Modular Electric Drive Axle Housing for Compact Rigid Beam Packaging
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electric drive axles face challenges in compact packaging while maintaining structural integrity, particularly in rigid beam axles, and are susceptible to degradation from road debris, with issues in load carrying capacity and durability, especially in off-road conditions.
Innovation Solution
A modular housing design for the electric drive axle that encloses the electric motor-generator and gearbox, featuring removably coupled sections and reinforcing ribs, allowing for efficient packaging, increased durability, and reduced susceptibility to degradation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the axle assembly is compactly packaged to reduce vehicle space, then space efficiency is improved, but structural integrity and load carrying capacity deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is divided into multiple removable sections (first section, second section, third section) that can be detached from one another. This segmentation allows for compact packaging when assembled while enabling easy disassembly for servicing and maintenance, resolving the contradiction between compact volume and serviceability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a multi-sectional housing design where components are arranged in different spatial dimensions and orientations. The first, second, and third sections are positioned at different locations and can be removed independently, allowing compact packaging in three-dimensional space while maintaining access to internal components through dimensional reconfiguration during servicing.
2Strength
If the housing is designed as a single integrated structure to maintain structural integrity, then strength is improved, but ease of manufacture and servicing deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is divided into multiple removable sections that can be manufactured separately and then assembled together. This segmentation reduces manufacturing complexity for each individual section while the combined structure maintains the required strength and structural integrity through proper joining mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The housing transitions from a static integrated structure to a dynamic modular structure where sections can be removed and reattached. This dynamic design allows the housing to adapt between a strong integrated state during operation and a disassembled state during manufacturing and servicing, resolving the contradiction between strength and ease of manufacture.
3Reliability
If the axle clearance is increased to protect from road debris, then reliability is improved, but device complexity and packaging difficulty worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The segmented housing design allows for strategic placement of sections to create protective clearance zones without requiring increased overall axle dimensions. The multiple sections can be positioned to shield internal components from road debris while maintaining a compact overall package, resolving the contradiction between reliability and device complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
An electric drive axle in a vehicle is provided. The electric drive axle includes, in one example, a housing configured to enclose an electric motor-generator and a gearbox. In the electric drive axle, the housing includes a first section that is removably coupled to a second section, the second section at least partially encloses the gearbox, the first section includes a first axle shaft opening, and the second section includes a second axle shaft opening that is laterally aligned with the first axle shaft opening.