Seoul 2000 FISITA World Automotive Congress F2000A130

June 12-15, 2000, Seoul, Korea

Steyr S-Matic – The Future CVT System

Heinz Aitzetmüller

Steyr Antriebstechnik, Schönauerstraße 5, 4400 Steyr, Austria

Steyr Antriebstechnik, an independent supplier of transmissions for agric tractors and trucks, has developed a
Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) on the basis of a hydrostatic mechanical power split.
The intelligence of the S-Matic is based on a splitting of power from the drive unit into a mechanical and a hydrostatic
part. This takes place at the transmission entry. The continuously variable transmission modulation is accomplished by the
variable displacement pump, which is “back to back“ assembled to the fixed displacement motor.
By adjusting the swash plate, variable rotational speed results at the hydrostat motor output, which is between the
maximum opposite and equal speed and direction to the purely mechanically driven gears.
Both of the power parts are brought together in the summary planetary gear, where the revolutions coming directly from
the engine and the hydrostatic rotational speed are superimposed.
In order to achieve sufficient transmission spread and to limit the hydrostatic power component, the S-Matic gear system
operates with four mechanical transmission ranges. To minimize frictional losses, all clutches are designed as dog
clutches. Shifting from one range to the next one is done at synchronuous speed. All transmission functions are controlled
electronically.
The result is a continuously variable output speed from vehicle standstill to maximum speed.
Major advantages of this driveline system are:
- Fully automized drive train from the engine to wheels
- Highest driver´s comfort, no shifting required
- Save operation under all driving conditions by permanent torque connection (geared neutral)
- Smooth vehicle acceleration from standstill to maximum speed
- Very good overall efficiency by keeping the hydrostatic power portion at low level
- Easy to operate by controlling engine and transmission by vehicle electronics.

Introduction Therefore, the Steyr CVT was developed with the

objectives of treating the entire drive system from the
Today, ever-increasing demands are being made on engine to the wheels as an integrated unit and
municipal, special and agricultural vehicles. controlling it centrally, without the intervention of the
In addition to performance and price, safety, economy user, in a way that would guarantee the optimum
and comfort are of increasing importance as criteria for operational mode of the entire system in every driving
product selection. situation.
As a result of high technical and functional requirements, The key component of this automatic drive line is the
over the years the complexity of drive and transmission STEYR S-Matic transmission. This transmission is part
systems have steadily increased. Advanced driving of a brand new generation of automatic transmissions
skills and user know-how developing into prerequisites working on the basis of hydrostatic – mechanical power
for the utilization of such systems. splitting.
Especially in vehicles working in frequent stop and go The specific conception of S-Matic transmission
traffic, the availability of smooth and constant torque guarantees maximum customer advantages through the
results in a significant increase of the vehicle’s highest levels of functionality and optimum levels of
performance, comfort and safety. efficiency.
The Steyr Antriebstechnik in Austria, a company with
proven innovation culture, has accepted this challenge.

[email protected] 1
How it works The principle of power superimposition in the
summarising planetary gear set under three significant
The S-Matic CVT is working on the basis of hydrostatic conditions is shown in the next picture. The engine
– mechanical power splitting. The transmission scheme speed is assumed to be constant.
is shown in the following figure:

Figure 3: Functional principle of power

superimposition in planetary gear

The ring gear driven by the gear on the input shaft is

rotating at constant speed. The speed of the sun gear,
driven by the hydro motor can be varied depending on
Figure 1: Transmission Scheme S-Matic the angle on the swash plate of the piston pump. In the
The torque on the input shaft drives on one hand the left picture, the sun gear is rotating in the opposite
ring gear on the summarising planetary set, on the other direction to the ring gear. The speed of the sun gear is
hand it drives the pump of a variable axial piston pump. adjusted to compensate the rotation of the ring gear.
A constant piston motor is connected back to back to This means that the rotation speed of the planetary
the piston pump and is driven by the oil flow generated carrier under these conditions is zero. So the output
by the variable pump. speed of the system can be controlled actively to be zero,
although the components in the system are rotating at
By variation of the swash plate angle on the piston high speeds. This geared neutral condition enables the
pump, the rotation speed and rotation direction of the system to hold the vehicle at standstill even on slopes
piston motor can be varied continuously. The gear on without activating the brakes.
the output shaft of the piston motor is meshing with a
gear connected to the sun wheel of the summarising Additionally the vehicle can be accelerated very
planetary set. smoothly with a minimum of dynamic effects in the
drive line by varying precisely the speed of the sun gear.
In the summarising planetary gear P1, which is a 5 shaft
planetary gear set with two input shafts and three output By variation of the output speed of the hydro motor
shafts, the mechanical power branch (ring gear) and the from maximum speed in opposite direction to the same
hydrostatic power branch are combined. speed and direction in comparison to the ring gear, the
speed of the planetary carrier is increasing continuously
from zero to maximum output speed.
If the speed of the sun gear is zero, the power is
transmitted purely mechanically. Under this condition,
the transmission is working in the best efficiency area as
the power losses in the hydrostatic branch are at a
minimum.
When the speed of the sun gear has reached the same
speed as the ring gear, the whole summarising planetary
gear set is rotating in blocked condition.
For achieving sufficient overall ratio in the transmission
and for keeping the hydrostatic power portions at low
levels, four mechanical ranges are arranged at the output
shafts of the summarising planetary gear. All gear
ranges are shifted by use of dog clutches. Synchronous
speeds at the dog clutches are achieved, when the swash
plate of the hydrostatic pump has reached a maximum
Figure 2: Arrangement of input shaft, hydrostatic unit,
positive or negative angle.
summarising planetary gear
In the four ranges, the power flow through the
transmission is shown in the following schemes:

2
Range 1: Torque is transferred from the ring gear H1B All clutches K1 to K4 and also the clutches KF
of the summarising planetary gear through the planetary (forward) and KR (reverse) are dog clutches (figure 4),
gear set P3. Torque flow is activated by connecting the which are engaged hydraulically and are disengaged by
ring gear and the housing by activating the dog clutch disk springs.
K1. In range 1 the transmission has a geared neutral
function by adjusting the rotation speed of the sun gear
electronically to achieve zero speed at the ring gear on
the output side of the summarising planetary gear set.

Range 2: Torque is transferred from the sun gear S1B Figure 4: Dog clutches used in the S-Matic transmission
through the planetary gear set P4. Torque flow is Using dog clutches instead of friction disks results in
activated by connecting the ring gear and the housing by best efficiencies by reduction of power losses to a
activating the dog clutch K2 when synchronous speed at minimum at opened clutches. Furthermore dog clutches
the dog clutch K2 is achieved. Synchronous speed don’t need any servicing activities during the whole
occurs, when the summarising planetary gear set rotates transmission lifetime.
in block. During shifting of one range to the next one, Shifting of dog clutches is done at synchronous speeds.
both dog clutches K1 and K2 are activated. K1 is At the shifting points the next dog clutch is engaged
disengaged after torque has been taken over from K1 to additionally to the active dog clutch. By variation of the
K2. swash plate angle in the hydrostatic unit, torque is
transferred from one dog clutch to the other one. After
this torque transfer, the previous dog clutch is
disengaged and the transmission ratio can be varied
continuously within the gear range by changing the
output speed of the hydrostatic motor. This procedure
provides, that there is no torque interruption from
Range 3: Torque is transferred from the carrier of the standstill to maximum speed.
summarizing planetary gear set directly to the output For avoiding unacceptable discontinuities during
shaft by locking the dog clutch K3. Synchronous speed acceleration or deceleration, shifting of one range to the
at K3 is achieved, when the sun gear at the summarizing other has to be done within 0,2 seconds. During the
planetary gear rotates in opposite direction to the ring shifting time, the transmission ratio has to be kept
gear with adjusted speed. constant. With the S-Matic transmission, shifting times
of 150 milliseconds can be achieved, which aren’t
noticeable by the driver at all.
Speed diagram
Due to the power flow described, a characteristic speed
diagram shown in the following figure is resulting.
Constant input speed is presumed.
The diagram shows the effects of speed variation of the
Range 4: Torque is transferred by connecting the sun motor of the hydrostatic unit. At vehicle standstill the
gear S1B to the output shaft. This is done by activating sun gear is starting at 2900 RPM and changes speed to
the dog clutch K4 at synchronous speed. In the fourth -2900 RPM at the end of gear range 1. After having
range maximum output speed is reached. passed the synchronous condition for shifting from
range 1 to range 2, the swashplate of the hydro- pump
moves again to the opposite angle. So for achieving
maximum output speed, the swashplate angle moves 2
times from maximum negative to maximum positive
angle.

3
 100%

4.000

Abtrieb
90%
3.000 Sonne P1a

Sonne P1b = Sonne P4

2.000
Hohlrad P1b = Sonne P3
80%

Efficiency
Steg P1
1.000
Rotation Speed [RPM]

0 70%

-1.000
60%
-2.000

-3.000 50%
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
-4.000 Vehicle Speed [km/h]

-5.000 Figure 6: T/M efficiency as a function of vehicle speed

-6.000
0 10 20 Vehicle
30 speed 40 50 60
Electronics concept and operator controls
Figure 5: T/M speed diagram The S-Matic transmission is equipped with an electronic
control unit directly integrated in the transmission
housing. This control unit handles all transmission
Forward / Reverse Planetary Gear internal functions and communicates with the vehicle
The output shaft of the 4 range gear is connected to a electronic system via CAN bus.
forward / reverse planetary gear.
During forward driving, the sun gear is connected to the
output shaft by activating the dog clutch KF.

For reverse operation, the planetary carrier is connected

with the housing and the output speed is converted to
negative direction.
During standstill of the vehicle both dog clutches KF
and KR can be locked simultaneously, which gives the Figure 7: Electronics concept in the S-Matic system
possibility of keeping the torque flow and geared neutral Signals from the operator controls shown in the sketch
function active even when shifting from forward to are interpreted in the vehicle control unit. Information to
reverse and opposite. other vehicle systems like ABS, ADM are exchanged
via CAN bus.
Transmission efficiency
Due to the fact of keeping the hydraulic power portions Benefits of the S-Matic system for the user
at low levels under all operating conditions by utilizing The S-Matic transmission is the key component in a
the four mechanical gear ranges, the transmission fully automated drive train from the engine to the
efficiency is excellent in comparison to pure hydrostatic wheels.
drives. The mayor advantages are:
The transmission efficiency as a function of vehicle
• No manual gear changing
speed is shown in the following figure. The influence of
• Continuous speed variation between standstill and
the hydrostatic unit to the efficiency graph is significant
maximum speed
at the middle of every gear range, where the hydrostatic
• Geared neutral function, no brakes required for
power portion transferred is zero. At these operating
holding the vehicle at standstill on slopes.
points, the power is transferred purely mechanically.
• No torque interruption during shifting from forward
to reverse.
• Very smooth and soft acceleration from standstill
even under severe conditions.
• Engine speed can be adjusted completely
independent from the vehicle speed. This function
offers best conditions for all kinds of PTO works.

4
• No additional gears for creeper or similar functions Industrial applications and future development
are required.
Applications range from agricultural tractors, special
• No interruption of traction from standstill to
trucks, municipal vehicles, construction machinery to
maximum speed.
city buses and delivery vans. Wherever a large number
• Prevention of operational errors and overloading
of shifting operations are needed, e.g. in stop and go
through electronic control.
traffic, or a wide speed range has to be covered, the S-
Additional functions are available in the S-Matic Matic concept has significant advantages for the user.
system: Prototypes of S-Matic transmissions are currently
• Cruise control with optimised co-ordination of available in agricultural tractors and municipal vehicles.
engine and transmission.
• Different driving strategies depending on driver’s
preferences (e.g. best efficiency of the whole drive
line, maximum working speed, kick down function)
For these reasons the S-Matic drivetrain system is ideal
for all vehicles working under severe conditions.
Best comfort and safety is provided to the driver due to
the fact that there is a permanent torque connection
from the engine to the wheels from standstill up to
maximum speed. Even during shifting from forward to
reverse, the service brake is not required.
The vehicle speed can by controlled by the driving
pedal or by cruise control. The coordination of engine
and transmission is done automatically by the vehicle
control unit. The driver can concentrate on the working
procedures.
Increased power throughput due to optimum
engine/transmission synchronization is achieved.
Fuel savings can be achieved by adjusting the engine to
run at it’s best operating conditions. Figure 8: S-Matic cartridge

Design concept
With the target of cost effective and quick integration
into existing drivelines, the S-Matic transmission has
been designed as a fully functional cartridge. Using this
preassembled and tested transmission unit, the
adaptation to the individual applications can be done
within reasonable time by maximum utilizing of tested
and proven components.

Figure 9: Installation drawing S-Matic cartridge

5
 Figure 10 : S-Matic test vehicle

Conclusion
With the continuously variable transmission S-Matic,
the STEYR Antriebstechnik has developed a new
generation of driveline system for special vehicles,
municipal vehicles, city buses and agricultural vehicles
on the functional principle of hydostatic- mechanical
power splitting.
Excellent efficiency is achieved by keeping the hydro-
static power portions at low levels by using 4
mechanical gear ranges. Shifting from one gear range to
the other is done by hydraulically engaged dog clutches
shifted at synchronous speeds.
Electronic transmission and vehicle control with
influence to the engine provides significant benefits to
the driver due to handling, comfort and safety.
The transmission is designed as a fully functional
cartridge, which can be integrated into existing driveline
concepts by maximum usage of tested and proven
components..

References

/1/ Aitzetmüller, H., Wöntner, G., Schachner, K.:

Steyr – S-Matic- Stufenlostechnologie in
Modulbauweise. VDI Tagung Landtechnik 1998,
Garching bei München.

/2/ Leitner, J., Aitzetmüller, H., Marzy, R.:

Planetengetriebe im stufenlosen
Fahrzeuggetriebe S-Matic – VDI Fachtagung
Planetengetriebe März 10-11, 1999, Wiesloch,
Germany.

/3/ Ulbrich, P.: Neues, stufenloses, hydrostatisch-

mechanisches Verzweigungsgetriebe für
Traktoren. Landtechnik Tagung 1994, Stuttgart-
Hohenheim