Vehicle Side Fender Duct Vanes for Downforce and Pebble Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle side structures increase air resistance and require larger downforce while scattering pebbles rolled up by wheels, necessitating a balance between reducing air resistance and suppressing pebble scattering.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle side structure with a fender having inclined vanes and a duct connecting to a fender liner, guiding air flow to reduce pressure and direct pebbles away from the fender, using duct vanes made of resin or rubber to prevent damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If the traveling wind in the wheel house is discharged to the side of the vehicle through the rear opening, then the pressure inside the wheel house decreases and downforce increases, but air resistance increases
Solution Approach 1:
The harmful function of discharging air to the side is extracted and redirected. The duct structure extracts the airflow from the wheel house and redirects it along the fender's upper surface toward the rear, separating the pressure reduction function from the harmful side discharge, thereby maintaining downforce while reducing air resistance
Solution Approach 2:
The duct acts as an intermediary element between the wheel house and the external environment. It mediates the airflow by providing a controlled path that guides air from the wheel house along the fender to the rear, preventing direct discharge to the side and enabling pressure reduction without increasing air resistance
2Force
If the traveling wind is discharged to the side through the rear opening, then pressure inside the wheel house decreases, but pebbles and small stones rolled up by wheels are scattered to the outside
Solution Approach 1:
The duct serves as an intermediary that controls the discharge path of both air and pebbles. By guiding airflow along the fender's upper surface, it naturally directs pebbles toward the rear opening rather than allowing them to scatter to the side, thus maintaining downforce while preventing pebble scattering
Solution Approach 2:
The duct creates a homogeneous flow direction for both air and pebbles. By providing a unified discharge path along the fender, it ensures that both the airflow and pebbles follow the same trajectory toward the rear, preventing pebble scattering while maintaining the pressure reduction needed for downforce
3Strength
If fender vanes are made of rigid material to maintain structural integrity, then strength is improved, but damage and noise occur when pebbles hit the vanes
Solution Approach 1:
Different parts of the fender structure have different material properties. The fender vanes are made of flexible material (resin or rubber) specifically to absorb pebble impact, while other structural components maintain rigid materials for overall strength. This local differentiation allows the vanes to protect against damage and noise without compromising the fender's structural integrity
Solution Approach 2:
The material parameter of the fender vanes is changed from rigid to flexible (resin or rubber). This parameter change allows the vanes to deform and absorb impact energy from pebbles, reducing damage and noise, while the overall fender structure maintains sufficient strength through its design and other rigid components
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The structure efficiently increases downforce by reducing air pressure and suppresses pebble scattering, protecting the fender vanes and minimizing noise and damage.
Implementation Method 1
The plurality of fender vanes and the plurality of duct vanes are arranged such that an upper surface of each fender vane and an upper surface of each duct vane are continuous in a flow direction
Implementation Method 2
since the air flow in the wheel house is discharged to the outside along the upper surface of the fender, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the pressure of the upper surface of the fender and to reduce the pressure in the wheel house
Implementation Method 3
since the fender vanes and the duct vanes are inclined toward the rear of the vehicle from a direction perpendicular to the ground, it is possible to suppress scattering of the pebbles and the like rolled up by the front wheels to the outside
Implementation Method 4
the duct includes a plurality of duct vanes extending in the same direction as the plurality of fender vanes... each of the plurality of duct vanes may be disposed such that each fender vane one stage ahead overlaps with each duct vane when viewed from a vehicle top front point
Data Source
AI summary
The vehicle side structure includes a fender having an outer opening at an upper portion thereof, a fender liner disposed inside the fender and covering an upper portion of the front wheel and having a liner opening at an upper portion thereof, and a duct connecting the liner opening and the outer opening and guiding air from the liner opening to the outer opening. The outer opening has first to fifth fender vanes and the duct has first to fifth duct vanes. The surfaces of the first to fifth fender vanes and the surfaces of the first to fifth duct vanes are disposed so as to be continuous in the flow direction.