A semi-active magnetorheological seat suspension (SAMSS) has been developed to retrofit the SH-60 Seahawk crew seat to provide semi-active control of harmful cockpit vibrations. This magnetorheological (MR) suspension is implemented in series with the existing fixed load energy absorbers (FLEAs) with minimal weight impact and was designed in such a manner that the crashworthiness capability of the seat is not impaired. Experimental vibration testing results have shown that this system reduces the dominant rotor-induced vertical vibration (4 per rev) transmitted to the occupant by over 89%, which is a 85% improvement over the original SH-60 crew seat. Furthermore, full-scale dynamic crash testing performed on this retrofitted seat has demonstrated that crash safety is preserved. This preliminary dynamic crash testing indicates a reduction in peak lumbar loads as compared to the original SH-60 crew seat, suggesting that the SAMSS system actually improves crash safety.
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