Patent ID: 7862056

Claim:
A steering system for a wheeled vehicle comprising: a rack gear movable along an axis to control the steering angle of at least one wheel; a pinion gear in mesh with said rack gear to deliver steering force to said rack gear to change the steering angle; a steering shaft axially extending from said pinion gear; a torsional damping member attached to said steering shaft operative to apply a torsional damping force in opposition to torsional vibrations occurring between said rack gear and said pinion gear that would otherwise cause said shaft to be torsionaly oscillated about its axis, wherein said damping member includes a cylindrical mass element that encircles said steering shaft and is supported on said steering shaft by a plurality of spring elements, wherein said cylindrical mass element is freely suspended by said spring elements and out of direct contact with said steering shaft, wherein each of said spring elements has a first end that is fixedly attached to said steering shaft and a second end that is remote from said first end; and a head element located near the second end of each spring element to provide a spring attachment to said cylindrical mass element, said spring elements being cantilevered with respect to their attachment to said steering shaft, wherein said mass element is supported by said head elements on said spring elements, wherein each said head element is repositionable to preselected positions on said spring element to allow said damping member to be tunable.