System Modeling and Pressure Control of a Clutch Actuator for Heavy-Duty Automatic Transmission Systems

Precision control of clutch pressure is critical in heavy-duty automatic transmission applications in which the fast response of the clutch actuator is required. A conventional clutch actuator system with a pressure-reducing valve (PRV) is not applicable in this kind of application due to the fact that a large transient flow and high output power for power-on shift are necessary. In this paper, a pilot-operated PRV is developed for heavy-duty automatic transmission systems. The developed PRV can make the clutch actuator system have a fast response and a high flow capacity simultaneously. The PRV utilizes a three-stage structure with a high-speed proportional solenoid valve (PSV) as the pilot stage to do the tradeoff between the valve response and the flow capacity. First, a linearized input-output dynamic analytical model for the clutch pressure control system is developed based on fluid dynamics. Then, the parameters are identified, and the model is validated by using experimental data. For the validated input-output model, both open- and closed-loop (feedback) pressure control strategies are designed and implemented in a test setup. It infers from the experimental results that the feedback control can lead to excellent control precision. The developed clutch actuator system is applicable for heavy-duty automatic transmissions.