Patent ID: 8544620

Claim:
A suspension apparatus for a vehicle comprising: an electromagnetic actuator including (a) a wheel-side unit coupled to a wheel-holding portion for holding a wheel of the vehicle, (b) a body-side unit which is coupled to a mount portion formed at a part of a body of the vehicle and which is movable relative to the wheel-side unit in correspondence with a relative movement of the wheel-holding portion and the mount portion, and (c) a relative-movement-directional-force generating mechanism which includes an electromagnetic power source and which generates a resistance force with respect to the relative movement of the wheel-side unit and the body-side unit, the electromagnetic actuator being configured to generate a damping force with respect to the relative movement of the wheel-holding portion and the mount portion; a hydraulic damper including: a housing which stores a working fluid; a piston which divides an interior of the housing into two fluid chambers; a flow-resistance imparting mechanism which imparts a resistance to a flow of the working fluid between the two fluid chambers associated with a movement of the piston; and a piston rod having a first end which is coupled to the piston and a second end which extends from the housing, the hydraulic damper being disposed between the wheel-holding portion and the electromagnetic actuator so as to be arranged to act in series with the electromagnetic actuator, the housing being coupled to the wheel-holding portion while the second end of the piston rod being coupled to the wheel-side unit of the electromagnetic actuator, the hydraulic damper being configured to generate a damping force with respect to the relative movement of the wheel-holding portion and the electromagnetic actuator; a suspension spring which is disposed between the wheel-holding portion and the mount portion, which is supported at one end thereof by the mount portion, and which establishes a connection between the wheel holding portion and the mount portion that does not include the electromagnetic actuator, for supporting the wheel-holding portion and the mount portion relative to each other; a support spring which is disposed between the wheel-side unit of the electromagnetic actuator and the wheel-holding portion for supporting the wheel-side unit and the wheel-holding portion relative to each other; and a generally cylindrical cover tube which is disposed such that one end thereof is immovable relative to the wheel-holding portion while the other end thereof is movable relative to the body-side unit of the electromagnetic actuator, which accommodates therein at least a part of the piston rod of the hydraulic damper that extends from the housing and the support spring, and which includes a spring-supporting portion formed on an outer circumferential portion of the cover tube for supporting another end of the suspension spring opposite to said one end of the suspension spring.