DIFFERENTIAL FOR A VEHICLE

Abstract

A differential for a vehicle comprises: a carrier: having a radially outer surface; and made of a first material with a first ductility; a ring gear: having a radially inner surface abutting the radially outer surface of the carrier; and made of a second material with a second ductility, wherein (a) the carrier and / or (b) the ring gear includes an annular groove forming a circle in a side face adjacent to (a) the radially outer surface of the carrier and / or (b) the radially inner surface of the ring gear.

Description

INTRODUCTION

[0001] The information given in this section serves to provide a general overview of the context of the disclosure. The work of the inventors mentioned herein, to the extent described in this section, as well as aspects of the description that do not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither explicitly nor implicitly recognized as prior art with respect to the present disclosure.

[0002] The present disclosure relates to power engines and in particular to differentials of vehicles and in particular to carriers and ring gears of differentials and their welding.

[0003] Some types of vehicles contain only an internal combustion engine that generates propulsive torque. Hybrid vehicles contain both an internal combustion engine and one or more electric motors. Some types of hybrid vehicles utilize the electric motor and the internal combustion engine in an effort to achieve greater fuel economy than would be possible with the internal combustion engine alone. Some types of hybrid vehicles utilize the electric motor and the internal combustion engine to achieve a higher torque output than the internal combustion engine alone could produce.

[0004] Some exemplary types of hybrid vehicles include parallel hybrid vehicles, in-line hybrid vehicles, and other types of hybrid vehicles. In a parallel hybrid vehicle, the electric motor operates in parallel with the combustion engine to combine the power and range advantages of the combustion engine with the efficiency and regenerative braking benefits of electric motors. In an in-line hybrid vehicle, the combustion engine drives a generator to produce electricity for the electric motor, and the electric motor drives a transmission. This allows the electric motor to assume some of the power responsibilities of the combustion engine, which may permit the use of a smaller and potentially more efficient combustion engine. The present application is applicable to electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles, and other types of vehicles. SUMMARY

[0005] According to a feature, a differential for a vehicle comprises: a carrier: having a radially outer surface; and made of a first material with a first ductility; a ring gear: having a radially inner surface abutting the radially outer surface of the carrier; and made of a second material with a second ductility, wherein (a) the carrier and / or (b) the ring gear includes an annular groove forming a circle in a side surface adjacent to (a) the radially outer surface of the carrier and / or (b) the radially inner surface of the ring gear.

[0006] According to further characteristics, the second ductility is smaller than the first ductility.

[0007] According to further characteristics, the ring wheel contains the ring groove.

[0008] According to further characteristics, both the ring wheel and the carrier contain the ring groove.

[0009] According to further characteristics, the carrier contains the ring groove.

[0010] According to further characteristics, the first material is iron.

[0011] According to further characteristics, the second material is steel.

[0012] According to further characteristics, the ring wheel and the carrier are welded in a circle where the radially inner surface of the ring wheel and the radially outer surface of the carrier abut each other.

[0013] According to further specifications, the ring wheel and the carrier are laser welded.

[0014] According to further characteristics, at least one property of the ring groove corresponds to a depth of the weld.

[0015] According to further characteristics, a second depth of the ring groove relative to the side surface is greater than the depth of the weld.

[0016] According to further characteristics, the depth of the weld is approximately 4.5 millimeters.

[0017] According to further characteristics, the distance between a first center of the weld and a second center of the ring groove in a direction parallel to the side surface is greater than the depth of the weld.

[0018] According to further characteristics, the distance is approximately 5 millimeters.

[0019] According to further characteristics, the width of the ring groove in a direction parallel to the side surface is approximately 4 millimeters.

[0020] According to further characteristics, at least one corner of the ring groove is rounded.

[0021] According to further characteristics, at least one corner has a radius of approximately 1 millimeter.

[0022] According to further characteristics, the radial inner and outer corners of the ring groove are rounded.

[0023] According to further characteristics, at least one corner of the ring groove is at a right angle.

[0024] According to a feature, a differential for a vehicle comprises: a carrier having a radially outer surface and made of a first material with a first ductility; a ring gear having a radially inner surface abutting the radially outer surface of the carrier and made of a second material with a second ductility, wherein (a) the carrier and / or (b) the ring gear includes an annular groove forming a circle in a side face adjacent to (a) the radially outer surface of the carrier and / or (b) the radially inner surface of the ring gear, the second ductility being less than the first ductility, the first material being iron, the second material being steel, and the ring gear and the carrier being welded in a circle where the radially inner surface of the ring gear and the radially outer surface of the carrier are adjacent.wherein at least one property of the annular groove corresponds to a depth of the weld, wherein a first depth of the annular groove relative to the side surface is greater than a second depth of the weld, and wherein a distance between a first center of the weld and a second center of the annular groove in a direction parallel to the side surface is greater than the second depth of the weld.

[0025] Further areas of applicability of the present disclosure will become apparent from the detailed description, the claims, and the drawings. The detailed description and the specific examples are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of protection afforded by the disclosure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] The present revelation becomes more fully understandable from the detailed description and the accompanying drawings; they show: Fig. 1 a functional block diagram of an exemplary power engine control system; Fig. 2 a functional block diagram of a torque transmission system of the vehicle; Fig. 3. A perspective view of an exemplary section of a differential. Fig. 4 a perspective view of a ring wheel containing an exemplary 360-degree interface; Fig. 5 an exemplary cross-sectional view containing a support and a ring wheel; Fig. 6 a cross-sectional view of an example of the support welded to the ring wheel; Fig. 7 a cross-sectional view of an exemplary implementation of the ring gear and the carrier gear, wherein the carrier gear contains a groove. Fig. 8 a cross-sectional view of the example from Fig. 7 with exemplary dimensions for the groove; Fig. 9, Fig. 10 An exemplary representation of the ring wheel containing the groove.

[0027] Reference symbols may be reused in the drawings to identify similar and / or identical elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] A vehicle can contain one or more electric propulsion motors. Additionally or alternatively, the vehicle can contain an internal combustion engine. A differential (or drive unit (DU)) receives a torque output from a torque generator (e.g., a power unit and / or an electric propulsion motor) and outputs torque to two or more wheels.

[0029] The differential consists of a carrier and a ring gear welded to the carrier. The carrier may be made of a more ductile material than the ring gear, such as ductile cast iron. The ring gear may be made of a less ductile material than the carrier, such as steel. The carrier and ring gear are welded 360 degrees around the carrier / ring gear, for example, using laser welding. However, one or more cracks may form in the more ductile carrier. For example, the weld may cool relatively quickly, introducing a microstructural phase transition and thermal contraction, which can cause high residual stress. This residual stress can cause cracking and crack propagation, leading to a weakened weld and potentially premature differential failure.

[0030] The present application comprises the carrier and / or the ring wheel with a 360-degree groove at the interface where the carrier and the ring wheel are welded together. The one or more grooves and their specific dimensions and parameters minimize the risk and prevent the aforementioned issues by partially reducing residual stresses through careful and controlled elastic and / or plastic deformation around the weld joint.

[0031] Now in Fig. Figure 1 shows a functional block diagram of an exemplary powertrain system 100 for a hybrid vehicle. Although the example is a hybrid vehicle, the present application is applicable to non-vehicle applications that include a battery and to other types of vehicles (e.g., electric, internal combustion engine, etc.).

[0032] The powertrain system 100 of a vehicle may include a power unit 102 that burns an air / fuel mixture to generate torque. The vehicle may be non-autonomous or autonomous. Air is drawn into the power unit 102 through an intake system 108. The intake system 108 may include an intake manifold 110 and a throttle valve 112. By way of example only, the throttle valve 112 may include a butterfly valve with a rotating flap. An engine control module (ECM) 114 controls a throttle actuator module 116, and the throttle actuator module 116 regulates the opening of the throttle valve 112 to control the airflow into the intake manifold 110.

[0033] Air from the intake manifold 110 is drawn into cylinders of the engine 102. Although the engine 102 contains multiple cylinders, a single representative cylinder 118 is shown for illustrative purposes. For illustrative purposes only, the engine 102 can contain 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, and / or 12 cylinders. The ECM 114 can instruct a cylinder actuator module 120 to selectively deactivate some of the cylinders under certain circumstances, which can improve fuel economy.

[0034] The engine 102 can operate using a four-stroke cycle or another suitable engine cycle. The four strokes of a four-stroke cycle, described below, are referred to as the intake stroke, the compression stroke, the combustion stroke, and the power stroke. During each revolution of a crankshaft (not shown), two of the four strokes occur within cylinder 118. Thus, two crankshaft revolutions are necessary for cylinder 118 to experience all four strokes. For four-stroke engines, one engine cycle can correspond to two crankshaft revolutions.

[0035] When cylinder 118 is activated, air is drawn from the intake manifold 110 through an intake valve 122 into cylinder 118 during the intake stroke. The ECM 114 controls a fuel actuator module 124, which regulates fuel injection to achieve a desired air / fuel ratio. Fuel can be injected into the intake manifold 110 at a central location or at multiple locations, such as near the intake valve 122 of each cylinder. Depending on various implementations (not shown), fuel can be injected directly into the cylinders or into mixing chambers / ports associated with the cylinders. The fuel actuator module 124 can stop fuel injection into cylinders that are deactivated.

[0036] The injected fuel mixes with air in cylinder 118 to form an air / fuel mixture. During the compression stroke, a piston (not shown) inside cylinder 118 compresses the air / fuel mixture. The engine 102 can be a compression-ignition engine, in which case the compression causes the ignition of the air / fuel mixture. Alternatively, the engine 102 can be a spark-ignition engine, in which case a spark actuator module 126, based on a signal from the ECM 114, applies a voltage to a spark plug 128 in cylinder 118, igniting the air / fuel mixture. Some types of engines, such as a homogeneous compression ignition (HCCI) engine, perform both compression and spark ignition.The timing of the ignition spark can be specified relative to the point in time when the piston is in its highest position, known as top dead center (TDC).

[0037] The ignition spark actuator module 126 can be controlled by a timing signal that specifies how long before or after the TDC (Total Discharge Cycle) the ignition spark should be generated. Since the piston position is directly related to the crankshaft rotation, the operation of the ignition spark actuator module 126 can be synchronized with the crankshaft position. The ignition spark actuator module 126 can either block or provide a spark to deactivated cylinders.

[0038] During the combustion stroke, the combustion of the air / fuel mixture drives the piston downwards, thereby driving the crankshaft. The combustion stroke can be defined as the time between the moment the piston reaches top dead center (TDC) and the moment the piston returns to its lowest position, known as bottom dead center (BDC).

[0039] During the power stroke, the piston begins to move upwards from the BDC (burner cylinder) and expels the combustion byproducts through an exhaust valve 130. The combustion byproducts are then expelled from the vehicle via an exhaust system 134.

[0040] The intake valve 122 can be controlled by an intake camshaft 140, while the exhaust valve 130 can be controlled by an exhaust camshaft 142. According to various implementations, multiple intake camshafts (including intake camshaft 140) can control multiple intake valves (including intake valve 122) for cylinder 118 and / or they can control the intake valves (including intake valve 122) of multiple banks of cylinders (including cylinder 118). Similarly, multiple exhaust camshafts (including exhaust camshaft 142) can control multiple exhaust valves for cylinder 118 and / or they can control exhaust valves (including exhaust valve 130) for multiple banks of cylinders (including cylinder 118). Although camshaft-based valve actuation has been shown and discussed, camless valve actuators can also be implemented.Although separate intake and exhaust camshafts are shown, a camshaft with cams can be used for both the intake and exhaust valves.

[0041] The cylinder actuator module 120 can deactivate cylinder 118 by blocking the opening of the intake valve 122 and / or the exhaust valve 130. The timing at which the intake valve 122 opens relative to the piston TDC can be varied by an intake cam phaser 148. The timing at which the exhaust valve 130 opens relative to the piston TDC can be varied by an exhaust cam phaser 150. A phaser actuator module 158 can control the intake cam phaser 148 and the exhaust cam phaser 150 based on signals from the ECM 114. According to different implementations, the cam phaser may be omitted. Additionally, the phaser actuator module 158 can control variable valve lift (not shown).According to various other implementations, the inlet valve 122 and / or the exhaust valve 130 can be controlled by actuators other than a camshaft, such as electromechanical actuators, electrohydraulic actuators, electromagnetic actuators, etc.

[0042] The power unit 102 can contain zero, one, or more than one boost pressure device that supplies compressed air to the intake manifold 110. For example, shows Fig. 1 a turbocharger, which includes a turbocharger turbine wheel 160-1, driven by exhaust gases flowing through the exhaust system 134. A supercharging device is another type of charging device.

[0043] The turbocharger also includes a turbocharger compressor wheel 160-2, which is driven by the turbocharger turbine wheel 160-1 and compresses the air directed into the throttle valve 112. A boost pressure control valve (WG) 162 regulates the exhaust gas flow through the turbocharger turbine wheel 160-1 and the exhaust gas bypassing it. Boost pressure control valves can also be referred to as (turbocharger) turbine bypass valves. The boost pressure control valve 162 can allow exhaust gas to bypass the turbocharger turbine wheel 160-1 to reduce the intake pressure compression provided by the turbocharger. The ECM 114 can control the turbocharger via a boost pressure control valve actuator module 164. The boost pressure control valve actuator module 164 can modulate the turbocharger boost pressure by controlling the opening of the boost pressure control valve 162.

[0044] A cooler (e.g., an intercooler or an intercooler) can dissipate some of the heat contained in the compressed air charge that can be generated during compression. Although shown separately for illustration, the turbocharger turbine wheel 160-1 and the turbocharger compressor wheel 160-2 can be mechanically coupled, with intake air positioned in close proximity to the hot exhaust. The compressed air charge can absorb heat from components of the exhaust system 134.

[0045] The engine 102 can include an exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) valve 170, which selectively redirects exhaust gas back to the intake manifold 110. The EGR valve 170 can receive exhaust gas from a point upstream of the turbocharger turbine wheel 160-1 in the exhaust system 134. The EGR valve 170 can be controlled by an EGR actuator module 172.

[0046] The crankshaft position can be measured using a crankshaft position sensor 180. Based on the crankshaft position measured using the crankshaft position sensor 180, such as the change in the crankshaft period over time, the engine speed can be determined. The engine coolant temperature can be measured using an engine coolant temperature sensor (ECT sensor) 182. The ECT sensor 182 can be located inside the engine 102 or at other locations where the coolant circulates, such as a radiator (not shown).

[0047] The pressure within the intake manifold 110 can be measured using a manifold absolute pressure (MAP) sensor 184. Depending on the implementation, the engine vacuum, which is the difference between the ambient air pressure and the pressure within the intake manifold 110, can be measured. The mass flow rate of the air flowing into the intake manifold 110 can be measured using a mass airflow (MAF) sensor 186. Depending on the implementation, the MAF sensor 186 may be located in a housing that also contains the throttle valve 112.

[0048] The position of the throttle valve 112 can be measured using one or more throttle position sensors (TPS) 190. The temperature of air drawn into the engine 102 can be measured using an intake air temperature sensor (IAT sensor) 192. In addition, one or more other sensors 193 may be implemented. These other sensors 193 include an accelerator pedal position sensor (APP sensor), a brake pedal position sensor (BPP sensor), and may (e.g., in the case of a manual transmission) include a clutch pedal position sensor (CPP sensor), and may include one or more other types of sensors. An APP sensor measures the position of an accelerator pedal within the passenger compartment of the vehicle. A BPP sensor measures the position of a brake pedal within the passenger compartment of the vehicle. A CPP sensor measures the position of a clutch pedal within the passenger compartment of the vehicle.The other sensors 193 may also include one or more accelerometers that measure the longitudinal acceleration (e.g., forward / reverse acceleration) and the lateral acceleration of the vehicle. An accelerometer is an example of a type of accelerometer, although other types of accelerometers may be used. The ECM 114 can use signals from the sensors to make control decisions for the power unit 102.

[0049] The ECM 114 can communicate with a transmission control module 194, which controls the operation of a transmission 195. The ECM 114 can, for example, communicate with a hybrid control module 196 to coordinate the operation of the power unit 102 and an electric motor 198. Although the example given is one electric motor, multiple electric motors can be implemented. Depending on the implementation, various functions of the ECM 114, the transmission control module 194, and the hybrid control module 196 can be integrated into one or more modules.

[0050] Any system that varies a force machine parameter can be called a force machine actuator. Every force machine actuator has an associated actuator value. For example, the throttle actuator module 116 can be called a force machine actuator, and the throttle opening area can be called an actuator value. According to the example from Fig. 1. The throttle actuator module 116 achieves the throttle opening area by adjusting an angle of the flap of the throttle valve 112.

[0051] The ignition spark actuator module 126 can also be referred to as a power engine actuator, while the corresponding actuator value can be the amount of ignition spark advance relative to the cylinder TDC. Other power engine actuators may include the cylinder actuator module 120, the fuel actuator module 124, the cam phaser actuator module 158, the boost pressure control valve actuator module 164, and the EGR actuator module 172. For these power engine actuators, the actuator values ​​can correspond, in that order, to a cylinder activation / deactivation sequence, the fuel injection rate, the intake and exhaust cam phaser angles, the target boost pressure control valve opening, and the EGR valve opening.

[0052] The ECM 114 can control the actuator values ​​to cause the power unit 102 to output torque based on a torque request. The ECM 114 can determine the torque request based on one or more driver inputs, such as an APP, a BPP, a CPP, and / or one or more other suitable driver inputs. The ECM 114 can determine the torque request using one or more functions or lookup tables that relate the driver input(s) to torque requests.

[0053] Under certain circumstances, the hybrid control module 196 controls the electric motor 198 to output torque, for example, to supplement the torque output of the power unit 102. At times when the power unit 102 is switched off, the hybrid control module 196 can also control the electric motor 198 to output torque for vehicle propulsion.

[0054] The hybrid control module 196 applies electrical power from a battery to the electric motor 198 to cause it to output positive torque. The electric motor 198 can output torque, for example, to an input shaft of the transmission 195, to an output shaft of the transmission 195, or to another component. A clutch 200 can be implemented to couple the electric motor 198 to the transmission 195 and to decouple the electric motor 198 from the transmission 195. One or more gear devices can be implemented between an output of the electric motor 198 and an input of the transmission 195 to provide one or more predetermined gear ratios between the rotation of the electric motor 198 and the rotation of the input of the transmission 195. According to various implementations, the electric motor 198 can be omitted.

[0055] Fig. Figure 2 is a functional block diagram of a vehicle's torque transmission system. One or more output devices 204, such as the power unit 102 and / or one or more propulsion electric motors (e.g., 198), output torque to a differential 208 for vehicle propulsion. The torque output devices 204 can, for example, drive the rotation of an input shaft into the differential 208. The differential 208 can also be referred to as a drive unit (DU).

[0056] The differential 208 transmits an input torque (from the input shaft) (via two or more output shafts) to two or more different wheels 212. The wheels 212 can be, for example, the front wheels or rear wheels of the vehicle. As discussed further below, the differential 208 includes a carrier and a ring gear coupled to the carrier.

[0057] Fig. Figure 3 is a perspective view of an exemplary section of the differential 208. The differential 208 contains a support 304 and a ring gear 308. Fig. Figure 4 is a perspective view of the ring wheel 308.

[0058] The support 304 can be made of a material with a first ductility, and the ring gear 308 can be made of a material with a second ductility. The first ductility can be greater than the second ductility. For example, the support 304 can be made of iron, and the ring gear 308 can be made of steel.

[0059] The support 304 and the ring wheel 308 are welded together, for example, using laser welding. The support 304 and the ring wheel 308 are welded along a 360-degree interface where the support 304 contacts the ring wheel 308 (360 degrees around the surfaces of the support 304 and the ring wheel 308). An example of a 360-degree interface is shown by 404 in Fig. Figure 4, which contains a perspective view of the ring wheel 308, is shown.

[0060] Fig. Figure 5 contains an exemplary cross-sectional view showing the support 304 and the ring wheel 308. A first radially inner surface 504 of the ring wheel 308 contacts a second radially outer surface 508 of the support 304 and is welded to it, for example, by laser welding. In the example shown, the first radially inner surface 504 and the second radially outer surface are cylindrical. Although the example of a cylindrical radially inner and outer surface is given, the present application is also applicable to the welding of side faces of the support 304 and the ring wheel 308.

[0061] Fig. Figure 6 contains a cross-sectional view of an example of the support 304 welded to the ring wheel 308. The laser weld with a predetermined depth (e.g., approximately 4.5 millimeters (mm)) is represented by Figure 604. Although an exemplary weld depth is given, the present application is also applicable to other weld depths.

[0062] As in Fig. As shown in Figure 6, neither the support 304 nor the ring gear 308 contains a groove formed on a side surface adjacent to the weld 604. As described above, the support 304 can be made of a more ductile material than the ring gear 308, such as ductile cast iron. The ring gear 308 can be made of a less ductile material than the support 304, such as steel.

[0063] However, one or more cracks can form in the more ductile support 304 as a result of the welding process. For example, the weld may cool relatively quickly, introducing a microstructural phase transition and thermal contraction, which can cause high residual stress. This residual stress can lead to crack initiation and propagation, resulting in a weakened weld and potentially premature differential failure.

[0064] The present application comprises the support 304 and / or the ring wheel 308 with a 360-degree groove (360-degree ring groove) adjacent to the weld point. The groove(s) and their specific dimensions and parameters minimize the risk and prevent the aforementioned issues by partially reducing residual stress through careful and controlled elastic and / or plastic deformation around the weld joint.

[0065] Fig. Figure 7 contains a cross-sectional view of an exemplary implementation of the ring gear 308 and the carrier gear 304, wherein the carrier gear 304 contains a groove 704. Fig. Figure 8 contains a cross-sectional view of the example from Fig. Figure 7 shows exemplary dimensions for the groove 704. The groove 704 is annular and forms a circle around the entire transverse side of the carrier gear 304. The center of the circle is located on an axis of the carrier 304 and the ring gear 308.

[0066] The groove 704 has a groove width 708 of approximately 4 mm. A center 708 of the groove 704 and a center 712 of the weld point 704 are separated by a groove spacing 716. In the example of a groove width 708 of approximately 4 mm, the groove spacing 716 can be approximately 5 mm.

[0067] Groove 704 has a groove depth of 720. The groove depth 720 can be greater than the depth 724 of weld 604. For example, in the example where the depth 724 of weld 604 is approximately 4.5 mm, the groove depth 720 can be approximately 5 mm.

[0068] The inside corners of groove 704, such as 728, can be rounded or right-angled. Fig. 7 and Fig. 8 represent rounded corners. The corners can, for example, have a radius of approximately 1 mm (R1).

[0069] The given dimensions minimize and prevent the aforementioned issues by partially reducing residual stress through careful and controlled elastic and / or plastic deformation around the weld joint 604. The groove(s) allow the use of different materials for the carrier and the ring wheel without cracking, resulting in weight and cost savings compared to a carrier made of the same material as the ring wheel. The groove also enables welding without preheating, which can reduce production time and manufacturing costs.

[0070] While Fig. 7 and Fig. If the groove 704 in the carrier 304 represents the ring wheel 308, it can additionally or alternatively include the groove 704. The groove 704 can have the same dimensions and features as the groove 704 in the carrier 304. Fig. 9 and Fig. Figure 10 contains an exemplary illustration of the ring wheel 308, which contains the groove 704. The in Fig. Dimensions 7-10 shown are in millimeters. Approximately, as used here, the stated dimension can mean ±10%. The top corner is 720 in Fig. 7-8 is the radial outer corner and the bottom corner 720 in Fig. 7-8 is the radially inner corner. Depending on different implementations, one corner may be right-angled while the other corner is rounded.

[0071] The foregoing description is by its very nature illustrative and is not intended to limit the disclosure, its application, or uses in any way. The comprehensive teachings of the disclosure can be implemented in a multitude of forms. Although this disclosure contains certain examples, the true scope of protection of the disclosure is not intended to be limited thereto, since other modifications will become apparent upon study of the drawings, the description, and the following claims. It is to be understood that one or more steps within a process may be carried out in a different order (or concurrently) without altering the principles of the present disclosure.Although each of the embodiments described above has been characterized by certain features, one or more of these features described in relation to any embodiment of the disclosure may also be implemented in and / or together with features of any of the other embodiments, even if this combination is not explicitly described. In other words, the described embodiments are not mutually exclusive, and interchanges of one or more embodiments with another remain within the scope of protection of the disclosure.

[0072] Spatial and functional relationships between elements (e.g., between modules, circuit elements, semiconductor layers, etc.) are described using various terms, including "connected," "interlocking," "coupled," "adjacent," "next to," "on," "above," "below," and "arranged." If a relationship between a first and a second element is not explicitly described as "direct" in the above disclosure, this relationship may be a direct relationship in which there are no other intervening elements between the first and the second element, or it may be an indirect relationship in which there are one or more (either spatially or functionally) intervening elements between the first and the second element.The way the phrase "at least one of A, B and C" is used here is intended to mean a logical (A OR B OR C) using a non-exclusive logical OR and is not to be understood as "at least one of A, at least one of B and at least one of C".

[0073] In the figures, the direction of an arrow, as indicated by the arrowhead, generally illustrates the flow of information (such as data or instructions) that is relevant to the representation. For example, if element A and element B exchange a variety of information, but the information transmitted from element A to element B is relevant to the representation, the arrow may point from element A to element B. This simply directed arrow does not mean that no other information is transmitted from element B to element A. Furthermore, for information sent from element A to element B, element B may send requests for the information to element A or receive acknowledgments of those requests.

[0074] In this application, including in the following definitions, the term "module" or the term "controller" may be replaced by the term "circuit". The term "module" may refer to, be part of, or include: an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC); a digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital discrete circuit; a digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital integrated circuit; a combination logic circuit; a free programmable logic array (FPGA); a processor circuit (shared, dedicated, or group) that executes code; a memory circuit (shared, dedicated, or group) that stores code executed by the processor circuit; other suitable hardware components that provide the described functionality; or a combination of some or all of the above, such as in a system-on-a-chip, such as a system-on-a-chip.

[0075] The module may contain one or more interface circuits. According to some examples, the interface circuits may include wired or wireless interfaces connected to a local area network (LAN), the internet, a wide area network (WAN), or combinations thereof. The functionality of any given module of this disclosure may be distributed across multiple modules connected via interface circuits. For example, multiple modules may enable load balancing. According to another example, a server module (also known as a remote module or cloud module) may perform some functionality on behalf of a client module.

[0076] The term "code," as used above, can include software, firmware, and / or microcode, and can refer to programs, routines, functions, classes, data structures, and / or objects. The term "shared processor circuit" refers to a single processor circuit that executes some or all of the code from multiple modules. The term "group processor circuit" refers to a processor circuit that executes some or all of the code from one or more modules along with additional processor circuits. References to multiple processor circuits include multiple processor circuits on discrete chips, multiple processor circuits on a single chip, multiple cores of a single processor circuit, multiple threads of a single processor circuit, or a combination of the above.The term shared memory circuit refers to a single memory circuit that stores some or all of the code from multiple modules. The term group memory circuit refers to a memory circuit that stores some or all of the code from one or more modules along with additional memory.

[0077] The term storage circuit is a subset of the term computer-readable medium. The term computer-readable medium, as used here, does not include transitory electrical or electromagnetic signals that propagate through a medium (such as in a carrier wave); thus, the term computer-readable medium can be considered concrete and non-transient.Non-restrictive examples of a non-transitory, concrete, computer-readable medium include non-volatile memory circuits (such as a flash memory circuit, a wipeable, programmable read-only memory circuit, or a mask read-only memory circuit), volatile memory circuits (such as a static read / write memory circuit or a dynamic read / write memory circuit), magnetic storage media (such as an analog or digital magnetic tape or a hard disk drive), and optical storage media (such as a CD, a DVD, or a Blu-ray Disc).

[0078] The devices and methods described in this application can be implemented, in whole or in part, by a specialized computer created by configuring a general-purpose computer to perform one or more specific functions embodied in computer programs. The functional blocks, flowchart components, and other elements described above serve as software specifications that can be translated into computer programs through the routine work of an experienced technician or programmer.

[0079] Computer programs contain instructions executable by a processor, stored on at least one non-transitory, concrete, computer-readable medium. Furthermore, computer programs may contain or rely on stored data. Computer programs may include a basic input / output system (BIOS) that interacts with the hardware of the specialized computer, device drivers that interact with specific devices of the specialized computer, one or more operating systems, user applications, background services, background applications, and so on.

[0080] Computer programs can contain: (i) descriptive text to be parsed, such as HTML (Hypertext Markup Language), XML (Extensible Markup Language), or JSON (JavaScript Object Notation); (ii) assembly code; (iii) object code generated from source code by a compiler; (iv) source code for execution by an interpreter; (v) source code for compilation and execution by a just-in-time compiler, etc. Source code using syntax from languages ​​including C, C++, C#, Objective-C, Swift, Haskell, Go, SQL, R, Lisp, Java®, Fortran, Perl, Pascal, Curl, OCaml, Javascript®, HTML5 (Hypertext Markup Language, 5th Revision), Ada, ASP (Active Server Pages), PHP (PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor), Scala, Eiffel, Smalltalk, Erlang, Ruby, Flash®, Visual Basic®, Lua, and MATLAB. It should be written in SIMULINK and Python®.

Claims

Differential (208) for a vehicle, comprising: a carrier (304) having a radial outer surface (508) and being made of a first material with a first ductility; a ring gear (308) having a radial inner surface (504) abutting the radial outer surface (508) of the carrier (304) and being made of a second material with a second ductility, wherein (a) the carrier (304) and / or (b) the ring gear (308) include an annular groove (704) forming a circle in a side surface adjacent to (a) the radial outer surface (508) of the carrier (304) and / or (b) the radial inner surface (504) of the ring gear (308). Differential (208) according to claim 1, wherein the second ductility is smaller than the first ductility. Differential (208) according to claim 1, wherein the ring gear (308) includes the ring groove (704). Differential (208) according to claim 1, wherein both the ring gear (308) and the carrier (304) contain the ring groove (704). Differential (208) according to claim 1, wherein the carrier (304) contains the annular groove (704). Differential (208) according to claim 1, wherein the first material is iron. Differential (208) according to claim 1, wherein the second material is a steel. Differential (208) according to claim 1, wherein the ring gear (308) and the carrier (304) are welded in a circle where the radially inner surface (504) of the ring gear (308) and the radially outer surface (508) of the carrier (304) are adjacent to each other. Differential (208) according to claim 8, wherein the ring gear (308) and the carrier (304) are laser welded. Differential (208) according to claim 8, wherein at least one property of the annular groove (704) corresponds to a depth of the weld (604).

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