Eaton showcases innovations at IAA

Intelligent power management company Eaton displayed a number of transmissions for both traditional and electrified commercial vehicles at IAA Transportation in Hanover, Germany during September.

New automated manual transmissions for ICE powered buses and trucks

Introduced earlier this year to the Brazilian market, the new Advantor^™ series of automated manual transmissions (AMTs) are designed for commercial vehicles with internal combustion engines (ICEs). Advantor AMTs leverage Eaton’s long history of innovation and reliability in automated transmission technology. 

“The Advantor series has many product features that bus and truck manufactures globally will find attractive, particularly in emerging markets such as South America and Asia-Pacific regions,” said Marcos Janasi, business unit director, Commercial Powertrain, Eaton’s Mobility Group. “Our new transmission series is designed to deliver significant fuel efficiency and enhanced performance across a variety of vehicle duty cycles, and to provide reliability and ease of service.” 

Several versions of the Advantor AMT will be available in the next 24 months, including the Advantor-6, which was developed for the light-duty truck and bus segment; the Advantor-8, which targets the medium-duty bus market; and other versions to meet the needs of the broader commercial truck market. The Advantor series leverages common components to reduce complexity, improve serviceability, and to deliver a better driving experience. 

Central drive transmission solutions for electrified vehicles

Eaton also showcased its central drive transmission solutions, which are designed to be compatible with any electric motor/inverter/battery system and to be used in central drive applications, where the electric motor and transmission are in the traditional location in the vehicle. Eaton’s medium- and heavy-duty versions of its 4-speed EV automated transmission deliver superior performance on grades and acceleration for electric commercial vehicles while offering more flexible gear ratios compared to competitive technologies. The compact architecture is designed to improve system efficiency, enabling longer vehicle range and battery life. 

Eaton’s heavy-duty 4-speed transmission was recently recognized as a 2024 Automotive News PACEpilot Innovation to Watch and is currently in production. 

Ultra-compact EV transmission provides increase torque, payload

Rounding out the portfolio is Eaton’s innovative ultra-compact ​4-speed EV transmission, which offers a substantial increase in torque density,​ unlocking increased payload​, extended range, more packaging availability for batteries​, and flexible configurations.