Range-change transmission with an electric engine

• US 8,961,345 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2013
• Issued: 02/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/09/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ZF Friedrichshafen AG (Zeppelin - Stiftung der Stadt Friedrichshafen)
• Original Assignee: ZF Friedrichshafen AG (Zeppelin - Stiftung der Stadt Friedrichshafen)
• Inventors: Kaltenbach, Johannes, Mittelberger, Christian
• Primary Examiner(s): Wright, Dirk
• Application Number:
  US14/037,646
• Publication Number:
  US 20140100072A1
• Time in Patent Office: 516 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 475/5
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 2003/0931 each countershaft having an output gear meshing with a single common gear on the output shaft
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 2200/0078 the gear ratio comprising twelve or more forward speeds
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 2200/0091 the gear ratios comprising three reverse speeds
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 3/126 using an electric drive
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 3/62 Gearings having three or more central gears F16H3/68 - F16H3/78 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 37/042 change gear transmissions in group arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: F16H 37/046 with an additional planetary gear train, e.g. creep gear, overdrive

Abstract

A group transmission device with an electric machine, a main transmission of a countershaft design, a splitter group of a countershaft design which is connected upstream of the main transmission and a range group connected downstream of the main transmission. In the area of the main transmission, the splitter group, and the range group, a gear ratio is variable by gear steps that can be engaged in, or disengaged from, the force flow by interlocking shifting elements. At least during a gearshift, torque of the electric machine can be introduced into the force flow in the area of the splitter group. The splitter group has at least three gear steps that can be engaged or disengaged, the main transmission has at least two gear steps that can be engaged or disengaged, and the range group has at least two gear steps that can be engaged and disengaged.

Claims

1. A group transmission device (3) comprising:

an electric machine (41),

a main transmission (8) of a countershaft design,

a splitter group (7) of countershaft design connected upstream of the main transmission (8), and

a range group (9) connected downstream of the main transmission (8),

in an area of the main transmission (8), the splitter group (7), and the range group (9), a gear ratio is variable by gear steps (KV1 to KV3, HV1, HV2, HVR) that are either engaged in, or disengaged from, by interlocking shifting elements (A to H) in a force flow of the group transmission device (3),

at least during a gearshift, torque from the electric machine (41) being transmittable in the area of the splitter group (7) into the force flow,

the splitter group (7) having at least three gear steps (KV1 to KV3) that are engagable or disengagable,

the main transmission (8) having at least two gear steps (HV1, HV2) that are engagable or disengagable, and

the range group (9) having at least two gear steps that are engagable or disengagable.

2. The group transmission device according to claim 1, further comprising a planetary gearset (37) which, in an area of a first shaft (38), is either connected to either an input shaft of the splitter group (7) or a transmission input shaft (6) or is functionally connected therewith by a first splitter shifting element (I), and which, in an area of a second shaft (43), is either coupled with a gear step (KV2) of the splitter group (7) to an output shaft (11) of the splitter group (7) and thus to an input shaft of the main transmission (8), or which is connectable thereto by the first splitter shifting element (I), and which, in an area of a third shaft (39), is either connected to the electric machine (41) or is functionally connected thereto by one of the first and another splitter shifting element (I;

J).

3. The group transmission device according to claim 2, wherein the first shaft (38) is functionally connectable, via the another splitter shifting element (J), with either the electric machine (41) or a component (46) fixed to a housing.

4. The group transmission device according to claim 2, wherein the second shaft (43) is either coupled to a loose wheel (11) of the gear step (KV2) of the splitter group (7) that is mounted to rotate on the transmission input shaft (6) and connectable, in a rotationally fixed manner, to the transmission input shaft (6) by a further shifting element (C) or connectable, by the first shifting element (I), to the loose wheel (11), which meshes with at least one gearwheel (16, 21) of at least one countershaft (20, 25) and is connected with the main transmission (8) by the countershaft (20, 25).

5. The group transmission device according to claim 4, wherein the further shifting element (C) is arranged between the planetary gearset (37) and the gear step (KV2) of the splitter group (7) that is either connected or connectable to the second shaft (43).

6. The group transmission device according to claim 4, wherein the further shifting element (C) is arranged on a side of the gear step (KV2) of the splitter group (7) that is either connected or connectable to the second shaft (43), which faces away from the planetary gearset (37).

7. The group transmission device according to claim 4, wherein the further shifting element (C) is either an interlocking shifting element or a friction shifting element.

8. The group transmission device according to claim 2, wherein the second shaft (43) is couplable, via another splitter shifting element (J), to either a component (46) fixed to a housing or the electric machine (41).

9. The group transmission device according to claim 2, wherein the third shaft (39) is connectable, via another splitter shifting element (J), to either the first shaft (38) or the second shaft (43) of the planetary gearset (37).

10. The group transmission device according to claim 2, wherein the third shaft (39) is connectable to a component (45) fixed to a housing by an additional shifting element (44), which is a friction shifting element.

11. The group transmission device according to claim 2, wherein the first shaft (38) of the planetary gearset (37) is a ring gear, the second shaft (43) of the planetary gearset (37) is a planetary carrier and the third shaft (39) of the planetary gearset (37) is a sun gear.

12. The group transmission device according to claim 2, wherein the transmission input shaft (6) is connectable to a drive engine (2) of a vehicle drive-train (1) either via a friction clutch (5) or directly.

13. A group transmission (3) comprising:

a splitter group having at least three gear steps that are connectable, via a transmission input shaft, to a drive engine to supply torque to the group transmission;

a main transmission group having at least two gear steps that are connectable downstream of the splitter group, and the splitter group and the main transmission group having at least one common countershaft;

a range group having at least two gear steps that are connectable downstream of the main transmission group;

a plurality of interlocking shifting elements that are actuatable to individually engage or disengage combinations of the at least three gear steps of the splitter group, the at least two gear steps of the main transmission group, and the at least two gear steps of the range group so as to selectively implement different gear ratios of the group transmission along a power flow thereof;

an electric machine that is engagable to input torque in the power flow;

a planetary gear set arranged upstream of the splitter group, the planetary gear set comprising a ring gear continuously connected to a first shaft, a planetary carrier continuously connected to a second shaft, and a sun gear continuously connected to a third shaft;

the first shaft is either continuously connected to the transmission input shaft or is connectable, via one of the plurality of interlocking shifting elements, to the transmission input shaft,

the second shaft is either continuously connected to an output shaft of the splitter group and an input shaft of the main transmission group or is connectable, via another one of the plurality of interlocking shifting elements, to the output shaft of the splitter group and the input shaft of the main transmission group, and

the third shaft is either continuously connected to the electric machine or is connectable, via further one of the plurality of interlocking shifting elements, to the electric machine.