Pump Noise Reduction Using Shainin Statistical Engineering Methods 2001-01-1542

Historically, pump noise can be a contributor to customer dissatisfaction with automatic transmissions. In this paper, a Shainin experiment was conducted to identify all probable root causes for pump noise on a production RWD transmission. Sample transmissions were selected following subjective evaluations. Noise was objectively measured in the lab using a microphone and an accelerometer. The study was conducted following a systematic Shainin statistical engineering methodology, which included the following major steps: selection of the test measure using the isoplot technique, selection of Best of Best (BOB) and Worst of Worst (WOW) transmissions, assessment of assembly variation, component search, and pair-wise comparisons. The study successfully highlighted the key variables on the drive gear involute profile, which are now being tightly controlled for improved noise characteristics.