US 12,377,920 B1
Adaptive vehicle aerodynamics for downforce
James Michael Arthur Crook, Winchester (GB); Christopher Ward, Culver City, CA (US); and David Lemire, Redondo Beach, CA (US)
Assigned to Tesla, Inc., Austin, TX (US)
Filed by Tesla, Inc., Austin, TX (US)
Filed on Apr. 29, 2025, as Appl. No. 19/193,270.
Int. Cl. B62D 37/02 (2006.01); B62D 35/02 (2006.01); F15D 1/00 (2006.01)
CPC B62D 37/02 (2013.01) [B62D 35/02 (2013.01); F15D 1/008 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A vehicle aerodynamic system comprising:
one or more fans positioned in airflow pathways of a vehicle, at least one airflow pathway extending to a bounded region under the vehicle;
a plurality of skirts configured to selectively operatively couple with a ground surface to define the bounded region under the vehicle;
a control system configured to operate the vehicle aerodynamic system in:
a first mode having a first set of skirts from among the plurality of skirts deployed in a first configuration to create the bounded region under the vehicle with a first fan from among the one or more fans operating through a respective airflow pathway to create low pressure within the bounded region; and
a second mode having the plurality of skirts form a second configuration different from the first configuration and with at least one of the first fan or a second fan from among the one or more fans operating through a respective airflow pathway.