Abstract:
The present invention relates to an apparatus with flexible attachments for reducing drag on a vehicle having a generally planar rear surface. The use of flexible vane attachments allows the rear doors of the trailer to fully open and close effortlessly. The apparatus includes a pair of vanes, each vane having a leading edge and a trailing edge. A first flexible attachment means connects an upper end of each vane&#39;s leading edge to a side of said vehicle, while a second flexible attachment means connects a lower end of each leading edge to the vehicle side. At least one third flexible attachment means connects the trailing edge of each vane to the rear surface of the vehicle. Other additional cables may be needed for additional vane support depending on vane length and profile. The vanes redirect air flowing along the sides of the vehicle into a volume of low pressure air behind said rear surface.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     The invention relates generally to devices for reducing air flow resistance and drag on trucks, semitrailers, railway cars, and other vehicles. More particularly, the invention relates to devices for redirecting air from airstreams passing around a vehicle into low-pressure zones at the rear of the vehicle.  
         [0003]     2. Description of the Prior Art  
         [0004]     The profitability of long-distance highway cargo transport depends heavily on the cost of fuel, and on the efficiency with which the fuel is utilized. The cost of fuel is largely outside the control of the cargo transporter; however, the efficiency of fuel utilization may be increased. One method involves reducing resistance to forward motion of a vehicle through the air. Resistance to vehicular motion takes two major forms. First, the volume of air immediately in front of the vehicle acts as a barrier. A vehicle is then required to expend energy to push this volume of air aside, thereby reducing fuel economy. Significant advances have been made in aerodynamic design of semitrailer tractors and trailers, including the incorporation of deflectors to redirect air around substantially vertical planar surfaces of vehicles. A commonly used deflector takes the form of a dome-shaped device mounted on the top of a semitrailer tractor cab; the dome deflects air upward toward the top of the trailer, rather than allowing the air to flow directly against the vertical front of the trailer. Resistance to forward motion of the vehicle from the body of air in front of the vehicle is reduced. A measurable increase in the efficiency of fuel utilization, and a concomitant increase in mileage traveled per gallon of fuel used (fuel mileage), is obtained.  
         [0005]     A second, and at least equally pernicious, form of resistance to a vehicle in motion lies in the drag on the vehicle caused by the formation of reduced-pressure zones at the rear of the vehicle, or in between units of a combination vehicle, such as a string of multiple trailers. The airstreams passing over the top and along the sides of the vehicle recombine behind of the vehicle. However, due to turbulence caused by the passage of the vehicle, a space filled with low pressure air forms between the rear of the vehicle and the point at which these airstreams fully recombine. This zone of turbulent low-pressure air acts as a partial vacuum, and induces drag on the vehicle in a backward direction. The work that must be performed by the engine to pull the vehicle forward is then increased, thereby decreasing fuel mileage.  
         [0006]     Vehicular drag has long been recognized in the art, and a number of solutions have been proposed. One common solution lies in streamlining the rear of a trailer. Airstreams passing along the trailer flow together more smoothly, with reduced turbulence. A smaller low-pressure zone is produced at the rear of the vehicle, with a marked reduction in drag. However, a number of legacy trailers exist; which would require a sizable expense to replace. Accordingly, methods of reducing drag which may be easily and inexpensively retrofitted onto existing trailers would be attractive to trucking companies.  
         [0007]     One method of retrofitting existing trailers with streamlined drag-reduction devices lies in the use of conical or pyramidal devices or airfoils on the rear of a trailer. Such airfoils act in the same manner as the streamlined rear of a trailer as described above, in that the airfoils allow airstreams to flow together more smoothly. An advantage over the above streamlined trailers is that airfoils may be readily retrofitted onto an existing, non-streamlined, trailer. However, these devices do have certain drawbacks. When used with trailer trucks, airfoils normally fit over the doors at the rear of the trailer. Thus, these devices may not be simply mounted on a trailer and left in place. Instead, these devices must be assembled and mounted on the rear of the trailer after completion of the loading process. Similarly, such devices must be disassembled and removed from the trailer before unloading can begin, causing inconvenient delays in the unloading and loading processes. More importantly, at least some of the savings from increases in fuel mileage or fuel economy may be offset by increased hourly costs for labor. Another drawback of using rear-mounted airfoils on trailers is that the airfoils add significantly to the length of a trailer, making it difficult to use these airfoils to reduce drag in between a pair of trailers mounted in series.  
         [0008]     Some airfoil designs allow the airfoils to slide into or out of tracks mounted on the side of the vehicle; while the use of such tracks accelerates the process of positioning airfoils after loading and unloading the trailer, the cost and complexity of retrofitting an existing trailer with a streamlined airfoil is significantly increased.  
         [0009]     A second method of retrofitting trailers with a drag-reducing device lies in fitting vanes to the rear corners of the trailers. Corner vanes redirect airstreams passing along the sides of the vehicle to induce flow into a low-pressure zone behind the trailer, thereby reducing the magnitude of the partial vacuum behind the trailer, and hence reducing the drag on the vehicle. If two trailers are connected in series, formation of a low pressure zone between the trailers may be prevented by mounting vanes to the rear of the front trailer, such that air flowing along a front trailer is redirected into the space between the front trailer and rear trailer.  
         [0010]     Many vanes of the prior art are rigidly mounted to the rear corners of a trailer. While these do an effective job of preventing drag, they do impede opening the doors on the rear of the trailer. Many trailers are designed with doors that open so as to lie flat against the side of the trailer, so as to allow the trailer to be loaded or unloaded in a small or enclosed space. However, the vanes, when rigidly mounted to the trailer, prevent the doors from opening completely. The inability to fully open the vehicle doors is an inconvenience during the loading/unloading process.  
         [0011]     It is an object of the invention to provide an apparatus that will increase fuel efficiency of powered vehicles towing unpowered vehicles having a generally planar rear surface by reducing drag on the unpowered vehicles.  
         [0012]     Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus that may be retrofitted onto existing vehicles so as to reduce drag, without requiring that the apparatus be dismounted or remounted at any point during the unloading/reloading process.  
         [0013]     In another object of the invention, the drag-reducing apparatus may be retrofitted onto existing vehicles without impeding the normal uses of the vehicles. These normal functions include, but are not limited to, the ability to fully open the doors of the vehicles during loading/unloading; and the ability to connect multiple vehicles in series.  
         [0014]     It is an additional object of the invention to provide an apparatus that will reduce drag on vehicles having a generally planar rear surface, including trailers and railway cars.  
         [0015]     It is a further object to provide an apparatus that will reduce drag on vehicles, where the device may be readily retrofitted onto existing vehicles.  
         [0016]     The foregoing objects and advantages of the invention are illustrative of those that can be achieved by the present invention and are not intended to be exhaustive or limiting of the possible advantages which can be realized. Thus, these and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the description herein or can be learned from practicing the invention, both as embodied herein or as modified in view of any variation which may be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the present invention resides in the novel methods, arrangements, combinations and improvements herein shown and described.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0017]     In light of the present need for an improved drag reduction apparatus for a vehicle, a brief summary of the present invention is presented. Some simplifications and omission may be made in the following summary, which is intended to highlight and introduce some aspects of the present invention, but not to limit its scope. Detailed descriptions of a preferred exemplary embodiment adequate to allow those of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention concepts will follow in later sections.  
         [0018]     According to the present invention, reduction of drag arising from creation of a low pressure volume of turbulent air behind a generally planar rear surface of a vehicle is provided by attaching a pair of vanes to the right and left corner edges of the rear surface of the vehicle. Such vanes typically extend through substantially the full vertical height of the rear structure of the vehicle. Each vane is bent about a longitudinal center line so that the vane curves around the corner edge to which it is attached, and is positioned so that a leading edge of the vane projects beyond the width of the rear surface structure. The trailing edge of the vane is behind the rear surface of the vehicle. As the vehicle moves in a forward direction, the leading edges of the vanes capture a portion of the air streams flowing along the sides of the vehicle, and deflect the air streams into the low pressure volume of turbulent air behind the vehicle, increasing the pressure within this volume of air, and reducing its ability to exert drag on the vehicle by acting as a partial vacuum.  
         [0019]     The vanes are attached to the rear vertical edges of the vehicle by a set of flexible attachment elements, such as cables. These cables include at least a pair of cables attached to the leading edge of each vane. One of these cables is attached to the upper end of the leading edge of each vane, and connects each vane to an upper portion of a side of the vehicle. Another cable is attached to the lower end of the leading edge of each vane, and connects this lower vane end to a lower portion of the side of the vehicle. One vane is attached to the right side of the vehicle, and one vane is attached to the left side of the vehicle. The trailing edges of the right and left vanes are attached to the planar rear surface of the vehicle by means of one or more cables. For example, the trailing edges can be connected together by a single cable which is connected to a vane at each end, and anchored to the rear surface of the vehicle in the middle. Alternatively, each trailing edge can be anchored to the rear surface of the vehicle by a separate cable. Attachment of vanes to the rear surface using separate cables is preferable if the vehicle has doors in its rear surface. For example, a cable can be used to anchor the trailing edge of the right vane to a right door in the rear surface of the vehicle, and the trailing edge of the left vane can be anchored to a left rear door of the vehicle.  
         [0020]     The invention is additionally directed to a method of modifying a vehicle having a substantially planar generally planar rear surface so as to reduce drag on the vehicle. This method involves the use of vanes having a leading edge and a trailing edge. The leading edge of a first vane is connected to a rear vertical edge of a first side of said vehicle by means of at least one first flexible attachment means. This flexible attachment means may take the form of a set of two or more cables connecting the leading edge of the first vane to the first side of the vehicle. Alternatively, the length of the leading edge of the vane may be anchored to a flexible mesh which is connected to the first side of the vehicle. The trailing edge of the first vane is then connected to the rear surface of the vehicle by means of at least one second flexible attachment means, such as a cable or a mesh. The leading and trailing edges of a second vane are similarly connected to a rear vertical edge of a second side of said vehicle. These vanes reduce drag on the vehicle by redirecting air flowing along the first and second sides of the vehicle into a volume of low pressure air behind the rear surface of the vehicle as the vehicle moves forward.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0021]     In order to better understand the present invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:  
         [0022]      FIG. 1  shows the pattern of air flow around a vehicle having a generally planar rear surface, and illustrates how drag forces arise.  
         [0023]      FIG. 2  shows the use of vanes to modify the pattern of air flow around a vehicle having a generally planar rear surface so as to reduce the magnitude of drag forces.  
         [0024]      FIG. 3  shows how prior art vanes interact with a set of doors on the rear surface of a vehicle.  
         [0025]      FIG. 4  shows a set of vanes for reduction of drag, as described in the current invention.  
         [0026]      FIG. 5  shows a first method of connecting a series of two cables to a vane of the current invention.  
         [0027]      FIG. 6  shows an alternative method of connecting a series of four cables to a vane of the current invention.  
         [0028]      FIG. 7  shows a method of connecting a mesh connector to a vane of the current invention.  
         [0029]      FIG. 8  shows the vanes of  FIG. 4  connected to a vehicle having a generally planar rear surface with right and left rear doors.  
         [0030]      FIG. 9  provides an exploded view showing a method of connecting a vane to a vehicle by means of a flexible cable.  
         [0031]      FIG. 10  shows the pattern of air flow around a vehicle of  FIG. 8  having vanes as described in the current invention attached thereto.  
         [0032]      FIGS. 11   a,    11   b,  and  11   c  show the effect of opening the rear door of a vehicle having vanes as described in the current invention attached thereto on the positioning of the vanes.  
         [0033]      FIG. 12  shows the pattern of air flow around a multiple vehicles connected in series, each having vanes as described in the current invention attached thereto.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0034]      FIG. 1  shows airflow around a vehicle  100 , such as a trailer or a railroad car, having a generally planar rear surface  102 , a right side  103 , and a left side  104 , when vehicle  100  moves in a forward direction D at a desired speed. Under these conditions, air moves, relative to vehicle  100 , along the sides  103  and  104  in the direction of arrows A and B, respectively. The flow of air in the direction A and the flow of air in the direction B do not reunite immediately behind rear surface  102 ; rather, airflows A and B reunite at a point at a certain distance X behind surface  102 . A zone of low pressure air is thereby created behind rear surface  102 , between the flow of air in the direction A and the flow of air in the direction B. This low pressure zone acts as a partial vacuum, and sucks air from air flows A and B in the direction of arrows C, into the zone of low pressure air. Airflow in the direction of arrows C somewhat increases the air pressure behind surface  102 , but also increases the turbulence in this volume of air. As a result, as the vehicle moves forward in the direction of arrow D, a partial vacuum containing a volume of turbulent low pressure air is carried behind vehicle  100 . This partial vacuum creates drag on the vehicle by sucking in the direction of arrow E on surface  102 . The engine causing the vehicle to move forward must work harder to cause the vehicle to move at the desired speed in direction D while simultaneously overcoming the retarding force of drag in the direction of arrow E.  
         [0035]      FIG. 2  shows a prior art method of reducing drag on a vehicle by connecting vanes  201  to the rear of the vehicle using brackets  202 . When vehicle  100  moves in a forward direction D, a leading edge of a first vane  201  captures a portion of the airflow in direction A along right side  103 , and the trailing edge of the first vane redirects the captured airflow in a new direction A′. The other vane  201  redirects a portion of the airflow in direction B along left side  104  in a new direction B′ in a similar fashion. The remainder of the airflows in directions A and B proceed as described above, reuniting at distance X behind surface  102  and forming a low pressure zone of air. The airflows in direction A′ and direction B′, after leaving vanes  201 , flow directly into this zone of low pressure air behind surface  102 , and reunite at a distance Y behind surface  102 , where distance Y is less than distance X. This increases the air pressure behind surface  102 , and reduces the extent of the drag exerted on the vehicle in the direction of arrow E′ by the partial vacuum.  
         [0036]      FIG. 3  shows prior art vanes  201  attached to the rear edges of vehicle  100 , where vehicle  100  has doors  301  and  302  in its rear surface. The vanes are attached using rigid brackets  202  to hold the vanes in position. Vanes which have been rigidly attached in this fashion can cause problems when the vehicle doors are opened. These doors typically swing open in the direction of arrow F to facilitate loading and unloading of the vehicle. When vanes  201  are rigidly held in position by brackets  202 , the vanes prevent the door from fully opening in the direction of arrow F, complicating the loading/unloading process.  
         [0037]      FIG. 4  shows a system of vanes including a left vane  401  and a right vane  401   a.  These vanes may be mounted to a vehicle so as overcome drag on the vehicle without impeding normal operation of the vehicle doors. Each of vanes  401  and  401   a  includes a leading edge  402  and a trailing edge  403 . In one embodiment, a hole  404   a  for connecting a cable or other flexible connector is positioned at the top of each leading edge  402 , and a corresponding connection hole  404   b  is positioned at the bottom of each leading edge  402 . Similarly, a connection hole  405   a  is positioned at the top of each trailing edge  403 , and a corresponding hole  405   b  is positioned at the bottom of each trailing edge  403 . Each vane is bent longitudinally to form an inner concave surface and an outer convex surface. The vanes may be curved into a smooth arc when viewed in cross section. Alternatively, each vane may be bent into three or more planar regions  406  meeting at obtuse angles  407 , as seen in  FIG. 4 .  
         [0038]      FIG. 5  shows a method of attaching a set of two cables to left vane  401 . In one embodiment, a cable  501  is connected to the upper end of vane  401  by running the cable from the inner surface of the vane through hole  404   a  in the upper end of the leading edge of the vane. Cable  501  then runs through hole  405   a  in the upper end of the trailing edge of the vane. The portion of cable  501  wrapping around the convex surface of the vane is then secured in position so that the vane does not move relative to the cable by means of a clamp or a staple  550 . In an analogous way, a second cable  501  is connected to the lower end of vane  401  by using holes  404   b  and  405   b.  After this second cable  501  is connected, the vane  401  has two unequal lengths of cable  501   a  of length l extending from its leading edge, and two lengths of cable  501   b  of length m extending from its trailing edge  403 . Preferably, length m is greater than length l. In exactly the same manner, two lengths of cable  501   a  are connected to the leading edge of right vane  401   a,  and two lengths of cable  501   b  are connected to the trailing edge of right vane  401   a.  A loop is formed at the end of each cable  501   a  and each cable  501   b.    
         [0039]      FIG. 6  shows another method of connecting a set of four separate cables to left vane  401  by looping an end  601  of a cable  501   a  of length l through each of holes  404   a  and  404   b  in the leading edge of the vane, and similarly looping an end  602  of a cable  501   b  of length m through each of holes  405   a  and  405   b  in the trailing edge of the vane. Each loop is secured by clamping the free end of the cable to the main length of the cable with clamp  603 . In exactly the same manner, four cables are connected to the right vane.  
         [0040]      FIG. 7  shows use of a flexible mesh  701 , which is secured to the leading edge  402  of vane  401 . The mesh is formed so that air may freely flow through the spaces in the mesh. The cords or cables  702  forming mesh  701  may be secured to the edge  402  by directly passing these cables through a series of holes  703  in vane  401 . Alternatively, a series of connectors  704 , each having a first hole  705  and a second hole  706 , may be connected to mesh  701  by looping cables  702  through holes  705 , and then securing connectors  704  to vane  401  by means of rivets  707  passing through holes  706  in connectors  704  and through holes  703  in vane  401  (For reasons of clarity, only one rivet is shown in  FIG. 7 ). A loop  708  is then formed at either end of each cable  702 ; at points where two cables  702  cross when forming the mesh, cables  702  may be secured together. The use of connectors  704  and rivets  707  is useful for connecting preformed meshes to vanes. A second mesh may be similarly connected to the trailing edge of vane  401 .  
         [0041]     Whatever method is used to connect cables or meshes to left vane  401 , cables or meshes should be similarly connected to right vane  401   a.    
         [0042]      FIG. 8  and  FIG. 9  illustrate the manner in which the vanes of  FIG. 5  and  FIG. 6  are attached to the vehicle. This method may be performed on new vehicles or used to retrofit existing vehicles with vanes  401  and  401   a  with equal facility. As shown in  FIG. 8 , vehicle  100  has a left rear door  301  and a right rear door  302 , which are connected to the right and left sides of the vehicle, respectively, by means of hinges  801 . With the doors in a closed position, the vanes are attached to the vehicle by connecting the leading edge of left vane  401  to the left side of the vehicle by fastening cables  501   a  to the left side of vehicle  100 . Similarly, the leading edge of right vane  401   a  is connected to the right side of the vehicle using cables  501   a.  The trailing edges of vanes  401  and  401   a  are then connected to the left and right rear doors, respectively, using cables  501   b.  The cables are connected to vehicle  100  as shown in  FIG. 9 , which illustrates connection of cable  501   a  extending from the upper end of the leading edge of vane  401 ; all cables  501   a  and  501   b  are connected similarly (Please note that the top of vehicle  100  is not shown in  FIG. 9 , for reasons of clarity.). A loop  901  is formed at the end of each cable  501   a  and secured with a clamp  902  so that loop  901  may be positioned over grommet  906 . A hole  903  is then drilled in the side of vehicle  100 , and the cable loop  901  is secured to the vehicle by passing a bolt  904  through grommet  906  and hole  903 , and securing the bolt in position using nut  905 . The head of bolt  903  must be larger than loop  901 . The grommet must be positioned with the largest diameter surface flat against the side of vehicle  100 . After assembly, check to be sure the flexible cable rotates freely and the loop cannot slip over the bolt head. The free rotation of the flexible cables around the grommets is critical in allowing the vanes to be positioned properly when the doors are fully opened. This exact assembly installation procedure is used on all fastened connections to both sides and the doors of the vehicle  100 .  
         [0043]     Since cables  501  and  501   b  are flexible, when vehicle  100  is stationary and doors  301  and  302  are closed, vanes  401  and  401   a  tend to hang loosely from cables  501   a  and  501   b,  and rest against the rear corner edges of vehicle  100 .  
         [0044]      FIG. 10  shows vehicle  100  in motion in the direction of arrow D; under such conditions, the leading edges of vanes  401  and  401   a  capture a portion of the air flowing along the right and left sides sides of the vehicle in the direction of arrows A and B, creating a zone of comparatively high-pressure air in front of the concave inner surfaces of vanes  401  and  401   a.  The remainder of the airflows along the sides of the vehicle recombine at a distance X behind the rear surface of the vehicle, creating a zone of low-pressure air behind the vehicle&#39;s rear surface  102 , as well as behind the convex outer surfaces of vanes  401  and  401   a.  The pressure difference between the inner and outer surfaces of vanes  401  and  401   a  creates lift in the direction of arrows G, causing the vanes to move away from the body of vehicle  100 . The vanes then cause the captured air to flow in the direction of arrows A′ and B′, into the zone of low pressure air behind rear surface  102 , with the captured airflows in the direction of arrows A′ and B′ reuniting at a distance Y behind surface  102 , where Y is less than X. The flow of air into the zone of low pressure air decreases the magnitude of the partial vacuum behind the vehicle  100 , thereby reducing the consequent suction force or drag on rear surface  102  of vehicle  100  in the direction of arrow E′. The reduction in drag significantly reduces the work that must be done to cause the vehicle to move forward at a desired velocity, leading to an increase in the efficiency of fuel utilization. Proper use of the vanes of this invention may increase fuel efficiency by 5% or more, relative to a similar vehicle which has not been fitted with vanes.  
         [0045]     As shown in  FIG. 11   a,    FIG. 11   b,  and  FIG. 11   c,  the vanes  401  and  401   a  of this invention, when mounted using flexible mesh materials or a set of flexible cables, have the further benefit that the vanes  401  and  401   a  do not impede opening of the right and left rear doors  301  and  302 , unlike prior art vanes mounted using rigid brackets. The flexible nature of cables  501   a  and  501   b  allows the vane to fold back out of the way as door  301  opens. In  FIG. 11   a,  vane  401  is secured to door  301  using cables  501   b,  and to side  104  of vehicle  100  using cables  501   a.  The inner surface of vane  401  lies over hinge  801 , with the leading edge of the vane extending over side  104  of the vehicle, and the trailing edge of the vane extending over door  301 . As door  301  swings in the direction of arrow H, the trailing edge of vane swings away from the vehicle, until when the door  301  has swung 90° and is roughly coplanar with side  104  of vehicle  100  ( FIG. 11   b ), a hypothetical line connecting the leading and trailing edges of vane  401  is roughly parallel to vehicle side  104 . As door  301  continues to swing in the direction of arrow H ( FIG. 11   c ), the outer surface of vane  401  folds back against wall  104  of the vehicle, allowing the door  301  to be fully opened. The ability of the vanes to fold against wall  104  greatly facilitates loading and unloading of the vehicle. It also reduces operator costs for labor, as there is no need to pay workers for time spent mounting and dismounting vanes during the loading/unloading process.  
         [0046]      FIG. 12  shows that the current invention is also of great utility when two unpowered vehicles  100 , such as trailers, are towed in series behind a powered vehicle  1201 , such as a truck cab, using trailer hitches  1202 . Vehicles  100  will be assumed to be trailers in the following discussion. Vanes  401  and  401   a  may be mounted on the rear of each vehicle  100  using cables  501   a  and  501   b.  The vanes on the rear vehicle  100  act to redirect airflow in the direction of arrows A and B into the direction of arrows A′ and B′, as described above, thereby reducing drag on the rear trailer. The vanes on the front trailer  100  also act to reduce drag. As air flows in the direction of arrows A and B past the space between the two trailers  100 , a low pressure zone is created between the trailers. The partial vacuum in this low pressure zone exerts a retarding force, or drag, on the leading trailer. The vanes mounted on the leading trailer a portion of the airflows A and B into the space between the trailers, in the direction of arrow A″ and B″, thereby increasing the air pressure in the space between the two trailers  100 , and thus reducing the drag on the leading trailer.  
         [0047]     While the foregoing discussion is primarily directed to unpowered vehicles being towed behind a separate, powered vehicle, the invention is not limited to such a configuration. It may equally well be applied to any powered vehicle having a substantially planar rear surface.  
         [0048]     Although the present invention has been described in detail with particular reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it should be understood that the invention is capable of other different embodiments, and its details are capable of modifications in various obvious respects. As is readily apparent to those skilled in the art, variations and modifications can be affected while remaining within the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the foregoing disclosure, description, and figures are for illustrative purposes only, and do not in any way limit the invention, which is defined only by the claims.