Abstract: An automotive jack in which an upright member is provided with a pivotable base plate hinged on a first pivot at the bottom of the upright member. This upright member has a second pivot on which a supporting arm is turnable. The supporting arm is pivoted by an actuating device. A spring pivots the base plate along the length of the upright member, and the supporting arm has, at one end, a load interception head for pivoting the base plate through a stop against the force of the spring into a position at an angle to the length of the upright member when the jack is folded together. The sole of the base plate has an entire surface butting against the ground for any extensions and loads of the jack due to the pivoting of the base plate about the first pivot.

Abstract: The invention concerns a method whereby not only the relative speed of the body and axle but also a dashpot's farthest-in and farthest-out positions can be measured without using complicated and expensive sensors. Relative speed is detected with a known combination of sensor coil and permanent magnet. The induced voltage at the midsection of the coil is proportional to relative speed. The voltage induced as the end of the coil is traveled by is exploited as a signal representing the dashpot's farthest-in and farthest-out positions.

Abstract: A jack (1) has a flat base (2) attached to a support (3) at the top by a lever-operated mechanism. The mechanism is activated by a threaded shaft (5) and nut (6). The nut has a coaxial gudgeon (10 & 11) on each side. The gudgeons extend across the axis (22) of an interior-threaded section. The nut consists of two halves (13 & 14). The halves fit together at a flat interface (15). The interface parallels both the axis (21) of the gudgeons and the axis (22) of the threaded section (23).

Abstract: A bypass valve with selective characteristics for controlled and adjustable dashpots. It has pressure-activated check valves that are reversed by means of a slide that can assume two positions and is activated by an electromagnet. Springs can be designed to dictate the characteristic of the dashpot independent of the type of piston employed.

Abstract: A jack with a single leg, with a lifting arm that pivots around a stationary horizontal axis on the leg, with a threaded shaft that is articulated to the leg and engages the lifting arm either directly or by way of lever arms articulated to the leg, and with a manually operated crank that has non-rotationally secured to its end a claw that has a transverse slot and sides that can be employed to attach the claw to a transverse bolt on the end of the shaft loosely enough to allow the crank to activate the shaft even when it is not aligned with it. The transverse slot (17) in the claw (18) slides over the transverse bolt (20) and, at the end of the side of the claw, has a width (X) no greater than the diameter (21) of the bolt, in that the claw fits loosely enough around the bolt to allow it to rotate, and in that the sides (19) of the claw have prongs (22) that loosely surround the threaded shaft.

Abstract: Active and adaptable sensor for a dashpot for measuring the difference between the speed of the body of a motor vehicle and that of its axle. A piston rod travels through the sensor and induces a voltage in a winding that is accommodated along with a permanent magnet in a housing. The voltage represents the difference in speed.

Abstract: A jack in which a base plate is pivotable on an upright to a bottom surface. A supporting arm is also pivotable on the upright, and is actuated for being pivoted. The base plate is held in a predetermined position by a spring which has two sections. A first section of the spring rests against the upright and the base plate, whereas the second section of the spring rests against the base plate and an end of the supporting arm when this arm is completely folded up against the upright. The second section of the spring, furthermore, generates a spring torque which is directed opposite to the spring torque that is generated by the first spring section. The spring torque of the second spring section, moreover, exceeds the spring torque of the first spring section.

Abstract: The invention concerns a two-way magnetic valve for controlling a bypass in a semi-active chassis. A valve slide is accommodated inside the piston of a vibration attenuator, where it slides back and forth subject to an electromagnet.

Abstract: The invention concerns controls for a semiactive chassis on a motor vehicle that is provided with variable or power-regulated vibration attenuators. The results of various sensor measurements are supplied to a regulator that controls the settings in the vibration attenuators on the sky-hook principle.

Abstract: The invention concerns a jack (10) with at least one leg (12) and an arm (16) that is connected to it, that can move up and down with its position varied by an adjusting mechanism (26), and that has a supporting plate (40) at its outer and free end that pivots on a horizontal shaft (52) on the arm. The supporting plate is secured to the shaft by at least one eye (50) that is stamped out of the supporting-plate component, whereby the ends of the eyes are in one piece with components of the supporting plate.

Abstract: The invention concerns a vibration-absorber sensor for the semi-actively controlled chassis of a motor vehicle wherein the relative velocity of the wheel mass to the body mass is measured with a sensor winding and a permanent magnet and processed in a circuit.

Abstract: A scissor jack has a leg having a lower end adapted to bear on the ground, a support arm having a lower end pivoted on an opposite upper end of the leg at an intermediate horizontal axis, and a load-bearing member engageable with the vehicle body and formed on an opposite upper end of the intermediate support arm. Upper and lower links are pivoted together at another intermediate horizontal axis with the upper link also pivotal on the support arm between the ends thereof at an upper horizontal link axis and the lower link also pivotal on the leg between the ends thereof at a lower horizontal link axis. A jack screw is connected between the intermediate axes and can draw the intermediate link axes toward one another to raise the load-bearing member or separate the intermediate link axes to lower the load-bearing member. A foot piece can rock on the lower end of the leg relative to the ground about a lower horizontal foot axis as the leg is raised and lowered.

Abstract: An apparatus for varying the damping characteristics of a shock absorber of the kind comprising a piston rod and an adjusting shaft mounted coaxially within the piston rod for rotation relative to the piston rod. Upon a change in its angular position relative to the piston rod, the adjusting shaft effects a change in an effective oil passage area in the shock absorber, and thus varies its damping characteristics. The adjusting shaft (16) has a free end (15) located at the end of the piston rod. The apparatus comprises a housing (4, 18, 19, 50) arranged to be attached to the end of the piston rod. The housing accommodates, in succession: an electric motor (1) adapted to be driven and positioned in two directions; a speed reducer (2) coupled to an output shaft (26) thereof; and a universal joint (3) disposed between an output member (33) of the speed reducer (2) and the free end (15) of the shock absorber adjusting shaft (16).

Abstract: An adjustable shock absorber for motor vehicles comprises a cylinder containing damping fluid, a piston rod arranged to be axially displaceable in the cylinder, and a damping piston secured to the inner end of the piston rod. The damping piston divides the cylinder chamber into two working chamber compartments and is provided with fluid flow passages which produce damping forces, the effective cross-section of these flow passages being controllable by a throttling member and an electromagnetic drive controlling the throttling member, with the electromagnetic drive including a coil winding which is mounted in the damping piston. In order to achieve improved control of the damping force the throttling member is under the influence on the one hand of the fluid pressure difference between the two working chamber compartments and on the other hand of a restoring force which is created by the electromagnetic drive.

Abstract: An adjustable shock absorber for motor vehicles has a cylinder containing damping fluid, a piston rod arranged to be axially displaceable in the cylinder, and a damping piston secured to the inner end of the piston rod. The damping piston divides the cylinder chamber into two working chamber compartments and is provided with fluid flow passages which produce damping forces, the effective cross-section of these flow passages being controllable by a throttling member and an electromagnetic drive controlling the throttling member, with the electromagnetic drive including a coil winding which is mounted in the damping piston. In order to achieve improved control of the damping force the throttling member is under the influence on the one hand of the fluid pressure difference between the two working chamber compartments and on the other hand of a restoring force which is created by the electromagnetic drive.

Abstract: A hydropneumatic shock absorber has an outer tube, an inner tube inside the outer tube, forming therewith an outer gas/liquid chamber and itself internally forming an inner chamber and a piston rod inside the inner tube. A body of liquid fills the entire inner chamber and partially fills the outer chamber. A piston on the rod subdivides the inner chamber into an upper and a lower compartment. A foot valve is located at the lower tube ends. A rigid centering washer has an outer periphery engaged against the upper end of the outer tube and an axially extending ridge engaged directly radially against the upper end of the inner tube. A flexible annular outer lip on the washer engages radially against the upper end of the inner tube to bear flexibly to permit limited fluid flow from the upper compartment to the outer chamber while blocking opposite flow. A flexible annular inner seal underneath the ridge on the washer engages radially inwardly against the piston rod.

Abstract: A hydropneumatic shock absorber comprises an outer tube centered on an upright axis, an inner tube coaxially spaced inside the outer tube and forming therewith an outer gas/liquid chamber, a piston rod inside the inner tube, generally coaxial with the tubes, and forming with the inner tube an inner liquid chamber, and a piston carried on the rod and radially outwardly engaging the inner tube, whereby axial displacement of the piston and rod relative to the tubes in one direction pressurizes the inner chamber. A foot valve between the inner and outer chambers permits limited liquid flow therebetween. An annular plug is fixed at the upper axial ends of the tubes and axially upwardly blocks the inner and outer chambers. A guide bushing in the plug surrounds the piston rod and an annular outer seal in the plug surrounds the piston rod above the bushing and forms with the bushing and plug an annular compartment surrounding the rod.