Semi-Truck Sliding Door Inversion for Upright Entry
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing semi-truck doors pose safety and comfort issues due to their design, requiring users to enter or exit at an angle, which can be dangerous and uncomfortable, especially given the elevated position of the seats and large vehicle size.
Innovation Solution
A semi-truck door system featuring an electric-powered sliding door with an aerodynamic design, integrated door window, and a peak load sensor, allowing safe and comfortable ingress and egress by opening into the cabin from a backside of the seat, with a step and handle for easy access, and a door configuration that allows users to stand upright without bending.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a hinged door design is used for semi-truck, then immediate access to seat is provided, but user safety and comfort deteriorate due to required angled entry and elevated position
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of the traditional hinged door that opens outward requiring users to slide into the seat, this patent inverts the door movement direction. The door opens inward into the cabin, allowing users to step straight in through the door opening without sliding movements, thereby improving safety and comfort while maintaining a relatively simple sliding mechanism along tracks
2Ease of operation
If a sliding door opens into the cabin from backside of seat, then user safety and comfort improve, but device complexity increases due to additional components
Solution Approach 1:
The door system is segmented into multiple independent components: the door panel itself, separate sliding tracks mounted to the vehicle body, and individual rollers or wheels on the door. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and simplifies the overall mechanism by distributing the sliding function across multiple simple elements rather than a complex single mechanism
Solution Approach 2:
Sliding tracks serve as intermediary elements between the door and the vehicle body. These tracks provide a guided path for door movement and support the door weight, mediating the interaction between the moving door and the fixed vehicle structure. This intermediary system simplifies the mechanism by providing a straightforward linear sliding path rather than requiring complex hinges or pivots
3Loss of energy
If aerodynamic door design is implemented, then vehicle drag is reduced, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The door panel incorporates curved and contoured surfaces that follow aerodynamic principles, with smooth transitions and rounded edges that reduce turbulence and drag. These curved surfaces are integrated into the door's structural design, allowing the aerodynamic shape to be formed during standard metal shaping and panel fabrication processes, thereby achieving energy efficiency without excessive manufacturing complexity
Data Source
AI summary
Systems, methods, and devices for a vehicle door or window are disclosed herein. A vehicle includes a vehicle body and a cabin located within the body of the vehicle, wherein the cabin includes an interior that is configured to accommodate at least one person. The vehicle includes at least one seat located in the interior of the cabin that is configured for seating a user. The vehicle includes at least one door that provides ingress and egress to the interior of the cabin of the vehicle, and the at least one door is located with respect to the body such that the door opens to provide ingress and egress into the cabin from a backside of the seat.