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This article takes an in depth look at gears and their applications.
This article will discuss topics such as:
A rotary circular machine with a tooth in its structure and is used to transfer torque and speed from one shaft to another is called a gear.
Gears are also known as cogs and have cut teeth in the cogwheel or gear wheel. These teeth mesh together, and are used to transfer torque and speed. Gears are mechanical devices that work on the level principle. The direction, speed and torque of the power device can be changed by the presence of gears. Gears are simple machines that can be different sizes and produce a different amount of torque, giving a mechanical advantage. The speed depends on the rotational speed and diameter of two meshed structures attached to it. The shape of teeth in all the gears are the same and evenly spaced. The teeth provide torque and prevent slipping gears. If two or more meshing gears are working in a sequence, it is called transmission or gear train. A linear toothed pack is called a rack and if the mesh works in a linear direction, it produces translation.
Gears can be classified by shape and also by the shaft positions. The shapes of gear can be involute, cycloid, and also tricoidal. Whether the shaft position could be parallel shaft gears, or intersecting gear and also as non-parallel shaft gears or non -intersecting shaft gears. The gears are usually mounted on the objects or attached to it with the help of shafts or base. Typically the toothed component is attached to the shaft of the object and when the driving force is applied to it, the shaft rotates. The driven gear also translates and has rotary motion. The gears are defined by the radius and the number of teeth that are present in it.
Gear radius is different depending on part of a gear that is being examined. The root radius and addendum radius are the most relevant gear measurements. The difference between these measurements is what is being measured. To determine the root radius, a gear is measured from the center of the gear to the base of the teeth and defines the cutter fillet radius, which is the fillet curve at the base of a gear tooth next to the cutter tooth tip. The gear tooth fillet is a critical part of a gear that must endure maximum bending stress concentration and cannot always be accurately measured.
The addendum radius is the height that a tooth extends beyond the pitch circle or pitch line and is the distance from the center of a gear to the top of a tooth. The addendum circle, of which the addendum radius is a part, is the outside cylinder of external gears and the inside circle of internal gears. The addendum radius is also referred to as the pitch radius since it is the distance from the center of a gear to the pitch point.
The dimensions of the radius differ in accordance with the type of gear. The pitch radius and addendum radius are part of the diameter of the pitch circle.
The teeth of gears are the portion of gear that makes it possible to make contact with other gears and provide a change of motion or movement with the pitch being the distance between identical points on adjacent gear teeth. The definition of gears begins with a description of their teeth, which are the necessary part of a gear that prevents slippage during the transmission of power. From ancient times, gear teeth have been referred to as cogs, the structure, placement, and profile of which is integral to the performance and use of a gear.
Gear teeth are normally cut into a blank but can also be inserted individually. Gears that are made from blanks require the whole gear to be replaced when teeth weaken and fail. The type of gear determines the placement of their teeth and the angle of the teeth, which can be straight or helical. Teeth can be placed around the outer circumference of the gear, internally on the inner portion, or flattened around the circumference.
The basic structure of gear teeth may seem to be rather simple and uncomplicated. In actuality, a great deal of thought and mathematical formulations are used to precision calculate the structure of gear teeth.
Involute gear teeth are the most commonly used gear teeth for drive and driven gears. Their shape depends on the diameter of the base circle. Standard involute teeth are able to mesh with any gear that has the same pitch, pressure angle, and helix angle. Contact occurs at a single point where two involutes of the same spiral meet.
Some of the factors used in the design of gear teeth include:
Gears are used to transmit rotation from one axis to another axis and to change the output speed of a shaft. They are commonly used for high loads because their teeth allow for fine control in the movement of a shaft.
Addendum - The teeth of gears extend outward for external gears and inward for internal gears from the pitch circle. This projection of gears is the radial distance between the pitch diameter and the diameter of the gear, which is referred to as the addendum with the tops of the gear teeth forming the addendum circle.
Axis - The axis controls the direction of gear movement and how that motion is translated. Parallel axes are the most common form of axis where two axes are parallel. With intersecting axes, the axes are perpendicular to each other and are used to change the direction of motion. Although parallel and intersecting are the most common form of axes, there are gears that are not parallel and do not intersect.
Base Circle - The base circle is a theoretical construct that is used to generate the involute curve for the creation of tooth profiles.
Circular Pitch - The circular pitch is the distance from a fixed point on one tooth to the same fixed point on an adjacent tooth, which is measured along the pitch circle. The measure is in the form of an arc and not line due the curve of a gear. In order for gears to mesh properly, the circular pitch, also referred to as the space between the teeth, of both gears must be equal.
Since the formula for calculating circular pitch includes pi (ℼ), module, a unit for gear tooth size, is used to avoid cumbersome calculations. Modules of gears are easier to handle than circular pitch, because it is a rational number.
Dedendum - The dedendum is the depth of a gear tooth between the pitch circle and the minor or inside diameter.
Diametral Pitch (DP) - The diametral pitch is the ratio of the number of teeth to the pitch diameter. In order for gears to mesh properly, they must have the same diametral pitch. It is expressed in the United States and the United Kingdom as the number of teeth per inch. As the number of teeth per inch increases, the profile of the teeth gets smaller. The larger the DP value, the size of the teeth of a gear get smaller.
Fillet - The gear tooth fillet, also known as the trochoid, is the byproduct of the gear cutting motion and is located just before the cutter tip impression on a gear tooth.
Form Diameter - The form diameter is an imaginary circle that is produced by connecting the trochoid or fillet curve of the teeth of a gear, is known as the involute form diameter (TIF) and is less than the base circle diameter.
Gear Ratio - The gear ratio indicates how many times a gear must turn for another gear to turn once. It is a direct measurement of the ratio of the rotational speeds of two or more interlocking gears. If the drive gear that is receiving power is bigger than the driven gear, the latter will turn quicker. If taken in reverse and the powered gear is smaller than the driven gear, the former will turn faster.
Pitch Circle - The pitch circle defines the size of a gear and needs to be tangent to another gear in order to mesh. It is an imaginary circle that goes through each of the teeth of a gear with a radius that makes it possible to make contact with a similar circle.
Pitch Diameter - The pitch diameter, identified by dm or d2, is the diameter of the pitch circle and is used to calculate how far away two gears should be from one another. It is equal to the widths of the threads and grooves. The pitch diameter is the width of the cylinder as it intersects the major and minor diameter or pitch line. It is an important part of determining the compatibility of gears and used as a frame of reference for thread measurement.
Pressure Angle - The pressure angle is an angle formed by a line that is tangent to the pitch circle and a normal line to the tooth profile at the pitch circle. It is determined by the tool that is used to form the involute curve of the gear teeth. Standard pressure angles are 14.5o, 20o, and 25o. The pressure angle determines how gears make contact and the amount of force that is distributed along the teeth. For two gears to mesh, they must have the same pressure angle.
Teeth - Teeth of a gear project outward or inward depending on the design of the gear. When they project outward, the teeth on the circumference of the gear are used to transmit rotation. When they are on the inside of the gear, they are referred to as internal gears, which are matched with an external gear and commonly used for planetary gear drives.
Part of the definition of all gears is based on the profile of a gear’s teeth, which generally have an involute curve profile. The other types of profiles are cycloidal tooth shape and trochoid tooth shape that are specialized types of teeth used for specific applications. The involute shape helps fears transmit power smoothly.
The profile of a gear tooth is one side of a tooth’s cross section between the outside circle and the root circle.
Top Land - The top land of a gear tooth is the flat surface at the top of a tooth, the width of which is referred to as the face width and has a thickness that is equal to the spacing between two teeth.
Tooth Thickness - The tooth thickness (ts) is the arc length between the opposite faces of a tooth measured along the pitch circle. It is not measured directly but calculated from other dimensions of gear teeth.
Tooth Face - The tooth face is the mating surface between the addendum circle and the pitch circle. It is part of a tooth that is outside the pitch surface
Tooth Flank - The tooth flank is the surface between the tip surface and root surface and consists of the addendum flank, dedendum flank, and blending surface.
Fillet Radius - The fillet radius of a gear tooth is at its base and is the area of maximum bending stress concentration. It has a marginal profile and is difficult to define and inspect.
Tooth Pitch - The tooth pitch is the distance between two points on adjacent teeth and is measured at the pitch line. The description of pitch is designated as diametral pitch, circular pitch, and module with the most commonly used in the United States being diametral pitch.
Pitch Point - The pitch point of a gear tooth is the tangency between the pitch circles of two gears when they mesh and is on the line of centers. The position of the pitch point determines the velocity ratio of two teeth.
Face Width - The face width is the length of a tooth along its axial plane. Increasing the face width increases a tooth’s bending strength and tooth surface strength. When the face width is smaller than the mating part, the mating part is referred to as effective face width.
Gears are mechanical devices that are usually circular in shape and have teeth like structures on the edges or top. The gears are used in many machines to provide rotational force and torque for its working. The gears work in pairs, which helps in preventing slipping, one gear’s teeth engaged in the other. Gears are machines that have teeth and are placed on the rotating shafts. If the gear pair is circular then the rotary speed and the torque produced is constant. But if it is non circular then the speed and torque ratio may vary.
For a constant speed and non varying torque it is important to carefully shape the profile of the gear. The smaller pair of gears, also called pinion, is on the driving gear. The pair will move and reduce the speed and increase the torque of the gear. But if the pinion is on the driven shaft then the speed will increase and torque will decrease. The shaft that the gear pair is on must be placed close but with space between. The rotating shaft can be parallel, non parallel, intersecting, or non intersecting. The gears connect each other with a rotating shaft. This shaft works as a lever. The main function of gears is to transfer energy or rotation from one part to another. Many gears can be connected at one time. Three things can occur in gears such as:
If two wheels are connected to each other and one has 40 teeth and the other has 20 teeth, then the smaller one with 20 teeth will move twice the speed as the first one to keep up the pace of both wheels. The speed will increase but the force will be reduced for the smaller wheel to move.
If the smaller wheel has more teeth rather than the bigger one then its speed will slow down and force will increase. It means more force will be required by the smaller wheel to move.
If the two gears that are connected to each other move, then one gear will move clockwise and the other will move anti clockwise. If we want to turn the angles of its movement then we have to use a special type of gears that are specific for this function.
There are many different types of gears in industrial applications. Each is designed differently from each other according to its application. The main characteristics that differ include:
Most of the time the gears are circular in shape, though are also found in elliptical, triangular, or square shape. A circular gear will give a better gear ratio. This means that the ratio of the input given will give the same ratio of output. This is applied for rotary speed and the torque of the gear. However, if the gear is non-circular it will give a variable gear ratio. That means the speed and the torque will continue to change, alternatively increasing and decreasing.
The tooth design and configuration is an important characteristic of a gear. Each type of gear differs in their tooth design. Gear tooth design is determined by factors such as:
Gear tooth structure depends on the type of the gear and its application. The teeth are either embedded directly into the cut or can be placed separately in the cut. Sometimes the teeth wear off during gear usage. If the teeth are embedded in the cut then the whole gear must be removed. However, if the teeth are placed separately and become embedded, they are easier to remove. This minimizes the cost of gear replacement and can be customized according to the application.
Gear teeth can be inserted into the cut either placed externally or internally. External teeth means that they face outward of the gear center, whereas internal gear teeth placement mean they face towards the gear center. In a mated pair the teeth placement plays a key role in determining the rotation of the gear. If the mated pair has a tooth placement that is external then the rotary motion will be in the opposite direction. If there is an application that requires the same direction of motion then an idler gear is placed in between these two pairs which changes the direction of rotation. If the mated pair has both the placements (external and internal) then the rotation will be in the same direction. This will eliminate the need for an idler gear and is well fitted for many applications.
The other characteristic of a gear tooth is the tooth profile. The tooth profile is the cross sectional area of the tooth that is important for speed and friction production in a gear. There are many types of tooth profiles but the most common are the involute, trochoid, and cycloid. Involute tooth gear has a curve that forms a locus shape. This curve is important as it produces constant pressure in the gear performance. The most commonly used profile is involute as it can be used in many applications. Trochoidal gears are used in pumps and cycloid gears are used in pressure blowers and clocks.
Gears are classified by their positional relationship of the axes and pair of gears. The three classifications are parallel axis, intersecting axis, and non-parallel and non-intersecting axis. The difference between the three configurations is how the shafts that hold the gears interact with parallel gear shafts being parallel to each other while intersecting gear shafts are at an angle or perpendicular to each other. Non-parallel and non-intersecting gears transmit rotational force by slippage between the gear tooth surfaces.
The use of the term parallel axis gear configuration refers to the transmission of power between parallel shafts where the meshing of the gears creates rolling contact that results in transmission of 98% up to 99.5% efficiency. In this configuration, the gears are connected to the rotating shaft on the same plane in a parallel axis. The driven gear moves opposite to the drive gear, which enhances efficiency. The transmission of motion and the rotation of the joined gears is very high.
The types of gears used for the parallel gear configuration are double helical, helical, herringbone element, and spur gears, with spur and helical being the most commonly used. Spur gears are low cost and have a simple design but produce a great deal of noise and may not be ideal for large amounts of torque because of the one to one tooth contact.
For high torque applications, helical gears are the better choice. They have angled teeth that increase the ratio of contact and run quieter. The disadvantage of helical gears for parallel axis configurations is the axial thrust force produced by the helix form.
Parallel axis configuration gears provide optimum reliability, are easy to maintain, and have minimum components. This configuration is the most common type of gear arrangement and consists of a pinion and gears. The various ways parallel gears are described are double increaser, reduction, triple increaser, or reduction gear.
The intersecting gear configuration involves two axes that cross at a single point within the same plane. The critical factor regarding intersecting axes gears is being properly configured in relation to one another with mounting distance being the key design parameter. The mounting distance includes matching the locating surface on the back of one gear to the plane of the action apex. The gear base cone apex, mating pinion base cone apex, and plane of apex must snap together for ideal contact.
Intersecting gears are placed in a gear housing that supports the gear shafts and has bores for supporting the shafts. The critical aspect of the housing is its ability to maintain the gear axis rotation aligned with the axis. Included is the configuration of the pinion such that the house helps maintain the pinion axis rotation.
The shafts for intersecting gears are skewed such that they can change torque and speed depending on their design. They save space, improve lubrication, and place less stress on gear teeth.
Bevel gears are most commonly used for gears that intersect at a right angle. They are more expensive and are unable to transmit as much torque as parallel shaft gear arrangements. The unique configuration of intersecting gears requires that the gears have a cone shape with teeth on an angle along the sides of the cone. As the powered gear turns, it drives another cone shaped gear, which changes the force and angle of the transmission of power.
When describing gears, it is generally believed that gears securely mesh together to transmit power or force. The teeth of one gear tightly connect with the teeth of another gear. This scenario is not the case for non-parallel and non-intersecting gears, which transmit rotational power by relative slippage between the gear tooth surfaces. The gear pairs have their rotating shafts on a cross axis to provide low rotary motion and low transmission power efficiency.
Like intersecting gears, non-parallel and no-intersecting gears are at right angles to each other. They are known as skew bevel gearing or spiral gearing and are at right angles or perpendicular to each other but do not intersect. The configurations of non-parallel and non-intersecting gears include helical gears with similar teeth at an angle and placed perpendicularly to each other.
Another form of non-parallel and non-intersecting gears is a worm gear arrangement, which contains a worm gear or threaded shaft and a spur gear. As the threaded shaft turns in a single rotation, its teeth get displaced by a distance equal to the pitch of the screw threads. The rotation of the worm gear drives the spur gear.
The hypoid gear configuration of non-parallel and non-intersecting gear configurations is very similar to intersecting gears and includes a pinion that meshes with a gear. As the pinion rotates at high speed, the gear, which is larger, rotates slowly. The two gears have offset axes, which is why they fall into the non-parallel and non-intersecting gear category.
All these characteristics are important to consider when choosing a type of gear for a specific application. Things to consider when purchasing gears include material types used for construction of a gear, surface treatments, tooth number, angle, and the type of lubricant.
A critical aspect of gear production is the selection of materials that are used to produce gears with strength, durability, and cost being the most important factors. Each of these criteria varies according to the gear that is being manufactured. Added to the selection process is finding the correct combination of physical properties that meet the requirements of an application at a cost that fits the budget of a project.
Gears are made from a wide range of materials including steel, brass, bronze, cast iron, ductile iron, aluminum, powdered metals, and various forms of durable plastics. Of the many types of materials, steel is the most common material because of its high strength to weight ratio, resistance to wear, enhanced physical properties, and pricing.
The choice of gear material geometry based or performance based are the factors that dictate the selection process. Of the many raw materials, each has their positive properties in regard to gear construction with outstanding mechanical properties. Although there is a long list of materials used for the manufacture of gears, the main categories are copper alloys, iron alloys, aluminum alloys, and thermoplastics.
Rolling is a metal forming process that involves the use of a set of rollers that alter the shape of the metal, improve its uniformity, and enhance its mechanical properties. The rolling process is divided into cold rolling and hot rolling, which have distinct characteristics that make steel suitable for different applications. When selecting steel to manufacture gears, it is essential to understand the differences between the two methods of manufacturing since they affect the performance of the metal.
Cold rolled steel is an iron based alloy that is made from one or many different kinds of chemical compositions with the majority having a low carbon content. For the manufacture of gears, low to medium carbon steel is used. Cold rolled steel is hot rolled and undergoes various processes to improve its dimensional and mechanical properties. During the rolling process, cooled heated rolled steel passes through a series of rollers at room temperature under high pressure. It is an expensive process that achieves tight dimensional tolerances and an improved surface finish.
In the case of cold rolled steel for gears, the metal is rolled at different thickness into sheets or plates that can be used for various gear manufacturing methods. The cold rolling process produces steel that is 20% stronger than hot rolled steel, which makes it ideal for high stress applications. Its better surface finish makes cold rolled steel able to produce gears with a smooth, even finish that have a shiny surface. Since cold rolled steel does not shrink after forming, gears that are manufactured from it are dimensionally accurate and precise.
Hot rolled steel is not used for the manufacture of gears due to its rough scaly surface and oily finish. Although hot rolled steel costs less, has high strength, and is available in large quantities, it is unable to produce components that have tight tolerances and precision shapes, which automatically disqualifies it from gear production.
Tool steel alloys have a high carbon chrome content with differing amounts of molybdenum, cobalt, vanadium, and other essential elements. They are ideal for gear production due to their ability to withstand high loads, ability to endure impact at room temperature, and exceptional wear resistance. Tool steel alloys come in an annealed condition, which softens the material such that it can be machined or formed. The grades of tool steel include MTEK A2, MTEK A6, MTEK D2, and MTEK D5, and MTEK H13.
The wide use of tool steel is due to its hardness, resistance to wear, toughness, and resistance to high temperatures. There are seven categories of tool steel, which include water hardened, hot worked, cold worked, shock resistant, molded, and special purpose. Of these categories, cold worked tool steel is used the most for the production of gears.
The strength and carbide formation of tool steels is due to their high carbon content with nickel and cobalt giving it high temperature resistance. The various carbide metals, chromium, molybdenum, tungsten, and vanadium, give tool steel its hardness and wear resistance. Its carbon content ranges between 0.7% and 1.5% of weight with some tool steels having 2.1%.
The manufacture of gears using tool steel includes cutting, forming, shearing, and stamping of sheets or plates of the metal.
The first choice of material for gears that require superior strength are iron alloys with carbon steel used for all types of gearing applications because it is easy to machine, is wear resistant, can be hardened, is widely available, and is inexpensive. The classifications of carbon steel include mild steel, medium carbon steel, and high carbon steel. Mild steel alloys have less than 0.3% carbon while high carbon steels have greater than 0.6% carbon content. Mild, medium, and high carbon steels are used to manufacture spur gears, helical gears, gear racks, bevel gears, and worm gears.
Carbon steels can be induction or laser hardened while other steels have aluminum, chromium, copper and nickel added to create stronger steels that are easier to machine, are more corrosion resistant than carbon steel, and are used to make the same gears as mild, medium, and high carbon steel alloys. The added strength of the special alloyed steels makes it possible for gears made from them to endure heavier loads with greater resistance to wear.
A special alloy of steel is stainless steel that has an 11% chromium content and is alloyed with nickel, manganese, silicon, phosphorus, sulfur, and nitrogen. Stainless steel is divided into ferritic, austenitic, martensitic, and precipitation hardened stainless steels, each of which has special characteristics and properties.
Ferritic stainless steels are 400 series stainless steels while austenitic stainless steels are 300 series stainless steels. Of the four stainless steel types, stainless steel alloy 304, with an 18% chromium and 8% nickel content, is the most used and most popular. For the production of gears, stainless steel 303 is used with a 17% chromium content and 1% of sulfur added. The addition of sulfur improves the machinability of stainless steel 303.
In applications that require gears with corrosion protection, stainless steel 316 is used due to its 16% chromium, 10% nickel, and 2% molybdenum content. The gears that are normally made from stainless steels 316 and 303 are spur gears, helical gears, and bevel gears.
Copper alloys are used for the manufacture of gears that will be subjected to corrosive conditions or require a non-magnetic material. The most commonly used copper alloys for gear production are brass, phosphor bronze, and aluminum bronze. Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, which changes the ductility of the alloy.
When brass has a low zinc content, it is very ductile. With a high zinc content, brass is less ductile. The copper content of brass makes it easy to machine gears and makes them antimicrobial. Gears that are made from brass are spur gears and gear racks, which are used in low load conditions such as instrument drives.
Phosphor bronze is a combination of copper, tin, and phosphorus. The addition of tin increases the strength of copper and enhances its corrosion resistance while the addition of phosphorus improves copper’s wear resistance and stiffness. The combination of alloys with phosphorus makes bronze alloy gears an excellent choice for high friction drive components. This copper alloy is used for the production of worm gears due to the alloy's ability to resist degradation when lubricated.
Another highly durable and wear resistant copper alloy is aluminum bronze that is a combination of aluminum, iron, nickel, manganese, and copper. It has higher wear resistance than phosphor bronze alloys and superior corrosion resistance. The improvement in its wear resistance is due to the addition of iron. The resistance of this unique alloy makes it possible to design gears to withstand oxidation, salt water, and organic acids. Its strength and durability makes it ideal for handling loads that are far larger than those handled by phosphor bronze. Gears produced from aluminum bronze are crossed axis helical gears and worm wheels.
One of the benefits of bronze gears is their self lubricating properties that reduce the need for lubricating worm gear assemblies. This characteristic simplifies maintenance and results in smoother operation with lower friction loss.
Aluminum alloy gears are used as an alternative to iron gears in applications that require a high strength to weight ratio since aluminum is one third the weight of steel alloys of the same size. The passivation layer of aluminum protects aluminum gears from oxidation and corrosion. Aluminum alloy gears are more expensive than carbon steel gears but less expensive than stainless steel gears. They are easy to machine, which offsets the increased cost.
The aluminum alloys that are used in gear manufacturing are 2024, 6061, and 7075. Of the three alloys, 2024 is similar to aluminum bronze since it is an alloy containing aluminum and copper. The addition of copper to 2024 increases its strength but lowers its resistance to corrosion. Aluminum alloy 7075 is a combination of zinc, magnesium, and aluminum, which is a high strength alloy that is resistant to stress loading. Aluminum, silicon, and magnesium combine to make aluminum alloy 6061, which is a medium strength alloy with weldability and corrosion resistance.
All three of the alloys can be heat treated to improve their hardness. The gears that are made from aluminum include spur gears, helical gears, straight tooth bevel gears, and gear racks. Aluminum gears are used for moderate temperature applications since they begin to degrade at 204°C (400°F).
The plastics used to produce plastic gears include polyacetal, polyphenylene sulfide, nylon, polyamide, polycarbonate, and polyurethane. The use of plastics for gear production is due to their reliability and their ability to resist heat, pressure, and corrosion.
Although plastic gears can be made from a single polymer, the properties and characteristics of plastic gears are radically enhanced when different plastics are blended to form a gear. Their resistance to tension, pressure, heat, and corrosion drastically improves due to the combination of the positive properties of the various plastics.
One of the difficulties with metal gears is the amount of noise they produce during operation. The low density of plastics reduces the resonance of plastic gears providing a quieter work environment. It is this soundproofing quality that makes plastic gears a highly sought after gear solution.
For more information, please visit Cylindrical Gear.
Related links:Two of the factors that make plastic gears so popular, aside from their sound suppression, is their cost and effectiveness. The materials used to produce plastic gears cost far less than any of the other gear materials. This particular factor is further enhanced by the longevity of plastic gears, when amortized over several years of outstanding performance.
The main preference for plastic gears is thermoplastic polyesters that are more dimensionally stable than nylon, which absorbs moisture that changes its properties and dimensions. The popularity of thermoplastic polyesters is its dimensional stability and its self lubricating properties.
The list of the benefits of plastic gears is very long and includes design flexibility, low cost, weight that is 15% to 20% less than steel, noise reduction, efficiency, accuracy, and durability. All of these characteristics are a necessity for gears that are normally constantly in motion and under stress. The efficiency of plastics is based on their low friction coefficient since less horsepower is required to operate them.
An important part of gear selection is having a clear understanding of the different gear types to be able to provide the proper force transmission in a mechanical design. A factor related to choosing a gear is its dimensions in terms of module, number of teeth, angle, and face width.
A gearbox, known as a gear drive, is designed to increase torque from a drive motor, reduce the speed generated by a motor, and change the rotational direction of rotating shafts. Equipment or motors are connected to the gearbox by couplings, belts, chains, or shafts. As can be assumed, the heart of a gearbox is its gears, which operate in pairs by engaging with each other to transmit power.
Gears are essential for the proper functioning of processes, equipment, machines, and complex mechanisms. They seamlessly transfer motion, force, power, and torque between different parts, smoothly and efficiently. Gears are divided by types, classes, and how they maximize their actions. Understanding the types of gears and their parameters helps in efficiently planning the operation of equipment and mechanisms.
Bevel gears are conical in shape and the teeth of this gear are placed around its conical surface. These gears are used in applications where there is a need for change around its axis of rotation. These gears transmit energy and power to the intersecting shafts by changing its rotation. The configuration angles that are required for bevel gears is usually 90 degrees though not always. Bevel gears are made with cast steel, plain carbon steel, and alloy steels. All have different characteristics and can be used according to their applications.
Crown bevel gears, also known as face gears and contrate gears, have helical teeth in the form of a spiral with a pitch angle that is equal to 90°. They mesh with other bevel gears, spur gears, and a pinion system to change rotary motion at a right angle. The projection of the teeth at a right angle to the plane of the wheel gives them the appearance of being a crown. Unlike conical bevel gears, crown bevel gears are cylindrical to be paired with other gears according to tooth design.
The common use of crown gears is in applications where low noise is required. They are used with a rack’s interlocking clog, which allows the gear to roll along with the rack. Although crown gears fell out of use at the early part of the 20th century, they have been rediscovered as the shift in industrial operations has been to energy efficient, technological advanced drives. The correct combination of crown gears, motors, gearboxes, and control systems is resulting in significant energy savings.
The use of crown gears is due to the decentralization of drive technology, which has become more important with industrial operation’s flexibility and the increasing number of drives. Efficient transmissions are in high demand necessitating a union with crown gearboxes.
Hypoid bevel gears are able to transmit rotational power between two shafts at right angles and are mostly used in the drive trains of heavy duty trucks. Sets of hypoid gears do not intersect because the smaller gear shaft, pinion, is offset from the larger gear shaft or crown. The axis offset allows the pinion diameter to be larger and have a greater spiral angle, which increases the contact area and tooth strength.
The spiral angle feature allows the pinion and crown to mesh smoothly. The increased tooth strength and contact area make it possible to have a wider range of gear ratios and enables the transmission of higher amounts of torque. The benefits of the design include reduced wear, lower friction, less energy loss, and exceptional efficiency.
Additionally, hypoid gear sets are able to carry loads across several teeth simultaneously with the average number of teeth in contact being 2.2:1 to 2.9:1. The tooth to tooth contact makes it possible for hypoid gears to transmit greater torque compared to similar sized bevel gears.
The many benefits of hypoid gears has made them increasingly popular for speed reduction applications in the growing demand of power transmission and motion control systems. Manufacturers are designing motor flanges with hypoid gear boxes to allow for a variety of motors to be mounted directly to the gearbox housing.
Bevel gears are used widely in cement, beverage, food, mining, energy, and bulk handling industries. Main applications of these gears include medium to large conveyors, crushing, water treatment, and in mixers.
Miter gears are used as right angle drives with a 1:1 gear ratio between intersecting shafts and used in conditions that require high efficiency. The meshing between miter gears requires that both gears have the same number of teeth, pitch, and pressure angle with more than two miter gears capable of being used in sets. The thrust of miter gears causes them to separate and necessitates the use of ball bearings or sleeve bearings to absorb the backward thrust. All miter gears are mounted at right angles with hardened miter gears providing 50% more horsepower capacity and can endure greater wear than miter gears that are not hardened.
The wide use of miter bevel gears is their ability to handle high speeds and high torque loads, smoothly and quietly. The use of miter bevel gears is limited to change in transmission direction since they are unable to increase or decrease transmitter speed due having the same number of teeth. When miter bevel gears have spiral teeth, they are paired right to left handed.
Spiral bevel gears have a curved angle of teeth placement. It is more angled and also provides gradual teeth to teeth contact than that of straight bevel gears. This gradual engagement of teeth greatly reduces the vibration and the noise that is produced even at high velocities. Spiral bevel gears are also available in left and right hand angled teeth. Spiral bevel gears are difficult to manufacture and have a structure. However they have greater tooth strength, smooth operations, and low noise during operations.
Straight bevel gears are the most commonly used gears in many industries, because the tooth design is so simple and can be manufactured easily. The teeth of straight bevel gears are designed so that when a perfectly matched straight bevel gear comes in contact, it fits with each other at once and not gradually. This adjustment of teeth produces lots of noise while working and also increases the stress that is produced on the gear’s teeth. All these reduce the lifespan and durability of the gear and machine.
Zerol gears are the combination of both spiral and straight gears. These gears have all the characteristics of both kinds of gears. Zerol gears have curved teeth that are placed straight on the conical surface. This means that zerol gears are used in the same applications as that of straight gears, however, zerol gears are much quieter and have less friction compared to straight gears. Additionally zerol gears are not placed at any angle therefore, these can rotate in any direction and are also available in both left hand and right hand design.
Internal gears are the ones which have teeth that are placed on the inside of the diameter of the cylinder. Internal gears are the best to use for high transmission of energy in small areas, low noise production, less vibration, low speed reduction, and low cost. Internal gears are also called ring gears and are ideally used for areas where there are space issues. The mating of external gears results in rotation in opposite direction and if there is mating of external and internal mesh then the rotation will be in the same direction.
The material used for manufacturing internal gears depends on its application. Usually, forged steel, cast and ground steel, aluminum, and plastic material are used.
A helical gear is a type of gear that has parallel configuration. This type of gear is also used for non parallel and non intersecting configuration. The teeth of helical gears are twisted around the cylindrical body and angled towards the gear face. Helical gears are designed with left and right hand angled teeth. Each gear pair is composed of a right and left hand gear of the same helix angle. This angled tooth design gives helical gear an advantage because it can mate with other gears differently than those of straight cut teeth. If the mated pair is perfectly matched to each other then the contact level between the corresponding teeth is at a maximum and at intervals, rather than the whole tooth engagement at once. This engagement will help in reducing the noise created from machines and also lower the impact on the teeth.
Some disadvantages of helical gears are that it may work with great efficiency but its capacity is quite less than that of spur gears. Along with that the tooth design of these gears is quite difficult to manufacture and also costs a lot. Single helical gears also create axial thrusts thus; there is a need for thrust bearing in the applications that use single helical gears. This necessity also increases the cost related issues of these gears. Helical gears are made of aluminum, bronze, steel, and nylon. Other subtypes of helical gears are:
Left handed and right handed helical gears that have the same twist angle are referred to as double helical gears, which transmit rotational motion between two parallel shafts. They have the same advantages as other helical gear, including strength and low resonance, with the added advantage of being able to cancel thrust forces with their combination of right and left hand twists. The unfortunate aspect of double helical gears is the extra amount of effort that is necessary to manufacture them.
Double helical gears and herringbone gears are the same type of gear but with slight difference between the gears, which is a groove that is in the center of double helical gears while the groove is absent from herringbone gears. The configuration of double helical gears with two helical gears at the same angle with opposing thrust forces enables them to annihilate each other's thrust forces to overcome axial thrust.
Herringbone gears are double helical gears that have adjoining gear teeth. As with double helical gears, the teeth on herringbone gears are right and left hand gear teeth that have the appearance of the letter V and are designed to cancel out their mutual thrust. Like most helical gears, herringbone gears operate quietly, smoothly, and at high speeds. One of their main characteristics, like most helical gears, is the engagement of multiple teeth during each rotation, which distributes the load and is the reason for their quiet operation.
The teeth of herringbone gears can be manufactured such that tooth tips align with opposite tooth tips or with the opposite gears tooth trough. They are manufactured in pairs and are more expensive than other helical gears due to their complex tooth profile. In some cases, two opposite hand helical gears that are adjacent with a milled center, flat groove. As with most gears, herringbone gears are mounted on a hub or shaft with a hub being cylindrical and placed on one or both sides of the gear.
Shaft mountings of herringbone gears include keyway, set screw, split, or simple bore. Of the four mounting types, keyway mountings can only be used with shafts that have a cutout while set screw, split, and simple bore mountings do not require a special type of shaft.
Screw gears are also a sub type of helical gears and they are used for non parallel and non intersecting configurations. Herringbone gears are employed as right hand and left hand pairs but screw gears are employed for the same hand pair. These types of gears are usually low capacity and low efficiency and cannot be used for high power applications.
Helical gears are widely used in industries like cement, beverage, food, mining, marine, energy, forest, and bulk material handling. Its applications are for medium to large conveyors, mixers, large pumps, water treatments, and crushers. Double helical gears and herringbone gears are used in mining, marine, and heavy industries. It is also used in milling, steam turbines, and ship propulsions.
Single helical gears have a single row of teeth that are cut at an angle to the axis of the gear along a spiral path in a single left hand or right hand helix. They are able to develop axial thrust and radial thrust with low power transmission. The common helix angle for single helical gears is between 15o and 45o since high helix angles cannot be used. Single helical gears mate slowly, which results in reduced vibrations, noise, and teeth wear. Like spur gears, single helical gears are used to transmit motion and power between parallel shafts. Unlike spur gears, single helical gears have to be used in pairs due to the angle of their teeth.
The versatility of single helical gears makes it possible to mount them parallel to each other or on shafts at right angles to each other, an arrangement that is similar to worm gear and shaft configurations. The gradual engagement and quick release of single helical gears eliminates the shock and jar that is found in spur gear teeth operating under heavy loads. Shaft support bearings for single helical gears have to be strong because of the end load that is produced by their use.
Different types of plastic gears are now widely used in the engineering industry for manufacturing gears. Plastic gears are becoming the first choice of many industries due to their wide range of applications and its availability to work in all types of configuration. Plastic gears are used in a parallel axis configuration such as helical cylindrical gears, double helical gears, and spur cylindrical gears. It is also available for non parallel configuration such as bevel gears, screw gears, and worm gears. Plastic is also used in gears that are used for special applications such as internal gears and rack and pinion gears.
A variety of plastic gears can be made according to the application and can be differentiated on the basis of shape and shaft position. Plastic material is melted and can be molded into any required shape. The material could be PVC, Teflon, or nylon.
Plastic gears are the best option in industries because these are noise dampening, less vibratory, manage the impact load, low cost, low weight, reduced coefficient of friction, absorbs shocks, low maintenance and protects the teeth from wear and tear by distributing the load. Along with all these advantages there are some disadvantages of using plastic gears. These gears have low capacity of load carrying, can be negatively affected by certain chemicals, high cost of initial molds and greater dimensional instability.
Plastic gears are widely used in cameras, toys, electronic equipment, wall clocks, projectors, speedometers and many other home appliances that use plastic gears in their working.
Rack and pinion is a gear pair and it consists of a gear rack and a gear that is cylindrical in shape known as pinion. The gear rack is a flat bar that has infinite radius and it also has straight teeth that are inserted on the surface of the bar. The configuration of these gears is dependent on the type of pinion gear with which these are mated. If it is mated with a spur gear then it is parallel and if it is mated with a helical gear then it is angled. Both these designs can be used in a rack. The rotational movement can be changed into linear one and linear can be changed into rotational one. One rack and pinion gear advantage is the design of this gear. It is also the simplest to manufacture and is also low in cost. But there are some limitations to this design in that the transmission of energy cannot continue in one direction for infinite time. The motion can be limited by the length of the rack, and a great space present between the mated pair which will create a lot of friction and stress on the teeth of the gear.
The material that is used in rack and pinion gears are aluminum and steel. This gives maximum strength to these gears.
Rack and pinion gears are commonly used in the automotive industry in steering systems and also in weighing scales.
Spur gears are the most common type of gear. They have a circular or cylindrical body with teeth that are cut straight and are aligned parallel to the gear shafts. Mated pairs of spur gears are placed in a parallel axis configuration for transmission of motion and power. The mating of spur gears depends on their application, since they can be mated with other spur gears, internal gears, or a planetary gear.
Spur gears are widely used because their tooth design is simple, allow for a high degree of precision, and are easy to manufacture. The drawbacks to spur gears is their inability to handle axial loads, high speed, and large loads. As with many forms of gears, spur gears create a great deal of noise when operating in high speed applications. Regardless of these complications, spur gears have a very high efficiency rating.
Spur gears are made from brass, steel, and plastics and are divided into external gears and internal gears.
The distinctive feature of external spur gears is the placement of their teeth on the external circumference of the gear with the teeth jutting out and away from the center of the gear. The teeth of an external gear are cut on the outside surface of the cylinder, pointing away from the center. During motion and transmission of power, the input and output shafts move smoothly in opposite directions as the external gear teeth mesh.
When external gears mesh, they have a narrow contact surface due to the convex pairing of the flanks of the teeth, which leads to high tooth loads, referred to as Hertzian contact stress, causing extensive wear on the gears and flanks of their teeth . When an external gear is pair with an internal gear, a convex or concave flank pairing occurs, which results in a larger contact area and lower tooth loads and reduced wear. The pairing results in higher torque transmission than would be possible between two external paired gears.
External gears are the most popular type of gear and considered to be the simplest gear system having straight teeth that are parallel to their axis. In all instances, external gears are used to transmit rotary motion between parallel shafts and have a small gear, or pinion, that drives a larger gear. The contact between the gears is noisy, which increases at high speeds. Since external gears are frictionless, they provide a smooth ride.
Unlike external gears, internal gear teeth point inward, toward the center of the cylinder. The teeth have the same shape as that of other spur gears with the differentiating factors being their location and their direction. The appearance of an internal gear is that of a smooth circle with teeth cut into the inner portion of the circumference of the circle. This view of internal gears has led to them being named ring gears due to their resemblance to a special form of ring.
The design of internal gears places the centers of their mating gears closer together than is possible with external gears, which makes them ideal for applications where space is a problem. Their increased area contact makes it possible for internal gears to produce stronger drive due to the increased area contact with less sliding. One of the most popular uses for internal gears is as part of planetary gear systems, also known as epicyclic gears, to serve as the support for the sun and its planets.
One of the benefits of internal gears is the protection they offer against the intrusion of dirt, dust, and other obstructions. The limited use of internal gears is due to their complexity and the high cost of manufacturing them.
The spur gears are widely used in many industries such as food, forest, unit handling, beverage, automotive, and energy. It has a variety of applications such as uses in clocks, washing machines, watering systems, small conveyors, package handling equipment, automotives, planetary gear sets, and many more.
Worm gears are also called cylindrical gears or screw shaped gears. It consists of a worm wheel and a worm or screw shaped gear. These gears are manufactured to work with non parallel and non intersecting configurations. The design and angle of these gears is such that the worm can make the wheels rotate but the wheels cannot change the rotation of the screw or worm. This mechanism works in machines that require self locking ability. These gears have a high gear ratio and capacity making them suitable for work in a quieter environment and producing less noise. Some disadvantages include low transmission power and a lot of friction that is produced during functioning. This friction requires lots of lubrication for these gears to run smoothly.
The material that is used for manufacturing worm gears is steel for the worm or the screw that is placed in between and bronze or cast iron for the gears. This combination gives a high speed of rotation to these gears.
Worm gears are used in food, beverage, automotive, forest, energy, and unit handling industries for small conveyors, package handling equipment, lifts, elevators, and farm machinery.
Differential gears are made up of two halves of an axle with a gear placed on the ends of each half, which are connected by a third gear to form three sides of a square. In some instances, a fourth gear is added to complete the square. To complete the set, a ring gear is added to the differential casing that holds the three or four core gears in place, which is connected to the drive shaft by a pinion to power the wheels.
This arrangement of gears is the most common form of differential gear set, is referred to as an open differential gear set, and is used to develop more complicated differential gear sets. It enables the axle of a vehicle to corner smoothly and is less expensive to produce than more complicated differential gears.
Although open differential gears are commonly used, they are the foundation for all forms of differential gears including locked, welded and spool, limited slip, torsen (torque sensing), active, and torque vectoring. Each of the different types of differentials are designed to control torque, slippage, and other factors related to differential gear performance.
The term industrial gears covers a wide range of gears that transfer power between systems, allow for a variety of speeds and loads, and achieve a fixed range of input speeds and loads. The list of industrial gears includes all of the gears described above each of which is included in a system, process, or special configuration.
The standards for industrial gears have been established by industries, applications, and regions of the country. Standards for gears in the United States are in compliance with the American Gear Manufacturing Association (AGMA), which assists in setting up the global standards of the International Standards Organization (ISO).
Industrial gearboxes enhance the output torque and alter motor speeds with a shaft of a motor linked to the gearbox. The gear ratio of the gearbox determines the output torque and speed depending on the arrangement of the gears. The designs of gearboxes vary according to the industry for which they are manufactured with the different industrial uses being agricultural, construction, mining, and equipment for automotive production. The various configurations of gearboxes are available individually or in combination depending on the application.
The most commonly used types of industrial gearboxes are helical, coaxial helical inline, bevel helical, skew bevel helical, worm reduction, and planetary, each of which is used to improve a company’s efficiency and industrial capacity. They are an essential component to the production of products and assisting in the maintenance of industrial systems.
There are several factors that distinguish nylon gears from traditional metal gears with their lubricity and noise reduction being two of their most outstanding qualities. Nylon is a strong engineering plastic with exceptional wear qualities and properties. It is often used for the manufacture of bearings and bushings due to its lubricity.
For certain applications, nylon is stronger than steel and lasts longer. There is a long list of different types of nylon, each of which has been engineered to meet the needs of different applications. As part of the research regarding the use of nylon, different polyamides have been developed, some with one monomer and others with two monomers with each having different properties. When two types of nylon are polymerized together, they form a copolymer that is identified with a dash between the numbers. The distinctions for nylons continues with new combinations being constantly developed.
Of the long list of nylons, the nylon that is used to manufacture gears is PA610 or nylon 610, which is tough, rigid, and heat resistant with low moisture absorption and resistance to UV, chemicals, wear, and zinc chloride solutions. Since it can be used for injection molding and extrusion, it is the ideal nylon for the manufacture of high precision gears used in a variety of climatic conditions.
Planetary gears, also known as epicyclic gears, are a multi-gear set that includes an internal gear, a central gear or sun, a planetary carrier, and one or more other gears known as planets. All of the gears in the set are spur gears, including the internal gear. The multiple gears in a planetary gear make it easy to adjust, change, and convert gear ratios. The engineering of the components provides stability due to the even distribution of mass and rotational stiffness.
The types of planetary gears are categorized by their performance, efficiency, and versatility with all types being able to change two inputs into a single output. They provide exceptional torque with proportional stiffness and little noise. The types of planetary gears include single stage, multi-stage, inline, offset, right angle, harmonic, simpson, Ravigneaux, and differential. These nine types are a small sampling of the many types of planetary gears and does not include ones that have been specially designed for unique applications.
There are an endless number of functions that planetary gears perform, which include speed reduction, increase torque, and sharing a load with multiple gears due to the even distribution of a load that makes planetary gears resistant to damage. Planetary gears are used in rugged applications because of the load distribution and their robust design that is able to handle high torque and reductions.
Rear end gears provide mechanical leverage that multiplies torque to help engines move machines. As the gear ratio gets higher, rear end gears provide more leverage to help with acceleration. The gear ratio of a rear end gear refers to the gear ratio between the driven gear or ring and the drive gear or pinion, which is calculated by dividing the number of teeth of the ring gear by the number of drive gear teeth.
The purpose of rear end gears is to ensure that a vehicle can handle different rotational speeds when turning corners and being reversed. Their structure includes bevel gears, spur gears, and planetary gears. A typical rear end gear set includes bevel gears, an axle, shafts, and a carrier with teeth that come in several varieties and are arranged into an epicyclic configuration that makes it possible to attach axles that turn at different speeds. These components are used to multiply the torque from the engine and transmission and assist in the operation of a machine or the movement of a vehicle.
The ratio of rear end gears can be explained with an understanding that higher ratios of rear end gears provide better acceleration or torque while lower gear ratios offer fuel economy and better top speeds. Rear end gears have exceptionally high performance when transmitting motion and force and offer high reliability and longevity.
Small gears turn very quickly with less force and are used to increase the force of other, larger gears. They rotate at a faster speed and require less force. The principle of gear transmission ratio is when two gears of different diameters mesh and rotate together, the gear with the larger diameter will rotate slower than the smaller gear. How the gears are arranged, small to large or large to small, determines the amount of speed that will be generated by their connecting.
To increase speed, a larger gear receives power from the motor. As it turns once, the speed of the smaller gear greatly increases because one turn of the larger gear makes the smaller gear turn multiple times and faster. In many cases, one turn of a larger gear can cause a smaller gear to turn four times faster.
If a small gear is providing the power to turn a larger gear, movement will be slower since multiple turns of the smaller gear produces one turn of the larger gear. This motion produces higher torque and force making it possible to slowly move large loans.
The relationship between large and small gears is mainly seen in spur gears with different diameters. Several small gears can be found in planetary gears and are used for the same principle of changing torque, power, and speed. In the case of planetary gears, the sun gear or central gear is normally larger than the planet gears and receives the power that is to be changed and transmitted.
Spline gears are rods, such as drive shafts, that have teeth to transfer torque between machine parts by meshing with the teeth on a mating piece internal spline shaft. They are like gears in that they have teeth along their exterior that lock in place with the teeth of their mated internal spline shaft. Spline gears are unlike gears in that they use all their teeth to transfer torque while gears transfer torque one tooth at a time. They mesh with an equal number of teeth with their mating piece.
The manufacture of spline gears takes several different forms and includes broaching, shaping, milling, hobbing, rolling, grinding, and extruding. The most common forms of spline gears are parallel key spline gears, involute splines that are related to involute gears, and serrations. Internal spline gears are made the same way as external spline shafts with the only exception being the use of hobbing due to accessibility problems.
Splined gears or shafts transfer torque using an externally splined shaft mated with an internal shaft with slots for the external shaft’s teeth. The driven shaft can be the internal or external one. Spline gears have their teeth built into the full length of the shaft, which makes them more efficient at preventing rotation and transmitting torque.
Sprockets are wheels with teeth or notches around their circumference that are able to engage chains or belts that have the same thickness and pitch. They have the appearance of gears but are not designed to mesh with one another. Sprockets are commonly seen on bicycles and motorcycles as the chain drive. They are made from steel and aluminum with steel being the more durable and long lasting.
The parts of sprockets include the number of their teeth, their pitch and outside diameters, and the pitch per tooth. Much like the diameter of gears, the pitch diameter is the diameter of a sprocket that is the circumference of the sprocket beneath its teeth while the outside diameter is the circumference at the end tips of the teeth. The pitch is the measurement of each tooth that needs to fit into the pins on a chain and is precision calculated.
Double duty sprockets have two teeth per pitch to advance a second set of teeth when one set wears out. Hunting tooth sprockets have an uneven number of teeth that change every time the sprocket rotates to save on tooth wear. Segmental rim sprockets make it possible to remove the rim of the sprocket without the need to disturb the chain. When higher torque is required, multiple strand sprockets are used that are capable of handling higher power such as being powered by a drive shaft.
Sprockets that are fitted to a shaft are pilot bore and taper bush. The common use for pilot bore sprockets is on industrial machinery. They have a cylindrical projection that is drilled to the size of the bore and are fixed to a shaft using grub screws, pins, or locking bushings. Taper bush sprockets have a split through the taper and flange for clamping on a shaft.
Gears are an industry essential that are used for the transmission of motion and power in clocks, instruments, machinery, vehicles, and industrial equipment. They are engineered to reduce or increase speed in motorized implements and change the direction of power smoothly and efficiently. Since their introduction thousands of years ago, gears have become an essential tool for the innovations and improvements of industry.
Made from highly durable materials, gears play a key role in the productivity of machines and the operations of manufacturing. Each type of gear has varied elements, characteristics, advantages, and properties that meet the requirements and specifications for motion or power transmission. The wide variety and number of gears makes it possible to find a gear for every application.
One of the main functions of gears is to change the rotation speed of power with engines being the most common example. Gears regulate power by their ratios with different sizes of gears used to increase or decrease transmitted power by their rotation.
During the transmission of power, gears intermesh with other gears without slipping and strongly retain their connections. The motor in a machine may not be designed to move a shaft directly and uses gears to transmit power to the shaft to power a tool.
Torque is the rotating force that is produced by motors and engines that is adjusted through the use of gears, gear sets, gearboxes, and gear assemblies. Smaller gears produce less torque while large gears produce higher amounts of torque. When a small gear is the drive gear to power a large gear, the amount of torque increases and speed decreases. Taken in reverse, when a large gear is the drive gear and a small gear is the powered gear, the amount of torque decreases and speed increases.
A common use for gears is the changing the direction of rotation or movement, which is completed by the specific design of gear pairs. The rotational direction of a motor is dependent on the rotation of a shaft with the direction of the rotation capable of being changed by the configuration of the gears.
Gearboxes are one of the most common uses of gears and are made up of an assortment of gear types contained in a housing. Gearboxes contain worm, bevel, helical, and spur gears that are engineered to change torque, speed, power, motion, and force. Gearboxes are a foundational part of motor driven vehicles and gas powered machinery.
The most common gears have three separate parts: the toothed crown, which transmits movement, the bearing, where a shaft is attached, and the partition between them, which can occasionally take the shape of arms. Gears can be highly complicated.
A gear is a typically cylindrical wheel with teeth on one side that is used to transport motion from a power-generating component, such as a motor, to the location where we wish to apply the force, with changes in the rotational axis or speed.
The function of the gear is to change the engine's rotational speed.
The following are the different types of gearsInternal gearMitre gearWorm gearScrew gearSpiral bevel gearBevel gearGear rackSpur gearHelical gearDouble helical
Gears are used to transmit torque and reduce speed dramatically. Less maintenance is necessary because gears merely need to be lubricated.
Gears are used to vary or modify the power that is transferred to a driven piece of machinery. Reducing speed while boosting output torque, and raising speed while altering the direction or angle of the shaft's rotation are examples of modifications.
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