Patent ID: 7104054

Claim:
A system for damping the extension and retraction of a hydraulic cylinder of the work vehicle at the ends of the cylinder's stroke, the system comprising: a manually operable operator input device configured to generate a command signal indicative of desired direction of cylinder movement and speed of cylinder movement for movement over the cylinder's entire range of motion; a hydraulic cylinder having a retraction limit position and an extension limit position; a sensor configured to generate a signal indicative of hydraulic cylinder position; a valve coupled to the cylinder to control flow rate of hydraulic fluid to and from the cylinder; and an electronic controller that is coupled to the operator input device to receive the input device signal, wherein the controller is coupled to the sensor to receive the sensor signal and is coupled to the valve to command valve opening and closing; wherein the controller is configured to (1) damp retraction of the cylinder near its retraction limit position, (2) damp extension of the cylinder near its extension limit position, and (3) automatically stop damping retraction and extension upon receipt of a damping cancellation signal from the input device.