A new high-tech axle from Schaeffler makes electric vehicles more powerful and efficient than ever. The new 4-in-1 axle integrates the electric motor, power electronics, transmission and thermal management in one axle drive, which not only saves space and weight, but also brings additional comfort to the vehicle.
Thermal management integrated directly in the axle
Extremely compact: In addition to the differential gear, the new axle also contains the electric motor and the power electronics.
“The thermal management has a significant influence on the efficiency and comfort of the vehicle,” says Dr. Jochen Schröder, head of the Electromobility division at Schaeffler. Schaeffler has been offering thermal management systems for all types of vehicle drives for a long time. What is new here is that previously mostly separate thermal systems were combined with the drive parts of a classic electric axle. “The result is a highly integrated and compact overall system that requires significantly less installation space than non-integrated solutions,” says Schröder.
Since there are no unnecessary hoses and cables, less energy is lost in the form of heat. “Apart from the compact design, the biggest advantage of the 4-in-1 system is the optimization of the interaction of the individual subsystems,” explains Jochen Schröder. An intelligent controller ensures that excess heat from the power electronics and electric motor can be efficiently dissipated and used to heat the vehicle interior.
The efficiency is up to 96 percent
Schaeffler’s electric axle is intended for medium-duty pickups in the USA. She weighs around 300 kilograms.
The axles are more than two meters wide and weigh around 300 kilograms. Schaeffler manufactures the components of the electric axles at several locations. In September 2021, the plant in Szombathely, western Hungary, started work. The production site is the first purely e-mobility plant of the Schaeffler Group worldwide and at the same time a new competence center for the production of electrified drives.
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Components for e-mobility and the integrated electric axle drives are also manufactured in Taicang, China. Another production facility is located in Wooster, North America, where hybrid modules are already being manufactured today. The new global lead plant for electric motors is currently being built in Bühl, the headquarters of Schaeffler’s automotive division.
