All of the transmissions available for sale today is continuing to grow exponentially in the last 15 years, all while increasing in complexity. The result can be that we are now dealing with a varied quantity of tranny types including manual, conventional automatic, automated manual, dual clutch, consistently adjustable, split power and real EV.
Until extremely recently, automotive vehicle producers largely had two types of transmission to pick from: planetary Driveline gearboxes automatic with torque converter or conventional manual. Today, nevertheless, the volume of choices available demonstrates the adjustments seen across the industry.
That is also illustrated by the many various kinds of vehicles now being produced for the marketplace. And not just conventional vehicles, but also all electrical and hybrid automobiles, with each type needing different driveline architectures.
The traditional development process involved designing a transmission in isolation from the engine and all of those other powertrain and vehicle. However, this is changing, with the limitations and complications of this method becoming more more popular, and the constant drive among manufacturers and designers to deliver optimal efficiency at reduced weight and cost.
New powertrains feature close integration of elements like the prime mover, recovery systems and the gearbox, and also rely on highly sophisticated control systems. This is to make certain that the best amount of efficiency and functionality is delivered at all times. Manufacturers are under increased pressure to create powertrains that are completely new, different from and much better than the last version-a proposition that’s made more technical by the necessity to integrate brand components, differentiate within the marketplace and do everything on a shorter timescale. Engineering teams are on deadline, and the advancement process needs to be more efficient and fast-paced than ever before.
Until now, the use of computer-aided engineering (CAE) has been the most typical way to build up drivelines. This technique involves components and subsystems designed in isolation by silos within the organization that lean toward confirmed component-level analysis equipment. While they are highly advanced equipment that enable users to extract extremely dependable and accurate data, they remain presenting data that is collected without thought of the complete system.
While this may produce components that all work very well individually, putting them jointly without prior factor of the entire system can create designs that don’t work, resulting in issues in the driveline that are difficult and expensive to improve.