Active underbody panel systems
AssigneeMagna Exteriors Inc.
InventorsMichael Mandl, Martin R. Matthews, Thomas E. Cobb
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An active underbody panel system having a frame arrangement mounted under the vehicle and at least one deployable panel moveable between stowed and deployed positions to improve aerodynamics under the vehicle. A deployment/retraction mechanism is provided having a pair of linkage assemblies and driven by an actuator, which allows the deployable panel(s) to be moved automatically downward into the air flow as needed.
Claims20
An active underbody panel assembly for a vehicle, comprising:
- a support frame mounted to an underside of the vehicle;
- at least one deployment/retraction mechanism operably coupled to the support frame;
- at least one deployable panel operably connected to the support frame;
- and
- at least one actuator operably coupled to the deployment/retraction mechanism, said actuator automatically moves the support frame under predetermined conditions to move the at least one deployable panel between a stowed position and a deployed position.
An active underbody panel assembly for a vehicle, comprising:
- a support frame mounted to an underside of the vehicle and including at least two rotatable portions;
- at least two linkage assemblies operably coupled to the support frame;
- a first panel connected to the support frame;
- a second panel connected to the support frame;
- at least one actuator connected to the at least two linkage assemblies to selectively move the first and second panels between stowed position and deployed positions.
An active underbody panel assembly mounted underneath a vehicle body, comprising:
- a first framing structure operably connected to a first panel frame structure,
- a first panel for aerodynamics connected to the first panel frame structure, said first panel selectively deploys into an air flow and retracts out of the air flow;
- a second framing structure operably connected to a second panel frame structure;
- a second panel for aerodynamics connected to the second panel frame structure, said second panel selectively deploys into an air flow and retracts out of the air flow, wherein said first panel is in a high pressure side of airflow acting on the active underbody panel assembly, and wherein the second plane is in low pressure side of airflow underneath the vehicle;
- at least two linkage assemblies operably coupled to the first framing structure and second frame structure;
- an actuator connected to a drive shaft, said drive shaft connected to the at least two linkage assemblies, wherein the actuator deploys the first and second panels under predetermined conditions and retracts the first and second panels under predetermined conditions, wherein the predetermined conditions are selected from the group consisting of vehicle low speed, vehicle high speed, forces/loads, current spikes, wind direction, yaw and combinations thereof.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.