My shock absorber invention
 

Well its not really an invention, just an idea I had a couple years ago.

If I'm not mistaken, current shock absorbers use gas or air to absorb the bumps in the road. Well I had an idea to use two big opposing electromagnets instead of gas or air. If the magnets were powerful enough, they would never touch thus providing a very smooth ride. If huge magnets would be required making it impractical, then put some of the conventional gas systems in between the magnets to help absorb the shock. I don't know just an idea, maybe I'm crazy.

Oh, by the way, two months after I had this idea I see that some company has some prototype of a similar design idea in popsci. Go figure.

sounds like it could work in theory... making a super silky ride... but may not be mass producable... since it would take some very strong mags to make that work... magnets that strong are not cheap... at all.

Good theory, not sure about practicallity. You could take it a step further with computer control to be able to adjust the strength of the electro magnets. You'd also probably run into oscillation problems with magnets.

Cool idea, probably not practical.

Yeah I know You'd have to use like neodynium (m/s) mags and shield them like crazy so as not to mess with any other systems.
I guess the company that made a prototype used magnetic particles in some weird fluid. I dont quite remember.

Another problem would be picking up road garbage all the time.

Oh well, just something to think about.

i would think the mags would still hafta be in a similar style tube as we have now... just different guts. so that eliminates your "road junk".

Im no magnet expert, all I know is neodymium is pretty strong. Yeah I never really thought about oscillation and such. I don't even know how to shield against magnetism - doesn't work like radiation shielding.

What happens when you magnetise a spring/coil? besides for electrical applications...

to shield a magnet you wrap it in the opposite magnet.

pretty simple eh? thats how hometheater speakers are "video shielded". makes it sound really high tech when its just a little magnet on the back of the magnet assembly that does all the work.

also... remember these mag setups will hafta hold minimum 2000 lbs each... cause it'll need to work on any car.. any weight. most passenger cars see about 700-1000 pounds per corner. if you put them in trucks/suv's... you can easily meet that 2000 per corner with a loaded suburban/expedition.

why not use just regular magnets, and for the shielding just use copper. it shields pretty good

Regular magnets would have to be HUGE. Today I was looking at neodymium mags at a show. There made in a quarter circle mold, so four of those would make a complete circle, and if you could find REAL thick ones they would be strong enough probably to hold up my car. I dont think they could hold up an SUV though, they would have to be specifically for lighter cars: imports, smaller domestics, etc. until a pressure test could be done

y'know a motocycle would be an easier thing to test this idea on. But a test is not practicle right now because I have 1) no money 2) no engineering experience 3) no fabrication methods

I know this isn'y really on the topic of YOUR idea...but i had a suspension idea a couple months back too...;)
ok...here it is...my idea is based on an airbag suspension...but no need for a compresor or anything electrical(well, maybe, but not in my head;) )
I don't know if you use shocks with airbags..but with my idea...you do...ok...lets say your cruisin around and you hit a bump...and if this road continues to be really bumpy the shocks absorb the bumps...and while it does that...it uses the presure from that to pump up the airbags...raising the car so you're prtected from bumps...and as the road smooths out...the airbags slowly release are presure lowering your ride...so you don't have to worry about bottoming out or whatever...
Tell me what you think...
and if you don't understand it...(i hardly can:crazy: ) tell me that too;)

Thanks for readin...and i hope you like...

I really think this is a badass idea and could make tons o f money for whoever produces it...

no offense... but mobbo... that doesn't sound like it would work very well.

the magnet idea does sound possible, however not practical yet. further research is necessary.

Why do you think they'd be strong enough? 1000 lbs would require enormous magnets. Even with neodynum (say, Neo 42), you'd need large (10x10x8 inch) blocks of it. Neo also becomes less magnetic when it's warm (wouldn't do much sitting next to your engine), is highly succepible to corrosion, and a block this big is very difficult and expensive to make, even isostatically pressed.

For an coil to be powerful enough, it would have to be quite heavy and require a bundle of current. They also generate lots of heat, so some cooling would be neccesary, which requires more power than a car engine typically generates. Do you know of a way to run electromagnets of the required strength that could be powered by auto electronics? Just doesn't seem plausible to me...

that will get rid of the need for coilovers. summer when it's all hot the car will be down low, and in the winter it will be raised like hell, without any adjustments to your suspension :crazy:

;)
it works in my head:bandit:

Mushroom's right, the weight continues to be the problem. But without testing you never can be sure. Like I mentioned before, the magnets could act more as a supplement for heavier vehicles. You would just add them to the top and bottom so whatever is used to normally abosorb shocks: springs, pneumatics, whatever i dont know.

I think mobbos idea is pretty decent, no more better or worse than mine. Air bags would be a whore to protect, though. I'll think about that one.

just getting the air from the interior of the cylinder to the bag and the cylinder filling again... doesn't seem reliable or cost effective in design. lots of little parts to get broken. we are talking about a suspension here.

love your post hondaman-iac... funny. self adjusting suspension to meet the needs of the season.

I dunno...but i really think it could work...i dunno if you totally understood my post...cuz i really didn't understand all of it...lol
But i think it would work...i'm sure you would have to deal with the braking of stuff and whatnot...but everything needs maintenance(sp?)

That's a good point: small computer-controlled electomagnets to smooth out the ride. Some luxury cars have computer-controlled suspensions - anyone know how they work?

yeah, they have some electromagnetic valves that open and close according to the road conditions

Here's the magnetic suspension going into the new vettes:

http://media.gm.com/news/releases/020410_2003vette.html

404 ownz your post.

cool that they are already putting this into practice though.

Oh man, fix that link, I want to see this! I'll look around for it though...

Whoa, never mind, the link works now. They must've been down. Just to be safe, heres the article on it:

Magnetic Ride Control

New on the Corvette for 2003, Magnetic Selective Ride Control uses a revolutionary damper design that controls wheel and body motion with Magneto-Rheological fluid in the shocks . By controlling the current to an electromagnetic coil inside the piston of the damper, the MR fluid’s consistency can be changed, resulting in continuously variable real time damping. As a result, drivers feel a greater sense of security, a quieter, flatter ride and more precise, responsive handling, particularly during sudden, high-speed maneuvers.

The system isolates and smoothes the action of each tire, resulting in less bouncing, vibration and noise. On bumpy or slick surfaces, the system integrates with traction control to assure maximum stability. It also works with ABS to keep the vehicle balanced and poised. It is the only system without electro-mechanical values and no small moving parts. It consists of MR fluid-based monotube shock absorbers, a sensor set and on-board controller.

Magnetic Selective Ride Control is available on Corvette coupe and convertible models for 2003.

yeah the entire setup adds 13.6 lbs over the stock weight, but it's a vette and it's not suck a big issue

Looks like the big corporations used their mind-reading satellites and stole my ideas yet again!
Oh well, in the name of progress...

The vette system still uses a "normal" fluid damper, though, and just uses the em to change the viscosity of the fluid. The magnets aren't doing any damping, I think.

Yeah, its a little OT from this post, but interesting nevertheless. I don't think a full magnet system would work, and this is a compromise.