A friction-controllable engine mount using an MR fluid

抄録

Magnetorheological (MR) fluids can vary their rheological characteristics by applying magnetic field strength and have been applied to various kinds of devices. In this study, an MR fluid was applied to an engine mount. This MR engine mount can not only mount an engine to insult its vibration, but also absorb impact force applied to drivers when a car collides in an accident. As an engine is the heaviest component of a car, the impact force can be reduced by controlling the damping force of the engine with the MR engine mount. In order to design the MR engine mount, we measured the typical characteristics of the MR fluid, as which we obtained the relationship of the shear stress to the flow rate, the magnetic flux density and the gap length of the MR fluid flowing, and the response time to the magnetic flux density. Using these experimental results, the MR engine mount was designed to satisfy the desired controllable range of the damping force.