Yamaha manufactures its three-millionth performance damper

Yamaha Motor Co announced today that it has produced a total of three million units of the Yamaha Performance Damper, an anti-vibration damper for automobiles since its manufacturing began in 2004. A ceremony to mark this milestone was held at the Numazu Factory No.2 of Yamaha Motor Hydraulic System Co, a subsidiary which manufactures products such as shock absorbers.

The Yamaha Performance Damper is a vehicle body vibration damper that is installed in the main parts of passenger cars and motorcycles. It is a device designed to control and absorb minute distortions and vibrations, contributing to improvements in stability and comfort in a wide variety of vehicle types.

After the basic concept development in 2000, it was first adopted as a mass-produced product in April 2004, and the cumulative total has now reached three million after reaching earlier milestones of one million in November 2016, and two million in January 2020.

Normally, when a passenger vehicle or a motorcycle is in motion, micro distortions of less than 1mm occur in the body. A metal vehicle body has elastic characteristics and lacks damping force, meaning that external distortion energy is accumulated and released almost unchanged, repeating the cycle of distortion at a natural frequency.

The Yamaha Performance Damper adds a damping element to the chassis, thereby absorbing the distortion energy and releasing it as heat. This suppresses excessive deformation speed of the vehicle body, achieving both high manoeuverability and stability, which not only improves handling stability but also contributes to improved comfort.

The Yamaha Performance Damper has received numerous awards. In 2005, it was chosen for the Chairman’s Award at the 3rd New Machinery Promotion Awards, hosted by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Machine Industry. In 2006, it received the Technological Development Award at the 56th JSAE Awards, hosted by the Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan. In 2008, it was selected for the 40th ‘Ichimura Prize in Industry for Distinguished Achievement’, hosted by the New Technology Development Foundation (currently the Ichimura Foundation for New Technology).

Images: Yamaha Motor Co