Work

A Reconfigurable Dual-Motor Compound-Planetary Electric Drive Axle for an Expanded Torque-Vectoring Envelope

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Dual-motor electric drive axles (e-axles) can realize basic torque vectoring through motor-torque allocation. However, without an inter-wheel power-transfer path, they still face structural limitations under motor torque–speed envelopes and severe left–right adhesion asymmetry. To address this issue, this paper proposes a reconfigurable dual-motor e-axle based on fixed-carrier compound planetary gear trains and two cross-axle clutches. By switching between controlled-slip and lock-coupled states, the proposed topology creates a switchable inter-wheel power-transfer path. As a result, it enhances yaw-rate regulation capability under high-adhesion conditions and improves escape capability under severe adhesion asymmetry. A unified kinematic–static analytical framework is established to derive closed-form capability boundaries and compact structural indices for parameter matching. Vehicle-level co-simulation on a representative rear-wheel-drive platform is then carried out for validation. Under severe split-μ conditions, the peak high-adhesion wheel torque increases from 241.72 to 695.57 N·m, and the escape time decreases from 0.43 to 0.19 s. In a representative high-adhesion step-steer case, the mean yaw-rate tracking error is reduced from 6.75 to 0.20 deg/s, while the mean differential wheel torque reaches 1.83 times that of the baseline mode. The other high-adhesion cases show the same trend. These results verify the vehicle-dynamics significance and engineering feasibility of the proposed architecture.

Source: Actuators

DOI: 10.3390/act15050268