This paper describes the design of a single-speed gearbox for an electric vehicle with a dual motor drive system. The gearbox components include gears, bearings, and a differential sourced from the MQ200 gearbox used in Skoda vehicles, along with a custom-designed housing and shafts. Finite element analysis was conducted on the housing design to evaluate stresses and stiffness. Modifications including ribs were added to the lid to increase its rigidity without excessive stress increases. The designed gearbox aims to improve performance of electric vehicles using a dual motor configuration.
This paper describes the design of a single-speed gearbox for an electric vehicle with a dual motor drive system. The gearbox components include gears, bearings, and a differential sourced from the MQ200 gearbox used in Skoda vehicles, along with a custom-designed housing and shafts. Finite element analysis was conducted on the housing design to evaluate stresses and stiffness. Modifications including ribs were added to the lid to increase its rigidity without excessive stress increases. The designed gearbox aims to improve performance of electric vehicles using a dual motor configuration.
This paper describes the design of a single-speed gearbox for an electric vehicle with a dual motor drive system. The gearbox components include gears, bearings, and a differential sourced from the MQ200 gearbox used in Skoda vehicles, along with a custom-designed housing and shafts. Finite element analysis was conducted on the housing design to evaluate stresses and stiffness. Modifications including ribs were added to the lid to increase its rigidity without excessive stress increases. The designed gearbox aims to improve performance of electric vehicles using a dual motor configuration.
This paper describes the design of a single-speed gearbox for an electric vehicle with a dual motor drive system. The gearbox components include gears, bearings, and a differential sourced from the MQ200 gearbox used in Skoda vehicles, along with a custom-designed housing and shafts. Finite element analysis was conducted on the housing design to evaluate stresses and stiffness. Modifications including ribs were added to the lid to increase its rigidity without excessive stress increases. The designed gearbox aims to improve performance of electric vehicles using a dual motor configuration.
Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Mechanics and Materials in Design
Albufeira/Portugal 11-15 June 2017. Editors J.F. Silva Gomes and S.A. Meguid. Publ. INEGI/FEUP (2017)
PAPER REF: 6969
GEARBOX DESIGN FOR A DUAL MOTOR DRIVE SYSTEM
Josef Břoušek(*), Robert Voženílek Technical University of Liberec, Liberec, Czech Republic (*) Email: josef.brousek@tul.cz
ABSTRACT This paper describes a design of a gearbox for an electric vehicle category BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle). The gearbox is designed for an installation in the arrangement of an electric powertrain called Dual Motor Drive System (DMDS). This type of an electric powertrain consists of two electric motors and one single-speed transmission. The work describes the construction design of the gearbox and it also includes stress analysis of designed gearbox housing using finite element method.
Keywords: gearbox, transmission, electric vehicle, dual motor drive system.
INTRODUCTION
The development of gearboxes for common passenger vehicles is influenced mainly by the development of engines which are used in passenger vehicles. The development process of gearboxes for vehicles with internal combustion engines are currently described and discussed at a very high level. Many different designs of gearboxes are verified by drivers directly in the traffic on the roads across the world. End users can also choose from variety of types gearboxes. Compared to vehicles with internal combustion engines, vehicles that use electric powertrain are getting into serial production of automobile manufacturers in the last few years. Sales of electric vehicles are rising in some countries and electric vehicles are becoming more common. This trend gives the space for a new development of gearboxes for electric vehicles.
Most of electric vehicle manufacturers are using, in most cases, single-speed gearbox with constant gear ratio, which consists of two gear sets and mechanical differential. Vehicles equipped with these gearboxes are achieving similar driving parameters in real traffic as conventional vehicles with internal combustion engines. Certain restriction is less drive range per one charge compared to the drive range with a combustion engine per one tank of fuel. The following battery recharge takes much longer than filling up a tank of fuel for internal combustion engines.
The above mentioned information opens up space for the development of the entire electric powertrain, which would give electric vehicles better parameters in drive range and vehicle dynamics for a safe and comfort driving in today's traffic. At the Technical University of Liberec is the current development focused to an electric powertrain Dual Motor Drive System (DMDS). DMDS consists of two electric motors and one single-speed transmission with a mechanical differential. The design of a gearbox for this type of electric powertrain is the subject of this article.
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PURPOSE OF THE DESIGN PROCESS
The main purpose of the design was to create the prototype of a single-speed gearbox for powertrain arrangement DMDS for vehicle category BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle). The main reasons for using a single-speed transmission were properties of used electric motors, simplicity of design and achieved lower weight compared to other transmission design solutions. Design had to be created with regard to real making of the prototype. It was necessary to consider primarily making possibilities at the Technical University of Liberec during the design process. For this reason was necessary to take into account the cost and availability of technologies for all components. The total making costs were reduced by using some components which are available in common vehicle gearboxes in vehicles with combustion engines. During the design process of the prototype were assessed and then selected such components which met the requirements of the designed transmission. Components designed to make were used in cases in which were not found a solution using available parts or in cases in which newly made component brought much better properties.
COMPONENTS ARRANGEMENT The overall transmission ratio was determined with regard to considered electric motors parameters and requirements for the operation of vehicle on regular roads. Vehicle with this powertrain should be able to reach sufficient speed to allow comfortable travel on highways. As it was mentioned previously to reduce making costs of gearbox were assessed components in mass-produced transmissions used in vehicles Skoda Auto a.s.. Suitable components were found in the gearbox MQ200 Skoda 02T. This gearbox is mounted for example in Skoda Fabia. Max. input torque is 200 Nm. For the purposes of the design was selected fourth gear. The overall transmission ratio of fourth gear with the final drive is 4.027.
Fig. 1 - Components arrangement of designed DMDS powertrain
Each of the motor is placed at one side of the gearbox and the torque of both motors is brought to the first shaft of the gearbox. First gear set and the final drive with differential are all used from the fourth gear of the gearbox MQ200 Skoda 02T. The differential is used with flanged shafts. This solution allows to connect transverse shafts from Skoda vehicles. Motors are placed behind the front axle of the vehicle.
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DESIGN DESCRIPTION As it was mentioned previously all gear sets comes from the gearbox MQ200. All bearings are also used from this gearbox. Namely the whole module set of two ball bearings in a metal case, two roller bearings and tapered roller bearings on the differential. Due to the original position of the fourth gear next to the final drive was possible to use the second shaft of the gearbox MQ200. The second shaft was adapted for design purposes before heat treatment. The first shaft of designed gearbox was designed to manufacture. A part of the shaft is a wheel of parking pawl. The gear number 11 is pressed on the shaft. For the purpose of connecting two electric motors are on both sides of the shaft designed machine keys.
Fig. 2 - Section of designed gearbox
Internal components are placed in the gearbox housing. The material of the housing is aluminium alloy EN AW 7021 [AlZn5,5Mg1,5]. The main advantages of this material were extremely low internal stress, very good dimensional stability, high strenght and very good machinability. Shapes of the housing are designed for making by CNC milling machine. The housing was designed with regard to low weight and appropriate rigidity. The minimum wall thickness is 5 mm and in areas of connection of the lid with the housing is edge thickness 8 mm.
Fig. 3 - Gearbox housing and lid
Electric motors are mounted to the housing by cylindrical flanges. These flanges allows to mount electric motors with standardized flange NEMA C-face. This solution allows installation of e.g. PMSM motors Motenergy or ACIM motors from HPEVS. In case of request for installation another motor there is a possibility to design new flanges and the rest of gearbox could be used as it is to all the other motors.
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Fig. 4 - Designed DMDS powertrain
Considered electric motors do not make almost any braking effect during inactivity as conventional internal combustion engines. To secure the vehicle during parking is the gearbox equipped by the parking pawl mechanism. This mechanism originally comes from dual clutch automatic gearbox Skoda DSG.
Fig. 5 - Parking pawl mechanism and mechanism in gearbox housing
STRESS ANALYSIS OF GEARBOX HOUSING
Designed gearbox housing was subjected to finite element method analysis which examined the safety and rigidity of the design. It was analysed the housing with cylindrical flanges. Static stress analysis was made in an environment of PTC Creo Simulate software integrated into PTC Creo 2.0. The load was considered for direction forward and reverse with an input torque of 200 Nm. The load of housing was placed on surfaces for bearings. Values were determined from reaction forces in places for bearings on each shaft. Further loads were gravitational force, bending moment from each motor and reaction torque with a value of 100 Nm from each motor. Boundary conditions were placed to areas designed for mounting the gearbox into a vehicle. In these areas was blocked movement in all three axes. For the analysis were used tetra 3D volume elements with a maximum length of the element 10 mm. The total number of elements of the model was 79 781. For the analysis was used a material AL 6061 from a material library of PTC Creo. A yield point is 290 MPa and a tensile strength is 320 MPa. During analysis of first design was found insufficient stiffness of the lid (Fig.6). Then the lid was modified by adding ribs into areas for bearing of differential and bearing of input shaft.
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By this modification was reached significant increase in stiffness of the lid without an excessive increase in stress (Fig.7).
Fig. 6 - Displacement results for the lid without ribs
Fig. 7 - Displacement results for the lid with ribs and Stress von Mises for the lid with ribs
Fig. 8 - Displacement results for the housing and Stress von Mises for the housing
The resulting values of Stress von Mises on all parts of the housing are relatively low compared to the yield strength of the material. Stress analysis confirmed the sufficient strength of designed gearbox housing.
CONCLUSION The result of the proposal is a design of a single-speed gearbox for DMDS, which allows the connection of any two electric motors with a standardized flange NEMA C-face with the limitations of the maximum input torque 200 Nm and the maximum input speed 7000 rpm. At the Technical University of Liberec is currently one prototype of this gearbox made and assembled (Fig.9). The prototype is now installed in the experimental vehicle called TUL eSus and it is used for testing and verification expected parameters of DMDS in the laboratory of vehicles and engines on the roller test bench (Fig.10).
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Fig. 9 - Gearbox prototype
Fig. 10 - Experimental vehicle TUL eSus on the roller test bench
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This publication was written at the Technical University of Liberec as part of the project 21127 with the support of the Specific University Research Grant, as provided by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic in the year 2017.
REFERENCES [1]-Tang Y. Dual Motor Drive and Control System for an Electric Vehicle. U.S. Patent 8 453 770 B2, Jun. 4, 2013 [2]-Ehsani M., Gao Y., Gay S.E., Emadi A. Modern Electric, Hybrid Electric, and Fuel Cell Vehicles: Fundamentals, Theory, and Design. CRC Press, 2010, pp. 105-108 [3]-Ren Q., Crolla D.A., Morris A. Effect of Transmission Design on Electric Vehicle (EV) Performance. In: IEEE Vehicle Power and Propulsion Conference, 2009.
