DRIVE DEVICE FOR A MOTOR VEHICLE

Abstract

A drive device for a motor vehicle includes a first drive unit having a driveshaft, a multi-speed transmission having an input shaft, and a vibration damper. A clutch includes a first clutch member which is coupled to the input shaft of the multi-speed transmission, and a second clutch member which is coupled to the first drive unit via the vibration damper to thereby operably connect the first drive unit with the multi-speed transmission via the vibration damper and the clutch. A second drive unit includes a driveshaft which is arranged in axis-parallel or coaxial relationship to the first drive unit. The second drive unit is coupled to the first clutch member of the clutch.

Claims

1. A drive device for a motor vehicle, said drive device comprising: a first drive unit including a driveshaft; a multi-speed transmission including an input shaft; a vibration damper; a clutch including a first clutch member coupled to the input shaft of the multi-speed transmission, and a second clutch member coupled to the first drive unit via the vibration damper to thereby operably connect the first drive unit with the multi-speed transmission via the vibration damper and the clutch; and a second drive unit including a driveshaft arranged in axis-parallel or coaxial relationship to the first drive unit, said second drive unit being coupled to the first clutch member of the clutch.

2. The drive device of claim 1, wherein the second drive unit is coupled to the first clutch member of the clutch via at least one gear stage of the multi-speed transmission.

3. The drive device of claim 1, wherein the multi-speed transmission includes a transmission case, said clutch being arranged in the transmission case of the multi-speed transmission.

4. The drive device of claim 2, wherein the first clutch member has outer teeth which form part of the at least one gear stage.

5. The drive device of claim 1, further comprising a hollow shaft and a coupling shaft which is arranged in the hollow shaft and connects the vibration damper with the second clutch member, said first clutch member being coupled to the second drive unit via the hollow shaft.

6. The drive device of claim 5, wherein the input shaft is arranged in coaxial relationship with at least one member selected from the group consisting of the first driveshaft, hollow shaft, and the coupling shaft.

7. The drive device of claim 5, further comprising a bearing configured to support the coupling shaft upon the hollow shaft.

8. The drive device of claim 5, wherein the second drive unit is coupled to the first clutch member of the clutch via at least one gear stage of the multi-speed transmission, and further comprising a gearwheel arranged on the hollow shaft and forming part of the at least one gear stage.

9. The drive device of claim 8, wherein the multi-speed transmission includes a transmission case, said gearwheel being arranged outside of the transmission case.

10. The drive device of claim 1, wherein the first clutch member is configured for axial movement so as to actuate the clutch.

11. The drive device of claim 1, wherein the first drive unit is configured as an internal combustion engine.

12. The drive device of claim 1, wherein the second drive unit is configured as an electric machine.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

[0038] Other features and advantages of the present invention will be more readily apparent upon reading the following description of currently preferred exemplified embodiments of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which:

[0039] FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of a first embodiment of a drive device according to the present invention; and

[0040] FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of a second embodiment of a drive device according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0041] Throughout all the figures, same or corresponding elements may generally be indicated by same reference numerals. These depicted embodiments are to be understood as illustrative of the invention and not as limiting in any way. It should also be understood that the figures are not necessarily to scale and that the embodiments may be illustrated by graphic symbols, phantom lines, diagrammatic representations and fragmentary views. In certain instances, details which are not necessary for an understanding of the present invention or which render other details difficult to perceive may have been omitted.

[0042] Turning now to the drawing, and in particular to FIG. 1, there is shown a schematic illustration of a first embodiment of a drive device according to the present invention, generally designated by reference numeral 1, for propulsion of a motor vehicle for example. The drive device 1 includes a first drive unit 2 having a first driveshaft 3, and a second drive unit 4 having a second driveshaft 5. The first drive shaft 2 is configured as internal combustion engine and the second drive unit 4 is configured as electric machine. The second drive unit 4 is arranged axis-parallel to the first drive unit 2, in particular arranged next to the first drive unit 2. This means, that the drive units 2, 4 are positioned in an axial direction in relation to their driveshafts 3, 5 at least in part in overlapping relation, advantageously in complete overlapping relation. As an alternative, the drive units 2, 4 may also be arranged in coaxial relation.

[0043] The drive device 1 includes a multi-speed transmission 6 and a clutch 7. The multi-speed transmission 6 has an input shaft 8 and an output shaft 9. Different speed ratios between the input shaft 8 and the output shaft 9 can be adjusted by the multi-speed transmission 6.

[0044] The driveshaft 3 is connected at its end distal to the first drive unit 2 with an inlet side of a vibration damper 10. On its side distal to the first drive unit 2 or driveshaft 3, i.e. on the output side, the vibration damper 10 is operably connected with an inner carrier 11 of the clutch 7, advantageously in a rigid and/or permanent manner. The inner carrier 11 may also represent a second clutch member 11. The interaction between the vibration damper 10 and the inner carrier 11 is realized via a coupling shaft 12 for example.

[0045] An outer carrier 13 of the clutch 7, representing a first clutch member 13, is operably connected with the multi-speed transmission 6 and the input shaft thereof, advantageously in a rigid and/or permanent manner. The clutch 7 can be advantageously configured as disc clutch and thus has discs which extend from the inner carrier 11 and the outer carrier 13 and engage between one another. For example, by axially shifting the outer carrier 13 with the assistance of an actuator 14, the clutch 7 can be closed, so that the discs interact through forced engagement to thereby establish an interaction between the inner carrier 11 and the outer carrier 13. The shift of the outer carrier 13 is indicated by arrows 15. As is readily apparent, the input shaft 8 is arranged in coaxial relation to the coupling shaft 12 and the first driveshaft 3. The clutch 7 is advantageously arranged in the axial direction between the first drive unit 2 and the multi-speed transmission 6.

[0046] As shown in FIG. 1, provision is made for a hollow shaft 16 which is connected to the outer carrier 13, with the connection being realized advantageously in a rigid and/or permanent manner. Arranged in the hollow shaft 16 is at least one region of the coupling shaft 12. Advantageously, the coupling shaft 12 extends through the hollow shaft 16 in the axial direction. In addition, provision may be made to mount the coupling shaft 12 in or on the hollow shaft 16. For this purpose, a bearing 17 is provided which rests in a radial direction on the inside upon an outer circumference of the coupling shaft 12 and on the outside upon an inner circumference of the hollow shaft 16 to thereby support the coupling shaft 12 in the radial direction in relation to the hollow shaft 16.

[0047] Arranged and secured to the hollow shaft 16 is a gearwheel 18 which forms part of a gear stage 19. The second drive unit 4 is operably connected via the gear stage 19 with the outer carrier 13 and via the outer carrier 13 with the multi-speed transmission 6 and the driveshaft 8 thereof, advantageously in a rigid and/or permanent manner. The gear stage 19 includes a gearwheel 20 which is connected to the driveshaft 5. Advantageously, the gearwheel 20 is arranged on the driveshaft 5. The gearwheels 18, 20 are operably connected to one another via an intermediate gearwheel 21 which is in mesh with the gearwheel 20 and with the gearwheel 18.

[0048] FIG. 2 shows a schematic illustration of a second embodiment of a drive device according to the present invention, generally designated by reference numeral 100. Parts corresponding with those in FIG. 1 are denoted by identical reference numerals and not explained again. The description below will center on the differences between the embodiments. The drive device 100 of FIG. 2 is characterized by the absence of hollow shaft 16, bearing 17, and gearwheel 18. Rather, the drive device 100 includes an outer carrier 13 which is provided with outer teeth 22 that form part of the gear stage 19. For this purpose, the intermediate gearwheel 21 is in mesh with the gearwheel 20 and the outer teeth 22, so that the gear stage 19 establishes an interaction between the second drive unit 4 and the outer carrier 13 and thus with the multi-speed transmission 6. Such a configuration of the drive device 100 requires even less installation space.

[0049] Common to both embodiments of the drive device 1, 100 is the compact structure and thus the need for little installation space. This can be realized in particular as a result of the axis-parallel or coaxial arrangement of the first drive unit 2 and the second drive unit 4, so that both drive units 2, 4 can be operably connected to the multi-speed transmission 6 in a simple manner. The interaction between the first drive unit 2 and the multi-speed transmission 6 is realized via the clutch 7 and can be selectively cut or established. The first drive unit 2 can be decoupled from the multi-speed transmission 6 in a first shifting mode of the clutch 7, and coupled in a second shifting mode of the clutch 7 to realize the interaction between the first drive unit 2 and the multi-speed transmission 6. Conversely, the second drive unit 4 is operably connected permanently with the multi-speed transmission.

[0050] While the invention has been illustrated and described in connection with currently preferred embodiments shown and described in detail, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any way from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain the principles of the invention and practical application to thereby enable a person skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.