Motor vehicles – Power – Having specific motor-to-body-frame relationship
Reexamination Certificate
1998-09-25
2001-05-01
Dickson, Paul N. (Department: 3618)
Motor vehicles
Power
Having specific motor-to-body-frame relationship
C248S060000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06223849
ABSTRACT:
This application claims Paris Convention priority of German Utility model application number 297 17 678.1 filed Oct. 3, 1997 the complete disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention concerns a device for mounting a component of a motor vehicle, such as an exhaust pipe assembly, to a chassis of the motor vehicle.
The elastic suspension of the exhaust gas assembly of motor vehicles has, in addition to support of the actual weight of the assembly, the principal goal of compensating for motion of the exhaust gas assembly relative to the chassis caused by load changing motion of the drive chain as well as to accept forces from the exhaust assembly due to acceleration and braking. In addition, vibrations transferred from the drive chain and the motor and the resulting possible resonances in the exhaust configuration should be isolated from the chassis.
Towards this end, suspension mechanisms made from a rubber elastic material are generally utilized as known in the art through DE-PS 43 12 504, DE-PS 44 17 651 and EP-A-0 529 250.
The suspension mechanism known in the art through DE-PS 43 12 504 has, e.g. an attachment component, a U-shaped supporting component as well as a bearing component connected to the exhaust assembly which is inwardly disposed and to which two upper and lower braces comprising rubber elastic material are mounted. Same are located at the oppositely positioned end sections on the support member or on the attachment member. In the holding device known in the art from DE-PS 44 17 651, a V-shaped suspension element is provided made from rubber elastic material which is connected to the support structure of the motor vehicle and to the exhaust gas assembly via three connecting openings. The suspension known in the art from EP-A-0 529 250 is a rhombus-shaped loop capable of accepting tensile forces and having braces shaped thereon made from an elastic material as well as upper and lower holding openings for accepting holding brackets on the motor vehicle and on the exhaust gas assembly.
All three of these suspensions have the common feature that they attempt, by means of complicated configuration of the rubber suspension, to achieve different properties with respect to stiffness, and mobility of the suspension device in each of the various differing directions. In particular, use of rubber material is thereby disadvantageous, since this material has thermal limits. The configuration of the elastic suspension on the exhaust assembly, which becomes quite hot during operation, must therefore be taken into consideration. The softness which is required for ease of use, i.e. low stiffness for the suspension device and needed to achieve good vibration isolation has, in addition, the consequence that undesirable large resilient paths occur in the elastic elements in response to larger force loads caused by initial acceleration or by driving and braking processes unless corrective measures are taken to limit the path. Such measures are often quite complicated.
It is therefore the underlying purpose of the invention to create a device for mounting of the above mentioned kind which is distinguished by high thermal shape stability as well as different characteristics with respect to stiffness and mobility in differing directions.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This purpose is achieved in accordance with the invention with an apparatus of the above mentioned kind which is characterized by at least two connecting components connected respectively to the chassis of the motor vehicle and to the assembly, which are movable relative to each other, and which engage at least one damped resilient wire element.
In accordance with the invention, rubber elastic suspension elements are no longer used, rather connection components and wire elements connecting these.
In a preferred embodiment, the connection components are formed by holding members engaging another to form housing-like pockets and which are movable relative to each other. Wire cushions made from pressed metal wire are disposed in the pockets. The wire elements are conventional highly effective wire cushions made from pressed metal wire such as pressed metal weave, wire mesh, wire screens, wire weave or the like which, under all conditions and following deflection out of its non-loaded shape in response to acting forces, return to their neutral position in a strongly damped nearly asymptotic fashion. In addition, the cushion material is completely thermally insensitive to the temperatures occurring at the exhaust assembly and, together with the compact construction of the holding members, allows the suspension formed thereby to be disposed at that location at which it is most effective with regard to vibration considerations. It is therefore also possible to introduce same at the center of gravity of the muffler and on curved pipe regions to which a mounting of a rubber suspension would not be possible for reasons of lack of space and/or temperatures.
The wire cushion is preferentially loadable with respect to tensile and compression forces and with respect to flexural and sheer forces. The use of a metal wire cushion in accordance with the invention and its suitable configuration facilitates differing stiffnesses in differing motional directions, wherein a soft characteristic dependence is preferentially observed in the direction of the vertical axis of the motor vehicle to achieve as best an isolation as possible. It is thereby possible to effect a minimum stiffness for the suspension in a neutral position of the exhaust gas assembly which facilitates as good a vibrational isolation between the exhaust gas assembly and the chassis of the motor vehicle as possible, since use of the metal wire cushion in accordance with the invention with its substantially progressive characteristic curve effects a suspension with limited deflection.
It is particularly preferred when the holding members are mounted to the chassis and exhaust gas assembly respectively. In this manner, a “fixed bearing” is created for the exhaust gas assembly so that attachment to relatively soft exhaust gas pipes of the exhaust gas assembly made from flexible components is also possible. This “fixed bearing”accepts the acceleration and deacceleration forces of the exhaust gas assembly along the longitudinal axis of the motor vehicle under small displacements as a result of which the exhaust gas pipe advantageously remains in its initial state. This also pertains to thermal length changes of the exhaust gas assembly.
A preferred configuration provides that the housing-like pockets which serve as abutments for the wire cushion are formed by a pot-shaped housing for accepting at least one wire cushion and a plunger penetrating in a freely moving fashion into the housing via an opening in the bottom region and penetrating at least partially through the wire cushion or cushions in a substantially central fashion and upon which the wire cushion or cushions can seat, at least in part. A suspension device of this kind has a configuration facilitating a compression loaded metal cushion to also effect a low stiffness along the vertical axis of the motor vehicle. The plunger preferentially has a head serving as an abutment for the metal cushion or cushions which extends radially in an outward direction from the plunger. The freely moving plunger transfers the motion of the pipe components or hoses of the exhaust gas assembly onto the metal wire cushion. Abutment is thereby effected not only by the head of the plunger but also by the walls of the pot-shaped housing. If the cushions seat freely, they are compressed. In the event that the wire cushions are fixed to the holding member components, e.g. to the head of the plunger, by means of weldment, gluing or the like, they are then subjected to tensile forces. In order to achieve as stable a bearing as possible, the housing is mounted to the chassis at least via a peripheral edge and the plunger is mounted to the exhaust gas assembly. The mobility of the plunger facilitates a
Gödel Frank Uwe
Salzer Georg
Dickson Paul N.
IWK Regler und Kompensatoren GmbH
Vincent Paul
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