US 7,578,541 B2
Trailer skirt panel
Brian Layfield, 1 Chartwell Road, Oakville, Ontario L6J 3Z3 (Canada); Joseph Mancina, 2479 Deer Run Avenue, Oakville, Ontario L6J 6L1 (Canada); James Haws, 518 Golf Links Road, Ancaster, Ontario L9G 2N8 (Canada); and Andriy Prokudin, 695 Surrey Lane, Apt. 905, Burlington, Ontario L7T 3Z3 (Canada)
Filed on Nov. 29, 2005, as Appl. No. 11/289,015.
Prior Publication US 2007/0120397 A1, May 31, 2007
Int. Cl. B60J 1/00 (2006.01)
U.S. Cl. 296—180.2  [296/180.4] 15 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A skirt panel for interconnection to another similar skirt panel for attachment beneath a lower, outer longitudinally-extending edge of tractor-trailer rig including not only a front wheel bogey and a rear wheel assembly, thereby to provide s continuous fairing extending downwardly from said tractor-trailer rig, each said skirt panel comprising:
a monolithic, generally-rectangular composite reinforced thermoplastic structure;
a first reinforcing structure comprising s reinforcing and connecting truss structure, said first reinforcing structure being operatively associated with an exterior facing edge of said skirt panel, and including outwardly extending connecting points;
a second reinforcing structure comprising lateral edge vertical reinforcing trusses, said reinforcing and connecting trusses having connection points to enable abutting similar skirt panels to be rigidly connected to one another;
a top edge, said top edge including a cap structural members for rigidly securing said skirt panel to said tractor-trailer rig;
a lower edge;
a front face of said monolithic, generally-rectangular composite reinforced thermoplastic structure being provided with a plurality of longitudinally-extending, vertically-spaced-apart arcuate protrusions; and
an exterior face of said skirt panel, which includes said reinforcing and connecting trusses and said connection points, also including a plurality of horizontal arcuate protrusions;
whereby, when said fairing is secured to a lower portion of said trailer said fairing extends downwardly from said tractor-trailer rig to from 60% to 80% of distance to the road, so that a portion of any impinging air is directed laterally around said wheels of said rear wheel bogeys to reduce the aerodynamic drag of said trailer and of said wheel assembly.