Ridge, FlexSys to Apply Shape-Morphing to Truck Aerodynamics
Ridge Corp. teamed with aerospace technology company FlexSys Inc. to apply its advanced technology to aerodynamic devices used in the trucking industry to reduce drag and improve fuel efficiency.
FlexSys, a Michigan-based company, has been developing advanced aircraft wing technologies with the Air Force research laboratories for the past 16 years and has validated its concepts through ongoing NASA flight tests on a Gulfstream business jet, Pataskala, Ohio-based Ridge said.
Ridge designed and manufactures the Green Wing brand of aerodynamic side skirts for semi-trailers. The glass content in Green Wing allows “product impact” with no permanent set, according to Ridge. In other words, Green Wing has a memory and always returns to flat, according to the company.
FlexSys has a patented design of a shape-morphing adaptive control surface for an airfoil, the company said.
“Ridge’s goal is to incorporate this new technology as a complement to our own engineering expertise and our ability to quickly move new technologies to market,” Ridge CEO Gary Grandominico said in a statement.
