A Novel Approach for Improving Transfer Gear Noise in Front Wheel Drive Transmissions

Pure tone whine noises produced by transmission gear meshing can be a particular annoyance to vehicle occupants. In this case the gear meshing was exciting a resonance within the transaxle, resulting in an especially obtrusive pure tone noise within a narrow speed range. This report presents the identification of the resonating component and the development of a novel approach to eliminate the noise problem. Specifically a laminated steel (MPM) disk was fastened to the face of the gear to provide damping. Knowledge of the gear's mode of vibration was used to optimize the effectiveness of the damping treatment. This approach is proven to be effective via experimentally verified prototypes