WHEEL SUSPENSION WITH ECCENTRIC SHEAR DISC

摘要

The specification discloses a resilient wheel suspension 10 wherein a wheel 11 is rotationally mounted upon an axle 12 and the axle is resiliently suspended with respect to a mounting plate 14. The resilient suspension includes an elastomer disk 60 which is coupled along one major surface to the axle 12 and along the other major surface to the mounting plate. The axle is coupled eccentrically to the elastomer disk so that the axle axis is offset from the central axis of the elastomer disk. Lateral movement of the axle causes a shear to be applied in the elastomer disk. The eccentric mounting provides increased suspension travel, more ground clearance and more wheel mounting clearance with respect to a concentric mounting. The suspension can have non-linear characteristics by having a plurality of elastmer disks 60, 61, and 62 and metal disks 55, 56, 57 and 58 with central openings for passing the axle and successively coupled adjacent disks between a coupling to the axle and a coupling to the mounting plate. The size of the opening diameter increases in successive disks going from the disk adjacent the mounting plate. Successive disks are also mounted eccentrically with respect to the axle.