Electric cars don't require multiple gears, but they still have transmissions. And General Motors is working on a way to make them better.
A patent filing from the automaker detailing a new type of clutch actuation for EV transmissions recently surfaced. It was published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office May 16, 2024, and originally filed by GM November 10, 2022.In this document, GM discusses using a hydraulic actuator to operate a clutch in automatic transmissions used in electric cars.
This setup would be simpler than conventional automatic transmissions, something enabled by an electric motor's need for fewer gearshifts, GM states in the patent filing. It would also avoid"instabilities at the electric motor" inherent in other types of clutch actuation, according to GM.A clutch setup like this could be used to decouple a motor from a set of drive wheels to improve efficiency.