end. The piston rod further includes at least one first opening disposed proximal to the lower chamber end. The shock absorber further includes a first piston assembly, an auxiliary housing, and a damper assembly including a sleeve received within the rod chamber.

A hydraulic damper comprises a main tube, a piston assembly, a base valve assembly, and a compression stop assembly. The compression stop assembly includes an insert defining an inner chamber, and a sleeve displaceable along with the main piston assembly and configured to be slidably introduced inside the inner chamber. The sleeve has a diameter lower than the diameter of the main tube defining a first external flow channel between the sleeve and the main tube; the sleeve is attached to the piston assembly by a spring disposed within the sleeve; and the insert is provided with a plurality of axially-spaced holes and has an annular flange adjoining the inner wall of the main tube and separating the compression chamber from a second external flow channel between the radially external outlets of the holes and the base valve assembly.

A suspension system and associated control methods for improving comfort by disabling passive pitch stiffness in the suspension system by holding open electromechanical comfort valves positioned in a manifold assembly of the suspension system. The manifold comfort valves are held open to disable the passive pitch stiffness of the suspension system if the vehicle is traveling down a rough road or if the vehicle is approaching a discrete road event like a pot-hole or speed bump. Deactivation of the passive pitch stiffness of the suspension system is determined based on road classification information, saved road events, and/or real-time vehicle data from on-board sensors. The suspension system therefore reduces pitch angles during pitch events induced by inertial forces caused by driver inputs and disables the pitch stiffness when the pitch event is caused by road inputs.

A suspension system and associated control methods that reduce temperature related fluctuations in the internal pressures and stiffness of the suspension system. A manifold assembly is connected in fluid communication with a plurality of dampers via hydraulic circuits and a pump assembly via a pump hydraulic line. Onboard sensors generate real-time data regarding the vehicle. A suspension control unit, arranged in electronic communication with the aforementioned components, monitors the real-time data, sets a target stiffness and a target pressure, calculates an effective stiffness based on the real-time data, determines if the effective stiffness is above or below the target stiffness and sets a new target pressure accordingly by making stepwise decreases or increases until the new target pressure is reached.

A state module selectively sets a present state to a first state in a predetermined order of states; a valve control module determines first target open and closed states for valves of a suspension system based on the present state and opens and closes the valves according to the first target open and closed states, respectively; a pump control module configured to, when the valves are in the first target open and closed states, respectively, selectively operate an electric pump of the suspension system in a first direction and pump hydraulic fluid toward the suspension system; and a diagnosis module configured to: record first and second values of pressures within the suspension system measured using pressure sensors, respectively, before and after the operation of the electric pump in the first direction, respectively; and selectively diagnose faults in a first subset of the valves based on whether pressure increases occurred.