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).
Improvements to the Phantom steering system, comparing it to Hispano and suggesting hydraulic damping.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 17\3\ Scan234 | |
| Date | 25th April 1928 | |
| Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} from R.{Sir Henry Royce} c. to BJ. BY.{R.W. Bailey - Chief Engineer} DA.{Bernard Day - Chassis Design} 47430 R11/M25.4.28. PHANTOM STEERING. X.7430 X.4214 X.8430 X.7420 With reference to Hs{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}3/LG23.4.28., I quite agree that enormous improvement has been made in the steering through increasing the ratio, and I think we ought to stick to the 18/1 as near as possible. It is understood that with this ratio we have a flexibility of springs of 2000 lbs.ins. in the longitudinal steering tube, but as there are 2 sets of springs the real flexibility is 1000 lbs.ins. If this is so we are still twice as rigid as the Hispano, but as the steering of the Hispano is a little quicker, than ours, our selectivity is not quite twice as great. We may say therefore that we are about 1.8 to Hispano's 1, and therefore our selectivity should be in this proportion better, but we ought to feel a little more of the road shocks. I however think that this is the best compromise. I do not like putting in much friction in the front axle because it is the cause of our losing selectivity. If however we could put half this friction in the damped pendulum lever we ought to be gaining in either selectivity or the absence of wobbles. I have suggested also that we investigate further the value of hydraulic damping on the axle. Providing that we arrange this apparatus so as to avoid air locks we ought to get pre-determined and constant damping even over the smallest range of motion, and we ought to be able to make this damping increase with speed, and so help us against high speed wobbles and road shocks. This, with mechanically or hydraulically damped pendulum lever should be patentable, and I believe has the element of better steering than is possible with any combination we know of. R.{Sir Henry Royce} | ||