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Honda Has a Clever New Suspension System, It Uses Electromagnets

In an era when automakers are almost turning into techno-mining hybrid entities, Honda’s still looking out for the comfort of its future customers. The well-known Japanese brand is trying to fix a problem that many wanted to be solved until now – make an electrically-powered suspension system that won’t stop working properly when it’s under a lot of constant stress. Here’s their patented solution.
Honda Civic 7 photos
Photo: Tharoushan Kandarajah on Unsplash
Honda's New Electromagnetic Suspension SystemHonda's New Electromagnetic Suspension SystemHonda's New Electromagnetic Suspension SystemHonda Steering WheelShock AbsorbersHonda Civic
A recently undisclosed United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) filing shows Honda’s trying to make an improved suspension system. It uses electricity, actuators, magnets, computers, and other relevant components like frequency or temperature sensors. The goal is to achieve proper working conditions for the entire assembly even when the workload continues in high-temperature environments.

Basically, Honda wants to make sure its newest electrically powered suspension system can perform vibration control for a vehicle without changing or compromising the ride quality, even when the driver doesn’t enjoy taking breaks often.

To achieve this maximum state of efficiency and reliability in almost any condition, the Japanese carmaker took the standard solution it already had given its customers and modified it. This new one now includes electromagnetic actuators, electric motors, computers, and other relevant components that are not entirely new or unheard of. The solution isn’t something that’s prone to breaking down. It’s not a supercar thing but an enhancement for something already good.

What’s interesting here is that Honda has created tiny machines that can calculate every extension or contraction force possible just to apply the necessary countermeasures that are within a threshold. If those predefined parameters are broken, then a failsafe will act as temporary guidance to secure the entire assembly and make the car as comfortable as possible.

Honda says in its USPTO filing this invention will not “disturb the behavior of the vehicle” thanks to its capacity to perform the vibration control even in situations when the temperature is too high for the electric motor integrated into the electromagnetic actuator to operate as intended.

Complete technical details and different working scenarios are available in the document attached down below.

Finally, you must remember that a patent is not a guarantee of production. The auto company can choose to implement it as described or just use some parts of this new system to partially improve others.
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Editor's note: Some images shown are for illustration purpose only.

 Download: Honda's USPTO Filing (PDF)

About the author: Florin Amariei
Florin Amariei profile photo

Car shows on TV and his father's Fiat Tempra may have been Florin's early influences, but nowadays he favors different things, like the power of an F-150 Raptor. He'll never be able to ignore the shape of a Ferrari though, especially a yellow one.
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