Aprilia Rear Spoiler Patent Explained

[Hugh Janus]

Aprilia has filed patents for the rear spoiler that was first seen back in 2022. (Aprilia/)

Aprilia’s RS-GP MotoGP bike was the first to bring a racecar-style rear wing to the track back in 2022 and if the prototype 2024 racers seen at the end-of-season test in Valencia are to be believed, we’re going to be seeing the same on virtually every rival bike next year. And just as front winglets rapidly became a must-have styling addition on road-going sportbikes once they emerged in MotoGP the rear spoilers are likely to migrate to production models in the future.

That’s come a step closer with the publication of a patent application from Aprilia, describing the design and purpose of its racebike’s rear end but also making a clear indication that the same idea could be applied on the road, saying the idea “relates to ‘road’ or ‘street’ motorcycles” before going on to explain that the practical benefits really apply in racing. The patent illustrates the same rear winglet and spoiler combination that was first seen in 2022, and while it’s only just been published, the document was filed with patent authorities at around the same time.

Back in 2022, Aprilia made waves when it tested its rear spoiler for the first time. (Aprilia/)

Ideas purely intended for racing are rarely the subject of patents. Partly because it means illustrating exactly how ideas work and explaining their benefits—not ideal in a highly competitive environment. After all, there’s no guarantee the patent will be granted, so filing an application could be simply giving your secrets away. Even if a patent is granted, it would be seen as unsporting to try to use patent law to prevent rivals from using the same idea in competition, and the proliferation of rear spoilers appearing on rival racers shows Aprilia isn’t trying to do anything like that. With that in mind, logically Aprilia’s patent application is intended to protect its idea in case the company decides to implement the same thinking on a production machine.

While rear spoilers are never likely to be game-changers for road bikes (even in MotoGP their benefits are still marginal, so the rear wings are often added or removed depending on specific circuits), carrying over the look of racers to the showroom is an essential part of the “win on Sunday, sell on Monday” idea that’s the whole reason companies plough money into their competition machines. With that in mind, it’s hard to imagine that we won’t see road-going superbikes with rear wings in the near future.

Will Aprilia’s spoiler make its way onto a production bike in the near future? (Aprilia/)

What Aprilia’s patent does do is give a clear explanation of exactly what the rear wing arrangement achieves. Aprilia’s system is a little more complex than a simple wing, instead combining a pair of upswept winglets on the sides of the bike’s tail with a high-mounted spoiler on top. While the result looks a lot like the rear wings used on race cars to help plant them on the ground and corner at unimaginable speed, the motorcycle version’s benefits come on the straights. The downforce generated helps keep the back wheel on the ground, particularly during hard braking at the end of the straight, just as the rider tips into corners, when the rear wheel would normally be unloaded.

The document says: “…the spoiler allows an aerodynamic force to be created on the rear wheel. This force is effective above all during trail-braking, i.e., sudden braking, and is such as to reduce bouncing of the rear wheel, improving the grip of the bike and thus facilitating entering the corner. Moreover, the greater load that is created on the rear end of the motorcycle is useful in undulating straight stretches, such as a downhill stretch, in which the motorcycle reaches a speed of around 350 km/h [217 mph] and would tend to lose grip.”

Honda’s latest CBR1000RR-R SP production bike comes with updated aero, otherwise they wouldn’t be allowed in Superbike racing. (Honda/)

Although Aprilia doesn’t currently compete in WSBK—its 1,099cc V-4 engine is too large for the current regulations and the company hasn’t yet followed Ducati’s lead and created a homologation-special, 999cc version to duck under the 1,000cc limit—it’s clear that a patented rear wing design, used on a streetbike, could give an edge in production-based racing. WSBK allows winglets provided they’re the same as those on the showroom versions of bikes, and we’re already seeing companies tweak their road bikes to improve those winglets. Honda’s 2024 updates to the CBR1000RR-R SP, for instance, include winglet changes that can only really be a benefit at the highest level of racing. Aprilia’s patent application covers itself in the event that it wants to put the aero thinking into production, and follows on from a patent in 2022 that described other aero tricks of the RS-GP. With the RSV4 superbike well overdue for a significant revamp, don’t bet against some of the concepts from Aprilia’s most successful MotoGP bike yet trickling down to the showroom.

Source

[Buckster]

That’s basically what my Tour Pak does.

[boboneleg]

9 hours ago, Buckster said:

That’s basically what my Tour Pak does.

and Pete's top box 

[Buckster]

6 minutes ago, boboneleg said:

and Pete's top box 

No, that's just a top box, a Tour Pak is completely different.

[boboneleg]

1 hour ago, Buckster said:

No, that's just a top box, a Tour Pak is completely different.

[Buckster]

12 hours ago, boboneleg said:

[zzzak]

On 12/12/2023 at 10:23, Buckster said:

That’s basically what my Tour Pak does.

Is it lead filled ?

[Buckster]

4 hours ago, zzzak said:

Is it lead filled ?

It's made of Unobtainium. 

[Nute]

Given the turbulent airflow at the back of the bike as a result of the rider being in front of it I’m surprised it will any effect whatsoever. 
 

Stick it on a road bike with a lardy Sunday morning rider in front of it and it will have less than no effect except on the dealers bank account. 

[Buckster]

On 15/12/2023 at 10:17, Nute said:

Given the turbulent airflow at the back of the bike as a result of the rider being in front of it I’m surprised it will any effect whatsoever. 
 

Stick it on a road bike with a lardy Sunday morning rider in front of it and it will have less than no effect except on the dealers bank account. 

That's where the Tour Pak comes into its own.