In this industry, it is so very hard to meet all the demands of the FED and state regulators, the fleet customers, the owner / operators, and the internal pressures that may need to push more priorty on cost vs. performance, esp. when the economy is down.
Changing how palletizing is done, dock infrastructure, and looking at the USA 53' trailer length limit, would be needed.
For US market, there is much less restriction on how big the tractor itself can be, as opposed to the 53' trailer limit. In Europe, the restriction is on overall length, hence the Cab - over design, to minimize tractor length, and maximize trailer length.
Boat tail / kamm back would be awesome on the USA semi-trailer, but without increasing length, the trailer will have to carry less cargo.
So you are in the hole for your MPG per ton, that has to be made up financially first, before you can count any positive from the aero gain. But I think it can be made up if done right, and then some.
That is why there is so much focus in USA on the tractor aero, on side skirts on trailers, on fuel economy within the SCR urea systems / regen / engines themselves. Those are things that North American tractors are being improved every year, because that fits current regulations. I think the DOT has a limit on how much length a non-cargo carring extension can be added to the 53'. I think that is a current hang up, a regulatory dead end, so no work is being done on the 'tail' end by trailer manufacturers.
I would love to see more work on the inflatable / articulating / collapsing / removable boat tail concepts that are out there.
Hmmm... Perhaps if the tractor is made a bit shorter, the feds might allow a little more than a couple of feet of removeable / collapisible aero on the trailer, an exception sort of thing, mixing the USA tractor rules with the Euro rules of total overall length?
Maybe a shell that moves back into itself (think Sydney Opera house , or the Pontiac G6 full length sunroof) and swings out of the way for loading and unloading, or anything that allows boat tailing while keeping all of the dock infrastructure in place would be something for a good University thesis...
I have read a whole lot of posts from Mr. Phil Knox and others, and I know that many things have been concluded from Mr. Hucho et. al. over the decades of the work that can be done to the back of the vehicle with a lot more bang for the buck as opposed to the front.
I think there is more work to do on the front of tractors as opposed to passenger cars, but I can only hope that DOT regulators can look at the science of the rear of the trailer as well with examples such as this MAN truck.
Thanks again for sharing, fluid economy is so important in this market, and to our society as whole. Since so much cargo is moved for us by trucks, even tiny improvements benefit us all.
Cheers.