Fluid-filled elastic mounting structure

Claim 1

A fluid-filled elastic mounting structure including (a) an elastic member having therein a cavity which is open at one end; (b) partition means cooperating with said elastic member to define an operating chamber which is disposed on one side of the partition means, said operating chamber including said cavity and being filled with an incompressible fluid; (c) a closure member at least a portion of which is formed from a flexible diaphragm, said closure member being disposed on the other side of said partition means and cooperating with the partition means to define therebetween an equilibrium chamber filled with the incompressible fluid; (d) fluid-path means for defining an orifice which communicates with said operating chamber and said equilibrium chamber; and (e) a movable member in the form of a plate supported by said partition means such that said movable member is movable over a predetermined distance by a force applied to said fluid in said operating chamber, said partition means comprising a generally hat-shaped outer member and a generally hat-shaped inner member each of which includes a cup-shaped portion and a flange portion extending radially outwardly from an open end of said cup-shaped portion, said outer and inner members being assembled with said cup-shaped portions thereof open on the same side such that said cup-shaped portion of said inner member is accommodated within said cup-shaped portion of said outer member, said flange portions of said inner and outer members being superposed on each other; support means for retaining said hat-shaped outer and inner members at said flange portions thereof superposed on each other, by means of caulking of said support means so as to grip said superposed flange portions; each of said cup-shaped portions of said outer and inner members comprising a cylindrical wall and a bottom wall closing one of opposite open ends of said cylindrical wall, the cylindrical walls of said outer and inner members cooperating to define an annular space which communicates with said operating and equilibrium chambers, and thereby functions as said orifice; and the bottom walls of said cup-shaped portions of said outer and inner members cooperating to define a generally flat space in which said movable member is received movably over said predetermined distance, said bottom walls of said outer and inner members having first and second communication means which communicate with said operating chamber and said equilibrium chamber, respectively, so that a pressure of the fluid in said operating chamber acts on the fluid in said equilibrium chamber through movements of said movable member within said generally flat space.