Patent Application
20180058570
The present disclosure relates to a lubricating system and particularly, but not exclusively, to a lubricating system for a transmission component of a vehicle such as a land vehicle. Aspects of the invention relate to a lubricating system for a transmission component of a vehicle, a vehicle, and a method of lubricating a transmission component of a vehicle.
A vehicle, such as a car or the like, includes various rotating components. Typical rotating components include those forming a transmission and driveline system of the vehicle including a gear box and a final drive gear. Such transmission and driveline systems are referred to hereinafter as transmission systems. Such components require lubrication to reduce wear and reduce temperature in-use.
Vehicles typically employ a lubricating system for lubricating the transmission components. Known lubricating systems come in two general configurations; firstly a wet sump configuration or, secondly, a dry sump configuration.
Wet sump lubricating systems include a lubricant sump beneath a main rotating component, such as a ring gear of a final drive unit. The ring gear churns the lubricant in which it is immersed and transfers the lubricant to, for example, a pinion bearing. However, such wet sump configurations are fraught with inefficiencies. One inefficiency relates to churn loss as the ring gear rotates through the lubricant causing drag on the ring gear. In addition, especially at cold temperatures when the lubricant is highly viscous, the lubricant exiting the bearings is slowed down resulting in the bearings becoming flooded, which causes increased shearing forces across the lubricant. An effect known as bearing spin loss occurs in normal use. However, when the bearings become flooded, bearing spin loss increases.
Gear and bearing churning loss accounts for around 72% of the total final drive unit losses.
Attempts have been made to reduce these losses, for example by employing a dry sump configuration having a remote reservoir and a pump to pump lubricant from the reservoir, via a supply path, to the transmission component. In one such known dry sump lubricating system, a mechanical pump is incorporated which can be coupled and decoupled to pump a speed dependent flow rate of lubricant to the transmission component. Such a system aids with reducing gear churn losses but does little to improve bearing spin loss.
It is an object of the present invention to address disadvantages associated with the prior art.
Aspects and embodiments of the invention provide a lubricating system for a vehicle transmission component, a vehicle, and a method of lubricating a transmission component as claimed in the appended claims.
According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided a lubricating system for a vehicle transmission component. The system may comprise a lubricating circuit for supplying lubricant to the transmission component. The circuit may include a separate reservoir. The circuit may include a supply line for supplying lubricant from the reservoir to the transmission component. The circuit may include a return path for returning lubricant from the transmission component to the reservoir. The system may comprise an electrical pump for pumping lubricant from the reservoir to the transmission component. The system may comprise a controller arranged to monitor a driving condition of the vehicle, the driving condition comprising a fuel cut signal, and the controller being arranged to configure the electrical pump to pump a predetermined flow rate of lubricant to the transmission component based on the current driving condition.
By ‘separate’ is meant that the reservoir may be separated from the dry sump base by a baffle and thus not remote from the final drive housing (i.e. the reservoir may be formed integrally with the final drive housing).
The electrical pump allows for flow rate to be more controllable than employing a mechanical pump. By “current driving condition” is meant the driving condition at the time of pumping the lubricant. In addition, basing the lubricant flow rate on the current driving condition allows for the flow rate to be optimized accordingly in order to maximize efficiencies, reduce energy losses, and provide sufficient lubrication to protect components.
By ‘fuel cut’ is meant a situation in which a vehicle has momentum, but engine fuel demand request is zero and that the engine is still coupled to the wheels. Note that this is different to a stop/start system, where a vehicle has zero momentum as it is at rest.
The driving condition may comprise one or more of lubricant temperature, speed, torque, and vehicle inclination.
Considering lubricant temperature as the driving condition, at higher temperatures lubricant viscosity decreases which decreases lubricant film thickness and thereby increases friction. Higher friction means more heat generation at the friction surfaces, requiring a higher lubricant flow for greater cooling to avoid localised over-heating.
Considering torque as the driving condition, at higher torque more power loss results which increases heat generation, therefore more lubricant flow is required for greater cooling to avoid localised over-heating.
Considering speed as the driving condition, at low speeds lubricant film thickness decreases and thereby increases friction. Higher friction means more heat generation at the gear and bearing contacts, requiring a higher lubricant flow for greater cooling to avoid localised over-heating. At moderate speeds the converse is true and lubricant flow rate can be reduced. At higher speeds, lubricant is flung off rotating components and a higher flow rate may be required to prevent lubricant starvation. The trajectory of lubricant delivered by the lubricating system will vary with vehicle inclination. The flow rate will therefore need to be adjusted with inclination to ensure optimal supply to the target components. If lubrication demand is at very low rate or zero based on other parameters, then an enhanced rate of lubrication will be provided using an algorithm based on time, revolutions or energy to prevent starvation occurring. This enhanced rate may be supplied intermittently in bursts.
During fuel cut, lubricant warm-up may be required at low temperatures. Once the lubricant has reached or exceeded a desired operating temperature, warm-up operation will no longer be required. This is a motivation for using lubricant temperature as the driving condition in warm-up conditions (particularly during fuel cut). In addition, axle torque will be negative if the vehicle is in an over-run state. This is a motivation for using torque as the driving condition in warm-up operation (particularly during fuel cut). Finally, monitoring axle speed will determine if the axle is at very low speed or stationary, thus any warming effect will be minimal and the lubricant supply can be reduced. This is a motivation for using speed as the driving condition in warm-up operation (particularly during fuel cut).
The driving condition may comprise one or more off-road conditions, which off-road conditions may include grade detection, side slope, longitudinal acceleration, and lateral acceleration.
The lubricating circuit may be a dry-sump configuration. Said dry-sump configuration may improve efficiency by reduction of gear churning losses.
The transmission component may comprise a final drive gear.
The supply line may be arranged to direct lubricant to a pinion bearing, a differential case bearing, or a pinion/ring gear mesh point of the final drive gear. These points are all associated with high energy losses since there is frictional contact between mutually moving parts. In particular, pinion bearings are associated with very high energy losses when not targeted. Targeting the pinion bearings reduces bearing spin loss and dramatically reduces the associated energy losses of the transmission system.
The controller may be arranged to detect the actual flow-rate of lubricant through the supply line and may emit a warning if the actual flow rate falls below an acceptable actual flow rate of lubricant. Such a warning can serve to warn the driver that there are irregularities within the transmission system, or lubricating system such as clogging of a filter. In addition, the warning may serve to restrict vehicle performance so as to prevent lubricant starvation, for instance in the cases of maximum power or maximum speed.
The lubricating system may comprise a contaminant determining means for determining a level of contaminant within the lubricant, and wherein the controller may be arranged to emit a warning when a level of contaminant exceeds an acceptable threshold level. Such a warning can prompt a vehicle owner to change the lubricant.
The or each warning may be directed to a human machine interface within a vehicle cabin. Such an arrangement is more easily visible to a driver of the vehicle meaning that the warning will be detected quicker and likely to be addressed in a more timely fashion.
According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a vehicle comprising the aforementioned lubricating system.
According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a method of lubricating a transmission component of a vehicle. The method may comprise monitoring a driving condition of the vehicle (10), the driving condition comprising a fuel cut signal. The method may comprise determining a flow rate of lubricant to be pumped from a lubricant reservoir to a transmission component based on the current driving condition. The method may comprise using a controller, controlling an electrical pump to pump the determined flow rate of lubricant from the reservoir, through a supply line to the transmission component.
The driving condition may comprise one or more of lubricant temperature, vehicle speed, torque, and vehicle inclination.
The driving condition may comprise one or more off-road conditions, which off-road conditions include grade detection, side slope, longitudinal acceleration, and lateral acceleration.
The method may comprise configuring the electrical pump to base the flow rate of lubricant on torque when the lubricant is below a predetermined temperature, or alternatively at any suitable lubricant temperature. For instance, towing a high load from rest would result in high torque, which would require a higher than usual flow rate of lubricant to compensate.
The method may comprise providing increased power to the electrical pump to direct a relatively high flow rate of lubricant to the transmission component when the lubricant is below a predetermined temperature. Cold lubricant is highly viscous. Accordingly, it may be necessary to pump a higher than ordinary pumping power since the high viscosity of lubricant may mean that insufficient lubricant is actually pumped. For instance, a positive displacement pump pumps a constant volume of lubricant. However, when the temperature is cold, viscosity increases which results in the pump rotating less quickly than desired. Accordingly, the target location for lubricating is under lubricated.
The predetermined temperature may be about 40° C. Viscosity of a lubricant is highest within this temperature range.
The driving condition may comprise engine over-run and/or braking and wherein the method may comprise configuring the electrical pump to direct a relatively high flow rate of lubricant to the transmission component when the current driving condition is engine over-run and/or braking. Over-run and engine braking are both associated with the vehicle running faster than desired so increasing the flow rate in these situations will warm up the lubricant at a time when energy losses within the transmission and/or driveline system are not important since the vehicle is decelerating anyway. In addition, in these cases, fuel is not supplied to the engine. Accordingly, energy used to power the electrical pump is not being taken from the engine fuel but likely from recovered energy from braking or a generator.
The relatively high flow rate of lubricant may be the maximum flow rate of lubricant deliverable by the electric pump. Accordingly, a large amount of heat generation can occur in these aforementioned conditions, which heat generation can transfer to the lubricant.
The transmission component may comprise a final drive gear and wherein the method may comprise directing the lubricant through the supply line to a pinion bearing, a differential case bearing, or a pinion/ring gear mesh point of the final drive gear.
The method may comprise detecting or calculating the actual flow rate of lubricant and may comprise emitting a warning when the actual flow rate of lubricant falls below an acceptable actual flow rate of lubricant.
The method may comprise detecting a level of contaminant within the lubricant and may comprise emitting a warning when the level of contaminant exceeds an acceptable threshold level.
The or each warning may be directed to a human machine interface within a vehicle cabin or may be available to be processed by a service diagnostic tool.
Within the scope of this application it is expressly intended that the various aspects, embodiments, examples and alternatives set out in the preceding paragraphs, in the claims and/or in the following description and drawings, and in particular the individual features thereof, may be taken independently or in any combination. That is, all embodiments and/or features of any embodiment can be combined in any way and/or combination, unless such features are incompatible. The applicant reserves the right to change any originally filed claim or file any new claim accordingly, including the right to amend any originally filed claim to depend from and/or incorporate any feature of any other claim although not originally claimed in that manner.
One or more embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
With reference to
The transmission system 16 includes various transmission components including a gear box 20, a transfer drive unit 22, fore and aft drive shafts 24, fore and aft final drive units 26, or colloquially, differentials, and front and rear side shafts 28. The fore and aft ends of the drive shaft 24 are connected to front and rear final drive units 26. The differentials 26 are connected to front and rear side shafts 28 which in turn are connected to near side and off side wheels 18. The differentials 26 are used to distribute power between the near-side and off-side wheels 18 during a turn, or in some cases where traction is limited on an individual wheel relative to the other. It will be appreciated that where the term differential is colloquially used, the final drive unit may not contain differential gearing but may comprise clutches to apportion torque during cornering. In such a final drive unit, the bearings supporting the final drive gear are herein referred to as differential case bearings for simplicity of description.
With reference to
With continued reference to
The lubricating system 42 also includes an electrical pump 52 for pumping lubricant from the reservoir 46 to the final drive unit 26 via the supply line 48. The supply line 48 has several branches 54. Each branch 54 directs lubricant to a designated location of the final drive unit 26. Those locations include the pinion bearings 32, the mesh point 38 of the pinion 30 and ring gear 34, and the differential case bearings 36. These locations are associated with the highest energy losses of the final drive unit 26, in a dry-sump configuration, and so directing lubricant to these locations is the most efficient way in which to reduce energy losses.
The lubricating system also includes a controller 56. The controller 56 is connected to the electrical pump 52, a sensor 58, a central vehicle data bus 60, and a human machine interface 62 located within a cabin (not shown) of the vehicle.
The sensor is a temperature sensor, a lubricant contaminant sensor, or a flow rate sensor, all being located within the reservoir 46. Alternatively, these may be located elsewhere. The temperature sensor is a thermistor. The lubricant contaminant sensor is a wear debris sensor and includes a strong interior magnet which attracts ferrous particles resulting from wear of the final drive unit's metallic components. The debris sensor uses solid state induction techniques to determine the amount of debris at the sensor's surface and thus calculate the quantity of debris contained within the lubricant. The lubricant temperature and the lubricant quality (amount of debris immersed therein) are both driving conditions which can be used by the controller as will be described in more detail below. In addition, the quantity of foreign particulate matter, such as ferrous wear particles, present in the fuel can be determined indirectly by a pressure drop across a filter.
The flow rate sensor is a positive displacement sensor comprising a gear or rotating vane design. Rotation of the gear or vanes is measured electromagnetically and relates to a fixed volume of lubricant transferred from an inlet to an outlet. An actual flow rate value of the lubricant can be attributed to the lubricant flowing through the supply line since the flow rate sensor is located therein. It is also possible to calculate the flow rate based on the pump power consumption, pump speed and lubricant temperature change using an algorithm stored on a computer system of the vehicle.
The vehicle data bus 60 transmits data to the controller 56 relating to various other driving conditions. Those conditions include vehicle speed and vehicle torque as determined by other control units such as an engine control unit (not shown). Other driving conditions transmitted to the controller 56 by the data bus 60 include driving conditions such as vehicle over-run and/or braking. Where the vehicle is an off-road land vehicle, the driving conditions also comprise one or more off-road conditions, which off-road conditions include grade detection, side slope, longitudinal acceleration, and lateral acceleration. Alternative driving conditions may also be used such as transfer box range, coupling torque, and drive-line disconnect status.
The controller 56 is arranged to monitor the driving conditions and configure the electrical pump 52 to pump a predetermined flow rate of lubricant to the various locations of the final drive based on the current driving condition, at the time of pumping. The way in which the controller 56 selects a desired flow rate for the lubricant is best described with reference to the scenarios outlined below.
When the electrical pump 52 pumps lubricant through the supply line 48, the actual flow rate of lubricant is monitored by the controller 56. The controller 56 is arranged to detect the actual flow-rate of lubricant through the supply line 48 and emit a warning if the actual flow rate falls below an acceptable actual flow rate of lubricant. The warning is sent to the human machine interface 62 to be addressed by a driver. The warning may read “change oil filter” or “service due”. As an alternative, the warning may be available for detection by a service diagnostic tool.
The controller is also arranged to emit a warning when a level of contaminant exceeds an acceptable threshold level. Again this warning is directed to the human machine interface 62 to be addressed by a driver of the vehicle. The warning may read “oil change required” or “service due”.
Operation of the lubricating system is best described with reference to the various scenarios of operation. Some such scenarios are now described though several more are envisaged which are not expressly described but which also fall within the scope of the appended claims.
With reference to
With further reference to
In addition, if the vehicle speed is high and the lubricant is cold, the controller 56 will configure the electrical pump 52 to pump lower flow rates of lubricant to the final drive unit 26 than that of a wet sump lubrication system so as to reduce drag losses associated with the pinion bearings 32, mesh point 36 and differential case bearings 38 contacting highly viscous lubricant.
As the lubricant temperature increases, to an extent that the lubricant is considered “warm”, e.g. above 40° C., engine torque is used by the controller 56 in addition to engine speed in order to determine the flow rate of lubricant to pump to the final drive unit 26, where efficiency, required lubrication and thermal management become important factors. In addition, the scenario described above, for pumping a higher flow rate of lubricant to the final drive unit 26 at high temperatures, is turned off.
Whilst the lubricant is being pumped to the final drive unit 26, the flow rate is monitored by the controller 56. If the actual flow rate falls below an acceptable flow rate compared to the intended flow rate, the controller 56 emits a warning directed to the human machine interface 62. An acceptable flow rate may be a percentage of the intended flow rate. For instance, within 20% of the intended flow rate may be acceptable in some circumstances, whereas other more critical circumstances may require the actual flow rate to be within 10% of the intended flow rate.
With reference to
With reference to
There are various other scenarios in which the lubricating system can be used though which are not explicitly described herein but which are within the scope of the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1504598.2 | Mar 2015 | GB | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/EP2016/055855 | 3/17/2016 | WO | 00 |
