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AbstractA large US company is looking for proposals for development of a sensor system that can monitor the temperature of dry clutch plates in a low-cost passenger car automatic transmission. They are interested in licensing, product acquisition, contract research, proof of concept leading to scale up to manufacturing, joint development, supplier agreement, etc.DetailsSmall cars to be sold in developing countries can benefit from automatic transmissions. However, these units can be costly in their current configuration with hydraulic pumps and sophisticated electronic control mechanisms to facilitate their performance. One approach to a lower-cost automatic transmission is to base it on a manual transmission design with a low-cost actuator and shifting mechanism to change gears. Inherent in these lower cost designs are dry clutches to provide launch and smooth shifting performance. A key advantage to dry clutch designs is a substantial cost savings; a disadvantage is their increased requirement for careful thermal management. An overheated dry clutch can result in transmission failure and cause a major repair in the field.The company is seeking a temperature sensor that can monitor the thermal status of the interface between the dry clutches in a low-cost automotive transmission. It should be noted that these clutches are rotating and are packaged in tight spaces. Should a customer's vehicle load and driving schedule begin to raise the clutch material temperature beyond a preset limit, the transmission control system could be overridden to make the shifts quick and firm (minimum slippage) and thereby prevent the clutch material from overheating. As the driving schedule becomes less aggressive, the transmission controls could be restored to their normal settings. Possible approaches might include, but are not limited to: - Slip ring devices. - Infrared remote sensors. - Other. The following approaches are not of interest: - Computational model or “paper” studies with no hardware demonstrated. Technical Specifications / Specific technical requirements: The successful technology will: • Monitor the thermal status of the interface between air-cooled dry clutches • Provide a signal to the control system when an upper limit is reached • Meet the following performance requirements: - Operate in a range of -40°C to 300°C - Trigger at 250°C - Be accurate within 3°C - Have a response time of < 100 msec - Provide a diagnostic status on key up - Be serviceable - Meet a cost target of US$ 5.00.
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