Appeal No. 2006-1447 Παγε 8
Application No. 10/775,881
decrease in fluid pressure within chamber 112
causes movement of shim disc 78 away from
annular projection 96 to increase the size of
restriction 108. This increase in the size of
restriction 108 increases the flow between
upper working chamber 42 and fluid reservoir
48 providing a relatively soft shock absorber
10. Thus, the stiffness of shock absorber 10
can be controlled by the amount of fluid
pressure supplied to plastic air tube 120,
which controls the amount of fluid pressure
within control chamber 124, which controls
the amount of fluid pressure within chambers
110 and 112 which control the movement of
shim disc 78 and the size of restriction 108.
In operation, when wheel 16 or 22 rolls over an obstruction, fluid in tube 62 flows into
aperture 92, through aperture 98, past restriction 108, through chamber 102 and out
aperture 94 into fluid reservoir 48 (col. 6, lines 45-47). During rebound
of shock absorber 10, fluid in tube 62 flows into aperture 92, through aperture 98, past
restriction 108, through chamber 102 and out aperture 94 into fluid reservoir 48 (col. 6,
line 54 and 58-61). Vermolen further discloses (col. 9, line 62 through col. 7, line 5)
that:
the rate of fluid flow from upper working
chamber 42 to fluid reservoir 48 varies in
accordance with the amount of fluid pressure
being supplied to plastic air tube 120. This
fluid pressure varies the rate at which fluid
can flow from upper working chamber 42 into
fluid reservoir 48 through valve assembly 60
due to the size of restriction 108. By
increasing the fluid pressure, the shock
absorber damping characteristic is increased,
making the shock absorber stiffer. Similarly,
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Last modified: November 3, 2007