Patent ID: 7753181

Claim:
A damper, comprising: a housing having walls defining a well; a rotor positioned in the housing within the well, the rotor positioned to define a space between the rotor and the walls, the rotor positioned for rotation within the housing; a seal chamber defined at least in part by the rotor and the housing contiguous with the space between the rotor and the housing, the seal chamber being elongated in a longitudinal direction; at least one seal positioned in the seal chamber, between the housing and the rotor to isolate the space from the environment, the seal having a dimension less than the elongated dimension of the seal chamber, and extending less than the elongated dimension of the seal chamber; and a damping fluid in the well between the rotor and the housing for damping rotation of the rotor relative to the housing, wherein the housing, the rotor and the at least one seal are formed from a silicone containing or silicone impregnated material and wherein the damping fluid is a silicone based fluid.