Patent ID: 8382080

Claim:
A strut mount for interfacing with a strut shaft, comprising: a membrane comprising: a sheet membrane body composed of a resilient material having an inner periphery and an outer periphery, a membrane diameter between said inner and outer peripheries and a membrane thickness, wherein said membrane diameter is greater than said thickness by at least about an order of magnitude; and at least one cord set embedded within said membrane body, said cord set comprising a plurality of cords; wherein said at least one cord set imparts a radial stiffness to said membrane body which exceeds an axial stiffness of said membrane body; a sleeve adapted for mounting to the strut shaft; a structural member spaced from said sleeve and adapted for being supported by the strut shaft in moving relation responsive to said strut shaft in response to jounce and rebound; a valve plate connected with said sleeve and said structural member; a secondary resilient membrane connected to said sleeve and said structural member; an upper chamber bounded by said membrane at one end and said valve plate at the opposite end; and a lower chamber bounded by said secondary resilient membrane at one end and said valve plate at the opposite end; wherein hydraulic fluid is disposed in said upper and lower chambers; wherein said membrane is connected with said inner periphery with said sleeve and at said outer periphery with said structural member such that said membrane is a substantially incompliant volumetric boundary confinement for said hydraulic fluid; wherein said membrane provides axial compliance to jounce and rebound while maintaining the radial stiffness; and wherein a ration of the radial stiffness to the axial stiffness is between substantially about 11 to 1 and 20 to 1.