A Continuously Variable ER Damper with Energy Generation

재생 에너지를 이용하는 연속가변 ER댐퍼에 관한 연구

This study presents a so-called regenerative ER damper which does not require external power sources with aid of energy conversion from kinetic energy into electrical energy. The ER damper is manufactured by employing a rack and pinion mechanism which converts a linear piston motion to a rotary motion. This rotary motion is amplified by gears and subsequently activates a generator to produce an electrical energy. In order to demonstrate the efficiency of the mechanism, with respect to the frequency of the ER damper is investigated a generated electric voltage, which is amplified via a transformer prior to being applied to the ER damper. In addition, the damping force of the ER damper obtained by the regenerated voltage is evaluated.