From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Design and development of hydraulic dampers, comparing different design choices.
| Identifier | WestWitteringFiles\V\March1931-September1931\ Scan015 | |
| Date | 6th March 1931 | |
| DA{Bernard Day - Chassis Design}/HDY.{William Hardy} FROM R.{Sir Henry Royce} HS{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}/RM.{William Robotham - Chief Engineer} (At Le CanadelHenry Royce's French residence.) RY C. to SG.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} WOR.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} HYDRAULIC DAMPERS. x235. Mr. Hardy writes some excellent remarks but like my own they may not prove as beneficial as they appear because so often there are some unknown disadvantages. To summarise, what seems most hopeful is as follows: I quite agree with DA{Bernard Day - Chassis Design}/HDY.{William Hardy} that we should still be ourselves, not spoofed by USA. or we cannot hope to get anything better than they. We will however ruthlessly take what we can that is good from them as they have from us and others. (1) I so far like the details of their piston better than our own. (2) We have decided on a pressed on internal lever, using fine taper serrations for the outside lever. (3) We have our own method of lubricating the main shaft bearings. (4) We shall get along more quickly and simply by putting the replenishing valves in the piston, and if we put on a cover at each end we can get at these by taking the damper off the frame. They must however be so reliable that this would only be needed on very rare occasions. (5) We have our own double acting valve which Mr. Hardy remarks may have its own virtues of silence and permit of knife edge seating, so it should be tried because of the extremely simple drilling and one valve instead of two, and also it makes more possible the control of the damping pressure by the driver. I am not sure whether we should arrange this on one of the covers or at the side. I imagine something like the enclosed sketches. (Not received from R.{Sir Henry Royce} so far.) (6) In a recent memo. I gave the idea of fitting pipes for easy refilling with clean oil. I think this is a good idea and while Derby are making the dampers WW. should get a scheme of pipes and reservoir, but we can leave this for a few weeks until the damper proper is out of Mr. Hardy's hands. Perhaps we ought to fit the experimental dampers with both my single valve and also the more ordinary double ones, and let Derby try out both. We shall need a reservoir for some spare oil to provide for waste but if we have pipes to the damper this need not be large and I think it will avoid the necessity of a filter because there can be one on the distributing pump which also can be refilled in a cleaner place. (1) | ||