Following the tide of the Spring Festival, the endurance of electric vehicles has once again attracted everyone's attention, in the cold temperature, part of the car's battery life is stretched, short battery life is difficult to charge, and a number of "turtle speed" new energy vehicles have emerged on the highway, in order to avoid "serious power failure" at high speed, some people even keep the speed below 100km h, but there are also potential safety hazards in this practice, so in addition to the evolution of battery design, what are the new technologies to increase battery life? Today we are introducing the active bumper design, which can increase the range with simple technology, and we will analyze it in detail below.
The role of the active bumper
In order to improve the aerodynamic efficiency of electric vehicles, Hyundai-Kia has introduced the ASS "Active Air Skirt" smart bumper. This innovative system reduces air resistance at high speeds and increases the range and stability of electric vehicles.
The working principle of AAS is to control the airflow from the lower part of the bumper into the bottom of the car, as we all know, on the car, compared to the smooth upper part of the body, the part hidden below is messy, the lower part has a subframe, suspension control arm, battery, motor, reducer and other structures, even if the electric car is chassis covered, it will not be completely covered, these protruding parts will produce resistance, and the tires of the car will also produce turbulence around due to high-speed rotation, increasing resistance.
The ASS active air skirt protrudes from the lower part of the bumper and blocks in front of the two wheels, automatically ejecting or retracting according to the speed of the vehicle while driving, effectively managing the turbulence generated around the wheels. Remain hidden during normal driving in the city because the vehicle needs to maintain a certain amount of ground clearance, otherwise it will be difficult to cross the "road teeth", but when the air resistance exceeds the rolling resistance, that is, when the speed exceeds 80 km h, the system will come into play and pop out to prevent air from passing through the rotating wheels.
When the speed is reduced to 70 km/h, it automatically returns to the stowed position, which prevents the vehicle from frequently ejecting and retracting the ASS "active air skirt" in a specific speed range.
AAS selectively covers only the front of the tire, rather than completely covering the entire front of the vehicle. Controlling turbulence during high-speed driving, combined with a flat underbody design, ASS not only reduces drag, but also helps to increase downforce, enhance vehicle traction and high-speed stability.
It is worth noting that the AAS structure can even operate at speeds in excess of 200 km h thanks to the rubber material used in the lower part. This material not only reduces the risk of being damaged by small rocks, etc., when driving at high speeds, but also ensures the durability of the system. Hyundai-Kia Group has conducted tests and the results show that the drag coefficient (CD) is reduced by 60 after installing AAS in **0008, i.e. the resistance is reduced by 28%, the range directly increased by 6 kilometers, reaching the distance from home to work for some people. This technology will have a more significant resistance change on SUV models, and more models will be equipped in the future.
Part of adaptive aerodynamics
In fact, many years ago, Porsche applied this technology to the 911 Turbo, codenamed 991, was the first sports car equipped with PAA adaptive aerodynamics technology, but due to the high cost, it was not used on other models.
The 911 Turbo features a retractable multi-stage front spoiler and a height- and angle-adjustable rear wing, which can be used in conjunction with the rear package to maintain high-speed stability, allowing the 911 Turbo package to change angles and telescopic positions at the touch of a button.
The Porsche Active Aerodynamics (PAA) system has three basic modes for controlling the front spoiler and rear fenders. Both are fully retracted when the car is started, and similar to Hyundai Kia's design, the front spoiler folds to provide the car with a larger approach angle than other sports cars, reducing the likelihood of scratching on unpaved roads or when entering slopes. When the speed exceeds 120 km/h, the performance mode is activated, and the three-part front spoiler begins to extend, while the two exterior sections unfold to divert the air around the vehicle, reducing aerodynamic lift on the front axle and reducing drag. At the same time, the tail wing extends upwards by 25 mm.
As the speed continues to rise, the 911 turns on performance mode, focusing more on aerodynamic resistance and downforce at high speeds, and extending the middle of the three-stage front spoiler. At the same time, the tail wing again extends to a height of 75 mm and is tilted forward by 7 degrees. At speeds of up to 300kmh, the entire kit generates 132kg of air downforce, which means faster cornering speeds and a 10% increase in lateral g-force.
Car Pick Detective Viewpoint:Active aerodynamic design was originally a technology on the racing car, and later used in sports cars, while reducing resistance, increasing the use of scenarios in daily life, but the use of these technologies means that the cost of the vehicle rises, such as Porsche's three-section bumper extension design, complex structure, only used in the high-performance version of the 911 turbo, with the development of electric vehicles, the pursuit of aerodynamics even more than sports cars, major manufacturers racked their brains to reduce wind resistance, and used this as a propaganda point, A simple active bumper "air skirt" can reduce drag, and it is expected that more brands will use this technology in the future. Welcome to discuss.