Ferrari isn’t the first automaker to obtain a patent for a movable wing that attaches to the suspension, but its latest invention might be the strangest. According to a new patent discovered by the CarBuzz research team, Ferrari wants to make a movable suspension-arm wing that gets shoved into and out of place.
These days, you can attach little motors and actuators to just about anything to make it “active.” But this idea doesn’t use any actuators, which makes it perfect for an EV where saving even the smallest amount of weight can make a big difference. And this idea is so simple that it’s brilliant.
Can Stop, Will Stop This Fancy New Wing Design
Ferrari movable suspension wingFerrari
Suspension arms are one of the last frontiers for aerodynamic development. Hidden in the wheel arches and inside the wheel, their overall effect has been limited. But as automakers run out of easy, obvious ways to do things, they need to start going after the hard ways. Active aero for suspension is one of the hard ways.
Porsche recently patented a design where the wing changes its angle of attack based on suspension travel. It was attached to the suspension arm at one end, and there was a link to the body at the other. Ferrari’s idea is even more wild.
Ferrari’s design relies on a physical stop, which the Italian automaker calls an “abutment element.” The abutment is a U-shaped bracket that attaches to the wheel hub but can also attach to the body or even the shock. It just has to be close to the suspension arm-mounted wing.
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In the invention, Ferrari puts a wing around the suspension arm that can rotate freely and spin around the arm. The only thing that stops it from flapping up and down is where the wing comes into contact with the abutment.
Wing Can Improve Performance With Minimal Weight, Complexity
Ferrari movable suspension wingFerrari
Picture a flag on a pole. The flag (the wing) can rotate around the pole (suspension arm) in any direction the wind blows. The abutment arm blocks it, so no matter how hard the wind blows, it can’t go past that point. Because the arm can move, the angle of the wing can move, too. It can either follow the vehicle’s suspension travel or adjust the angle of attack for more downforce or less drag.
Ferrari claims that this can improve vehicle performance by increasing or decreasing aerodynamic loads depending on the situation. It can also route air for cooling or to other aerodynamic elements further to the rear of the vehicle, making them work better.
The automaker says the lack of a mechanical drive and the mechanisms to go with it makes it perfect for EVs. Ferrari says it “represents a clear advantage in terms of weight reduction and production costs” compared to more complicated active designs.
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Ferrari’s patent drawings show that ideas like this won’t likely work on vehicles with conventional suspension designs. The images show very long arms reaching nearly to the center of the vehicle. The long arms are necessary to provide a sufficiently long wing to have a useful effect, and they’re also common on vehicles like Ferrari sports cars where suspension geometry is more important than packaging constraints. In other words, don’t expect anyone to try and fit this into a MacPherson strut economy car.
CarBuzz Insight – Why This Matters:
Movable rear wings and front grille flaps were the easy first steps in active aerodynamics. This invention makes it clear that automakers have done the easy things and are now working on more difficult methods to get smaller results. But also, this patent is an impressively simple way to accomplish a complex task. One Ferrari deems worth the effort.
It’s a sign that either progress will stop – not likely – or that, in the next few years, we could see a significant evolution. This evolution would not be possible with today’s budgets or technology, but it’s inevitable as cars get faster, more efficient, and just plain better.
Patent filings do not guarantee the use of such technology in future vehicles and are often used exclusively as a means of protecting intellectual property. Such a filing cannot be construed as confirmation of production intent.
Source: US Patent and Trademark Office
