Ford designs manual transmission without a clutch

Ford has filed a patent for a clutchless manual transmission in the US aimed at making its stick shift 'box fast than ever.

According to the Blue Oval's filing, the 'box seems designed to be mated against a traditional combustion engine if the description of it being ‘mounted to the engine block’ is any indication.

It features an automated clutch so no input from a third pedal is required. This allows the driver to change gear simply by moving the gear lever, with the clutch engaged by a pressure sensor on the gearknob. The CPU behind the system can then calculate the correct clutch movement based on wheel speed and the required gear ratio.

Beyond being a bit of a cheat for those who can't quite operate three pedals in the footwell while driving, Ford’s clutchless system will also bring faster shifts thanks to the pressure sensor. Instead of waiting for a leg to push the pedal down, the system will instantly operate as soon as the pressure sensor is triggered.

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But while it is a two-pedal setup in Ford's patent, the company plans to allow drivers to take control of the clutch if required, just not with a traditional push of the left leg.

The pressure sensor in the gearknob can be deformed somewhat, allowing the driver to control clutch actuation by squeezing it. There’s also an anti-stall system so that the car can override a driver if they are not correctly controlling the clutch.

Ford isn't the first to try such a system, however. Notable clutchless systems in the past include Porsche with the 1968 911 Sportomatic, and Mercedes-Benz trialled a similar system in the A-Class.

And this week Toyota filed its own patent with the United States Patent and Trademark Office showing it has plans underway for a manual transmission for electric vehicles which mimics the actions of a traditional manual gearbox using a "pseudo-clutch pedal" and "pseudo-shifter", controlling the torque delivered by the motor.