US 12,441,150 B2
Damping force variable shock absorber
Masato Tokuhara, Hitachinaka (JP); and Akira Nishimoto, Hitachinaka (JP)
Assigned to Hitachi Astemo, Ltd., Hitachinaka (JP)
Appl. No. 18/858,617
Filed by Hitachi Astemo, Ltd., Hitachinaka (JP)
PCT Filed Apr. 22, 2022, PCT No. PCT/JP2022/018616
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Oct. 21, 2024,
PCT Pub. No. WO2023/203773, PCT Pub. Date Oct. 26, 2023.
Prior Publication US 2025/0269695 A1, Aug. 28, 2025
Int. Cl. B60G 17/015 (2006.01); B60G 15/06 (2006.01); B60G 17/0165 (2006.01); B62K 25/28 (2006.01); B62K 25/04 (2006.01)
CPC B60G 17/0165 (2013.01) [B60G 15/062 (2013.01); B60G 17/0152 (2013.01); B62K 25/283 (2013.01); B60G 2202/312 (2013.01); B60G 2204/62 (2013.01); B60G 2300/12 (2013.01); B60G 2400/202 (2013.01); B60G 2400/204 (2013.01); B60G 2500/104 (2013.01); B60G 2500/30 (2013.01); B60G 2600/182 (2013.01); B60G 2800/162 (2013.01); B60G 2800/914 (2013.01); B60G 2800/916 (2013.01); B62K 2025/044 (2013.01); B62K 2025/045 (2013.01)] 5 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A damping force variable shock absorber comprising:
a damping force variable mechanism including:
a damping force generation unit;
a damping force variable actuator; and
a damping force control unit configured to control an operation of the damping force variable actuator; and
a vehicle height control mechanism including:
a self-pumping mechanism configured to, using a vibration caused by traveling of a vehicle provided with the damping force variable mechanism as a driving force, pressurize a hydraulic oil and push a spring;
a vehicle height variable actuator configured to switch a flow path of the hydraulic oil pressurized by self-pumping; and
a vehicle height control unit configured to control an operation of the vehicle height variable actuator,
wherein the damping force control unit performs, when the spring is fully compressed, a process-by-process damping force variable control in which a damping force in a pushing process of the spring during a period in which a vehicle height is increasing by the vehicle height control mechanism is set to be weaker than a damping force in the pushing process of the spring during a period in which the vehicle height is not increasing.