In the assembly of core new-energy vehicle (NEV) components, the gearbox acts as the key power-transfer unit.
Because it is now highly integrated with the motor and battery systems, the housing geometry has become far more complex, creating many challenges for the bolting stage.
An innovative screw-feeding & tightening solution, optimized on several technical fronts, has become the main lever for breaking these bottlenecks and guaranteeing gearbox quality.

1. The “diversity dilemma” of bolt positions

Motor/battery packaging forces the gearbox housing to carry holes that differ widely in horizontal position and spacing.
Several bolts must be tightened at the same time.
A traditional single-spindle approach cannot cover this irregular pattern; asynchronous tightening also deforms the housing, causing seal leakage or gear whine.
At the same time, takt-time targets are rising, and a slow bolting sequence can no longer support volume production.

2. Multi-spindle variable-pitch synchronous tightening + blow-and-vacuum module

Multi-spindle variable-pitch system

• Pitch between spindles adjusts automatically to the actual hole pattern

• All bolts are driven simultaneously, keeping the housing load uniform

• Accuracy and throughput jump in one step

Blow-and-vacuum module

• Air stream delivers the screw; vacuum holds it firmly

• The module can pick and place bolts even where motor or battery castings create narrow clearances

• Feeding reliability is maintained and the cycle is shortened

Together they form a high-speed, high-precision bolting cell that copes with the most crowded housing designs.

3. Floating socket technology—coping with positional deviation

High integration also magnifies machining tolerances; holes can be slightly off their nominal coordinates.
A rigid, fixed socket will crossthread or cam-out under these conditions.
A floating socket, spring-mounted around the spindle, can shift laterally and self-align with the real hole axis.
This compliant design compensates for positional error, raises the success rate and eliminates rework caused by stripped threads.

4. Outlook

Targeted solutions like these not only secure the quality and durability of the gearbox; they also cut cost-per-vehicle and raise line capacity.
With further integration of smart sensors and data exchange, the feeding & tightening system can talk to the plant network in real time and adapt its own parameters, giving NEV gearbox assembly an even more intelligent and efficient future.