ContiTech AG Air springs for Driver's Seats Vehicle Body Vibration Control

Air-spring driver's seats give the operator's workplace a more ergonomic and comfortable design, thereby reducing fatigue and work-related health risks.
As a rule so-called sleeve type air springs are used in commercial vehicle driver's seats. Thanks to their compact construction they can easily be integrated into the seat frame. The force is transmitted from the seat backing to the air spring via a control-sleeve lever or a so-called scissors construction. At working pressure levels between 3 and 7 bar max. this provides not only for a comfortable spring characteristic but also for an infinitely adjustable seat height. The internal pressure is automatically adapted to the specific weight of the operator by means of a height-control valve.
Because of their ergonomic advantages, air-spring driver's seats are more or less a standard feature these days, not only in buses and heavy long-distance trucks but increasingly in agricultural and construction machines such as, for example, tractors and wheel loaders as well.

Each LFD consists of two or three chambers depending on the application and service conditions, and unites the functions of an air spring and damper in one single component.
Designed for use in air-sprung driver's seats and cab suspensions, LFD technology:

• Geater ride comfort due to frequency-selective damping and automatic weight-related damping performance
• Low wear and a long service life
• Environmentally safer because damper fluid is not needed
• Air is used as a medium for optimum suspension and damping performance

Typical body damping systems are used in convertibles. Since the bodies of these vehicle models exhibit less torsional stiffness than the corresponding sedan models, they are more prone to low-frequency-range vibrations.

To improve vibration behavior, body damping systems with more vibrating mass are used.

Suspension of modern exhaust systems fulfills a number of tasks. For one thing, they harmonize structural parts in such a way as to prevent structure-borne sound from being transmitted from the exhaust system to the vehicle body; what is more, the component characteristics reduce movements of the exhaust gas system caused by roadway excitation. At the same time, they offer high temperature stability, high resistance to wear and long service life.