Vehicle suspension
A vehicle suspension comprises an assembly of a hub carrier and a support arm, the support arm being attached to the hub carrier at two points spaced from each other in the direction of travel and extending inwardly therefrom to a support arm attachment point for fixing to a chassis, and a trailing link extending from the assembly in a direction transverse to that of the support arm, toward a trailing link attachment point for fixing to the chassis. The trailing link preferably extends from the assembly in a forward direction, and is preferably connected directly to the hub carrier. A strut can extend upwardly toward an attachment point for fixing to a chassis, to provide a spring and damper. The support arm can comprise a pair of arms extending divergently from the attachment point to each of the two points. The hub carrier can include a pivot pin extending in a fore/aft alignment, passing through two pivot points on the support arm thereby to define the two points. The appropriate end of the pivot pin provides a convenient location for attaching the trailing link to the hub carrier. The invention further relates to a vehicle, comprising a chassis and at least two wheels, one on each side of the vehicle, each wheel being attached to the chassis via such a suspension.
1. A vehicle suspension, comprising:
an assembly of a hub carrier and a support arm, the support arm being attached to the hub carrier at two points spaced from each other in the direction of travel and extending inwardly therefrom to a support arm attachment point for fixing to a chassis, the fixing allowing movement of the support arm relative to the chassis in all directions and the hub carrier including a pivot pin; and
a trailing link extending from the assembly in a direction transverse to that of the support arm, toward a trailing link attachment point for fixing to the chassis and the trailing link connected to an end of the pivot pin; wherein
the pivot pin extends in a fore/aft alignment, and which passes through two pivot points on the support arm thereby to define the two points.
2. The vehicle suspension according to claim 1 in which the trailing link extends from the assembly in a forward direction.
3. The vehicle suspension according to claim 1 further comprising a strut extending upwardly toward an attachment point for fixing to a chassis.
4. The vehicle suspension according to claim 3 in which the strut carnes a spring.
5. The vehicle suspension according to claim 3 in which the strut carries a shock absorber.
6. The vehicle suspension according to claim 1 in which the support arm comprises a pair of arms extending divergently from the attachment point to each of the two points.
7. The vehicle suspension according to claim 1 in which the trailing link is connected to hub carrier.
8. The vehicle suspension according to claim 1 further comprising an axle carried by the hub carrier.
9. The vehicle suspension according to claim 8 in which the axle is a driven axle.
10. The vehicle suspension according claim 9 further comprising a wheel fitted to the axle.
11. The vehicle comprising a chassis and at least two wheels, one on each side of the vehicle, each wheel being attached to the chassis via a suspension according to claim 8 .
12. The vehicle suspension according to claim 2 further comprising a strut extending upwardly toward an attachment point for fixing to a chassis.
13. The vehicle suspension according to claim 1 in which the trailing link is connected to hub carrier.
14. The vehicle suspension according to claim 1 in which the support arm is mounted to the chassis via a cylindrical section mounted on a stud via a rubber bushing.