Shock-absorber friction braking means

Claim 1

AN IMPROVED BRAKING SYSTEM FOR A BRAKING DEVICE OF THE TYPE ADAPTED FOR USE IN COMBINATION WITH A RESILIENT MEANS IN ENGAGEMENT BETWEEN TWO RELATIVELY MOVABLE BODIES TO RAPIDLY CUSHION, AND TERMINATE RELATIVELY RAPIDLY, RELATIVE MOVEMENTS BETWEEN THEM IN TWO OPPOSED DIRECTIONS SAID DEVICE COMPRISING A FIRST MEMBER OPERATIVELY CONNECTED WITH ONE OF SAID BODIES, A SECOND MEMBER OPERATIVELY CONNECTED WITH THE OTHER OF SAID BODIES, A DRY SLIDING FRICTION BRAKING MEANS COOPERATING WITH SAID FIRST AND SECOND MEMBERS TO RETARD THE RELATIVE MOTION BETWEEN SAID BODIES, SAID BRAKING MEANS COMPRISING A CONTROL MECHANISM TO VARY ITS BRAKING ACTION DURING OPERATION; SAID IMPROVED BRAKING ELEMENT COMPRISING A STRUCTURE AND ADAPTED TO BE OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO ONE OF SAID MEMBERS, AND A PORTION DEFINING A FRICTIONAL CONTACT BRAKING SURFACE FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH AN OPPOSED BRAKING SURFACE CARRIED BY THE OTHER OF SAID MEMBERS, SAID FRICTIONALA CONTACT BRAKING SURFACE ESSENTIALALY COMPRISED OF A POLYMERIC FLUOROCARBON COMPOSITION SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF POLY(TETRAFLUOROETHYLENE), POLY(CHLOROTRIFLUOROETHYLENE), AND COPOLYMERS OF TETRA FLUOROETHYLENE AND HEXAFLUOROPROPYLENE, SAID FRICTIONAL CONTACT BRAKING SURFACE BEING EFFECTIVE TO COOPERATE WITH THE CONTROL MECHANISM OF SUCH A BRAKINGDEVICE TO RETARD, RELATIVELY RAPIDLY, A FIRST TYPE OF RELATIVE MOTION IN BOTH OPPOSING DIRECTIONS BETWEEN SAID BODIES ABOVE A GIVEN PREDETERMINED CRITICAL DISPLACEMENT AT RATES OF RELATIVE MOTION EQUAL TO OR LESS THAN THE RATE OF RELATIVE MOTION OF ONE OF SAID BODIES AT THE NATURAL FREQUENCY OF HARMONIC MOVEMENT OF SAID ONE BODY AND THE RESILIENT MEANS, AND TO SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE, TO LESSER FINITE LEVELS, THE TOTALA BIDIRECTIONAL RETARDING ACTION FOR A SECOND TYPE RELATIVE MOTION BETWEEN THE BODIES AT RATES GRATER THAN THE RATE OF RELATIVE MOTION OF SAID ONE OF SAID BODIES AT THE NATURAL FREQUENCY OF HARMONIC MOVEMENT OF SAID ONE BODY AND THE RESILIENT MEANS.