A through the road (TTR) hybridization strategy is proposed to facilitate introduction of hybrid electric vehicle technology in a significant portion of current and expected trucking fleets. In some cases, the technologies can be retrofitted onto an existing vehicle (e.g., a truck, a tractor unit, a trailer, a tractor-trailer configuration, at a tandem, etc.). In some cases, the technologies can be built into new vehicles. In some cases, one vehicle may be built or retrofitted to operate in tandem with another and provide the hybridization benefits contemplated herein. By supplementing motive forces delivered through a primary drivetrain and fuel-fed engine with supplemental torque delivered at one or more electrically-powered drive axles, improvements in overall fuel efficiency and performance may be delivered, typically without significant redesign of existing components and systems that have been proven in the trucking industry.

A trailer includes a main body that has a front bulkhead, an opposing rear bulkhead, an exterior wall operably engaged with the front and rear bulkheads, and at least one interior chamber defined collectively by the front bulkhead, the rear bulkhead, and the exterior wall. The at least one interior chamber is adapted to carry a load. The trailer also includes a removable false bulkhead operably engaged with the main body, the false bulkhead is located a distance away from one of the front bulkhead and the rear bulkhead. The main body of the trailer is formed of a first material, and the first false bulkhead of the trailer is made a second different material.

In one embodiment, a truck trailer has a cargo container that defines a cargo area therein. The trailer has a rear cargo lift having a platform disposed within the cargo area at a rear end of the trailer. The platform is vertically movable between a floor of the trailer and a first elevation that is above the floor. The trailer has an upper cargo deck supported within a portion of the cargo area that is between the rear lift and a front end of the trailer. The upper cargo deck divides the portion of the cargo area into upper and lower areas. The upper cargo deck can align with the rear cargo lift at the first elevation so as to receive cargo into the upper area, and translate the cargo to a second elevation that is above the first elevation so as to receive cargo in the lower area.

A semi-trailer for transporting a load to be moved has a wheeled front module having a right-hand front row and a left-hand front row of front bogies each provided with a respective hydraulic suspension driven by its own hydraulic cylinder; a wheeled rear module comprising a right-hand rear row and a left-hand rear row of rear bogies each provided with a respective hydraulic suspension driven by its own hydraulic cylinder; a coupling unit of the wheeled front module for the coupling to a tractor and comprising a pair of hydraulic jacks for transferring a part of the load to be moved to the tractor; a first hydraulic unit interposed between the hydraulic cylinders of the front and rear rows of bogies and configured in such a way that the sum of the instantaneous load-supporting pressures acting on the hydraulic cylinders of the right front row and of the cylinders of the left-hand rear row is equal to the sum of the instantaneous pressures controlling the cylinders of the left-hand front row and of the cylinders of the right rear row; and a second hydraulic unit configured to control the hydraulic jacks based on the sum of the instantaneous load-supporting pressures acting on the hydraulic cylinders of said right front row and of said left-hand front row.

The present disclosure provides a method and an apparatus for trailer angle measurement, as well as a vehicle, applied in a vehicle including a tractor and a trailer. At least one LiDAR is provided on each of two sides of the tractor. The method includes: obtaining, an initial trailer model containing initial point cloud data; controlling the to emit laser light; controlling each of the LiDARs to receive a corresponding point cloud reflected by the surface of the trailer; and calculating a trailer angle based on the point cloud data and the initial point cloud data using a point cloud matching algorithm. With the embodiments of the present disclosure, fast and accurate measurement of a trailer angle can be achieved with a simple structure.

A quasi-cylindrical cargo container is formed of a plurality of rigid, curved panels together forming first and second semi-cylindrical shells, and a plurality of rigid, flat extension panels bridging the first and second semi-cylindrical shells. A method of manufacturing the container includes forming the first and second semi-cylindrical shell from the curved panels, forming the quasi-cylindrical shell from the first and second semi-cylindrical shells and the flat extension panels, forming collars conformably encompassing the quasi-cylindrical shell, constricting the collars to compress joints formed at abutting edges of pairs of adjacent panels, rolling the shell and collars sequentially to bring the joints to a lower position, welding inside seams of the joints when at the lower position, removing the collars, rolling the shell sequentially to bring the joints to an upper position, and welding outside seams of the joints when at the upper position.

A cylindrical cargo container is formed of longitudinal, extruded arcuate panels joined pairwise at abutting edges to form a cylindrical tube. The container is mountable on a separate wheeled chassis to form a semi-trailer or railcar, or a chassis integral with a truck. The container may be substantially smooth on inner and outer surfaces, to provide optimal aerodynamics and freedom of motion of cargo within the container. The panels may have inner and outer skins bridged by multiple webs. Such structure may provide protection from punctures to the outer or inner skins. The container is useful to transport waste including municipal or industrial waste, and may be part of a tipper trailer. The container, trailer, truck, or railcar may be used with a compactor for compacting the waste within the container.

A trailer includes a main body that has a front bulkhead, an opposing rear bulkhead, an exterior wall operably engaged with the front and rear bulkheads, and at least one interior chamber defined collectively by the front bulkhead, the rear bulkhead, and the exterior wall. The at least one interior chamber is adapted to carry a load. The trailer also includes a removable false bulkhead operably engaged with the main body, the false bulkhead is located a distance away from one of the front bulkhead and the rear bulkhead. The main body of the trailer is formed of a first material, and the first false bulkhead of the trailer is made a second different material.

A container chassis with detachable bolster ends comprising a plurality of bolsters, each bolster with detachable bolster ends and a first configuration with detached bolster ends wherein the container chassis is less than eight feet in width for horizontal fitment into an ISO shipping container. The container chassis with detachable bolster ends may also be configured to stack vertically within a plurality of container chassis and wheeled into the ISO shipping container.

A trailer coupler has a fixed frame portion that is connected to a moving frame portion with link arms. The link arms are attached to torsion components that are affixed to both the fixed frame portion and moving frame portion with the moving frame portion located between ends of the fixed frame portion. The moving frame portion has a resting position where the torsion components are at rest and a displaced position where external forces have caused the torsion components to move. The moving frame portion can be displaced through rotation or vertical movement by external forces.