Allison Transmission Demonstrates Safety and Ease of Operation Advantages for City Buses
2015-01-06 Source：www.chinabuses.org
Summarize：During the test drive of a Mitsubishi Fuso Aero Star bus equipped with an Allison Torqmatic Series? T310 fully automatic transmission, participants were able to compare a total of six driving patterns, consisting of three types of calibration with differing engine upper-limit values and shift patterns.
www.chinabuses.org: During the test drive of a Mitsubishi Fuso Aero Star bus equipped with an Allison Torqmatic Series® T310 fully automatic transmission, participants were able to compare a total of six driving patterns, consisting of three types of calibration with differing engine upper-limit values and shift patterns.
Participants who experienced the test-drive comparison noted the way the Allison transmission “learns” optimum gear-shifts depending on driving situation, road surface conditions and other variables, self-adjusting so that gear-shifting becomes increasingly smooth. In addition, in a comparison of launch and acceleration performance between buses, attendees got a feel for the automatic transmission’s widened range of starting torque.
Kazuyuki Morishita of the Sales Division at Kintetsu Bus Co., drove during the event and commented on the benefits Allison Automatics offer. “Before, I had the impression that automatic transmission-equipped buses were less powerful, but during this test drive I got the message loud and clear that they actually accelerate more powerfully than manual vehicles.”
During the comparison of shift programs, participants experienced three types of tailored calibration each optimized by Allison for Flat Road, City Street/Standard and Mountain Road routes. Participants felt the different upshift and kick-down points in response to accelerator position and downshift during deceleration.
The 5th Generation Electronic Controls are equipped with a new inclinometer, which measures road grade data generated on overpass and underpass ramps in multi-level roadways or when climbing slopes, as well as the discrepancies between accelerator position and actual vehicle acceleration in real time. These measurements contribute greatly to more accurate data, enabling drivers to select the optimum gear quickly, resolving conflicting issues of driving performance and fuel efficiency faced by large city buses.
The test drive also compared manual versus automatic-equipped vehicle launch, executed side by side. The starting gear for the manual transmission-equipped vehicle (300PS) was second gear, often used during city bus business operations, while the automatic transmission-equipped vehicle (270PS) was set to Mountain Road specifications in power mode. When started, the automatic transmission-equipped bus pulled ahead of the manual one immediately, with the distance increasing each time the manual transmission-equipped bus shifted to a higher gear. The Allison-equipped bus reached the end of an approximately 1000-foot stretch about 2.5 bus lengths ahead of the other. The manual vehicle lost momentum during every upshift, whereas Allison’s Continuous Power Technology™ provided uninterrupted power to the drive wheels, exceeding driver expectations.
The test drive also featured an opportunity to experience the operating procedures for automatic shutdown to prevent idling in the automatic - and manual-equipped buses. This allowed participants to be briefed on the Neutral at Stop mechanism – a standard feature on Aero Star buses.
“With manual transmissions you have to put the gear-shift lever in neutral each time you want to shut down the engine to prevent idling, but with the Allison transmission there is no such need, which is a huge help to the driver,” said Morishita.
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