The invention relates to a trailer coupling for a motor vehicle, wherein the trailer coupling has a coupling arm, on the free end region of which a ball neck is formed, on which a coupling ball is arranged for attaching a trailer or coupling a load carrier to the motor vehicle. The coupling ball is spherical on the side thereof facing away from the ball neck and has a spherical segment plane on the side thereof facing the ball neck. Between the spherical segment plane and a portion of the ball neck which has a smaller outer circumference than the spherical segment plane there is arranged a throat portion having a transition contour extending in a concave manner between the ball neck and the spherical segment. The transition contour transitions with a coupling ball transition region into an external contour of the coupling ball, in particular into the spherical segment plane, and transitions with a ball neck transition region into an outer surface of the ball neck. According to the invention, the transition contour has a curved configuration having a non-constant radius.

Sports car comprising a cockpit equipped with a windscreen that delimits the cockpit, the windscreen being supported by a peripheral frame made of high-resistance material comprising an upper crossbeam at the top, a lower crossbeam at the bottom and a pair of side uprights connecting said upper and lower crossbeams, the windscreen comprising a front central upright arranged between said front side uprights to connect said upper and lower crossbeams.

A B-pillar for a motor vehicle body extends along a longitudinal axis, and comprises an upper metal portion for connecting the B-pillar to a roof area of the motor vehicle body and a lower metal portion for connecting the B-pillar to a sill area of the motor vehicle body; and a fiber composite component comprising fibers and a plastic matrix, the upper metal portion comprising an upper region for force introduction, and the lower metal portion comprising a lower region for force introduction being axially spaced from the upper region for force introduction, the upper region for force introduction and the lower region for force introduction being embedded into the fiber composite component.

Invention is a formed plate or sheet product which attaches to the underside of a vehicle, operating in shear with some bending. The formed plate or sheet product connects the Front Suspension Assembly, the Rear Suspension Assembly, and the Structural Body of a vehicle of unitary construction or frame-on-body construction or any combination thereof. The purpose the invention is to a) increase torsional rigidity of a vehicle and b) reduce torsional and translational compliance between the front suspension assembly, the rear suspension assembly, and the structural body. The invention forms a monolithic component, attaching to the vehicle using one or more of the auto manufacturer's mounting points.

A refrigerated composite semi-trailer is disclosed that may improve thermal efficiency, fuel efficiency, and costs of manufacturing.

In a metal-fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) composite, the FRP and the metal member are bonded together, so internal stress (thermal stress) is generated due to the misfit of coefficients of thermal expansion of the metal member and the FRP. Not only does the binder layer peel off and the mechanical properties of the FRP cannot be obtained, but also defects in appearance (surface strain) occur. Therefore, the technical problem is to secure the mechanical properties as a composite while easing the internal stress and keeping surface strain from being generated. The metal-fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) composite according to the present invention solves the technical problem by sandwiching an FRP between two metal members and not having at least one of the metal members joined (bonded) with the FRP. Further, it is possible to arrange an intermediate member between the other metal member and the FRP and sandwich the FRP between the two metal members through the intermediate member.

A hybrid component is provided for automotive applications, and includes a sheet metal component and at least one plastic support component. The at least one plastic support component is positively connected to the sheet metal component. A decor section of the sheet metal component includes a colour coating pattern generating a dedicated aesthetic design appeal.

A truck body includes a rigid aluminum frame, the frame comprising: a load floor and underbody comprising structural extrusions oriented longitudinally; subassemblies comprising aluminum extrusions formed into frames defining the body walls; and, at least one subassembly comprising aluminum extrusions formed into a frame defining the body roof, and wherein the load floor, wall subassemblies, and roof subassembly are fastened together to form a rigid final assembly. Roll formed steel tubular members may be substituted for the aluminum extrusions. The invention may further be adapted to make modular trailers that can be customized by choosing among different wall and roof modules. Related assembly methods are also disclosed.

An electric vehicle battery pack with a strike shield affixed to its bottom. The strike shield provides structural support to withstand ground strikes without damaging the batteries within the battery pack. The strike shield is a mixed material sandwich bottom plate structure having a composite top layer, a middle core with one or more hollow members adhesively connected or welded together, or a single integrated structure with elongated stiffeners and/or a base member with elongated channels for stiffness, and a composite bottom layer.

The present invention relates to a modular way to build a rolling chassis using composite materials without custom forming, and yielding appropriate weight distribution (centre of gravity) and torsional and bending rigidity.