Aerodynamic control system and method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016304137-A1
Application number	US-201514690008-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Apr 17, 2015
Priority date	Apr 17, 2015
Publication date	Oct 20, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

An aerodynamic control system includes a skirt assembly configured to be disposed between plural vehicles in a vehicle system formed from the plural vehicles with the vehicles separated by a spatial gap in the vehicle system. The skirt assembly can include a bladder configured to be inflated with a fluid by a fluid source disposed onboard the vehicle system to cause the skirt assembly to expand between the vehicles from a collapsed state to an expanded state such that the skirt assembly at least partially fills the spatial gap between the vehicles. The skirt assembly can reduce aerodynamic drag exerted on the vehicle system during movement of the vehicle system relative to the vehicle system moving without the skirt assembly in the expanded state.

First claim

1 . A system comprising:
a skirt assembly configured to be disposed between plural vehicles in a vehicle system formed from the plural vehicles with the vehicles separated by a spatial gap in the vehicle system, the skirt assembly including a bladder configured to be inflated with a fluid by a fluid source disposed onboard the vehicle system to cause the skirt assembly to expand between the vehicles from a collapsed state to an expanded state such that the skirt assembly at least partially fills the spatial gap between the vehicles, wherein the skirt assembly reduces aerodynamic drag exerted on the vehicle system during movement of the vehicle system relative to the vehicle system moving without the skirt assembly in the expanded state; and a controller configured to monitor inflation of the bladder and to at least partially deflate the bladder responsive to determining that air speed outside of the vehicle system exceeds a first designated threshold.

2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the controller also is configured to at least partially deflate the bladder responsive to determining that a moving speed of the vehicle system exceeds a second designated threshold.

3 . The system of claim 1 , further wherein the controller is configured to remotely control inflation of the bladder by the fluid source.

4 . The system of claim 3 , wherein the controller is configured to detect a leak in the bladder and, responsive to detecting the leak, to stop delivery of the fluid from the fluid source to the bladder.

5 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the bladder is configured to be fluidly coupled with an onboard compressor that controls inflation of the bladder by the fluid source.

6 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the fluid source includes a brake line of an air brake system of the vehicle system and the fluid comprises air from the air brake system.

7 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the bladder includes a vent configured to direct air that is moving relative to the vehicle system during the movement of the vehicle system from outside of the bladder into the bladder to at least partially inflate the bladder.

8 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the bladder includes one or more flexible sheets configured to change shape during the expanded state of the skirt assembly such that the skirt assembly changes shape between the vehicles during the movement of the vehicle system along a curved segment of a route along which the vehicle system travels.

9 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the bladder is configured to be inflated such that the bladder engages both of the vehicles that the bladder is disposed between and at least substantially fills the spatial gap between the vehicles.

10 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the skirt assembly further comprises at least one support member coupling the bladder to a first vehicle of the plural vehicles, wherein the skirt assembly is configured, when the bladder is inflated to at least partially fill the spatial gap between the first vehicle and an adjacent, second vehicle, for the bladder to no more than abut the second vehicle and not be coupled to the second vehicle.

11 - 19 . (canceled)

20 . A system comprising:
a bladder configured for attachment to a vehicle chassis, wherein the bladder is configured, when attached to the vehicle chassis, to be inflated from a collapsed state, such that the bladder fills less of a spatial gap between the vehicle and an adjacent vehicle to which the vehicle is removably coupled, to an expanded state such that the bladder fills more of the spatial gap between the vehicle and the adjacent vehicle, and wherein the bladder, when in the expanded state and during operation of the vehicle and the adjacent vehicle for movement along a route, is configured to no more than abut the adjacent vehicle and not be coupled to the adjacent vehicle; and a controller configured to monitor inflation of the bladder and to at least partially deflate the bladder responsive to determining that air speed outside of the bladder exceeds a designated threshold.

21 . The system of claim 20 , wherein the skirt assembly comprises a bladder configured to be inflated with a fluid by a fluid source device attached to the vehicle chassis, to cause the skirt assembly to expand from the collapsed state to the expanded state.

22 . (canceled)

23 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the controller also is configured to determine that the vehicle system is moving toward a curve in a route being traveled by the vehicle system and, in response to determining that the vehicle system is moving toward the curve, deflate the bladder of the skirt assembly.

24 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the spatial gap between the vehicles in the vehicle system is one of plural spatial gaps between the vehicles in neighboring pairs of the vehicles in the vehicle system,
wherein the bladder of the skirt assembly is one of plural bladders of the skirt assembly with different bladders disposed in different spatial gaps between the vehicles in the neighboring pairs of the vehicles, and wherein the bladders are fluidly coupled with each other.

25 . The system of claim 20 , wherein the controller also is configured to determine that the vehicle is moving toward a curve in a route being traveled by the vehicle and, in response to determining that the vehicle is moving toward the curve, deflate the bladder of the skirt assembly.

26 . The system of claim 20 , wherein the vehicle and the adjacent vehicle are two of three or more vehicles in a vehicle system and the spatial gap between the vehicle and the adjacent vehicle in the vehicle system is one of plural spatial gaps between the three or more vehicles in the vehicle system,
wherein the bladder of the skirt assembly is one of plural bladders of the skirt assembly with different bladders disposed in different spatial gaps between the vehicles in neighboring pairs of the three or more vehicles, and wherein the bladders are fluidly coupled with each other.

Assignees

• Gen Electric

Inventors

• Malone Matthew John
• Wright Gregory

Classifications

• B62D37/02

  by aerodynamic means · CPC title

• B62D35/02

  Streamlining the undersurfaces {(B62D35/005, B62D35/007, B62D35/008 take precedence)} · CPC title

• B62D35/004

  Inflatable nose or rear cones · CPC title

• B62D35/001 Primary

  For commercial vehicles or tractor-trailer combinations, e.g. caravans · CPC title