TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] This invention relates to vehicle chassis with interchangeable bodies and an air circulation system where air can enter along the body or chassis sides and/or from the belly of the vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] Mobility, being capable of moving from place to place or of moving quickly from one state to another, has been one of the ultimate goals of humanity throughout recorded history. The automobile has likely done more in helping individuals achieve that goal than any other development. Since its inception, societies around the globe have experienced rates of change in their manner of living that are directly related to the percentage of motor vehicle owners among the population.

[0004] Prior art automobiles and light trucks include a body, the function of which is to contain and protect passengers and their belongings. Bodies are connected to the numerous mechanical, electrical, and structural components that, in combination with a body, comprise a fully functional vehicle. The nature of the prior art connections between a vehicle body and vehicular componentry may result in certain inefficiencies in the design, manufacture, and use of vehicles. Three characteristics of prior art body connections that significantly contribute to these inefficiencies are the quantity of connections; the mechanical nature of many of the connections; and the locations of the connections on the body and on the componentry.

[0005] In the prior art, the connections between a body and componentry are numerous. Each connection involves at least one assembly step when a vehicle is assembled; it is therefore desirable to reduce the number of connections to increase assembly efficiency. The connections between a prior art body and prior art vehicular componentry include multiple load-bearing connectors to physically fasten the body to the other components, such as bolts and brackets; electrical connectors to transmit electrical energy to the body from electricity-generating components and to transmit data from sensors that monitor the status of the componentry; mechanical control linkages, such as the steering column, throttle cable, and transmission selector; and ductwork and hoses to convey fluids such as heated and cooled air from a heating, ventilation and air conditioning system (HVAC) to the body for the comfort of passengers or from the vehicle so that waste heat produced by a fuel cell or propulsion system can be rejected or utilized as supplemental heat in the heating ventilation and air conditioning system (HVAC).

[0006] Prior art patents show various body configurations to enhance or direct air circulation in a vehicle. U.S. Pat. No. 2,079,218 issued to Ledwinka May 4, 1937, shows an air scoop at the top rear of a vehicle; U.S. Pat. No. 4,681,178 issued to Brown Jul. 21, 1987, shows an air scoop for use in combination with a vehicle having an engine air intake port located in a side panel of the vehicle body; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,042,870 issued to Yura Aug. 27, 1991, shows an improved body configuration for a vehicle having an aerodynamic configuration and defining a pair of longitudinally extending air flow channels at the opposite sides of the body and inwardly of the outer periphery of the fenders for achieving good air flow. A front bridging member is formed that complies with bumper height regulations and forms an aerodynamic device for assisting in the air flow. The engine compartment is defined by a rearwardly opening extractor section for drawing air from the engine compartment and a forwardly extending exhaust system receives the exhaust gases from the engine and discharges them to the atmosphere. A belly pan provides smooth air flow through the area beneath the vehicle.

[0007] The location of the connections on prior art vehicle bodies and componentry also results in inefficiencies. In prior art body-on-frame architecture, a connection on the body is often distant from its corresponding connection on the componentry; therefore, long connectors such as wiring harnesses and cables must be routed throughout the body from componentry. The vehicle body of a fully-assembled prior art vehicle is intertwined with the componentry and the connection devices, rendering separation of the body from its componentry difficult and labor-intensive, if not impossible. The use of long connectors increases the number of assembly steps required to attach a vehicle to its componentry.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] A self-contained mobile chassis or rolling platform has substantially all of the mechanical, electrical, and structural componentry necessary for a fully functional vehicle, including at least an energy conversion or propulsion system having a powertrain and powertrain cooling loop. The chassis further includes a suspension and wheels, a steering system, a braking system, a heating, venting and air cooling system (HVAC), and means for controlling each of the systems. The chassis has a simplified, standardized interface with attachment couplings to which vehicle bodies of substantially varying design can be attached. By-wire technology is utilized to eliminate mechanical control linkages.

[0009] The heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system is packaged in the rolling platform or chassis and is connected to the powertrain cooling loop for waste heat circulation and to an air cooling system having an electric air cooling (A/C) compressor. Supplemental heating elements can be utilized for additional heating loads. Waste heat from the powertrain cooling loop can be utilized with a heat exchanger in the HVAC system. Airflow from the HVAC system flows into a selected vehicle body through single or multiple passthroughs from the rolling platform. The air is then distributed through a ducting system in the vehicle body. The ducting system for the different vehicle bodies to be interchanged can utilize the respective floor structure, seat structure, body pillars and roof rails, and other designed forms where the airflow can be positioned and directed as desired for each vehicle body.

[0010] Typically, in vehicle transportation air is taken in at the front of the vehicle for the radiator. In the design of this invention, not necessarily for fuel cells or specifically for the rolling platform or chassis, air can enter along the body or chassis sides and/or from the belly of the vehicle. Air may exit along the sides, at the rear, from the belly, or into the body for interior functionality like heating, cooling, and ventilation. Air enters by design of functional air scoops and heat sinks. Upon entry, the air is utilized by the components like the radiator, the fuel cell, the air filter, the HVAC system, etc. Air entry may be propelled by the pressure differential within the ducting design to motorized fans. Air exit may be conducted along the sides, at the rear, from the belly, etc. Benefits of utilizing this design are for the benefit of creating a larger air intake surface as well as the advent or redesign of the front grill and side profiles of vehicle design.

[0011] The invention reduces the amount of time and resources required to design and manufacture new vehicle bodies. Body designs need only conform to the simple attachment interface of the chassis where the ducting connects, eliminating the need to redesign or reconfigure expensive components for each different body design.

[0012] The invention also allows a multitude of body designs to share a common chassis, enabling economies of scale for major mechanical, electrical, and structural components. Thus, interchangeability of body and chassis is enhanced by utilizing the air ducts of one in the air circulation or waste heat rejection of the other.

[0013] Couplings, exposed and unobstructed, increase manufacturing efficiency because attachment of a body to the chassis requires only engagement of the couplings to respective complementary couplings on a vehicle body.

[0014] Vehicle owners can increase the functionality of their vehicles at a lower cost than possible with the prior art because a vehicle owner need buy only one chassis upon which to mount a multitude of body styles or designs.

[0015] Accordingly, a vehicle includes chassis structure defining an enclosed packaging space. The body structure is separable from and interchangeable with the chassis structure and defines an enclosed cockpit space. At least one of the chassis structure and body structure defines an interface therebetween for at least partially defining the enclosed cockpit space and the enclosed packaging space. A first passageway is defined by the body structure and configured to receive ram air for circulation throughout the cockpit space and a second passageway is defined by the chassis structure and configured to receive ram air for circulation through the packaging space.

[0016] The invention may also include such a vehicle, wherein the definition of the first passageway includes a pair of spaced ram air inlets, a pair of spaced hollow longitudinal roof rails respectively in communication with the pair of ram air inlets, and a pair of spaced hollow transverse roof rails in communication with the pair of spaced hollow longitudinal roof rails to form a circumambient air flow circuit having outlet openings in communication with the enclosed cockpit space.

[0017] The invention may also include such a vehicle, wherein the definition of the first passageway includes a bypass in communication with the second passageway for at least partially supplying the ram air for circulation through the packaging space.

[0018] The invention may also provide such a vehicle which includes an energy conversion system operable for rejecting waste heat, and wherein the configuration of the second passageway includes a chassis air scoop at one end for receiving relatively cool ram air and a chassis air scoop at the opposite end for exhausting the ram air received along with the waste heat rejected.

[0019] The invention may also include a vehicle which comprises chassis structure defining an enclosed packaging space. The body structure is separable from and interchangeable with the chassis structure and defines an enclosed cockpit space having a floor. At least one person-supporting seating apparatus is in the cockpit space and is mounted with respect to the floor. At least one heat exchanger is in the packaging space and mounted with respect to the floor and in heat exchange relationship with the cockpit space for conditioning air for a person supported by the seating apparatus. At least one chassis-attachment air flow coupling is mountable with respect to the floor for joining the cockpit space and heat exchanger in such heat exchange relationship.

[0020] Another invention is a movable vehicle chassis which comprises a frame defining a plurality of open spaces. A plurality of heat producing components are in respective ones of the open spaces. A belly pan sufficiently embraces the frame to at least partially define a duct enclosing the heat producing components. Inlet and outlet air scoops are sufficiently spaced apart in the duct to cause the heat produced by the components to be rejected from the chassis as waste heat when the vehicle moves.

[0021] The invention may also provide a movable vehicle chassis which includes a body that is separable from and interchangeable with the chassis and defines a cockpit space configured to receive ram air for circulation through the cockpit space when the vehicle moves; and an air flow coupling between the body and the chassis for joining the cockpit space to the open spaces in the chassis for bypassing at least some of the ram air received through the cockpit space into the open spaces of the chassis.

[0022] More particularly, the vehicular chassis of this invention is also characterized by novel waste heat rejection. The chassis has a frame defining a plurality of open spaces, a suspension system including at least three wheels, a steering system having steering components, mounted with respect to the frame and operably connected to at least one wheel, and an energy conversion system having energy conversion system components, mounted with respect to the frame and operably connected to at least one wheel. A waste heat rejection system having waste heat rejection system components is operably connected to the energy conversion system. The waste heat rejection components include a coolant circulation system and a heat exchanger adjacent the energy conversion system. The coolant circulation system or cooling loop is operably connected to the heat exchanger. The chassis further includes an HVAC system having HVAC system components which are operably connected to the coolant circulation system. The chassis also includes a braking system having braking components, mounted with respect to the frame and operably connected to at least one wheel. A plurality of body-attachment couplings are mounted with respect to the frame and include a plurality of body-retention couplings, a control signal receiver coupling, and an HVAC fluid coupling; wherein the control signal receiver coupling is characterized as control-by-wire and is operably connected to the braking system, steering system, and propulsion system; and wherein the HVAC system is operably connected to the HVAC fluid coupling and the control signal receiver coupling; and wherein the steering components, energy conversion system components, waste heat rejection system components, braking components, HVAC system components, and body attachment couplings are mounted within the open spaces and do not protrude significantly outside the frame or the interface between the chassis and the selected one of a plurality of interchangeable vehicle body configurations.

[0023] The above structural objects and technical features and advantages, and other objects, of the present invention are readily apparent from the following detailed description of the best mode for carrying out the invention when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.