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ME30217/ME50223
The powertrain and the need for gears
Contents
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Richard Burke
1/37
2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
The powertrain and the need for gears
Differential
4 Wheel Drive
Richard Burke
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ME30217/ME50223
The powertrain and the need for gears
direction of rotation at the wheels. Gears also change the rotational speed and the magnitude of
transmitted torque depending on the relative sizing of the gears. In a typical saloon car, the engine
will happily operate between 1000-6500rpm (petrol) or 1000-4500rpm (Diesel), generating a torque
between 0-250Nm. At the wheels, the speed requirement will depend on wheel radius and
rotational speed will typically very between 0-2000rpm (0-180km/h) whilst the required torque may
reach 3000Nm for a steep hill pull away. The gears therefore allow the engine power to be
modulated between different vehicle demands. In rear and 4 wheel drive applications, the gearing
system allow for the change in angle of the shafts.
The selection of gear ratios is a complex problem that needs to take into account a number of
vehicle level requirements:
Achieve pull away in worst case conditions (max vehicle weight including any towing,
maximum gradients) Matching torque to pull-away requirements
Achieve target acceleration in first gear
Smooth progression of vehicle speed from stand still to cruising speed
Good matching of engine operating points at typical cruising speeds to ensure good fuel
economy
At any operating condition, we can apply Newtons law of motions to a vehicle taking into account
rolling resistance, aerodynamic drag, acceleration forces
and gradient forces:
Gradient force
Aerodynamics
Acceleration
And
Torque (axle)
This map can then be plotted onto a tractive force curve showing the possible operation of the
vehicle for given gear ratios. The upper part of the tractive force curve plots the required tractive
force against vehicle speed. Firstly, lines of constant power have been plotted between 10-130kW
Richard Burke
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Vehicle Engineering
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ME30217/ME50223
The powertrain and the need for gears
these are the hyperbolic curves that are simply obtained as the product of speed and tractive force.
Secondly, the required tractive force for gradients ranging from 0 to 100% have been plotted. These
are almost flat lines but actually quadratic due to the squared term in the aerodynamic drag
calculation. Finally, for each gear (6 in this case) the tractive force that would be obtained with
maximum engine torque has been plotted. These 6 curves represent the highest tractive force that
could be obtained by running the engine with that particular gear ratio. It should be noted that the
engine does not have to run at its maximum torque level, and could operate anywhere below these
lines. The bottom plot shows the engine speed as a function of vehicle speed for each gear. As the
engine has a limited speed range (in this case 1000-5000rpm), there is a limitation in the vehicle
speeds depending on the gear selection.
15000
110kW
70kW 90kW
130kW
50kW
1st
30kW
10000
100%
80%
60%
2nd
40%
5000
3rd
20%
10kW
10%
4th
0%
5th
0
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
6th
160
180
200
2000
6th
5th
4000
1st
6000
0
20
40
60
2nd
80
100
4th
3rd
120
140
160
180
200
The selection of the first gear will primarily depend on the pull away requirements balanced with the
need for the maximum speed in gear 1 not to be too low. The top gear can equally fairly easily be
determined based on the maximum speed requirement of the vehicle. Both these are easily
determined based on the tractive force diagram. Often other gear ratios are selected to promote
fuel economy during cruising and often the highest gear would be labelled an economy gear. To
illustrate the benefit of this we return to the engine operating map previously presented. Now we
can plot on lines of constant vehicle speed (assuming the vehicle is running on a flat surface). These
lines for different speeds indicated all the possibilities of engine operation point as we vary the
transmission ratio. On top of these lines, we can plot the required engine torque to drive the vehicle
across the engine speed range. This is represented for 5th gear by the solid line. The intersection of
this line with the cruise speed lines is the operating point for that given gear ratio. The effect of
including an additional 6th gear with a different ratio is to move the operation point for each of the
cruises to a different place on the operating map. The aim of an economy gear would be to shift this
point to a more favourable location in terms of fuel economy.
Richard Burke
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ME30217/ME50223
Gears
Torque margin
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
th
Possible 6 Gear
5th Gear
A factor that needs to be considered when selecting an economy gear is the torque margine. This is
the amount of reserve torque available to the engine to allow the vehicle to accelerate from the
cruise condition in the case of an overtaking manoeuvre, or that may be required if the vehicle is
confronted with an uphill gradient. Typically engines operate more fuel efficiently nearer to their
maximum torques (as engine friction becomes a lower proportion of total work), therefore a more
economical operating point will typically result in a smaller torque margin.
In older vehicle applications, intermediate gears were selected typically around one of two criteria:
Arithmetic progression: Constant vehicle speed increase for each gear.
Geometric progression: Constant engine speed range for each gear.
However, with the importance of fuel economy for todays vehicles, intermediate gear ratio
selection has become similar to the selection of economy gears in order to provide good fuel
economy at intermediate cruising speeds. Typically these points will be chosen to match those
required by the legislative procedures which in Europe will be the New European Drive Cycle.
2 Gears
2.1 Gears types and geometry
Different types of gears exist and are suited to different applications. The simplest form are spur
gears which have straight teeth and allow transmission between two parallel shafts. However helical
gears are more commonly used in automotive gear boxes. Helical gears have the advantage that
they can be used to transmit power between two non-parallel shafts; in automotive gearboxes they
are used as they are less noisy than spur gears. One disadvantage is that they produce an axial
loading on the shaft which must be supported by an appropriate bearing system.
Richard Burke
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Vehicle Engineering
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ME30217/ME50223
Gears
Bevel gears transmit power between two intersecting shafts using teeth on conical surfaces where
the teeth can be straight or spiral. Hapoidal gears appear similar in shape, however they can operate
between non-intersecting shafts. Worm gears are an additional example of transmission between
non intersecting shafts and offer a high speed ratio (typically greater than 3), however they can only
be driven from the worm to the wheel.
The main terminology for gear systems is shown in the figure below. The pitch diameter is the
diameter of which a pure rolling action would transmit the same motion as the gear. The teeth are
split into two parts by the pitch line: the addendum is the radial length between the pitch circle and
the top land and the dedendum is the radial length between the pitch circle and the root circle.
Gear nomenclature
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ME30217/ME50223
Gears
Gear teeth shapes are most commonly involutes extending from the base circle. This ensures that
the teeth are thickest at the root (giving good strength) and maintain a constant pressure angle (see
below). The involute geometry is an unwinding of a cord of a circle and best described by
considering a spool of wire. If a pen is attached to the end of the wire, and it is unwound whilst
maintaining the wire taut, then the shape that will be drawn is an involute.
The involute curve defining the shape of a gear tooth is obtained by unwinding a circle arc
The number of teeth on a gear (N) depends on the diameter of the gear (D) and the size of the teeth.
The circular pitch (p) is defined as the arc round the pitch circle between the same point on two
teeth:
Assume diameter always refers to pitch diameter
The diametral pitch (pd)is the number of teeth per unit diameter
Standard modules exist in the metric system ranging from 0.5 to 6 and typically gears are designed
with a minimum of 12 teeth.
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Gears
)(
)(
Therefore:
Torque 1/ Torque 2 = - R1/R2 = 1/i
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Vehicle Engineering
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Gears
And
Another important point is the effect gears have on the inertia of the total system perceived by one
end of the drive chain, this is referred to as reflected inertia. If two shafts A and B, with total inertias
IA and IB, support mashing gears with NA and NB teeth respectively, then the perceived inertia of the
total system at shaft A is given by:
Richard Burke
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Vehicle Engineering
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ME30217/ME50223
Gears
During the operation of gears, two major key stress locations on the tooth can be identified: the
contact stress on the face of the tooth and the bending stress at the root of the tooth.
Contact Stress on
tooth face
Bending Stress at
tooth root
Where:
is the tangential force on tooth (N)
is the face width
is the Lewis Form Factor
is the module
is the dynamic factor
The dynamic factor can be estimated simply from:
Richard Burke
Y
0.22961
0.24317
0.25531
0.26622
0.27611
0.28508
0.29327
0.30078
0.30769
0.31406
0.31997
0.33056
0.33979
N Teeth
28
30
34
38
45
50
60
75
100
150
300
Rack
10/37
Y
0.34791
0.35511
0.36731
0.37727
0.39093
0.39861
0.41047
0.42283
0.43574
0.44931
0.46364
0.47897
2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
Gears
The contact stress can also be calculated from the empirical formula
Where
The dynamic factor accounts for the impact of the
teeth as they mate, even during steady speed
running. This is caused by the inevitable clearance
between the gears. As two mating pairs separate
there will no longer be any force transmitted
between the two gears and the driven gear will
decelerate until the next pair come into contact. It
is this impact that is being accounted for. Although
a simple equation is suggested above, this factor
depends strongly on the quality of the gear and the
pitch line velocity and charts are available based on
gear quality classification.
In Helical gears, there is an additional axial force
induced by the angle of the gears. Although this
geometry can reduce impact effects which will both
reduce noise and can improve durability, it is more
expensive and the axial force must be supported by
a suitable bearing system. These gears create an
axial force on the shaft such that:
Richard Burke
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Vehicle Engineering
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ME30217/ME50223
Gears
EXAMPLE
A gear A has a diameter of 50mm with module 2.5mm and a face width of 30mm. An input torque of
100Nm is applied to the shaft. Assuming low speed operation, what is the bending stress on the
tooth? What would the bending stress be if the input speed was 5000rev/min?
When the speed is low, the dynamic factor Kv1
The tangential force is given by:
At 5000rev/min,
(
So
It should be noted that the bending stress is above that for mild steel meaning careful selection of
materials and heat treatments are required.
Now, let gear B, meshing with gear A, have a diameter D=100mm, assuming all other conditions are
equal, calculate the contact stress.
Firstly we calculate the ratio of diameters, h in the contact stress equation
Richard Burke
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Vehicle Engineering
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ME30217/ME50223
Gears
The contact stress is three times greater than the tooth bending stress
The stresses in gears cause different failure modes, the most common being pitting of the surface
and root cracking of the teeth. Both were discussed in more detail in the Tribology section of this
course. It should be noted that quite often root cracking will be initiated at a point of pitting where
the surface has already been damaged.
The gap between the teeth that causes the need for dynamic factors when calculating the stresses
can also cause errors in motion when gears change direction. This gap must be closed before force
can be transferred in the new direction, and causes a level of hysteresis where the driving gear will
move without any response from the driven gear.
Richard Burke
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ME30217/ME50223
Gears
Non metals
Notes
Wear resistance, low water absorption
Phenolic laminates
Nylons
PTFE
Material
Cast Iron
Ferrous Metals
Notes
Low Cost and easy to machine with high
damping
Cast Steels
Alloy Steels
Stainless Steel
(Aust)
Stainless Steels
(Mart)
Material
Aluminium Alloys
Brass Alloys
Bronze Alloys
Magnesium Alloys
Nickel alloys
Titanium alloys
Di Cast Alloys
Sintered powder
alloys
Richard Burke
14/37
Applications
Long life low load up to commercial quality
High production, low quality to moderate
commercial quality
Long life and low loads with commercial quality
Special low friction gears to commercial quality
Applications
Large to moderate power in commercial
applications
Power gear with medium rating to commercial
quality
Power gears with medium rating to
commercial/medium quality
Highest power requirement in precision and high
precision applications
Corrosion resistance with low power rating up to
precision quality
Low to medium power ratings, up to high
precision quality
Applications
Light duty instrument gears up to high precision
quality
Low cost commercial quality gears up to medium
quality
For use with steel power gears. Quality up to high
precision
Light weight low load gears. Quality up to
medium precision
Special gears with thermal application with
commercial quality
Special light weight, high strength gears to
medium quality
High production, low quality gears to commercial
quality
High production, low quality to moderate
commercial quality
2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
Gears
Surface
treatment
Carburising
Suitable base
metal
Steels less
than 2%
carbon
Description
Carbon content of
surface layer increased
using solid, liquid or
gaseous medium
Typical
hardness
(Vickers Hv)
800
Nitriding
Nitriding
steels
Diffusion of Nitrogen in
o
the surface (520-560 C)
900-1150
Plasma
Nitriding
Alloy Steels
Bombarding surface
with nitrogen ions at
o
400-600 C
900-1250
Sulfinuz
All ferrous
metals
including
stainless
400
Boriding
Steels, cast
irons
Formation of borides in
surface layer at 800o
900 C
1200-1760
Electroplated
Chromium
All metals
Electroplating
950
Typical size
Advantages and
disadvantages
0.5mm depth
0.3mm depth
0.3mm with
surface groth
of 25m
Size change
from -5m to
+3m.
Effective 425m
30m to
0.3mm
Thickness
increased
0.01-0.5mm
Appropriate plating
conditions are needed to
avoid cracks in the plating
which are undesirable and
any detached particles
become abrasive
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Vehicle Engineering
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ME30217/ME50223
Manual Transmissions
The manufacturing process for gears requires a combination of forging, machining, heat treatment
and surface treatments. This complex route is continuously put under pressure to reduce costs by:
-
Better prediction of the distortion effect of heat treatment to eliminate hard machining
Reducing heat treatment times by using higher temperatures
Improving machinability
3 Manual Transmissions
3.1 Overview
Manual transmissions are transmissions where the driver has full control over the gear change both
in selecting when gear changes should occur and in providing the actions and forces to undertake
the gear changes. These gearboxes have a high mechanical efficiency and are relatively cheap to
manufacture. They also can be made relatively small and light weight. The fact that the driver has
control over the gear changes can be a highly subjective topic, however the driver dependency of
the system requires more involved learning to use the machines (gear change is a complex
manoeuvre) and this can result in a tiring driving experience. In addition, the gear ratios which are
set to deliver good fuel economy and emissions will be somewhat compromised if the driver selects
the wrong gear for any given driving conditions. Finally, manual gear changes means the driver
becomes a factor in drivability of the vehicle: firstly, this can limit the total number of gears to 6
using a selector fork mechanism and secondly this compromises the gear ratios as it should be
avoided the need to up shift too frequently during acceleration.
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Manual Transmissions
A gear ratio of 1 is referred to as direct drive,
where the output shaft of the gearbox is rotating
at the same speed as the engine input shaft and in
this case power is typically not passed through the
layshaft (although it does continue to rotate).
Gear ratios of less than 1, where the output shaft
rotates faster than the input shaft are referred to
as overdrive.
In both cases, the initial gear selected is gear1, giving a similar torque output.
Synchromesh engagement: First the clutch pedal is depressed, causing a drop in torque and an
eventual torque reversal. The clutch remains depressed throughout the synchronisation process
whilst the shafts in the gearbox and the output plates of the clutch are accelerated or decelerated
depending on the ratio of the gear being selected. Note, the torque to accelerate/decelerate the
input shaft comes from the shift force. After synchronisation and engagement, the clutch can be reengaged giving a smooth torque recovery. This processes results in a smooth change which reduces
noise and wear in the gear box and improves the vehicle ride.
Dog engagement transmission: The clutch is again depressed causing a drop in output torque,
however with the dog transmission, the engagement must happen very quickly to ensure the teeth
are forced into the gears correctly. In this type of transmission, the clutch is also not fully depressed
and is reengaged very rapidly. This causes a spike in torque due to the inertia of the engine and
rotating parts, because they change speed quickly top match that of the output shaft. This inertia
Richard Burke
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ME30217/ME50223
Manual Transmissions
spike can be used to positively accelerate/decelerate the vehicle and also reduces the time when no
acceleration occurs due to clutch disengagement which is useful in racing applications. However, this
results in a harsher and noisier gear change.
The performance effect of a Dog engagement vs. synchromesh is shown below: The synchromesh
transmission causes a noticeable halt in the vehicle acceleration that can be avoided by the faster
shifts with the dog engagement.
When the vehicle is moving in a particular gear, as it has already been described, the selected gear is
locked with the output or layshaft. When a gear change is required, the current gear is disengaged,
however the new desired gear is sliding on the shaft, and this gear and the engaged shaft need to be
accelerated or decelerated to the same speed as the output shaft. This is the role of the
synchromesh that acts somewhat like a clutch.
The synchromesh is formed of a number of key parts as shown below. Firstly, the gears are rigidly
attached to a ring of drive dogs and an external cone, these are usually one part. The mating external
cone is usually a separate part called a baulk ring and may typically be made of bronze. The baulk
ring is attached to the hub of the synchromesh and rotated with the hub and shaft. An outer sleeve
with mating dogs moves towards the gears, compressing the baulk rings and then engages with the
drive dogs.
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ME30217/ME50223
Manual Transmissions
Disengaged position
In the disengaged position, for example neutral
of an alternative gear selector, the hub of the
synchromesh is rotated with the shaft on which
it is mounted and the gears slide on this shaft at
different speeds depending on their relative
sizes.
Engaging
Engaged Position
As the sleeve moves further towards the gear dogs, it
engages fully with these due to the chamfers on the dog
teeth. This ensures the final stage of the gear engagement
and locks the gears together for power transmission
allowing for the clutch to be re-engaged.
Richard Burke
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Manual Transmissions
Some improvements to the synchromesh can be implemented to improve its performance and are
described below.
The cone surface can be threaded to allow for the removal of oil from between the two surfaces.
Special channels can also be manufactured to allow better oil flow. The surface is manufactured to
have a high coefficient of friction and surface treatments such as paper or metal spraying can be
used to enhance friction further or control wear.
The torque that is achieved from the cone surface is provided from the axial force provided by the
driver and dictates the time required to accelerate or decelerate the system before gear
engagement. It is therefore often desirable to increase this torque either to reduce the effort from
the driver or to reduce the synchronisation time and hence the shift time. This can also be achieved
by reducing the inertia of the clutch and shaft assemblies, but this will be limited by the power
transmission requirements of these components. To increase the synchronisation torques, a number
of routes are possible:
1. Increase the diameter of the synchroniser: This increases torque but is usually difficult due
to space constraints
2. Increase the lever ratio: This produces more shift force from a given driver effort, however it
will increase the travel distance of the lever
3. Change in lubrication oil: this can be impractical as single lubrication oil also lubricates gears
and transmission bearings
4. Increase friction of surface: increasing the cone friction is beneficial, but is usually a trade-off
with wear resistance
5. Use a twin or triple cone synchro: This increases the number of friction surfaces and is very
effective, however it does increase complexity and number of parts (and hence cost).
With manual transmission, if the effectiveness of the synchroniser is increased too greatly and it can
make shifting too easy which may result in inappropriate gear selection from the driver.
Richard Burke
20/37
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Vehicle Engineering
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ME30217/ME50223
Automatic Transmission
4 Automatic Transmission
4.1 Overview and types of transmissions
Automatic transmissions are transmission systems where the shifting of gears or the varying of gear
ratio is controlled by an automated process with no direct input from the driver. By removing the
need for the driver to change gears, the driving experience can be made more relaxing and cause
less fatigue, especially during city driving where gear changes occur frequently. By removing the
driver input, the gear shifting can be set by the vehicle manufacturer and used as a way of improving
fuel consumption and emissions by better matching the engine operating point to the vehicle
requirements. This may seem surprising as conventionally automated transmission were known for
poor fuel economy compared to manual. However, this was a result of the limited gear ratios in
older automatic transmissions which were limited to 3 or 4 ratios. However the latest gear boxes for
passenger cars have 8 or 9 gears- this number of gears would be difficult to implement in a manual
setup using a conventional shifting mechanism. Various types of automatic transmissions exist for
passenger vehicles and each will be discussed separately:
-
Conventional automatic
Automated manual transmission (AMT)
Dual Clutch transmission
Continuously variable transmission (CVT)
Renault Quickshift and Opel Easytronic are examples of automated manual transmissions
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Automatic Transmission
nd
2 clutch
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Automatic Transmission
The three shafts connected to the sun, carrier and annulus (ring) can all rotate at different rotational
speeds s, c and a. The ratio of speeds between the three axes is given by:
Where
Typically
The transmitted torques can be obtained by considering conservation of power and balancing of
torques on the device which if efficiency is assumed to be 100% is given by
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ME30217/ME50223
Automatic Transmission
Similar expressions can be derived by considering the cases where the sun or annulus is clamped to
the casing. For each of these cases, the torque relationship is given by:
If two of the rotating elements are clamped together, then the transmission behaves as a direct
drive. For example, if the sun is clamped to the planet carrier:
The input to output speed ratio is given by:
A variety of other ratios are available using different combinations of locking of the planetary gears.
The following table list 6 possibilities where one of the shafts is held stationary with respect to the
casing.
INPUT
OUTPUT
LOCKED
Sun
Carrier
Ring
Sun
Ring
Carrier
Carrier
Sun
Ring
Carrier
Ring
Sun
Ring
Carrier
Sun
Ring
Sun
Carrier
RATIO
TYPICAL RANGE
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Automatic Transmission
The automatic transmission also requires a flexible coupling between the transmission and engine to
allow modulation of engine speed as the clutches selecting the gear ratio are varied. Such device is
usually a torque convertor or a fluid flywheel which will be described later.
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Automatic Transmission
The area of operation of the traction CVT can be plotted on a curve similar to the stribek curve seen
in the tribology section of the course. With low contact pressures, the rotating discs are able to form
a relatively large film thickness that corresponds to hydrodynamic lubrication. Under this regime, the
parts are well lubricated, and the traction coefficient is low. The coefficient of traction is identical to
the coefficient of friction, that is:
That is to say in a CVT, that the coefficient of traction determines, for a given clamping force holding
the rotating members together, the maximum torque that can be transmitted. It is always possible
to transmit lower torques, however if it is
attempted to transmit a higher torque, the
transmission will slip causing unwanted
shearing of the traction fluid resulting in
heat losses.
As the fluid film is reduced by applying
further contact pressure, the coefficient of
traction begins to rise to allow the
transmission of power. It continues to rise
throughout the hydrodynamic regime. The
coefficient of traction can rise further in the
boundary lubrication regime; however
operation in this regime will result in
contact and wear between components.
In a belt drive CVT, the variation in transmission ratio is achieved by varying the diameters of the
pulleys as shown below. The V shaped pulleys can be pushed closer together or further apart to
change the size of the pulleys. As one increases in size, the other will reduce as the belt cannot be
stretched. In order to have the necessary strength to transmit the engine power, the belt is made
from steel consisting of flexible bands supporting trapezoidal plates.
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Automatic Transmission
Belt driven CVT varies the transmission ratio using varying diameter pulleys. The belt is made from steel as it
needs to be strong enough to transmit full engine power
Another category of CVTs are infinitely variable transmissions which allow the transmission to pass
through zero and to reverse the output speed. They are typically achieved by combining a CVT with
an epicyclic transmission and these transmissions allow for the vehicle clutch or torque convertor
required for vehicle launch to be omitted. It is in fact the clutch within the epicyclic gear that allows
for the pull away characteristic.
The major disadvantage for the CVT system is that is has lower efficiency than a manual
transmission. Crucially, the efficiency of the transmission typically varies with the gear ratio with a
maximum which can approach the efficiency of a manual transmission. This lower efficiency tends to
offset the gains in engine performance from the CVT.
There have been a number of CVT applications in vehicles. The most high profile perhaps being in
1993 Williams F1 tested a CVT system in their all-conquering 1992 car. This employed a belt drive
system and the key limit in development was building a belt strong enough to take the full engine
power. This could have changed the way the sport sounded with the cars continually operating at
Richard Burke
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Vehicle Engineering
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ME30217/ME50223
Differentials
high engine revs. However, the technology was banned before even getting to a race through two
rule regulations: The first imposing that cars have between 4 and 7 distinct ratios and subsequently
explicitly banning CVTs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3UpBKXMRto
The Williams belt driven CVT could
have revolutionised Formula One.
Rule changes meant it never saw
competitive racing.
Other areas receiving current interest include the application of CVT systems to auxiliary
components such as superchargers, water and oil pumps where the power transfer is not so great.
Also, CVT are being trialled in turbo compounding applications, where the CVT links a turbine in the
exhaust system to the output shaft in order to capture otherwise waste heat from the exhaust gases.
In this case, the lower efficiency of the device is less problematic than without this system, the
efficiency of exhaust heat recuperation would be 0%.
The VanDyne SuperTurbo
1. Exhaust Manifold
2. Turbine
3. High speed drive
4. Compressor
5. CVT
6. Engine connexion
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D
Mz4MATUJxE
5 Differentials
The differential is a key component that allows two wheels on the same axle to rotate at different
speeds whilst both being able to receive power from the engine. This is crucial to allow different
wheel speeds during cornering for the inner and outer wheels. Before differentials, a single wheel
would be connected to the drive shaft, otherwise one of the wheels would be forces to slip on the
road during cornering.
A typical differential is shown below. The differential incorporates the final drive ratio through the
relative sizes of the drive pinion and the ring gear (also called crown gear). The ring gear is rigidly
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2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
Differentials
connected to the housing, but free to rotate along the axles. The housing supports the differential
pinions which engage with the side gears. If the vehicle is moving straight with equal traction on
both wheels, then the pinions will not rotate about themselves but instead act as a rigid bevel gear
with both axles, rotating them at the same speed. If the vehicle encounters a corner, then the wheel
on the inside will slow down. This will cause the housing and ring gear to rotate about this axle. The
arrangement of the differential pinions will therefore accelerate the opposing axle which is driving
the wheel on the outside of the corner. The whole process is automatic requiring no external control
and this design is called an open differential.
Layout of an open differential. This allows wheels to rotate at different speed which is useful when cornering,
however if one wheel loses traction, the differential will promote wheel spin
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29/37
2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
Differentials
Limited slip differentials have a mechanism to induce friction between the two axles and the housing to
limit speed difference between axles and avoid wheel spin in low traction environments that is
encountered with open differentials
A special type of limited slip differential is the Torsen (TORque SENsing) differential. As with other
types of limited slip differentials, the limiting slip is provided by a frictional force between the axles
when rotating at different speeds. This device uses a series of helical gears that create axial loads on
the different shafts of the differential depending on the level of torque being transmitted through
the differential These axial loads tend to push the different shafts against each other or against the
supporting housings. The resulting frictional forces tend to limit the slip between the axis. The
limiting slip ratios can be defined by the friction characteristics of the different surfaces and the
shapes of the helical gears (that affect the magnitude of the axial forces). There are four major
sources of friction as shown below:
1. Between Worm gear and worm wheel teeth
2. Between Worm Wheel face and differential housing (Between axle and diff housing)
3. Between Worm wheel face and worm wheel face (directly between axles)
4. Between the spur gears on the layshafts and the differential housing.
Worm wheels cause
faces of spur gears to be
pushed against
differential housing
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30/37
2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
Clutches and Torque convertors
An alternative way to achieve a similar effect to a limited slip differential is to use the vehicle braking
system to independently brake one of the wheels. Although this is less complex from a differential
perspective, it does result in brake wear.
Finally, for off road vehicles which encounter low traction environments more often, fully locking
differentials can be implemented. These mechanisms effectively stop the differential from behaving
like a differential by linking the motion of the two shafts. Some systems may need to be manually
engaged by the driver whereas other system may use electronic or mechanical control systems to
engage the locking automatically if excessive slip is detected between the two axles.
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2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
Clutches and Torque convertors
Clutches can be either wet or dry. Dry clutches offer better friction because the oil used in wet
clutches reduces the coefficient of friction. However, this oil also reduces the wear of the clutch
during slipping and offers liquid cooling of the clutch. Wet clutches are more controllable than dry
clutches, meaning they are often used in automated transmissions.
The torque capacity of a clutch can be calculated if
the friction coefficient, clamping load and
dimensions are known.
When designing a clutch, clearly it needs to be able to transmit the maximum torque of the engine
without slipping. If a clutch was designed to exactly meet the maximum engine torque, it would be
said to have a cover factor of 1. However, in practice engine torque fluctuates as individual cylinders
fire and the instantaneous peak torque is somewhat larger than the average peak torque over a
number of firing cycles. The problem is accentuated at lower engine speeds where more time occurs
between firing. Typically a cover factor of 2 is sensible.
To influence the torque capacity of a clutch, the designer can:
-
Vary the number of plates: in practice, increasing the number of plates can have an adverse
effect on the clamping force because of wedging and friction between them and their
holders. Therefore clutches with more than 6 plates (N=12) are uncommon.
Increase clamping load: In a dry clutch this is a spring load that must be overcome by the
driver when depressing the clutch pedal. In a wet clutch this is often provided by a hydraulic
piston and is therefore related to the area of the piston and the supplied pressure. Although
there a less limits on the pressure, the friction material will have a limit not to be exceeded.
Choice of friction material: This is highly specialised and the subject of much research.
Sintered metals offer food heat and wear resistance and can withstand high clamping loads.
Other materials are used that combine different fibres and fillers that can produce higher
friction coefficients, better static to dynamic friction ratio and help reduce clutch judder.
During clutch engagement, heat will be generated owing to the friction whilst slipping occurs. The
heat is generated by the transfer or torque between the slipping plates of the clutch. This can be
calculated by calculating the friction work done on the clutch plates during engagement. In dry
clutches, conduction to the casing and ultimately external convection is the cooling route. If
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32/37
2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
Clutches and Torque convertors
excessive temperature levels are reached in the clutch (high heat generation and low external
cooling), then the friction material can degrade and the pressure plate can warp. In wet clutches the
oil is a considerable cooling route.
The total heat generated during a slipping manoeuvre will depend on the shift time. The shift time is
typically a target time for a given manoeuvre and determines the acceleration required through the
gearbox. If the input to the gearbox is spinning at a constant speed
and the driven side is
initially spinning at a different speed
, then to achieve a shift time
, the output must be
accelerated at a rate given by:
If the shaft to be accelerated has an inertia I, then the required acceleration torque will be given by:
The total torque to be transmitted through the clutch during the engagement must also include any
loading on the shaft due to friction in the engine or due to tractive force on the vehicle.
EXAMPLE
During a downshift, the engine is to be accelerated from 2000rpm to 2500rpm in a shift time of 0.3s.
The engine has a total inertia of 0.4kgm2 and a friction torque at these speeds of 30Nm.
In this case, the acceleration torque is to be transmitted from the wheels, driveline and gearbox to
the engine and its flywheel. The acceleration torque is given by
Hence
Now, during a vehicle pullaway, the gearbox input is to be accelerated by the engine from rest to
1000rpm in 2s. The driveline has an equivalent inertia at the flywheel of 0.5kgm2 and a torque of
3Nm is required to overcome rolling resistance.
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2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
Clutches and Torque convertors
The heat generated in the clutch during the manoeuvre is simply equated to the friction work on the
clutch during the manoeuvre
With
Assuming as with the case above that the acceleration torque is constant, then the actual speed over
an engagement manoeuvre is given as a function of time t by:
And assuming that all torques are constant with respect to time
(
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34/37
2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
Clutches and Torque convertors
EXAMPLE
Calculate the heat generated during the downshift event described above.
(
During this manoeuvre, around 3kJ of heat is generated in the clutch which must be dissipated by
the respective cooling mechanism. Increasing the duration of the engagement has only a small effect
on the overall heat loss due to prolonged exposure of the clutch to the rolling resistance torque. This
is because the longer engagement time is accompanied with a lower acceleration torque. However,
prolonged engagement times usually occur when trying to make a smoother engagements and this
will also require a higher synchronisation speed. In this case the acceleration torque will remain of
similar magnitude but over a longer engagement time. With an engagement speed of 2400rpm and
an engagement time of 6s the heat generated would become 15.2kJ. During gear shifting, the
difference between initial and sync speed is much smaller than at pullaway, resulting in much lower
heat generation.
A key component that works in tandem with the
clutch to damp out vibrations for the engine
powertrain are dual mass flywheels. As the name
suggests, these are composed of two masses,
linked by a spring damper system. The output
from the engine is linked to one mass whilst the
other forms part of the clutch and is ultimately
linked to the input to the gearbox. The aim of the
device is to produce a much damped torque to
the gearbox and in achieved by carefully setting
the two masses, spring stiffness and damping
rate. These devices can be very effective and the
benefits include a smoother torque delivery
which improved comfort but also durability of the
gearbox
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35/37
2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
Clutches and Torque convertors
Engine cyclis operation causes significant torque variations at the crankshaft. Without a Dual
mass flywheel these are transmitted to the gear box and can cause discomfot and damage. Using
a Dual mass flywheel reduces these pulsations
Torque convertors have a peak efficiency of around 85% and therefore cause losses during cruising.
To avoid these losses, an additional locking clutch can be included which engages for the final 15% or
slippage and ensures a 100%, no-slip 1:1 transmission between input and output shafts.
Richard Burke
36/37
2014
Vehicle Engineering
Gears, Clutches and Transmissions
ME30217/ME50223
Further Reading
Layout of a torque convertor with lockup clutch and powerflows in turbine mode and
lockup mode
7 Further Reading
Advanced Vehicle Technology, H. Heisler, ISBN 075651318, Lib loc: 629.2.HEI
8 Recommended videos
Manual Transmissions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOo3TLgL0kM
Differentails: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIGvhvOhLHU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4JhruinbWc (a little old)
Torsen Diff: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9iPqIQ_8iM
Automatic Transmission: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ByVBBfEXWk
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2014