The subject invention reveals a distance measuring device comprising: a sensing module, a target module, and an evaluating module, wherein the sensing module and the target module are mountable so as to execute a movement with respect to each other along a movement trajectory, wherein the target module comprises a magnetic field generating element having a magnetic pole axis, wherein the sensing module comprises a first magnetic field sensing array being arranged distant to the movement trajectory. The sensing module and the target module can advantageously be situated within the pressurizable chamber of an air spring which is defined by (contained within) a first mounting plate, a second mounting plate, and a flexible member of the air spring.

An air suspension system capable of raising both the vehicle front wheel side and the vehicle rear wheel side by using a single tank. The air suspension system (1) includes a front wheel-side air suspension (2) and a rear wheel-side air suspension (7) which are interposed between a vehicle body and associated axles to perform vehicle height adjustment in response to supply and discharge of air, a compressor (17) for compressing air, and a tank (27) for storing air compressed by the compressor. When the vehicle height is to be raised by the air suspensions, the front wheel-side air suspension is supplied with compressed air from the tank, and the rear wheel-side air suspension is supplied with compressed air from the tank after the compressed air has been pressurized by the compressor.

A suspension system includes a spring assembly including a gas spring and an accumulator, and a controller. The accumulator is coupled to the gas spring and includes a bladder. The accumulator has a compressed state and an uncompressed state. The controller is configured to a) determine a target amount of gas in the spring assembly and b) adjust the amount of gas in the spring assembly towards the target amount of gas based on a pressure difference across the bladder.

A system for suspending an automobile using an air rear suspension is provided. The system may include an automobile having a body, a front axle, and a rear axle; a linkage bar connected to said body and to said rear axle, wherein said connections allow for relative movement between said body and said rear axle; a cantilever bar having a first cantilever end and a second cantilever end; a damper; and an air spring, wherein said cantilever bar is connected to each of said rear axle and said body at said first cantilever end, wherein said cantilever bar is connected to each of said damper and said air spring at said second cantilever end, wherein said damper and said air spring are each connected to said body, and wherein said linkage bar and said cantilever bar are each configured to move in response to movement of said rear axle relative to said body.

Systems and methods for controlling a gas spring in a suspension system. The suspension system includes a gas spring and an accumulator coupled to the gas spring and having a bladder. The accumulator may be in a compressed state and an uncompressed state based on a pressure difference across the bladder. A target amount of gas in the gas spring is determined. The amount of gas in the gas spring is adjusted towards the target amount of gas in accordance with a pressure difference across the bladder based on the difference between the first pressure and the second pressure.

An air suspension system includes air suspensions (1, 2) performing vehicle height adjustment in response to supply and discharge of air, a compressor (3) compressing air, a tank (4) storing compressed air, a first passage (6) connecting between the delivery side of the compressor and the tank, and a second passage (7) connecting between the delivery side of the compressor and the air suspensions. A first dryer (10) is provided in the middle of the first passage to dry air flowing through the first passage. A second dryer (11) is provided in the middle of the second passage to dry air flowing through the second passage. Thus, compressed air generated from ambient air sucked in by the compressor can be dried by the second dryer and supplied directly into the air chambers of the air suspensions.

An air suspension system includes a tank, a tank-side open/close valve, an air suspension-side open/close valve, a system portion, and the like. The system portion includes a compressor, an air drier, and a first passage and a second passage provided between the tank-side open/close valve and the air suspension-side open/close valve in parallel, a discharge valve, a tank-side control valve, an air suspension-side control valve, and the like. Due to this configuration, the air suspension system regenerates the air drier by opening the discharge valve to thus cause the air in the second passage to flow from an opposite side toward one side of the air drier when no power is supplied to the tank-side control valve and the air suspension-side control valve.

Vehicle cab suspension control systems are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the cab suspension control systems can include front cab-to-frame mounts that include controllable elastomer-based isolators that can provide real time variable damping to improve ride quality and/or road holding and reduce cab roll in response to, for example, input from one or more cab and/or frame mounted accelerometers, position sensors, etc. Embodiments of the control systems described herein can utilize a single vehicle controller (e.g., an ECU) to control all of the cab suspension components (e.g., semi-active damping technologies, air spring technologies, etc.) employed on a vehicle to provide a single suspension control solution that can provide improved ride performance, road holding, etc.

A vehicle is provided with a vehicle frame or sub-frame structure and at least one of a body structure and engine structure or a plurality of suspension components mounted to the vehicle frame or sub-frame structure and a plurality of fluid-controlled spring/dampers supporting the least one of a body structure and engine structure or a plurality of suspension components to the vehicle frame of sub-frame structure, the plurality of fluid-controlled spring/dampers being connected to a single central pump.

A method and a system are provided for adjusting a pressure of a medium to a target pressure. The method includes: providing a pneumatic structure in which the medium is at a medium pressure that is a starting pressure; providing an adsorptive material operable within a range of temperatures that is proportionate with a range of medium pressures at which the pneumatic structure is operable; and adjusting a temperature of the adsorptive material to effect an adjustment of the medium pressure to the target pressure for performing a selected function. The system performs the method and includes the absorptive material and at least one regulator for adjusting the temperature of the adsorptive material.