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ARTICLE INFO
Article ID: 08-07-02-0011
Copyright © 2018
SAE International
doi:10.4271/08-07-02-0011

Electric Vehicle with Multi-Speed

Transmission: A Review on
Performances and Complexities
Md Ragib Ahssan, Mehran Motamed Ektesabi, and Saman Asghari Gorji, Swinburne University of Technology, Australia

Abstract History
Received: 21 May 2018
Electric vehicles (EVs) with multi-speed transmission offer improved performances compared to Revised: 04 Sep 2018
those with single speed transmission system in terms of top speed, fast acceleration, or gradeability Accepted: 22 Sep 2018
along with driving range. In this study, relevant literature is extensively analyzed to explore the e-Available: 04 Dec 2018
performances and associated complexities with multi-speed automatic manual/mechanical trans-
mission (AMT) system in EVs. In EV powertrain, the only torque generator component is electric Keywords
motor, which is not equally efficient throughout wider speed range. To the other end, vehicles need Dynamic and economic
to run at different speeds in diverse driving conditions. The study shows that multi-speed transmis- performances, Electric
sion system enables efficient operation of electric motor by choosing an appropriate gear at different vehicle, Gear ratio
driving torque-speed demands and thus contributes to achieve desired vehicle performances at ­optimization, Multi-speed
minimum energy consumption. To demonstrate the differences, both dynamic and economic perfor- transmission, Shift
mances with multi-gear system and single speed system are compared, and the results of various ­scheduling strategy
techniques are presented in the form of tables and bar charts. A quantitative analysis is also
conducted to show the performance improvement achievable by employing multi-speed transmis- Citation
sion concept in EVs. Apart from additional mass, gear ratio selection and torque interruption during Ahssan, M., Ektesabi, M., and
gear shifting are major obstacles to improve drivetrain efficiency and riding comfort in EVs with Gorji, S., “Electric Vehicle
multi-speed transmission system. For optimal gear ratio in transmission system, genetic algorithm with Multi-Speed
(GA) is found to be implemented in most articles. It is also observed that variable shift schedule Transmission: A Review on
needs to be considered during the optimization process to get the paramount gear ratios. Tables Performances and
and bar charts are used to show the results of recent relevant works to these issues. In this article, Complexities,” SAE Int. J. Alt.
Power. 7(2):169–181, 2018,
the readers would gain a comprehensive knowledge on how multi-speed transmission technology
doi:10.4271/08-07-02-0011.
can outperform the single speed system within EV platform and what the inherent challenges are.
ISSN: 2167-4191
e-ISSN: 2167-4205

169
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170 Ahssan et al. / SAE Int. J. Alt. Power. / Volume 7, Issue 2, 2018

Introduction FIGURE 1 EV powertrain layout.

B
etween 1830s and 1930s, electric vehicle (EV) tech-

nologies had experienced gradual development
mostly in traction motor, battery capacity and
charging infrastructure, etc. [1]. After the 1970s oil crisis, the
necessity of EVs has been realized again because of their
substantial advantages over conventional internal combus-
tion engine (ICE) vehicles. An EV generates wheel torque
through electric machine or motor that can offer more than
85% efficiency [2], whereas an ICE can convert only 12-20%
of the total fuel into useful wheel torque [3] and have a
maximum efficiency of 40% [4]. Although developing better
motor technology for electric propulsion has been among the
major foci of EV researches, introducing multi-speed trans-
mission system to enhance motor performance in EV is a
relatively new concept.
Developing an efficient transmission system as well as
integration with the existing EV powertrain system (Figure 1)
could contribute to achieve better drivetrain efficiency and
vehicle performance. EV can directly be driven by motor, or
there might be a transmission system between motor and
wheel to optimize the vehicle performance [5].
Manufacturers are adopting single speed transmission
system because it is easier to minimize the cost, volume,
energy loss, or drivetrain mass by using this system. However,
with single speed transmission system, EV powertrain
performance significantly depends on the performance of
traction motor or electric motor which is not equally efficient
in all speed ranges [4]. Data of Table 1 have been extracted
from the efficiency map of an electric motor shown in Figure
2 [6]. Blank cells in Table 1 show the maximum torque limit
of this motor. For this particular motor, desirable speed
range is 3500-4500 rpm as the achieved operating efficiency
is more than 90% within this region. In the speeds above
4500 rpm, although a higher efficiency can be maintained,
the maximum torque of motor drops significantly.
Vehicles are generally designed to satisfy different driving
conditions such as city drive, highway drive, and hilly drive.
Traction motor is responsible to supply wider range of speed
© SAE International
and torque to meet up the variable vehicle demand that forces
the traction device to run outside its efficient operating region.
Multi-speed transmission idea could offer a realistic solution
to keep the electric motor efficient during the operation of
EVs. However, this system comes with some other complexi-
ties in different forms, which will be discussed in detail. Multi-
gear system in EV helps to select available and lower-capacity
traction motor and battery [7, 8] by ensuring effective utiliza-
tion of these components. Initially, researchers started
working on exploring the better technologies for electric
motor and battery. However, transmission has soon appeared
as another crucial powertrain component that might
contribute to enhance the performances of EVs.
According to the studies on propulsion system in EVs [9, 10,
11], each type of traction motor comes with both advantages and
disadvantages in terms of vehicle performances and efficient
operation of motor. Recent studies on EVs with multi-speed
transmission system [12, 13, 14, 15, 16] have shown that better
performances and improved powertrain efficiency can
be achieved by maintaining efficient motor operation. Most of
these studies are focused on different features of multi-gear
concept such as performances of EVs in different driving condi-
tions, gear ratio optimization and shift scheduling techniques,
transmission loss estimation, etc. To the authors’ best knowledge,
there exists no review article which has studied multi-speed
transmission system in EV platform in a broader perspective. It
is believed that developing a review article on recent progress on
introducing multi-speed transmission in EVs will contribute to
the current research on improving EV performances and reveal
areas where further investigations are necessary.
This study will explore different forms of multi-speed
transmissions in EVs and survey the recent works on adding

TABLE 1 Working efficiency of an electric motor at different torque-speed combinations.

Motor speed, Torque, Nm

rpm 25 50 75 100 125 150 175 200 225 250 260
400 65.0 68.0 67.0 65.0 63.0 62.0 61.0 60.0 67.5 55.0 50.0
1000 80.0 84.5 86.0 85.5 83.5 83.0 82.5 82.0 81.5 81.0 80.5
2000 82.0 88.5 89.4 89.9 89.5 89.2 88.8 88.7 87.5 86.5 86.2
3000 85.0 90.0 91.4 91.9 91.6 92.3 92.2 91.5 91.2 91.0 91.0
4000 86.0 91.0 91.8 92.6 93.1 93.0 92.6 … … … …
5000 88.0 92.3 93.2 93.7 93.8 … … … … … …
© SAE International

6000 79.5 87.0 91.0 91.3 … … … … … … …

7000 74.0 86.0 89.0 90.0 … … … … … … …
8000 73.0 80.0 87.0 … … … … … … … …
8500 72.0 79.0 86.0 … … … … … … … …
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Ahssan et al. / SAE Int. J. Alt. Power. / Volume 7, Issue 2, 2018
FIGURE 2 Maximum torque and efficiency map of the
motor [6].
© SAE International
the multi-gear automatic manual/mechanical transmission
(AMT) in passenger electric car (E-car) and public electric
bus (E-bus) platform. Performances of multi-gear system and
direct-drive system within EV platform will be compared
considering the range, comfort, and driving conditions.
Although it is found in literature that the concept of adding
more than one gear in EV powertrain can improve the EV
performance, it is found that choosing appropriate number
of gears in EVs is a critical issue for different vehicle applica-
tions because of weight and space constraints. There is no way
to avoid the additional complexities of multi-speed transmis-
sion system. Therefore, gear ratio optimization techniques,
gear shifting strategies to minimize torque interruption
during gear shifting, and, finally, additional transmission loss
will be thoroughly discussed and analyzed to explore the
developments of EV transmission systems.
Variants of Multi-Speed
Transmission in EVs
In EVs, transmission is directly coupled to the traction motor
to transfer amplified motor torque to the vehicle wheels.
Therefore, location of traction machine is to be identified first
before going into the discussion of the variants of transmission
in EVs. Powertrain can be classified as centralized drive and
distributed drive based on the location of traction motor in
EVs. With distributed drive system (Figure 3), traction motor
FIGURE 3 EV with distributed drive system.
© SAE International
© 2018 SAE International. All Rights Reserved.
171
is directly coupled with each vehicle wheel and there may be a
gear reduction in between.
Within the scope of this study, centralized drive system
will be the main focus. Centralized drive layout of EVs
(Figure 1) is similar to that of typical ICE vehicle, where
traction motor replaces the ICE and battery replaces the
fuel tank. In this type of drive mode, the number of traction
motor could be one or two (Figure 4). Transmission and
differential or final drive takes place between motor
and wheels.
Two major types of transmissions are found in central-
ized drive system. One is single speed or direct-drive trans-
mission, where the transmission is directly coupled with the
traction motor to transfer the motor torque to the vehicle
wheels. Then next concept is multi-speed transmission in
EV, which is relatively new. Research on EVs was dominated
by technology demands of efficient traction motor, battery
energy density, charging duration and infrastructure, etc.
Although multi-speed transmission technology is not yet
present in the current EVs commercially available in the
market, the researchers are trying to explore how this type
of transmission system could contribute to enhance the
EV performance.
Continuous variable transmission (CVT) is a type of
multi-speed transmission that can provide infinite number
of speeds depending on the various driving conditions and
thus keep the electric motor in its efficient operating zone.
The operation of CVT involves a special belt or chain and two
pulleys located at fixed distance (Figure 5) [17]. Metal V-belt
drive and chain CVT drive are some common forms of CVTs
[18]. Infinite number of speeds can be generated by changing
the diameter of both drive and driven pulleys, continuously.
In many articles, multi-speed transmission has been
presented as automatic manual/mechanical transmission or
AMT, and the same will be followed here as well. Lucente et al.
[19] and Mashadi et al. [20] provided some ideas on how
AMT operates.
FIGURE 4 Centralized drive system with (a) single motor
and (b) dual motor arrangement in EV.
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172 Ahssan et al. / SAE Int. J. Alt. Power. / Volume 7, Issue 2, 2018

FIGURE 5 Electrified CVT layout. transmission that will be further explored later in terms
of performances.
Dual clutch transmission (DCT) [22] and inverse-AMT
(I-AMT) [14, 23] are other forms of transmission variants that
work based on similar functionality of AMT and thus are
considered relevant in this study. In DCT, two clutches share
a common drum, which is coupled with the motor. One clutch
plate is dedicated to odd number gears to engage/disengage,

© SAE International
whereas the second clutch plate is used for the even number
gears. I-AMT comes with rear-mounted clutch and offers 50%
or more compensation of traction loss that occurred during
gear shifting depending on design controllability.
Multi-speed transmission coupled with dual motors
(similar to the layout shown in Figure 4-b) could provide
FIGURE 6 AMT layout in EV powertrain system [21]. further benefits. A joint venture between an Italian vehicle
transmission specialist, Oerlikon Graziano, and a UK control
specialist, Vocis Driveline, introduced a DCT type transmis-
sion system with two traction motors and claimed to operate
EV powertrain with an efficiency around 90% [24]. The para-
mount feature of this seamless four-speed electric drive is that
twin motors replace the clutch plates and synchronizer from
the system. Therefore, recent works on DCT and I-AMT will
© SAE International

be presented along with the progress with AMT in

AMT is similar to the conventional manual transmission,
where through clutch pedal the clutch plate is used to select
a particular speed. The main difference here is that the driver
does not need to push clutch pedal or there is no clutch pedal
available with AMT. Speed ratio change in the gearbox is
controlled by a set of sensors, speed controller, and actuator.
Figure 6 shows a two-speed AMT powertrain configuration.
However, AMT system offers more gear arrangement in EV
EV powertrains.
After studying several articles, potential positive and
negative features of three major transmission candidates in
EVs have been extracted and shown in Table 2. Over the last
few years, many people have been studying multi-speed trans-
mission with the layout shown in Figure 6 to overcome the
limitations of lower mechanical efficiency with CVT or to
minimize the trade-off between dynamic and economic
driving performance with direct-drive system. Ruan et al. [25]
mentioned that CVT suffers from lower overall efficiency than
other automatic transmissions. The major reason is that the
transfer of driving torque is taken place here in the form of
contact and friction between belt and pulleys. Currently, CVT

TABLE 2 Features of different drive systems in EV.

Direct-drive AMT Electrified CVT
Desirable 1. Simple structure 1. Higher overall powertrain efficiency 1. Infinite number of speeds available at various
features 2. Higher 2. Improved EM efficiency over the driving conditions
transmission efficiency vehicle driving range 2. Capable to keep the electric motor in its efficient
3. Higher top speed and operating zone
acceleration capabilities 3. Replacing torque converter by servo-
electromechanical mechanism can eliminate
associated power loss
Undesirable 1. Poor reliability 1. May not be suitable for small 1. Driving torque is transferred by means of
features 2. Difficult to meet passenger EV because of potential contact and friction
desired vehicle torque interruption 2. For a given coefficient of friction in CVT system,
dynamic performances 2. Gear ratio optimization the required minimum clamping force increases in
3. Complex shifting control as well as a linear fashion as torque amplifying ratio increases
shifting quality 3. Relatively lower overall efficiency than other
4. Starting difficulty automatic transmissions
© SAE International

5. Additional transmission losses 4. An integrated CVT system comprises of

hydraulic pump power loss, variator torque loss,
6. Higher manufacturing costs and torque converter power loss
5. Higher manufacturing costs
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Ahssan et al. / SAE Int. J. Alt. Power. / Volume 7, Issue 2, 2018 173

FIGURE 7 Criteria for EV performance evaluation. EVs. The initial acceleration ability is measured by time
required to reach 60 km/h or 100 km/h from the stop position.
Acceleration
Passing acceleration ability is actually overtaking ability and
Ability is usually measured by time required to reach 80 km/h from
Dynamic
60 km/h. Gradeability represents the climbing ability, while
Gradeability
Performance vehicles are required to drive at uphill road. Gradeability is
measured by the gradient or the slope of the road and is
Top Speed
EV Performance expressed in percentage. For example, a road with 100%
© SAE International

Driving Range
gradient means this road has an inclination angle of 45°
Economic between road surface plane and horizontal plane. Generally,
Performance
Energy a vehicle with an ability to drive on a road of about 40%
Consumption
gradient or 22° inclination angle at a given speed (i.e., 30 km/h)
is considered to have sufficient gradeability.
can be found in some small passenger cars [26]. Sorniotti el al. Economic performance indicators are driving range in
[27] concluded that the inherent lower mechanical efficiency kilometer (km) or energy consumption in Mega-Joules (MJ)
of CVT is a major obstacle to exploit its advantage of smooth or change in state of charge (SOC) of battery pack. Battery
and continuous variation of gear ratio. AMT is the next alter- SOC actually represents existing capacity of battery or
native form of multi-speed transmissions for EVs specially remaining amount of charge available in battery pack to
with larger vehicle size. Researchers are trying to explore release [28]. A drop in battery SOC means some amount of
various aspects of multi-speed transmission in EV platforms charge has been released from the battery over a fixed time
such as performances, gear ratio and shift scheduling tech- period that can be converted in MJ. For example, discharge
niques, transmission loses, cost penalties, etc. and thus offer of 10 coulombs (C) charge in 1 hour (i.e., 3600 seconds) from
a realistic solution for desired dynamic and economic perfor- a 12 volt battery is equal to (12V)*(10C)*(3600s) Joules or
mance. Researchers have explored these aspects of multi- 0.432 MJ. Therefore, ΔSOC in battery pack can be used to
speed transmission and the next sections are accordingly reflect the energy consumption in EVs. Vehicle economic
dedicated to this discussion. performances are usually evaluated over standard drive cycles
like New European Drive Cycle (NEDC), Urban Dynamometer
Driving Schedule (UDDS), Highway Fuel Economy Test
(HWFET), Chinese City Style (CCS), etc. [13, 15, 29]. Most of
Performances with these drive cycle data can easily be collected from the drive
cycle toolbox in Matlab/Simulink environment.
Multi-Speed Transmission Results in Tables 4 to 6 are gathered from various studies
and show that both dynamic and economic performances of
The idea of incorporating multi-speed transmission to EV is passenger E-cars with multi-speed transmission system are
to increase the operating efficiency by keeping the motor improving in comparison with those with single speed trans-
working in its efficient operating region and to ensure riding mission system. It should be noted that these studies are
comfort at various driving conditions similar to those in carried out while they are not necessarily considering exactly
conventional ICE vehicles. Introducing multi-gears in EV the same electric motor capacity or the same vehicle mass.
powertrain contributes to both dynamic and economic perfor- Rather, information in these tables helps develop a general
mances of EVs. Dynamic performances are associated with understanding on how much performance improvement in
maximum speed, acceleration ability, and gradeability, EVs can be achieved with multi-speed transmission system
whereas economic performances are evaluated through compared to those with single speed system. With multi-speed
driving range or energy consumption (Figure 7). transmission system in passenger E-cars (Figure 8), significant
Ehsani et al. [9] presented further explanations (Table 3) improvement can be achieved in gradeability about 80% to
of how to measure or estimate the dynamic performances of 86% higher and maximum speed about 47% to over 90%

TABLE 3 Vehicle dynamic performance criteria.

Dynamic TABLE 4 Dynamic performance of passenger E-car with
performance criteria Definition different traction motor capacities.
Initial acceleration Time to accelerate vehicle from zero to a
ability given speed Motor Top 0-60 km/h Grade
capacity, Gear speed, Acceleration ability,
Passing acceleration Time to accelerate vehicle from a low to
Authors kW (Nm) ratios km/h time, sec %
ability a high speed
© SAE International

© SAE International

Zhou … (250) 7.94 102 5.8 23.45

Gradeability Ability to drive on inclined road at a
et al. [12] 13.4/4.4 198 4.9 43.67
given speed measured by the gradient
of the road and expressed in percentage Walker 40/75 6.82 151 6.48 25
Top speed Maximum achievable vehicle speed et al. [13] (135/250) 11.47 4.64 222 5.22 45
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174 Ahssan et al. / SAE Int. J. Alt. Power. / Volume 7, Issue 2, 2018

TABLE 5 Economic performance in terms of energy FIGURE 8 Maximum performance improvement of

consumption (in MJ or ΔSOC) of passenger E-car with passenger E-car with multi-speed transmission system
different traction motor capacities. achieved compared to those with single speed system.
Motor
capacity, Drive Energy Maximum Improvement Achieved with
Authors kW (Nm) Gear ratios cycle consumption Passenger E-car
100% 94%
Zhang 25 (…) 4.0039 UDDS 4.8931 MJ 86% Top Speed
et al. [30] 9.2/5.4/3.2 4.4368 MJ

Percentage Improvement
80% Gradeability
Gao et al. … (210) 2.0 NEDC 6.96% ΔSOC Acceleration Ability
[14] 60%
2.7/1.3 6.17% ΔSOC Energy Saved

© SAE International
© SAE International
2.0 UDDS 6.16% ΔSOC 40%
2.7/1.3 5.71% ΔSOC 19.4%
20% 11.3%
2.0 1015 2.09% ΔSOC
2.7/1.3 1.91% ΔSOC 0%

higher compared to the moderate improvement of 15.5% to The authors indicated that the gear change may cause some
19.4% higher in initial acceleration ability compared to those torque interruption in this acceleration mode. Walker et al.
with single speed system [12, 13]. In another study of two- [13] also found two-speed system suffers from lower driving
speed I-AMT system, Gao et al. [14] found 31% increase in top range compared to that with single speed system. In another
speed and up to 19.5% faster acceleration to reach 100 km/h study, Walker et al. [15] investigated the economic perfor-
compared to that with single speed transmission system. mance of both small and large passenger EVs, extensively.
While evaluating the economic performance of multi-speed They found small vehicle with two-speed system achieved
transmission in EVs, with two-speed drive system, Gao et al. 8.5% and 1% more driving range compared to those with
[14] achieved 7.3% up to 11.3% less energy consumption with single speed and three-speed system, respectively. On the
different drive cycles, and Zhang et al. [30] found 9.3% less other hand, under large passenger vehicle platform, single
energy consumption with the three-speed transmission model speed transmission model achieved the highest driving range
compared to that of single speed scenario under the UDDS of 189 km which is about 4% and 5.5% more compared to
driving cycle condition. Zhou et al. [31] modeled and opti- those with two-speed and three-speed transmission model,
mized both single speed and two-speed transmission system respectively. Another interesting finding of this study is that
and found over 2-4% more driving range with two-speed the three-speed transmission model performs slightly less
gear system. compared to two-speed system. The authors mentioned that
In earlier study, Walker et al. [13] worked with a single the closeness of ratios between these two models and less
speed and two-speed transmission model within EV platform. requirement of 3rd gear under selected CCS driving cycle
Two-speed transmission system performed well above single might be the main reasons for such result.
speed transmission in terms of top speed and gradeability It should be mentioned that compared to the dynamic
except the overtaking acceleration mode of 50-80 km/h. performance, economic performance is the major consider-
ation for the electrification of public buses which are mostly
TABLE 6 Economic performance in terms of drive range of used in metropolitan areas. Tables 7 and 8 show a comparison
passenger E-car with different traction motor capacities. of both dynamic and economic performance of a public E-bus
model at three different gear ratio combinations.
Motor
In two different E-buses with four-speed transmission
capacity, Drive Drive range,
Authors kW (Nm) Gear ratios cycle km system models, meeting up the target dynamic performances,
Zhou et al. … (250) 7.94 NEDC 126.55
nearly 30% less energy consumption compared [32] and 7%
[12] higher system efficiency [5] can be achieved compared to that
13.4/4.4 131.83
with direct-drive transmission system (Figure 9). Although
Walker 40/75 6.82 UDDS 142.1 the multi-speed AMT experiences slightly lower acceleration
et al. [13] (135/250) 11.47/4.64 130.4 time, Wang et al. [5] found approximately 150% higher grade-
6.82 HWFET 157.6 ability than that with single speed system.
11.47/4.64 141.8 Recovering kinetic energy is another intrinsic positive
Walker 58 (400) 4.9 CCS 176 feature in EVs. By utilizing the regenerative functionality of
et al. [15] 7.13/2.67 191 traction motor, wasted kinetic energy during braking or decel-
eration drive mode can be recovered back into the batteries
© SAE International

7.13/3.89/2.67 189
[33]. During heavy traffic, more than half of the total energy
Walker 100 (550) 7.06 CCS 189
et al. [15] could be wasted through the brakes in the form of heat [34].
10.66/3.46 182
However, the proportion of energy from regenerative braking
10.66/5.23/3.46 179 system to the batteries depends on the maximum motor
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Ahssan et al. / SAE Int. J. Alt. Power. / Volume 7, Issue 2, 2018 175

TABLE 7 Comparison of dynamic performance of an E-bus at different speed ratio combinations.

Authors Motor capacity, kW (Nm) Gear ratios Top speed, km/h 0-60 km/h Acceleration time, sec Grade ability, %
Tian et al. [32] 80/135 (500/830) 6.3 99 Approx. 18.9 21.1
2.96/1.73 102 Approx. 18.8 21.3
4.9/2.88/1.69/1 104 Approx. 18.5 21.9
© SAE International

TABLE 8 Comparison of economic performance of an E-bus at different speed ratio combinations.

Authors Motor capacity, kW (Nm) Gear ratios Drive cycle Energy consumption
Tian et al. [32] 80/135 (500/830) 6.3 CUDC 99.42 kWh/100 km
2.96/1.73 89.12 kWh/100 km
4.9/2.88/1.69/1 70.18 kWh/100 km
© SAE International

torque limit, transmission ratio, and maximum allowable

battery current [35]. An option of choosing an appropriate Complexities and Barriers
gear will contribute to increase the amount of recovered
energy or available brake force to the vehicle wheels. For
of Multi-Speed
example, a motor with maximum torque limit of 300 Nm and Transmission in EVs
tire radius of 0.3125 m can develop 8.112 kN and 5.146 kN
brake forces to wheels with speed ratio of 8.45 and 5.36, In case the number of speed is more than one, then gear ratio
respectively, in an EV model with two-speed transmission selection and shift schedule technique become important
system [35]. The study outcomes presented in Tables 4 to 8 factors for the transmission performance. Unlike the above
have considered regenerative features in their simulation studies where a comparison can be found among the transmis-
models. Regarding the gear selection during braking or decel- sion system with different numbers of speeds, some researchers
eration phase, higher gear ratio has been suggested at lower tried to focus on various optimization processes of multi-speed
motor speed [12, 13]. Because of restriction of maximum brake transmission in EV platform and evaluated the performances.
force from the regenerative braking system, it should Because of higher torque output throughout wider speed range
be mentioned that a separate mechanical or hydraulic braking of traction motor (Table 1), EVs do not necessarily need many
system is necessary in EVs to ensure sufficient brake force to gears, which is the case with traditional ICE vehicles. However,
wheels according to driver’s demand. these torque-speed characteristics of traction motor associate
For a particular battery capacity, efficient operation of the EV multi-gear system with large gap between gear ratios,
electric motor can contribute to the economic performance. which is not much desirable from the perspective of smooth
Motor efficiency published by the manufacturers is always gear change [21]. It is possible to determine the gear ratio from
true under the condition of rated load and speed. Outside both the technical details of vehicle based on performance targets,
the rated load and speed condition, it is a big challenge to that is, top speed, gradeability, etc. However, vehicles have to
estimate motor’s actual efficiency [36] that is a major issue run in various driving conditions. Hence, it is necessary to
because of variable torque demand from actual vehicle driving. apply some optimization techniques during gear ratio selection
Based on the recent work on EV performances with adding and shifting process to maintain performances in all range of
multi-gear system, it is possible to enhance motor’s opera- driving. Although gear ratio optimization and shift scheduling
tional efficiency that will eventually contribute to the overall strategy are discussed in the next two sections, it will be revealed
powertrain efficiency. soon that these two issues need to be considered alongside to
reach at optimal solution.
FIGURE 9 Maximum performance improvement of public
E-bus with multi-speed transmission system achieved
compared to those with single speed system. Gear Ratio Optimization
In general, maximum gradeability sets the highest value of gear
Maximum Improvement Achieved with ratio (i.e., 1st gear), and the maximum desirable speed sets the
Public E-bus
150%
limit on the lowest gear ratio [37]. Low value of gear ratio also
160%
contributes to the energy economy. Therefore, a high step ratio
Percentage Improvement

Gradeability
120% (highest gear ratio/lowest gear ratio) can improve both dynamic
Energy Saved
and economic performances [27]. However, gearbox mechan-
© SAE International

80%
ical layout sets the maximum limit of step ratio. Moreover, high
29.4%
40% step ratio invites another challenge with smooth gear shifting
0% or maintaining lower level of torque ripples while changing the
gear. Considering these conflicting issues, a suitable
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176 Ahssan et al. / SAE Int. J. Alt. Power. / Volume 7, Issue 2, 2018

TABLE 9 Dynamic performance improvement through gear ratio optimization.

Optimization 0-60 km/h Acceleration
Authors techniques Gear ratios Top speed, km/h time, sec Grade ability, %
Walker et al. [13] Before optimization 8.17/5.7 180 6.3 30
Genetic algorithm 11.47/4.64 222 5.22 45
© SAE International

optimization technique becomes necessary for the proper gear
ratio selection. Walker et al. [15] considered optimization of
transmission ratios and shift schedule as the primary step to
maximize the vehicle performance and driving efficiency.
Common practice to search the optimal gear ratios is carried
out by considering the economic performance as the objective
or cost function while constraining the dynamic performance
targets. In this case, economic performance is measured by
energy consumption of battery or SOC of battery. Set of gear
ratios with the lowest value of cost function will be the optimal
values for EV multi-speed transmission system.
Genetic algorithm (GA) is found to be implemented in
many studies. Yin et al. [38] applied GA to optimize the ratios
of two-speed transmission for the EV model and considered
minimizing drive cycle energy consumption as the objective
function maintaining the desired dynamic performances.
Walker et al. [13] applied the same technique, that is, GA, to
search for the most appropriate gear ratios of two-speed trans-
mission. However, the cost function is to maximize the mean
motor efficiency and driving range constraining the required
level of dynamic performances in this study.
In Table 9, the study outcomes show better top speed
(about 23% increase) and gradeability (about 50% increase)
after optimization while satisfying other performance targets.
In Table 10, results show almost similar dynamic performance
before and after optimization process which differs from the
results in Table 9. Different vehicle sizes might be responsible
for not getting similar outcomes from these two studies, or
there might be some other reasons that are subject to further
investigation. However, after optimization, Yin et al. [38]
achieved 4.29% and 5.28% extended driving range when air
conditioner is on and off, respectively. Figure 10 shows a visual
presentation of the information from Tables 9 and 10.
It is important to mention that Yin et al. [38] focused on
improving economic performance, while Walker et al. [13]
worked to enhance the dynamic performance. These studies
claimed that GA can manage multiple objectives and requires
relatively less information. GA works on the principle of evolu-
tionary optimization technique that is a population-based
approach and is suitable for optimizing multiple objectives
[39, 40]. Although this algorithm requires less information to
perform analysis, it is computationally intensive to reach the
optimal values.
Gao et al. [14] mentioned that the dynamic programming
(DP) under vehicle dynamic constraints could be another
option for tracking the best gear ratio that would keep the
cost function, that is, energy consumption, at the lowest level.
DP can handle multiple constraints and system nonlinearities
and provide optimal solution [41]. After going through these
optimization techniques, it is realized that gear shift schedule
is a crucial issue for the optimization process. To optimize
the gear ratios, gear shift schedule should be defined carefully
because each set of gear ratios is associated with unique shift
schedule that provides the best economic performance.
Shift Scheduling Strategies
Gearbox shift schedule design has positive impact on the
economic performance as well as dynamic performance of
the EV by improving the working region of motor. Wyczalek
[42] stated that gear shift schedule has a significant effect on
the efficiency of both EV and hybrid electric vehicle (HEV).
Through the motor controllability over wide operating speed
range and a well-developed shift schedule, necessity of clutches
during gear shifting can be eliminated from multi-speed
transmission system in EVs [43]. Gear shifting in such trans-
mission system is always associated with driving torque inter-
ruption and dynamic oscillation in output torque to the
vehicle wheel [44]. To maintain vehicle comfort, it is necessary
to improve the shift quality which is determined by torque
interruption/ripple and shifting time [26, 45]. According to
Lechner et al. [46], the whole EV powertrain efficiency is
affected by the transmission gear ratios as well as gear shift
schedule. It could be assumed that the performance of a
FIGURE 10 Performance improvement achieved after
implementing GA [13, 38].

TABLE 10 Economic performance improvement through gear

Maximum Improvement Achieved with GA
ratio optimization. 60%
50% Top Speed
Percentage Improvement

Top 50% Gradeability

Optimization Gear speed, Drive range, 40%
Acceleration Time: 0-60 km/h
Authors techniques ratios km/h km Acceleration Time: 0-100 km/h
30% Driving Range
© SAE International

© SAE International

23.3%
Yin et al. Before 10.18/4.55 123 105.25 (AC on)
17.1%
[38] optimization 144.45 (AC off)
20%

10% 7%
4.29%
Genetic 9.80/3.56 123 109.77 (AC on)
algorithm 152.08 (AC off)
0%

© 2018 SAE International. All Rights Reserved.

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Ahssan et al. / SAE Int. J. Alt. Power. / Volume 7, Issue 2, 2018
particular motor is closely and mutually associated with the
gear shift schedule and transmission gear ratio pair selection.
Zhou et al. [31] argued that combined optimization of gear
shift schedule and gear ratio is necessary to achieve satisfac-
tory EV performance by keeping the motor at its highest effi-
ciency zones. Gear shift schedule controls the gear selection
based on the driver inputs, that is, throttle angle, and vehicle
driving conditions, that is, vehicle speed. Shifting strategies
are mostly determined based on the lowest energy consump-
tion [30, 38], which is estimated by calculating the consumed
battery energy in MJ or tracking the change in battery SOC
over a complete drive cycle (i.e., NEDC, UDDS, etc.).
Han et al. [47] focused on the shift schedule design of
two-speed DCT for EV and applied powertrain coordination
control for shifting process that chooses the high-efficient gear
based on the torque and speed demand by the vehicle and
permissible speed limit of each gear. This study achieved 8.4%
higher motor drive efficiency compared to that with tradi-
tional comprehensive shift scheduling technique (Table 11).
Zhu et al. [6] explained both dual parameter-based (i.e.,
throttle demand and vehicle speed) and single parameter-based
(i.e., vehicle speed only) shift schedule calculation methods for
EVs. This study showed single parameter or dynamic shift
schedule is not practically acceptable because this method
ignores vehicle driving conditions and driver’s intention. On
the other hand, dual parameter or economic shift schedule
method showed its validity with about 6% and 5% higher
driving ranges under NEDC and UDDS driving cycles, respec-
tively, compared to that with previous method (Table 11). The
main idea of economic shifting is to keep the motor operation
in its efficient zone. For the simulation, the authors used motor
efficiency map, which is based on manufacturer’s testing data.
A rig test was conducted adopting the economic shifting to
validate these results that show the driving range of 124.66 km
and 119.02 km under NEDC and UDDS cycle, respectively.
These results are higher than the driving ranges found through
running simulation. In real battery, the voltage decreases with
SOC reduction that was reflected in simulation. However, the
rig test was conducted at constant DC voltage, 380 V, that could
be the main cause of getting higher driving range. However,
the study considered only motor’s driving efficiency, not the
generating efficiency. Utilization of brake regeneration energy
TABLE 11 Gear shifting strategy adopted in various studies on
multi-speed transmission in EVs.
Shifting
Authors strategy Performance
Han et al. [47] Powertrain 8.4% higher motor drive
coordination efficiency
control
Zhu et al. [6] Dynamic shift 13.3 sec to reach 100 km/h
schedule 111.73 km drive range (NEDC)
© SAE International
107.97 km drive range (UDDS)
Economic shift 13.45 sec to reach 100 km/h
schedule
118.68 km drive range (NEDC)
112.97 km drive range (UDDS)
© 2018 SAE International. All Rights Reserved.
177
is a unique opportunity for the motor-driven vehicle. Shift
schedule design during the braking condition has been recom-
mended as the future work in this field.
Gao et al. [14] mentioned two control systems to minimize
the torque interruption during the gear shifting process. They
applied a linear feedforward control for motor and clutch in
the shift torque phase and PID control in the inertia phase to
ensure smooth shifting process. Tian et al. [32] set the shifting
strategy by following the motor speed within the high effi-
ciency regions. In a recent study, Wang et al. [48] found 21%
energy can be saved with a three-speed AMT system on an
E-bus compared to that with direct-drive mode. This research
team applied an intelligent shift schedule taking full account
of China typical city bus driving cycle.
Shift hunting is another critical issue that must be prevented
to keep the gearbox operation smooth and avoid unexpected
damage of gear parts. This occurs when buffer zone between
upshift and downshift line gets too narrow and the vehicle runs
around this speed range. In such situation, gear shifting takes
place frequently that may create detrimental effect from the
perspective of gear material’s stress limit or controller’s ability.
Zhang et al. [30] used hysteresis strategy that increases the
upshifting curve by 20% and decreases the downshifting curve
by 20% from the dividing line on the gear-shifting map to avoid
repeated shifts. Zhu et al. [6] applied an offset coefficient of 0.4
to widen the gap between upshift and downshift line.
Alternatively, a transmission controller can be set with a
minimum waiting time before shifting from one gear to another
gear, and thus, frequent gear shifting can be prevented.
Guo et al. [49] implemented gear shifting strategy based
on the model predictive control (MPC) and DP on a two-speed
I-AMT EV. In this study, simulation results show that
MPC-based gear shifting offers lower energy consumption and
less frequent shifting compared to those with DP-based
shifting. A number of techniques have been applied to deter-
mine optimal gear ratios and shift schedule of multi-speed EV
to achieve desirable performances under different driving
conditions. Although many studies are based on simulation
rather than experiment, it is observed that a well-defined
gear shift schedule is necessary during the gear ratio
optimization process.
Transmission Loss
When the number of speeds is increased in transmission, in
addition to adding extra mass, the transmission losses will also
increase. Walker et al. [15] have found that the multi-speed
transmission system increases the losses through the clutches,
gears, and driveline components. These losses are another form
of challenge to deal with the multi-speed transmission system.
Zhou et al. [16] tried to estimate the impact of various sources
of losses within the EV powertrain system in terms of drag
torque or resisting torque. Five contributing factors such as
gear-related meshing loss, windage and churning loss, bearings
and oil seal-related loss, concentric shaft-related viscous shear
losses, and disengaged wet clutch loss have been found as the
sources of drag torque. Both theoretical and experimental
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178 Ahssan et al. / SAE Int. J. Alt. Power. / Volume 7, Issue 2, 2018

FIGURE 11
layout [16].
Modified test rig of two-speed DCT powertrain
Cost Impact
Apart from complexities discussed in the previous sections,
the increased cost of adding more gears in EV powertrain is
the next critical issue specially to the original equipment manu-
facturers (OEMs). Based on the analysis of the current litera-
ture, it can be inferred that multi-speed transmission system
in EVs can provide better dynamic performances with relatively

© SAE International
analyses have been conducted on a DCT to calculate its opera-
tional efficiency. The rig testing set-up is shown in Figure 11.
Results were very comprehensive and could be used as refer-
ence for further research. It showed that the mean two-speed
DCT efficiency can reach 95%; higher input torque increases
the efficiency of DCT, whereas the rise of input speed creates
opposite impact on the efficiency. Viscous shear in the wet
clutch pack dominates the entire drag torque followed by the
differential gear churning and windage losses. Gear meshing
has the lowest contribution on the drag torque. For the same
input speed, a vehicle experiences less drag torque generated
by clutch shear stress while it runs in the 2nd gear compared
to that in the 1st gear.
On the other hand, the gear churning and windage losses
for the 2nd gear have larger impact on drag torque than that
of in the 1st gear. However, Zhou et al. [16] mentioned that
their work did not consider the impact of temperature while
estimating the drag torque and has recommended for the
future work as the transmission thermal behavior analysis.
Gao et al. [14] tried to estimate the energy dissipated
during clutch slipping that is presented in Table 12.
The amount of energy losses through clutch friction is
significant. Therefore, it is needed to assess the impact on the
driving range and further study to investigate how to minimize
the clutch friction. However, the authors have pointed three
different scenarios during choosing the shifting strategy based
on how much traction interruption compensation is expected.
When shift quality is important and traction interruption is
completely compensated, then the shift process involves
maximum friction. For moderate drivability, about half
traction interruption is compensated and normal clutch-to-
clutch shift strategy is chosen. Here the shift process involves
reduced energy consumption compared to those with single
speed system. The next obvious question is whether the addi-
tional cost of multi-gear system can be balanced or overcome
by saved energy consumption or other potential benefits. Cost
estimation or forecasting of EVs or any powertrain component
in EVs is a difficult process compared to that with the conven-
tional cars because of immature manufacturing process or
small-scale production and ongoing emerging technologies
[50, 51]. A comprehensive understanding on the cost of inviting
more gears in EV powertrain can be gained from the study
conducted by Ruan et al. [25]. This study estimated the entire
lifecycle cost (both manufacturing cost and daily usage cost)
of EVs with three different transmission systems, that is, single
reduction, two-speed DCT, and simplified CVT system. In
their analysis, this research group considered the method of
design using characteristic values [52] to estimate gearbox
relative selling price, weightings of 43% city drive, and 57%
highway drive [53] to determine vehicle average fuel economy
and vehicle lifetime mileage of 300,000 km [54]. Assuming just
fixed speed reduction function, cost of single speed transmis-
sion system has been considered zero. The final cost estimation
presented in [25] can be summarized as shown in Figure 12.
The study shows that total lifetime cost of EV with two-
speed DCT and simplified CVT is 2.29% and 1.43%, respec-
tively, lower than the cost of EV with single speed system. It
is also found that the increased cost of adding more gears is
actually recovered through reduced cost of battery pack and
electricity cost throughout the lifetime.
FIGURE 12 Lifecycle cost of EV along with influencing cost
elements considering three different transmission systems
in EVs.
Lifecycle Cost of EV along with Influencing Cost
Elements Considering Three Different
Transmission System
90000

medium friction loss and is the widely used strategy. The clutch 80000
79243 77428 78109

friction remains minimum when the energy efficiency and 70000

Total Lifecycle Cost
Vehicle Component Cost in USD

cost are the main concerns. However, the torque interruption Battery pack final cost
60000
can be found at maximum level in such case. (Incl. Margin and
Warranty)
50000 Transmission (125 kW)

40000
TABLE 12 The friction work of clutch during gear shifting Electricity cost in
lifetime
process [14]. 30000
21888
19241 19936 19872
17525 17468
20000
Upshift Downshift
© SAE International

10000
25% 50% 100% 50% 0 1090 1562

Friction 5.176 11.147 20.326 12.056 0

Single speed based Two speeds DCT Simplified CVT
work, kJ EV based EV based EV

© SAE International

© 2018 SAE International. All Rights Reserved.

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Ahssan et al. / SAE Int. J. Alt. Power. / Volume 7, Issue 2, 2018 179

Conclusion friction work during clutch slipping is high when smooth gear
shifting or lower torque interruption is required.
Additional cost is another obstacle for introducing multi-
Recent works on multi-speed transmission system in EVs were gear system in EVs. Although cost estimation is a difficult
reviewed and analyzed. Results that were gathered from process, it was found in literature that total lifecycle cost of
various published articles are based on different capacities of EV with two-speed DCT could be lower than that with single
motors and size of vehicles. However, the first goal of this speed system.
review article was to explore the different types of multi-speed
transmission systems in EVs. It was found that although CVT
is a major candidate, there are sufficient reasons to study AMT Contact Information
or similar type of transmission system in EVs, specifically for
larger vehicle size. Md Ragib Ahssan
Next, the performances of EVs with multi-gear system Swinburne University of Technology
from a number of recent published articles were presented in mahssan@swin.edu.au
several tables. It was clearly observed that in EVs, multi-speed
system can enhance both dynamic and economic perfor-
mances. Compared to that with single speed system, the major
Acknowledgments
performance improvements with multi-gear transmission This research was supported by the Australian Government
system were found with gradeability (up to 86% higher) and Research Training Program (RTP).
top speed (up to 90% higher) while satisfying the other criteria
(i.e., acceleration ability and driving range or energy consump-
tion). Implementing a four-speed transmission system in a
Abbreviations
public E-bus, up to 30% energy, can be saved that is also note- 1015 - Japan for Emission Certification and Fuel Economy for
worthy. Most of the work related to the passenger E-cars were Light-Duty Vehicles
carried out on two-speed transmission system. Higher torque AMT - Automatic manual/mechanical transmission
output of electric motors throughout wider speed range was
found as the foremost explanation for using less number of CVT - Continuous variable transmission
gears in EVs compared to that with ICE vehicles. DCT - Dual clutch transmission
The second goal of carrying out this review was to discuss DP - Dynamic programming
the difficulties of adding more gears to the EV transmission E-bus - Electric bus
system in place of single gear and how these issues can be dealt
with. Despite the potential scope of performance improve- E-car - Electric car
ment, multi-speed transmission system comes with some EV - Electric vehicle
inherent complexities such as selection of gear ratios and gear GA - Genetic algorithm
shifting techniques, minimizing torque interruption during HWFET - Highway Fuel Economy Test
gear changing, additional transmission loss, etc. A high step
ratio (highest gear ratio/lowest gear ratio) can contribute to ICE - Internal combustion engine
both dynamic and economic performances of EVs. However, NEDC - New European Drive Cycle
the level of step ratio is constrained by the gearbox mechanical SOC - State of charge
layout. To address this conflicting issue of gear ratio selection,
UDDS - Urban Dynamometer Driving Schedule
it is necessary to apply optimization techniques. GA is imple-
mented to determine the optimal gear ratio in many articles
although this technique was identified as computationally
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