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Air strut finds new two-wheel applications
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01/02/2007
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Continental’s CADS air damping system, developed for the BMW Enduro HP2 motorcycle’s rear wheel, is now being prepared for use on other motorcycles.
The system was the first to offer air damping for motorcyclists. The rider uses a hand pump to adjust ride height for higher loads by increasing the air pressure on the suspension strut. The system maintains optimum spring travel with or without passengers or luggage. Using conventional steel springs, this effect can only be partially achieved by adjusting the spring base (and therefore the spring pre-tensioning).
The air damping system’s spring and damping rates are automatically adapted to suit the load when the air pressure is adjusted.
At 2.3kg, the air spring damper is almost half the weight of conventional struts and has few components – a piston that moves up and down inside an aluminum cylinder filled with air instead of oil. As the piston moves in and out, some of the air is displaced, creating an additional progressive spring action. Some of the remaining air flows through valves to create the damping effect.
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Author
Roger Bishop
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