Studying the Effects of Mechanical Loads and Environmental Conditions on the Drive-Axle Performance

The paper discusses the problem of achieving the required output parameters of a truck drive under various operating conditions. The authors enumerate the final-drive and differential mechanical efficiency, the pre-load torque in the final-drive bearing assembly, the friction coefficient, and the differential locking factor as the most significant technical parameters of the drive axle and its components. The main factors that affect these parameters during operation are: (i) mechanical loads that transmission is exposed to when transmitting the torque from the engine to the drive wheels; (ii) the effects of external thermal and dynamic loads when driving on an uneven surface or in cold / hot climates. The paper describes the main dependences between the final-drive processes and the inter-wheel differential processes; it also demonstrates how the aforementioned factors affect the output parameters of the component. The assumptions hereof are based on the results of bench and field truck tests, including adverse-climate tests. We herein propose a method for estimating the drive-axle load, which is based on the weighted values of the aforementioned factors. We prove it feasible to use auto-adjusted heating of the drive-axle components. The degree of thermal exposure shall be determined with due account of environmental conditions, surface conditions, engine and transmission parameters. The control algorithm is supposed to automatically take into account any change in one or more factors. This approach to controlling the output parameters helps improve the efficiency and the longevity of the drive axle and truck as a whole.