US 11,959,406 B2
Car provided with an exhaust system with aerodynamic effect
Marco Ballatore, Modena (IT); Matteo Ausili, Modena (IT); Simone Galuzzi, Modena (IT); and Emanuele Magliano, Modena (IT)
Assigned to FERRARI S.p.A., Modena (IT)
Filed by FERRARI S.p.A., Modena (IT)
Filed on Nov. 10, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/523,135.
Claims priority of application No. 102020000032849 (IT), filed on Dec. 30, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2022/0205377 A1, Jun. 30, 2022
Int. Cl. F01N 1/16 (2006.01); B62D 35/02 (2006.01); G10K 11/16 (2006.01)
CPC F01N 1/166 (2013.01) [B62D 35/02 (2013.01); G10K 11/161 (2013.01)] 10 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A car (1) comprising:
two front wheels (2);
two rear wheels (3);
a bottom wall, which delimits a lower surface, which faces a road surface and, in use, is brushed by an air flow flowing under the car (1);
an internal combustion engine (4); and
an exhaust system (6), which is coupled to the internal combustion engine (4) and comprises an exhaust duct (7), which originates from the internal combustion engine (4) and has an end chamber (9), which ends with an outlet opening (10), through which exhaust gases are released into the atmosphere;
wherein the end chamber (9) of the exhaust duct (7) has at least one movable partition (23), which can be moved to different positions so as to change the width of the outlet opening (10);
wherein the movable partition (23) delimits a lower surface of the end chamber (9), which faces the road surface and, in use, is brushed by the air flow flowing under the car (1) so as the movable partition (23) has an aerodynamic function and can be moved away from the road surface to direct exhaust gases upward and increase the width of an extractor channel defined between the road surface and the movable partition (23) thus increasing the aerodynamic load;
wherein it is provided a motor-driven actuator device (24), which is configured to actively move the movable partition (23) and is electronically controlled;
wherein it is provided a control unit (27), which is configured to change, by controlling the actuator device (24), the position of the movable partition (23);
wherein the control unit (27) is configured to move the movable partition (23) for regulating the aerodynamic load and, hence, move the movable partition (23) away from the road surface to increase the aerodynamic load; and
wherein the control unit (27) is configured to establish the position of the movable partition (23) only based on silencing needs at low and medium speeds and to establish the position of the movable partition (223) only based on aerodynamic needs at high speeds.