Truck & Off-Highway Engineering - June 2023 - 4

TECHNICAL
INNOVATIONS
ELECTRIFICATION
ZF premieres AxTrax 2 electric axle platform at ACT Expo
ZF's Christian
Feldhaus announced
the world premiere
of the AxTrax 2
e-powertrain system
at the ACT Expo in
Anaheim, California.
SAE INTERNATIONAL
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Todd Zarfos
President
Carla Bailo
2024 President
Srinivasa (Sri) Srinath, Ph.D
2022 President
Susan Ying, Ph.D
Vice President - Aerospace
Daniel Nicholson
Vice President - Automotive
Audley Brown
Vice President -
Commercial Vehicle
Andrew Jeffers
Treasurer
David L. Schutt, Ph.D
Chief Executive Officer
Gregory L. Bradley, Esq.
Secretary
ZF unveiled its all-new AxTrax 2 electric axle
platform at the Advanced Clean Transportation
(ACT) Expo in Anaheim, California. The fully
integrated and modular e-powertrain system for
medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles
(Class 3-8) is the fruit of the supplier's sustained
investment in research and development.
" We have fully invested in electrification, "
Christian Feldhaus, director of Commercial
Vehicle Driveline Systems, Americas, ZF Group,
said during the product's reveal. In 2022, ZF
invested more than $3.7 billion in product innovation
and technology - a large share of
that for electrification in commercial vehicles
and other applications, he said. ZF's R&D expenditure
was $2.75 billion in 2020.
The AxTrax 2 platform is a clean-sheet coaxial
design offered in two variants: AxTrax 2
with one e-drive (which includes an oil-cooled
hairpin e-motor, 800V silicon-carbide inverter
and ECU), an e-actuator and a three-speed
transmission, and AxTrax 2 dual with two integrated
e-drives, two e-actuators and transmission.
AxTrax 2 delivers 210 kW continuous
power and provides 19,162 lb-ft (25,980 Nm) of
peak torque. AxTrax 2 dual offers 380 kW continuous
power and a peak torque of 40,418
lb-ft (54,800 Nm). System weight (excluding
brakes and suspension) is about 1,410 lbs. (640
kg) for AxTrax 2, and 1,969 lbs. (893 kg) for the
dual version.
4 June 2023
AxTrax 2 will cover Class 3-7 commercial vehicles
with a single e-axle in a 4x2 or 6x2, or up
to Class 8 with two e-axles in 6x4 or 8x4 configuration.
" This product for 6x4 configurations
will be offered in Asia and North American markets,
and the dual-motor design will be offered
mainly in the European market, " Feldhaus said.
" The 6x4 configuration for this market with two
of these axles [delivers] 420 kW, which is
roughly 10 percent above a diesel. "
Both AxTrax 2 models are designed to replace
the engine, transmission, driveshaft, differential
and conventional axle to electrify a
commercial vehicle. The " e-mobility kit " allows
customers to electrify existing platforms and to
develop purpose-built platforms. AxTrax 2 also
can be fully synchronized with key vehicle
functions such as braking, ADAS and automated-driving
systems. It enables advanced digital
and telematics systems via CAN bus to communicate
and share e-axle system information.
In-house development
The three-speed transmission is integrated into
the product and comes with full neutral to allow
the truck to be towed. It also allows the
6x4 configuration to have coasting capability
for efficiency gains, Feldhaus said. Other integrated
components include the oil cooler, epump,
heat exchanger, brakes and wheel-end
brake interface.
Judy Curran
Mary Lee Gambone
Michael Weinert
Joan Wills
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TRUCK & OFF-HIGHWAY ENGINEERING
SAE/RYAN GEHM
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Truck & Off-Highway Engineering - June 2023

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