Abstract: A vehicle suspension apparatus including suspension units each provided for each wheel and having an air spring chamber is disclosed, in which rolling control and vehicle height control are done through control of air to and from the air spring chambers. The driving of a reservoir tank for storing compressed air to be supplied to the air spring chambers, is inhibited until the engine operation has been stabilized after the start of the engine preset level. In this way, the problems in the engine lubrication and idling are solved, and the defficiencies of the starting property of the engine are overcome.

Abstract: The characteristic of the suspension is held to be a soft one when the vehicle is running along a flat surface, while it is automatically switched by the switch unit to a hard one when the cycle period T of vertical vibration of the vehicle height becomes near the cycle of the natural vibration of sprung mass of the suspension at the time of running along a road having an irregular surface or jumping a projection, thereby suppressing the resonance of the vehicle body due to external force applied from the road to improve the comfortability.

Abstract: A vehicle suspension apparatus has a hard/soft switching unit for switching suspension units between a hard state and a soft state, a vehicle velocity sensor for detecting a vehicle's velocity, and control means for receiving a signal from the vehicle velocity sensor and controlling the hard/soft switching unit for holding the suspension units in the soft state when the vehicle's velocity detected by the vehicle velocity sensor is smaller than a switching velocity as a first preset velocity set by the hard/soft switching unit and in the hard state when the vehicle's velocity detected by the vehicle velocity sensor exceeds the switching velocity. The vehicle suspension apparatus further has a switching velocity preset switch for presetting the switching velocity.

Abstract: A suspension apparatus has suspension units which have individual fluid spring chambers and are arranged on the wheels. When a detected negative acceleration (deceleration) exceeds a reference negative deceleration, front wheel fluid supply valves are opened for a control time T to supply a predetermined amount of fluid to the front wheel spring chambers and rear wheel fluid extent valves are opened for the control time T to exhaust a predetermined amount of fluid from the rear wheel fluid spring chambers, thereby decreasing nose dive at the time of deceleration.

Abstract: A suspension apparatus has suspension units mounted on wheels and each unit has a fluid spring chamber. Fluid is supplied to contracted fluid spring chambers and is exhausted from elongated fluid spring chambers to control the change in position of the vehicle. In the position control mode, a large-diameter path is selected to supply or exhaust a large amount of compressed fluid. In the height control mode, a small-diameter path is selected to supply or exhaust a small amount of compressed fluid. The required amounts of compressed fluid can be supplied to the fluid spring chambers in both the position and height control modes.

Abstract: Wheel suspension units each having fluid spring chambers are arranged in a vehicle suspension apparatus. A roll control quantity, determined in accordance with the relationship between a vehicle velocity and a steering angle, i.e., inlet solenoid valves and exhaust solenoid valves are controlled in accordance with solenoid ON/OFF time, thereby controlling rolling of the vehicle.

Abstract: A suspension system for an automobile wherein after having been changed to a "HARD" mode upon commencement of the turning movement, the characteristic of the suspension is not restored to the standard condition until completion of the turning movement is detected so that a stable running performance is obtained irrespective of the status of the curve of a road while good riding comfort at normal running is also maintained.

Abstract: Air spring chambers are provided in suspension units of respective wheels, and air intake solenoid valves and exhaust solenoid valves are provided corresponding to the air spring chambers. Further, switching means for switching the suspension units between the hard and soft states is provided, and when the vehicle's velocity, detected by the vehicle velocity sensors, is less than the set velocity, the suspension units are set to the soft state, and when the vehicle's velocity is the set velocity or higher, the suspension units are set to the hard state to control the switching means in a vehicle suspension apparatus.

Abstract: An electronically-controlled, car-height adjustable suspension system of a car comprises an engine startup sensor which senses that the engine of the car has just been started, a mean car height computing section that determines the mean value of car height detected by a car height sensor, and a computing time reducing section that reduces the computing time of the mean car height computing section upon receiving a startup signal from the startup sensor, all working in conjunction for the rapid accomplishment of car height adjustment immediately after the startup of the engine. The suspension system assures a quick car height adjustment after the engine startup than usual and, therefore, a comfortable ride.

Abstract: A vehicle suspension apparatus including suspension units each provided for each wheel and having an air spring chamber is disclosed. When steering wheel is quickly returned toward the center position at the time of a slalom running, it is detected from the steering angular velocity and vehicle velocity that the vehicle body has begun to be returned to a neutral state, and communication control valves are opened before the reaching of the center position, i.e., before the steering angle reaches an insensitive range. Rolling control thus can be improved without delay in the restoration of the position of the vehicle body even at the time of a high speed slalom running, at which time the steering wheel is repeatedly operated quickly.

Abstract: The front wheel exhaust valves and the rear wheel supply valves are opened for a predetermined period of time when rapid acceleration of the vehicle is detected by the accelerator pedal sensor and the gear position sensor, the absolute value of change in vehicle position and its velocity can be properly controlled. Therefore, comfort and steering stability can be improved as compared with vehicles mounting of the conventional apparatus. In addition, since an acceleration state is detected by the gear position sensor as well as the accelerator pedal sensor, rapid acceleration of the vehicle can be accurately detected, thereby preventing unnecessary position control.

Abstract: When an automobile or other vehicle travels over a bump with a suspension in its switchable suspension system kept in a "soft" state, the car body pitches violently. This pitching is reduced by turning the suspension into a "hard" state by increasing the damping capacity of its shock absorber and the spring constant of its air-spring chambers in accordance with a signal supplied from a car-height sensor detecting the compressed or stretched condition of the suspension. The change of the spring constant is executed with the following construction: an auxiliary air-spring chamber resting above a main air-spring chamber surrounding a piston rod, and an air passage within the piston rod for intercommunicating the main and auxiliary air-spring chambers are provided in the system, and the connection and disconnection between the two chambers through the air passage are controlled by the piston rod and a control rod extending in the piston rod.

Abstract: A first speed detecting means detects whether the engine speed has fallen below a prescribed level. A second speed detecting means detects whether an accelerator pedal angle has been changed at a speed higher than a predetermined value. A third speed detecting means is provided to detect whether the speed of the automobile is equal to, or higher than, a predetermined value. Upon receipt of the output signals from the first, second and third speed detecting means, a solenoid drive circuit drives engine vibration absorbers for a predetermined period of time. More specifically, the circuit energizes solenoids for this period. The solenoids rotate the thus rotary valves of the absorbers, thus closing the orifices of the absorbers. As a result, the absorbers generate great forces damping the back-and-forth motion of the engine. The vibrations of the engine are therefore not transmitted to the chassis of the automobile.

Abstract: A vehicle height control system capable, even if the height of the front side of the vehicle body is raised during the preceding vehicle height control operation by the agency of starting acceleration and the inertia of the body, and thereby the preceding vehicle height control operation for the front side is completed and the height of the front side is lowered thereafter due to the transition of the running mode of the vehicle from an accelerating mode to a constant-speed running mode, of advancing the timing of initiation of the succeeding vehicle height control operation to adjust the height of the front side to a standard height.

Abstract: An electronically controlled vehicle suspension system that can be switched between a hard and a soft state has a mode selection switch that permits an alternative choice between a hard mode that puts the suspension in the hard state and an automatic mode that automatically puts the suspension into the soft or hard state depending upon the vehicle conditions. A control device is also provided that puts the suspension in the automatic mode, in preference to the mode to which the mode selection switch has been set, when the engine key switch is turned on for the start. This electronically controlled suspension system is therefore always in the automatic mode when the engine has been started so that the suspension is automatically switched between the soft and hard states depending on the vehicle conditions, thereby assuring a comfortable ride at all times.

Abstract: A digital display device which has a delay circuit for operating a segment on-off driver so that when the ambient temperature at the time of renewing display is lower than a predetermined value, an OFF signal is sent to an ON segment and then, after the lapse of a predetermined time, an ON signal is sent to an OFF segment. Consequently, the overlap time between the segment to which an OFF signal was newly transmitted and the segment to which an ON signal was newly transmitted, can be made very short or eliminated whereby the discriminatability is improved to prevent misunderstanding of the display.

Abstract: When detecting means detects that changes have been achieved by an automatic transmission in lever position and/or gear position, a solenoid drive circuit is actuated for a predetermined period of time to drive shock absorbers which control the rolling of the engine of an automobile. More specifically, when it is actuated, the solenoid drive circuit energizes solenoids, whereby the rotary valves of the shock absorbers are rotated for said period. As a result, one of the two orifices of either shock absorber is closed, thus increasing the force damping the vibrations of the engine. Hence, the vibrations caused by a large torque of the engine are not transmitted to the chassis of the automobile.

Abstract: An air conditioning display system for a vehicle comprising a vehicle's air conditioner proper including a plurality of air intake ducts, a plurality of air discharge ducts, a plurality of dampers, and a fan unit, an air conditioner actuator actuating the dampers and the fan unit thereby introducing and discharging air into and out of the air conditioner proper, and a display device including a display panel carrying the picture of the vehicle body portions including the front seat, front glass and bonnet for displaying the flowing patterns of air into and out of the air conditioner proper under control of a control section. Lamps emitting light of, for example, red color and blue color are disposed behind the display panel and are selectively energized so that the occupant can readily visually confirm the flow of warm air or cold air from the duct outlets and also the flowing directions of air.

Abstract: An air conditioning display system for a vehicle comprising a vehicle's air conditioner proper including a plurality of air intake ducts, a plurality of air discharge ducts, a plurality of dampers, and a fan unit, an air conditioner actuator actuating the dampers and the fan unit thereby regulating a temperature of air discharged out of the discharge duct, and a display device including a display panel carrying the picture of the vehicle body portions including the front seat, front glass and bonnet for displaying the flowing patterns of air into and out of the air conditioner proper. Lamps emitting light of warm color and cold color are disposed behind the display panel and are selectively energized by a plurality of switch means so that the occupant can readily visually confirm the flow of warm air or cold air from the duct outlets and also the flowing directions of air.