Variable-Ratio Belt Reduction Gearbox for EV Ratio Flexibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing approach to designing gearboxes for vehicles with similar sizes but different gear ratio requirements is inefficient, as it involves significant investment in tooling and generates substantial waste due to the need for new gearsets, which is particularly challenging in emerging markets with limited resources.
Innovation Solution
A multi-stage reduction gearbox system incorporating a variable ratio belt drive with adjustable pulleys, allowing for different gear ratios using a common set of transmission hardware, thereby reducing the need for new tooling and minimizing waste by allowing pulleys to be adjusted rather than replaced.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If new gearsets with appropriate teeth count are manufactured to achieve the appropriate ratio, then the gear ratio requirement is met, but significant investment in tooling and waste material is generated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical parameters of the pulleys by adjusting their axial positions along the shaft. By moving pulleys to different positions, the effective diameter changes, which directly alters the gear ratio. This eliminates the need to manufacture new gearsets with different tooth counts, as the same pulleys can be repositioned to achieve different ratios, thereby reducing tooling investment and waste material.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces adjustability and reconfigurability to an otherwise static gear system. The pulleys can be dynamically repositioned along the shaft to change the gear ratio, transforming a fixed manufacturing solution into a flexible, adjustable system. This dynamic capability allows the same hardware to adapt to different ratio requirements without requiring new tooling or generating waste.
2Adaptability or versatility
If new gearsets are manufactured for different gear ratios, then the appropriate ratio is achieved, but substantial waste material is generated
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of manufacturing new gearsets that would generate waste material, the patent changes the operational parameters of existing pulleys by repositioning them axially. This parameter change (position) directly affects the effective diameter and thus the gear ratio, allowing the same physical components to serve multiple ratio requirements without generating any waste material.
3Adaptability or versatility
If alternate gear ratio is developed and validated for vehicles with dissimilar parameters, then the gear ratio requirement is met, but significant tooling investment is required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes a single gearbox design universal by enabling the pulleys to be repositioned for different gear ratios. This multi-functional capability allows the same gearbox hardware to serve multiple vehicle applications with different parameter requirements, eliminating the need to develop and validate separate gear ratios through new tooling investments.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses parameter changes (axial position of pulleys) to achieve adaptability across different vehicle applications. By simply repositioning existing pulleys rather than manufacturing new gearsets, the system can accommodate dissimilar vehicle parameters without requiring additional tooling validation for each application.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution provides a flexible gearbox solution that supports various vehicle applications with reduced material and tooling requirements, enabling the use of interchangeable parts and minimizing waste, while maintaining efficiency across different gear ratio needs.
Implementation Method 1
a belt drive including a belt and at least two pulleys
Data Source
AI summary
A line of transmissions is described having a first multi-stage reduction gearbox that includes a first stage (first reduction set) having a variable ratio belt drive with a first fixed ratio, and a second stage (second reduction set) having fixed gears; and a second multi-stage reduction gearbox including a first stage having the same variable ratio belt drive as the first multi-stage reduction gearbox but with a second fixed ratio different from the first, and a second stage having the same fixed gears as the second stage of the first multi-stage reduction gearbox.