An integrated pinion shaft and constant velocity joint (PS/CVJ) assembly for use in motor vehicle driveline applications to transfer torque between a propshaft and a ring gear. The PS/CVJ assembly includes a pinion shaft having a pinion gear segment meshed with the ring gear and a hollow pinion shaft segment. The PS/CVJ assembly also includes a constant velocity joint having an inner race coupled to the propshaft and an outer race integral with or fixed to an end portion of the pinion shaft segment.

An axle disconnect and differential locking system for single or multiple axle vehicles which allows the vehicle to selectively engage and disengage an axle half shaft from the differential side gear. Additionally, the system allows the vehicle to selectively switch between locked and unlocked differential driving modes. The system has a first position, a second position and a third position. At the first position, the system is not meshingly engaged with the differential side gear or the differential case. At the second position, the system is meshingly engaged with the differential side gear but is not meshingly engaged with the differential case. At the third position, the system is engaged with the differential side gear and the differential case. In one embodiment the system is a sliding collar. According to another embodiment, the system includes an axle disconnect collar, a differential locking collar and a biasing member disposed therebetween.

Methods and systems are provided for operating a four-wheel drive powertrain of a vehicle. In one example, a method may comprise: in response to a desired shift from a four-wheel drive mode to a two wheel-drive mode: decreasing a transfer case torque output to a secondary driveline to a lower first level and disengaging a disconnect device of the secondary driveline; increasing the transfer case torque output from the lower first level to a higher second level over a duration; and after the duration, reducing the transfer case torque.

A vehicle driveline including a first axle assembly having a first drive ratio. A second axle assembly in selective driving engagement with the first axle assembly, the first and second axle assemblies having a second drive ratio when in driving engagement. A control system in electrical communication with the first and second axle assemblies, wherein the control system selectively engages the second axle assembly with the first axle assembly.

Some embodiments of the present invention provide a control system configured to control a driveline of a motor vehicle to operate in a selected one of a plurality of configurations, the system being configured to cause the driveline to operate in a first configuration and not a second configuration in dependence on a first set of one or more conditions, the system being further configured to override operation in the first configuration and cause the driveline to operate in the second configuration and not the first configuration in dependence on the first set of one or more conditions and in addition a second set of one or more conditions.

A method for operating a motor vehicle having a four-wheel drive and a drive unit, which can be switched on and off during travel, wherein the motor vehicle is driven by a torque provided by the drive unit, and the initially disengaged four-wheel drive is switched on, including: determining at least one limit torque which, while the four-wheel drive is switched off, can be transmitted from at least one wheel of the motor vehicle driven by the drive unit to the ground surface upon which the motor vehicle is travelling, while the slip between the at least one wheel and the ground surface falls below a specifiable threshold value.

A clutch control device is provided for a four-wheel drive vehicle for transmitting drive force to the rear wheels. The clutch control device includes a dog clutch and a friction clutch, and a controller that controls the engagement and disengagement of the dog clutch and the friction clutch. In this clutch control device, the four-wheel drive hybrid vehicle includes a disconnected, two-wheel drive mode and a connected, four-wheel drive mode. When a driver's foot is lifted off an accelerator in a low-speed region when the connected, four-wheel drive mode is selected, the 4WD control unit maintains the connected, four-wheel drive mode while the brakes are not depressed, and shifts the mode to the disconnected, two-wheel drive mode when the brakes are depressed.

A disconnector control device and method for an electric vehicle are provided. The disconnector control device includes a disconnector that switches wheel driving manners and a processor that recognizes a driving condition of the vehicle. The processor also acquires at least one factor related to operation of the disconnector and operates the disconnector based on the acquired at least one factor.

A vehicle driving apparatus, configured to drive a vehicle including first and second wheels, includes first and second motors, first and second power transmission mechanisms, and a controller. The first motor is configured to generate first driving torque that rotates the first wheel. The second motor is configured to generate second driving torque that rotates the second wheel in a direction same as a direction in which the first wheel is rotated. The first and second power transmission mechanisms are configured to transmit the first and second driving torque from the first and second motors to the first and second wheels, respectively. The controller is configured to perform torque distribution control in a case where a gear rattle occurrence condition is satisfied. The torque distribution control drives the first motor to thereby decrease the first driving torque and drives the second motor to thereby increase the second driving torque.

An eco-friendly vehicle and a hill descent control method therefor are provided to enable stable driving on a downhill road. The method includes detecting a downhill road inclination based on a request for hill descent control and determining an average inclination and an inclination variation width based on the recognized downhill road inclination. First braking force of a main braking source from a motor and a hydraulic pressure brake system based on the average inclination and the inclination variation width, and second braking force of an auxiliary braking source from the motor and the hydraulic pressure brake system for each driving wheel based on a target speed set with respect to the hill descent control and a speed of each driving wheel are determined. The first and second braking force are output by a corresponding braking source from the motor and the hydraulic pressure brake system.