Vehicle aerodynamic altering system and method
A vehicle system includes a tonneau cover, and an actuator assembly that transitions the tonneau cover back-and-forth between a lowered position and a tilted position. The tonneau cover covers a cargo bed of a vehicle when the tonneau cover is in the lowered position and when the tonneau cover is in the tilted position.
1 . A vehicle system, comprising:
a tonneau cover; and
an actuator assembly that transitions the tonneau cover back-and-forth between a lowered position and a tilted position, the tonneau cover covering a cargo bed of a vehicle when the tonneau cover is in the lowered position and when the tonneau cover is in the tilted position, wherein, in the tilted position, a top of the tonneau cover tapers downward moving rearward from a forward edge of the tonneau cover, wherein the tonneau cover includes the top, and opposing wedge-shaped sides extending vertically downward from the top.
2 . The vehicle system of claim 1 , wherein the cargo bed includes opposing bed walls, the wedge-shaped sides of the tonneau cover raised above the opposing bed walls when the tonneau cover is in the tilted position, the wedge-shaped sides inboard the bed walls when the tonneau cover is in the lowered position, the opposing wedge-shaped sides moving with the top between the lowered position and the tilted position as the actuator assembly transitions the tonneau cover, the opposing wedge-shaped sides extending downward from the top when the tonneau cover is in the lowered position.
3 . The vehicle system of claim 1 , wherein, in the tilted position, a leading edge of the tonneau cover is vertically elevated relative to a trailing edge of the tonneau cover.
4 . The vehicle system of claim 1 , further comprising a diffuser extending aftward from a passenger compartment of the vehicle, the diffuser including a horizontally extending portion, a first vertically extending portion on a driver side, and a second vertically extending portion on a passenger side.
5 . The vehicle system of claim 4 , wherein the first and second vertically extending portions extend upward from respective cargo bed walls to the horizontally extending portion.
6 . The vehicle system of claim 4 , wherein, in the tilted position, the diffuser interfaces with a vertically extending driver side of the tonneau cover, a top of the tonneau cover, and a vertically extending passenger side of the tonneau cover.
7 . The vehicle system of claim 6 , wherein interfaces between the diffuser and the tonneau cover when the tonneau cover is in the tilted position are sealed.
8 . The vehicle system of claim 1 , including at least one access panel in a top of the tonneau cover, the at least one access panel movable back-and-forth between an open position and a closed position, the cargo bed accessible through an access window in the top of the tonneau cover when the at least one access panel is in the open position.
9 . The vehicle system of claim 8 , wherein the access window has a cross-vehicle width that is less than a cross-vehicle width of the cargo bed.
10 . The vehicle system of claim 8 , wherein the top of the tonneau cover includes a driver side leg and a passenger side leg that establish respective outboard sides of the access window.
11 . The vehicle system of claim 1 , wherein a drag coefficient of the vehicle is lower when the tonneau cover is in the tilted position than when the tonneau cover is in the lowered position.
12 . The vehicle system of claim 1 , wherein the actuator assembly comprises at least one linear actuator.
13 . The vehicle system of claim 1 , wherein the opposing wedge-shaped sides fit within slots of opposing bed walls of the cargo bed when the tonneau cover is in the lowered position.
14 . The vehicle system of claim 1 , wherein the opposing wedge-shaped sides extend downward from opposite outboard edges of the top.
15 . A aerodynamic adjustment method:
transitioning a tonneau cover from a lowered position to a tilted position to reduce a drag coefficient of a vehicle, wherein a cargo bed includes opposing bed walls, wherein the tonneau cover includes wedge-shaped sides that are inboard the bed walls and are raised above the bed walls when the tonneau cover is in the tilted position.
16 . The aerodynamic adjustment method of claim 15 , comprising transitioning the tonneau cover from the tilted position to the lowered position to facilitate accessing the cargo bed of the vehicle.
17 . The aerodynamic adjustment method of claim 15 , wherein the transitioning comprises an automatic transitioning made in response to an operational condition of the vehicle.
18 . The aerodynamic adjustment method of claim 17 , wherein the operational condition comprises a speed of the vehicle.
19 . A vehicle system, comprising:
a tonneau cover; and
an actuator assembly that transitions the tonneau cover back-and-forth between a lowered position and a tilted position, the tonneau cover covering a cargo bed of a vehicle when the tonneau cover is in the lowered position and when the tonneau cover is in the tilted position, wherein the tonneau cover includes opposing side panels that extend downward from a top into the cargo bed when the tonneau cover is in the lowered position, the opposing side panels positioned inboard of bed walls of the cargo bed in the lowered position and raised above the bed walls in the tilted position.
20 . The vehicle system of claim 19 , wherein the opposing side panels of are wedge-shaped sides extending vertically downward from the top.