A pneumatic tank trailer includes a carriage and a tank supported on the trailer that can selectively discharge fluidizable material through hoppers of the tank. A nose portion of the trailer has a generally conical shape. The nose portion has a top that slopes downward and sides that taper inward as it extends forward. A cross-sectional center point of a front end of the nose portion is lower than a cross-sectional center point of a rear end of the nose portion along the height of the trailer. The length of the nose portion is at least 15% of the length of the trailer. Adjacent hoppers intersect at hopper crotches. The hopper crotches have short heights and the hoppers are arranged relatively close together.

The invention exhibits an apparatus for improving the aerodynamics of a commercial vehicle having a cab with doors and below-situated footboards for climbing in and out, and having a front panel in which air inlets are present, wherein the air inlets are connected, via air ducts in or on the panel, to the front wheel case of the commercial vehicle and to an air outlet, wherein the at least one footboard of the cab can be folded away and has at least one through-flow region in the vehicle longitudinal direction.

Methods and apparatus for virtual shaping. A method includes positioning air flow shaping devices in a vehicle air gap to manipulate airflow to generate horizontal air vortices to reduce drag.

A memory management system and method for managing memory blocks of a memory device of a computer. The system includes a free block data structure including free memory blocks for writing, and sorting the free memory blocks in a predetermined order based on block write-erase endurance cycle count and receiving new user-write requests to update existing data and relocation write requests to relocate existing data separately, a user-write block pool for receiving youngest blocks holding user-write data (i.e., any page being updated frequently) from the free block data structure, a relocation block pool for receiving oldest blocks holding relocation data (i.e., any page being updated infrequently) from the free block data structure, and a garbage collection pool structure for selecting at least one of user-write blocks and relocation blocks for garbage collection, wherein the selected block is moved back to the free block data structure upon being relocated and erased.

An aerodynamic device for attachment to a trailer of a tractor-trailer having a centerline, a trailer sidewall and a trailer door. The aerodynamic device comprises an airfoil and a flexible mounting system. The airfoil comprises a leading edge, a trailing edge, an inner surface, and an outer surface. The flexible mounting system comprises a door hinge, a mounting bracket, a trailer hinge and a door strap. The door hinge is coupled to the trailer door. The mounting bracket is coupled to the inner surface of the airfoil. The trailer hinge is coupled to the mounting bracket and the trailer sidewall. The door strap coupled to the door hinge at a first end and the mounting bracket at a second end.

The primary purpose of this device is to reduce the fuel consumption of heavy trucks by improving airflow along the underside of a trailer, by way of a fairing mounted forward of the axles. This fairing is a teardrop shaped wedge with a flat bottom surface, which directs air towards the sides of the vehicle, while allowing a smaller volume to flow beneath the fairing such that it will clear the axles. Each axle is also covered by a flat panel, such that air will continue to travel smoothly beneath them. Attached to each panel is a brake cooling system, which consists of a pair of panels protruding downward, with their surfaces parallel to the direction of airflow. When the brakes are engaged, these panels rotate towards the center in an angled configuration, which redirects air towards the drums during and after braking, cooling them quickly and efficiently.

The technology relates to enhancing the operation of autonomous vehicles. Extendible sensors are deployed based on detected or predicted conditions around a vehicle while operating in a self-driving mode. When not needed, the sensors are fully retracted into the vehicle to reduce drag and increase fuel economy. When the onboard system determines that there is a need for a deployable sensor, such as to enhance the field of view of the perception system, the sensor is extended in a predetermined manner. The deployment may depend on one or more operating conditions and/or particular driving scenarios. These and other sensors of the vehicle may be protected with a rugged housing, for instance to protect against damage from the elements. And in other situations, deployable foils may extend from the vehicle's chassis to increase drag and enhance braking. This may be helpful for large trucks in steep descent situations.

Waveguide or flow guide surfaces can improve the efficiency of fluid flow through tubes or over surfaces. When incorporated in a tube, the waveguides improve flow and function as sound absorbers making them useful in engine mufflers, firearm silencer/suppressors and jet engine exhaust attenuators. On surfaces, the waveguides can reduce fluid drag and find use on projectiles (e.g., bullets), airfoils for aircraft, and land borne vehicles. The waveguide array in either a tubular chamber or on a surface comprises a plurality of successive wave-like undulations inclined generally in the direction of flow and when employed in tubes extending inwardly to permit an unobstructed path for the fluid gas from entry to exit. The waves define annular wave cavities between their successive inwardly extending edges and the wall of the chamber with each cavity having a cavity mouth open to the unobstructed path. The waveguides are sized and spaced so that gas vortices are created within the cavities when gas flow occurs which vortices create a fluid boundary layer that assists the gas flow.

Systems and methods are disclosed for providing a deployable fairing system to a tractor trailer. The deployable fairing system includes an actuator used to extend the deployable fairing from an unextended configuration to an extended configuration to occupy a portion of a gap area that exists between a tractor and an attached trailer. The deployable fairing includes deployable upper and/or lower horizontal assemblies that are pivotally coupled to a frame attached to the tractor/cab, and two side panels that are pivotally coupled to one or both of the upper and lower horizontal assemblies. The deployable upper and lower horizontal assemblies and the two side panels fold in on one another along multiple hinged axes in the unextended configuration, and extend rearward from the top and sides of the tractor in the extended configuration to cover a portion of the gap. The fairing may advantageously flair from front to the rear.

The present invention relates to a self-adjusted side fairing assembly including a first side faring, a second side fairing, and biasing members. The first side fairing is adapted to be located at a trailing edge of a body on a lead vehicle. The second side fairing is adapted to be located at an opposing trailing edge of the body on the lead vehicle. The first and second side fairings have self-adjusting directional airflow characteristics in response to windward side and leeward side crosswind characteristics. The first and second side fairings are adapted so that trailing ends of the first and second side fairings pivot outward due to the effect of a high external pressure that is greater than high pressure threshold and generated by windward side crosswind characteristics.