JH Powershift and Countershaft Transmissions

POWERSHIFT AND COUNTER SHAFT
TRANSMISSIONS
In a manual transmission, power is transferred through the gears to the shafts by sliding the gears directly to
engage a gear or by using a collar to engage the drive gears to the shafts. Combinations of levers, shafts
and/or cables control the forks that make these changes, as they physically move the gears or collars. In most
cases, a clutch is used to interrupt the flow of power during a gear change.
The power shift transmission is a gear train that can select gears without interrupting the flow of
power. Instead of a physical movement (slip) of the gear or collar, clutches are activated
hydraulically controlling the flow of power. In a power shift transmission, the gears are constantly
engaged.
The main advantage of a power shift transmission is a faster response when changing from one
gear to another. This allows for a quick change of gears when necessary. These transmissions can
shift under load without loss of productivity.
Hydraulic Clutches
A hydraulic clutch consists of a clutch pack (discs and plates) and a clutch piston. The clutch is
engaged when pressurized oil pushes the clutch piston against the discs and plates. When the
discs and chainrings come together, friction allows power to flow through them. The disks are
connected with a component. The plates are connected to each other. Power is transmitted from
one component, through the clutch pack, to the other component.
The power shift transmission uses internal oil pressure to engage hydraulic clutches. When the
operator selects a gear, hydraulic oil engages the clutches that transmit power to the selected
gears. Each clutch combination gives rise to a diverse variety of transmission ratios and thus a
variety of speeds. When a clutch is not needed, oil flow ceases and the clutch is released. The
spring force moves the clutch piston away from the discs and plates allowing the component to
rotate freely. The power goes through the clutch is interrupted.
Gear Train:
The transmission transfers power from the engine through a gear train to the wheels. The most
common types of power shift transmission gear trains are:
�� Countershaft transmission , and
�� Planetary transmission
Contra shaft transmission
One type of transmission used on Caterpillar machines is the countershaft servo transmission. The
following describes the fundamental components of the countershaft servo transmission, their
operation (including power flow), and performance testing and troubleshooting procedures.
Countershaft servo transmissions differ from planetary transmissions in that they use constant
mesh spur gears. The transmission does not have sliding collars. Speed and direction changes are
achieved by hydraulically engaging several clutch assemblies.
Components
The clutches engage hydraulically and disengage by spring force. The clutches are engaged so as
to provide the appropriate speed and direction reduction to the transmission output shaft.
Clutch Piston
The clutch piston has an inner and outer seal. When the discs have used half the depth of the oil
channel, the clutch piston reaches far enough to move (burst) the outer seal. This prevents the
discs and platters from ever working metal on metal.
Pressure from the directional or speed clutch fills the cavity behind the clutch piston and moves the
piston counterclockwise against the piston spring and engages the clutch discs and plates.
Clutch Disc and Plates

The clutch plates are mounted inside the clutch housing. The splines on the inside diameter of the
plates are meshed with the splines on the clutch housing. The plates and the box rotate together.
The clutch discs are overlapped between the clutch plates. The inner teeth of the discs mesh with
the outer teeth of the hub. The clutch discs have a friction material adhered to their surface so that
there is no metal-to-metal contact between the clutch discs and plates.
Mace or Cube
It is the component in the clutch assembly to which the gear is splined. When the clutch piston
engages, the force of the clutch plates and discs is transferred to the gear through the hub.
Axles
The shafts hold the gears inside the transmission. The number of axles and gears is determined by
the transmission and machine model.
Oil Passages
Each of the transmission shafts has three internal oil passages. One passage is for oil to pass
through for lubrication and cooling of the clutches, bearings and gears. The other two passages are
for the oil to pass under pressure to engage the clutches on each axle.

JH Powershift and Countershaft Transmissions

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POWERSHIFT AND COUNTER SHAFT

Contra shaft transmission

Clutch Disc and Plates

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