Patent ID: 8311705

Claim:
A method of controlling a variable profile energy absorber of known available stroke to minimize acceleration of a vehicle payload during a vehicle shock event comprising the steps of providing a means for inputting, storing, and/or sensing a mass of said payload; providing a means of sensing a velocity selected from the group consisting of a vehicle velocity in a vertical direction and a payload velocity in a vertical direction; transmitting said sensed velocity to an energy absorber controller; determining by said controller based on said sensed velocity, a predetermined shock event induced vehicle acceleration profile with an anticipated shock event duration and peak amplitude of the acceleration of said vehicle due to said shock event; defining a first force necessary to be applied by said energy absorber to said payload to decelerate said payload to a substantially zero payload velocity in a vertical direction at any time after said shock event; defining a second force necessary to be applied by said energy absorber to said payload to displace said payload to a predetermined stroke position at any time after said shock event; determining based on said definition of said first force and said definition of said second force a time at which said first force is substantially equal to said second force; calculating from said definition of said first force or said definition of said second force a value of total force at said determined time; applying a control signal to said variable profile energy absorber to induce said energy absorber to apply said total force to said payload.