Patent GB-1245805-A (GB)
Title: Automatic banking apparatus for vehicles
Inventor: HANNAN JERRY MICHAEL
IPC: B60G21/10
Filed: 1968-11-01
Abstract: 1,245,805. Suspension systems. J. M. HANNAN. 1 Nov., 1968, No. 51888/68. Heading B7D. [Also in Division F2] An automatic banking mechanism for vehicles comprises two piston-cylinder assemblies of variable length mounted on opposite sides of the vehicle and a centrifugally operated valve controlling flow of compressed air for automatically varying their length. Vibration dampers may be connected in parallel with the pneumatic double-acting piston-cylinder assemblies, or, as shown in Fig. 1, they may be combined, a valved piston 1 working in a fluid-filled cylinder B communicating with a reservoir enclosed in an outer cylinder A through a valve 8. A pistonrod 3 sealingly extends through another piston 5 carried by the upper ends of cylinders A and B, and working in an air cylinder C having openings 14, 15 for connection to a compressed air supply. A tubular diaphragm D is connected between cylinder C and the reservoir cylinder A. The centrifugally operated valve E (Fig. 3) contains a valve member G, which is moved by a pendulum F under the influence of centrifugal force, and two symmetrically disposed structures, each comprising a high pressure compartment 30, an intermediate cylinder 32 one end of which is normally open to an exhaust compartment 59 and the other end of which has a passage 31 leading to the high pressure compartment 30. A high pressure cylinder 37 is disposed in the high pressure compartment, one end being open thereto, and a bleed opening 43 being provided in the wall of the cylinder communicating with the high pressure compartment. A pilot piston 36 in the cylinder normally closes the passage to the intermediate cylinder, the pilot piston having a valve-controlled chamber 35 therein arranged to communicate with that passage when it is closed by the piston. The pendulum controlled valve member has piston-like projections 54 for closing the open ends of the intermediate cylinders 32 and each projection slidably contains an end of a rod 33 attached to a displaceable valve member 34 in the valvecontrolled chamber of the pilot piston. Displacement of the pendulum actuated member G causes one of the intermediate cylinders 32 to be closed, disconnecting a supply pipe 60 from an exhaust pipe 48, and then moves the rod 33 and valve member 34 permitting air to flow from the valve controlled chamber 35 to the supply pipe 60. The resultant decrease of pressure in the cylinder 37 causes the pilot piston 36 to move permitting air to flow directly through the high pressure compartment 30 from an inlet pipe 29 to the supply pipe. On the pendulum returning to its normal position, a spring 40 closes the valve-controlled chamber and returns the pilot piston to the passage-closing position, cutting off the high pressure air supply. The air is supplied from a reservoir J fed by an enginedriven pump H, and the supply may be cutoff by a solenoid-operated valve K rendering the system inoperative. A pressure regulating valve (Fig. 6, not shown) may be provided at a connection 14 to a piston-cylinder assembly C to maintain a desirable working pressure in the cylinders, and this working pressure may be adjusted to compensate for the loading of the vehicle.