F150 frunk patent

[T-dubz]

https://www.yahoo.com/autos/first-look-electric-ford-f-144000778.html

 

thought this patent was pretty interesting. You can access the frunk through the grille and it has slide outs

[murphy62]

Hmmm.

 

Tesla lets Ford use the "frunk" designation if Ford lets Tesla use the "Model E" designation????

 

 

[rmc523]

5 hours ago, murphy62 said:

Hmmm.

 

Tesla lets Ford use the "frunk" designation if Ford lets Tesla use the "Model E" designation????

 

 

 

It's a front trunk.  There's no other word for it.  Frunk is not a Tesla exclusive term.

 

I'm also not quite understanding what they're saying is 2 bins.

[Harley Lover]

26 minutes ago, rmc523 said:

I'm also not quite understanding what they're saying is 2 bins.

 

Look more closely at figure 5 while reading the explanation:

 

The front bin, however, can flip out to the right side, granting access to the rear bin, and lights on the side illuminate the area around it.

[rmc523]

I guess i was just having trouble seeing which is a "front" and "rear" bin.  Is the part where "22" is the rear bin?

 

The link to the patent doesn't include that graphic either to look for an explanation.

Edited December 19, 2019 by rmc523

[Harley Lover]

"30" is the rear bin, "28" is the front bin, and the pivot point where 28 flips to the side is around "34".

[rmc523]

19 minutes ago, Harley Lover said:

"30" is the rear bin, "28" is the front bin, and the pivot point where 28 flips to the side is around "34".

 

Right, but I don't understand how they're a front and rear when 28 flips out from a pivot point (34) ON bin 30.  Seems in that case, it'd be a "top" and "bottom" bin, not front and rear.

[Harley Lover]

Agree, the drawing looks more like an over/under arrangement,  versus front/rear. 

[rmc523]

11 minutes ago, Harley Lover said:

Agree, the drawing looks more like an over/under arrangement,  versus front/rear. 

 

Which could make some sense if there's essentially a bin behind the bumper, and another swing out bin behind the "grille".  Though that sort of arrangement limits the ability to place taller items in the frunk.

[HotRunrGuy]

If this is supposed to be a dedicated BEV vehicle, why the heck do we need 5' of hood? Shorten the vehicle, or add cargo room.

 

HRG

[YT90SC]

9 minutes ago, HotRunrGuy said:

If this is supposed to be a dedicated BEV vehicle, why the heck do we need 5' of hood? Shorten the vehicle, or add cargo room.

 

HRG

Two words: Crumple zones. They have established architecture that can do it, that they have developed for the regular trucks. 

[Assimilator]

A frunk would be extremely useful in a pickup because of the disadvantages of storing cargo in a pickup bed (Weather, Security, reachability).  It just has to be large enough to store groceries and the like.  One of the things I dislike about a pickup truck is that you have tons of space, but none of it convenient for everyday use.  Honda, Rivian, and Cybertruck have the bed trunk which does help, RAM has the RAM Boxes.   I know in my F-150 I just use the backseat which is hard to use in a parking lot.  

 

I'm curious to see what the F-150 BEV does, I don't know how ambitious the top-hat changes are.  I suspect it's just a conversion project, otherwise they wouldn't call it an F-150.  It does get a unique architecture, but it's largely a frame modification rather than something new. It gets an IRS and a long narrow battery pack filling the inner frame.  

 

This might also get around the regulations that require a dual stage hood latch which makes using a frunk annoying.  If you have a tailgate-like design it might make things easier.  

 

 

Edited December 20, 2019 by Assimilator

[T-dubz]

18 hours ago, rmc523 said:

 

Which could make some sense if there's essentially a bin behind the bumper, and another swing out bin behind the "grille".  Though that sort of arrangement limits the ability to place taller items in the frunk.

https://jalopnik.com/patent-shows-the-electric-ford-f-150-is-going-to-get-a-1840532888

 

this link seems to clear it up a bit. There is a front and back bin that are connected with a hinge. You can slide out the bins and then swing the front bin to the side so you can more easily reach the back bin.

[rmc523]

2 hours ago, T-dubz said:

https://jalopnik.com/patent-shows-the-electric-ford-f-150-is-going-to-get-a-1840532888

 

this link seems to clear it up a bit. There is a front and back bin that are connected with a hinge. You can slide out the bins and then swing the front bin to the side so you can more easily reach the back bin.

 

Thanks for finding that.  That explained everything, and the missing drawings were there.  For some reason all of that wasn't at the original link.

 

So sound like the bins will basically be like a drawer/on sliders - you pull them out, and the front bin then pivots away to allow access to both.   There's a lighting system connected to the front bin.  The one oddity is that with this setup, there won't be lights in the rear bin.  But hopefully the overall lights on the frunk sides will shine enough for that bin.

 

There's also proximity sensors to detect if anyone is reaching into the bin without the key nearby to prevent theft.  I get the idea of that, but could also see issues if you don't have your keys on you but lock things up.