Fleet Maintenance - 22

Technicians will need
to have a skill set suited
to service these systems
properly and safely.
Allison Transmissions
offers a maintenance
and service network that
Foster says the company
plans to leverage alongside the electrification
movement.
Eaton, a power management company and manufacturer of powertrain
systems and components,
established an eMobility business unit, which
contains three distinct
produc t
c ategor ies:
power electronics, power
distribution and protec- » The Dana Driveline
tion, and power systems. Forensics training series,
As part of their power hosted by Jessi Combs,
systems, Eaton has devel- features episodes detailing
oped electrified trans- e-vehicle maintenance.
missions for commercial Image courtesy of Dana Incorporated
vehicles. Julie Marshaus,
manager of new product introductions - systems at Eaton,
explains that Eaton has been in the electrification market for
some time, especially through their hybrid vehicle products.
eMobility was not created from scratch, but rather drew from
the company's experience and knowledge gained through
the hybrid component developments they had enacted and
its unit focused on full electrification.
Eaton's electrified transmissions deliver a motor torque
profile significantly different than that of a diesel engine.
In order to be able to meet performance demands, diesel
engines may need 12-18 gears; vehicles with Eaton's electrified transmissions need only 3-4, or at most 5-6 gears,
Marshaus says. The transmission has been simplified with
Eaton's electrification process: a lower oil quantity, no highlow range box, fewer internal systems, no clutch, no clutch
actuator, no range valves.
Adding an electrified transmission to an EV, rather than
having a direct drive electric motor, "delivers greater start-ability, better grade-ability, and energy efficiency," Marshaus says.
Another major benefit: environmental footprint. "We hope that
the EVs will help with greenhouse gas emissions and make the
world a cleaner, better place," Marshaus says.
With the removal of many systems and components in a
traditional transmission, electrified transmission maintenance becomes less complex. There are still gears to maintain
and oil change intervals, but there are no real new PM procedures to implement. Drivers will have to adjust to the noise
reduction while operating, and technicians will need to be
aware of the protocols associated with high-voltage servicing.
Eaton publishes troubleshooting guides and maintenance
documents on how to service electrified transmissions, which
also come with a control module that is updated through
Eaton's service tool. The implementation of the transmission does not require additional sensors to be specified on
a vehicle to accommodate for such a system, but changes
in vehicle architecture may result in changes to existing
monitoring sensors.

Power management
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22 Fleet Maintenance | July 2019

With the electrification of a vehicle, changes in power
management become necessary. In many cases, the management and distribution of the high- and low-voltage power

Industry manufacturers are
offering many different electrified
systems and components now to
be utilized with today's fleets.
must be reinvented to account for changes in the operation of
the electrified components and systems. The ability to properly and precisely route the power to the various systems
becomes explicitly crucial.
A challenge with EV inter-system operation is the differentiation in voltage required for system operation. Eaton
offers a variety of power distribution units (PDUs). PDUs take
high-voltage current and distribute the necessary voltage to
accessory systems. PDUs also help the OEM and the fleet itself
understand how the power is being used in the vehicle. It can
even determine predictive maintenance with imminent system
maintenance requirements or possible system failures.
"Some smart PDUs are capable of recording or broadcasting
power consumption of accessories," explains Eaton's Marshaus.
"[Smart PDUs] can track power draw and give an idea if a
component is close to failure."
Dana provides flexibility in electrification adoption through
their motor and inverter systems. These systems convert DC
power to AC power for the motor, allowing the drive to adjust
the frequency and voltage being supplied to the motor. With
different models for separate circumstances, these systems
allow for a central direct drive approach or can be implemented
with e-Axles and full EVs.
"[The central mount direct drive approach has] minimal
impact to vehicle architecture," says Dana's Trost. "It can be
implemented quickly, it is in production today, validated, and
can be sold with a warranty."
This approach allows customers to maintain conventional drivetrain components, such as the driveshaft or axle.
Implementation of EVs and e-Axles offers increases in efficiency and range, as well as more space for battery packaging.
Thermo King, manufacturer of transport temperature control
systems, developed the TRIPAC Envidia APU to assist in a vehicle's adoption of electrification through its ability to control the
power and voltage necessary to operate select vehicle systems
with battery power. The electric APU provides enough auxiliary power to run the vehicle's HVAC system for up to 10 hours,
according to Steve Hubbard, engineering leader, electrification
center of excellence at Thermo King.

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