METHOD OF MANUFACTURING A MOUNTING FRAME FOR A VEHICLE WIND DEFLECTOR

Abstract

The present invention provides a method of mounting a fairing to a roof of a vehicle and a method of manufacturing a mounting frame for mounting a fairing to a roof of a vehicle. The mounting frame has a lower portion for mounting to the roof of the vehicle and an upper portion for securing the fairing. The mounting frame is formed by determining a contour of the mounting surface, creating a mould for moulding the lower portion of the mounting frame having a bottom edge configured generally complementary to the contour of at least a portion of the mounting surface, and moulding an upper portion affixed to the lower portion and having an outer face configured generally complementary to an interior surface of the fairing.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to vehicle wind deflectors. In particular, this invention relates to wind deflectors for trucks.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A fairing, or wind deflector, is a device that changes the airflow around a vehicle. An effective fairing will reduce wind resistance while the vehicle is in motion, and consequently increase stability and fuel efficiency. Many types of vehicles use fairings beneficially, but an effective fairing is especially advantageous in the heavy truck industry.

Semi-trailer trucks, also called “tractor-trailers,” are common in the heavy truck industry. The tractor, which includes a towing engine, is typically not as tall as the trailer, which carries the freight. The portion of the trailer extending above the roof of the tractor presents a large surface area which is vertical and perpendicular to the motion of the truck, and thus will be generally perpendicular to the flow of air when the truck is in motion at a high speed. Without a fairing, this configuration encounters considerable wind resistance from wind passing over the top of the tractor and hitting the vertical front face of the trailer.

Conventional fairings are commonly manufactured as a single piece mounted directly to the truck roof or they are provided with metal mounting hardware to secure the fairing to the tractor. However, for maximum benefit the fairing should be mounted to the tractor roof in a substantially airtight fashion, i.e. with no significant gaps between the lower edge of the fairing and the tractor roof. Different tractor styles have different roof profiles, and thus require different shapes or sizes of fairings in order to achieve an air-tight mating between the lower edge of the fairing and the roof of the truck. Providing a custom fairing design with a different lower edge profile for each tractor style, which is the conventional method, is costly.

It would accordingly be desirable to provide a method and device that would allow the use of a standardized fairing on a variety of tractor styles, and a method of manufacturing such a device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In drawings which illustrate by way of example only a preferred embodiment of the invention,

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a fairing mounted to the roof of a tractor using the method and device of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a partly exploded perspective view of a mounting frame according to the invention mounted to the roof of a tractor.

FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the mounting frame of FIG. 2, secured to a fairing.

FIG. 4 is a cross-section of the mounting frame of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention provides a method and device for mounting a fairing to the roof of a vehicle, and a method of manufacturing the device.

The invention provides a method of manufacturing a mounting frame for mounting a fairing to a roof of a vehicle, the roof having a mounting surface, the mounting frame having a lower portion for mounting to the roof and an upper portion for securing the fairing, the method comprising the steps of: a. determining a contour of the mounting surface; b. creating at least one mould for moulding a lower portion of the mounting frame having a bottom edge configured generally complementary to the contour of at least a portion of the mounting surface; and c. moulding the lower portion and an upper portion of the mounting frame, the upper portion affixed to or integral with the lower portion and having an outer face configured generally complementary to an interior surface of the fairing.

The invention further provides a method of mounting a fairing to a roof of a vehicle, the roof having a mounting surface, the method comprising the steps of: a. affixing to the mounting surface a mounting frame comprising a lower portion having a bottom edge configured generally complementary to the contour of at least a portion of the mounting surface and an upper portion affixed to or integral with the lower portion and having an outer face configured generally complementary to an interior surface of the fairing; and b. affixing the fairing to the upper portion of the mounting frame.

The invention further provides a mounting frame for mounting a fairing to a roof of a vehicle, the roof having a mounting surface, the mounting frame comprising a lower portion for mounting to the roof, having a bottom edge configured generally complementary to a contour of at least a portion of the mounting surface, and an upper portion for securing the fairing, affixed to or integral with the lower portion and having an outer face configured generally complementary to an interior surface of the fairing, whereby to mount the fairing the mounting frame is affixed to the mounting surface by placing the mounting frame on the mounting surface and fastening the lower portion of the mounting frame to the mounting surface and the fairing is affixed to the mounting frame by placing the fairing on the mounting frame and fastening the fairing to the upper portion of the mounting frame.

According to the preferred embodiment of the invention, the device comprises a mounting frame provided as an interface between the roof of the tractor portion of a tractor trailer (or, in a unitary truck design, the roof of the cabin) and the fairing. Preferably, the mounting frame is injection moulded, and designed to fit the roof contour of a particular tractor as closely as possible.

The use of a custom mounting frame as an interface enables the use of a standardized or generic fairing, which may be a unitary or a modular fairing, for several different tractor styles. Thus, instead of using a different custom fairing for each brand of truck, a single standard fairing is mounted to a custom mounting frame. The mounting frame is a significantly smaller component than the fairing, and accordingly it is substantially less expensive to produce a mounting frame specific to the tractor desired to be outfitted with a fairing. Thus, a manufacturer may reduce costs by utilizing the mounting frame of the invention.

Because the mounting frame is much lighter than the fairing and therefore easier to align with the tractor roof for mounting, the present invention also simplifies the mounting process and requires less tools. The mounting frame of the invention shortens the fairing installation process considerably and helps to prevent scratching of the tractor roof. Also, in a preferred embodiment the mounting frame includes a plurality of generally equidistant attachment points, which spread the load evenly about the perimeter of the fairing to improve stability and strengthen the attachment of the fairing to the roof of the tractor. The perimeter flange further supports the assembly to prevent oil canning effects.

In the preferred embodiment, the mounting frame is formed from 30% glass-filled polypropylene. Other materials may be used, but nylon and polypropylene are preferred as they have some flexibility, so the mounting frame can flex to fit the truck roof contour if necessary. The use of polypropylene or other plastics makes the mounting frame substantially lighter than a metal frame, and is less likely to scratch the surface of the roof of the tractor. Preferably the mounting frame is formed in two halves, reducing the required mould to a more practical size.

With reference to FIGS. 2 to 4, a mounting frame 10 according to the invention is preferably formed from mating laterally symmetrical frame halves 10a and 10b which connect at a butt joint 12 (which may alternatively overlap or interlock in some fashion). The mounting frame 10 comprises a lower portion 20 having a bottom edge 22, which is formed in a profile complementary to the profile of the mounting surface 6 extending about the roof 4 of the tractor 2. The mounting surface 6 typically extends along the periphery of the front and sides of the roof 4, and may include a portion of the rear of the roof 4 if the mounting frame 10 wraps around the rear edge slightly as shown in FIG. 2. The lower portion 20 may be visible and if so may be painted or otherwise finished in the same manner as the tractor 2, for aesthetic purposes. The lower portion 20 is preferably provided with a plurality of pre-drilled or pre-formed holes 34 along its bottom edge 22, preferably generally equidistant from one another, for affixing the mounting frame 10 to the mounting surface 6 extending about the tractor roof 4.

Projecting from the lower portion 20 is an upper portion 30. If the lower portion 20 is visible when the fairing is mounted, as in the embodiment shown, the upper portion 30 may be inset from the outer face of the lower portion 20 so that when the fairing 8 is affixed to the mounting frame 10 the front surface of the fairing 8 is substantially flush with the outer face of the lower portion 20. The upper portion 30 has an outer face 32 configured to be complementary to the interior surface of the fairing 8 adjacent to its lower edge, and a thickness sufficient to withstand the wind forces experienced by the fairing 8 in use. The upper portion 30 may be formed from a series of intermittent projections, but is preferably substantially continuous as shown for maximum strength, and is provided with a plurality of pre-drilled or pre-formed holes 34, preferably generally equidistant from one another, for bolting the fairing 8 to the mounting frame 10. The pre-formed holes 34 may be provided with threaded brass inserts 36 to facilitate mounting of the fairing 8 and reinforce the openings 34.

In the preferred embodiment the mounting frame 10 is injection moulded. The mould may be created by taking a cast of the tractor roof 4 to obtain a complement of the roof contour, and using a conventional co-ordinate measuring machine such as FaroArm™, or any other co-ordinate measuring machine that is large enough and otherwise suitable to create the roof cast, to replicate the mounting surface 6 portion of the tractor roof 4 in a mould for each frame half 10a, 10b of the mounting frame 10. Alternatively, a truck manufacturer may provide Computer Aided Design (CAD) data detailing the contour of the truck roof 4, in which case the mould can be created in conventional fashion directly from the CAD data using available modelling software, such as Pro/ENGINEER™ or SolidWorks™. Once the mould has been created, each half 10a, 10b of the mounting frame 10 can be moulded in conventional fashion.

A method of manufacturing a mounting frame for mounting a fairing 8 to a roof 4 of a vehicle 2 according to the invention thus comprises the steps of:

a. determining a contour of the mounting surface 6;

b. creating at least one mould for moulding a lower portion 20 of the mounting frame having a bottom edge 22 configured generally complementary to the contour of at least a portion of the mounting surface 6; and

c. moulding the lower portion 20 and an upper portion 30 affixed to or integral with the lower portion 20 and having an outer face 32 configured generally complementary to an interior surface of the fairing.

A method of mounting the fairing 8 to the roof of a vehicle further comprises the steps of:

d. affixing the mounting frame 10 to the mounting surface; and

e. affixing the fairing to the mounting frame.

To mount the fairing 8, the mounting frame 10 is placed on the mounting surface 6 about the tractor roof 4 and fastened to the roof 4, such as by the use of bolts or screws through each of the pre-formed openings in lower portion 20. The fairing 8 is then placed on the mounting frame 10, drilled at each of the pre-formed openings 34, and bolted to the upper portion 30 preferably using corrosion-resistant fasteners such as brass bolts engaging the threaded brass inserts 36.

Various embodiments of the present invention having been thus described in detail by way of example, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variations and modifications may be made without departing from the invention. The invention includes all such variations and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method of manufacturing a mounting frame for mounting a fairing to a roof of a vehicle, the roof having a mounting surface, the mounting frame having a lower portion for mounting to the roof and an upper portion for securing the fairing, the method comprising the steps of:

a. determining a contour of the mounting surface;

b. creating at least one mould for moulding a lower portion of the mounting frame having a bottom edge configured generally complementary to the contour of at least a portion of the mounting surface; and

c. moulding the lower portion and an upper portion of the mounting frame, the upper portion affixed to or integral with the lower portion and having an outer face configured generally complementary to an interior surface of the fairing.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the mould is configured to mould the upper portion integrally with the lower portion.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the mounting frame is moulded in parts.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the mounting frame is moulded in laterally symmetrical halves.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the upper portion is provided with holes for affixing the fairing.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the holes are generally equidistant.

7. The method of claim 2 wherein the upper portion is inset from the lower portion.

8. (canceled)

9. (canceled)

10. (canceled)

11. (canceled)

12. (canceled)

13. (canceled)

14. (canceled)

15. (canceled)

16. (canceled)

17. (canceled)