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Spur Gears
Spur Gears
Spur gears have teeth that are straight and arranged parallel to the axis of the
shaft that carries the gear. The curved shape of the faces of the spur gear
teeth has a special geometry called an involute curve. This shape makes it
possible for two gears to operate together with smooth, positive transmission
of power. The shafts carrying gears are parallel.
Spur gear geometry For full depth involute teeth in the diametral pitch system
Pitch diameter
N
D
Pd
Diametral Pitch
N
Pd
D
Outside diameter
N 2
Do
Pd
Addendum
1
a
Pd
Dedendum
if Pd 20
1.25
b
Pd
if Pd 20
1.2
b 0.002
Pd
Clearance
1
if Pd 20
0.25
c
Pd
if Pd 20
0.2
c 0.002
Pd
Root diameter
DR D 2b
Base circle diameter
Db D cos
Circular pitch
D
p
N
Whole depth
ht a b
Working depth
hk 2a
Tooth thickness
t
2Pd
Center distance
DG DP
C
2
Radial force
2
Wr Wt tan
Normal force
Wt
Wn
cos
Expected bending stress
Wt Pd
St K o K s K m K B Kv
F J
where:
J = bending geometry factor
Ko = overload factor
Ks = size factor
Km = load-distribution factor
KB = rim thickness factor
Kv = dynamic factor.
The AGMA indicates that the size factor KS can be taken to be 1.00 for
most gears. But for gears with large-size teeth or large face widths, a value
greater than 1.00 recommended. Gear design programs compute the size
factor automatically.
The dynamic factor, Kv , accounts for the fact that the load is assumed
by a tooth with some degree of impact and that the actual load subjected
to the tooth is higher than the transmitted load alone. The value of Kv
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depends on the accuracy of tooth profile, the elastic properties of
tooth, and the speed with which the teeth come into contact.
C P = elastic coefficient that depends on the material of both the pinion and the
gear.
C P = 2300 for two steel gears. The design program automatically selects the
appropriate value after the user specifies the materials.
K R SF
S t S at
YN
where:
KR = reliability factor
SF = factor of safety
YN = stress cycle factor for bending.
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type of material is a factor for the lower number of cycles. For the higher
number of cycles, a range is indicated by a shaded area.
After computing the values for allowable bending stress number, S at , and for
allowable contact stress number, S ac , you should go to the data in AGMA
Standard 2001-C95, to select a suitable material. Consider first whether the
material should be steel, cast iron, bronze, or plastic. Then consult the related
tables of data.
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Pressure angle
The pressure angle is the angle between the tangent to the pitch circles and
the line drawn normal (perpendicular) to the surface of the gear tooth
The line normal to the gear teeth is sometimes referred to as the line of
action. When two gear teeth are in mesh and are transmitting power, the force
transferred from the driver to the driven gear tooth acts in a direction along
the line of action. Also, the actual shape of the gear tooth depends on the
pressure angle.
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Face width
The face width can be specified once the diametral pitch is chosen. Although a
wide range of face widths is possible, the following limits are used for general
machine drive gears:
8 16
F
Pd Pd
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Nominal value of F P
d
For SI System of Units,
3 π m< F < 5 π m
Nominal value of F = 4 π m
Also, the face width normally is not greater than pitch diameter of the
pinion.
F
Notice that D 2.00 is recommended.
p
In the selection of the number of teeth on the pinion, the designer must be
aware of potential interference. For certain combinations of numbers of teeth
in a gear pair, there is interference between the tip of the teeth on the pinion
and the fillet or root of the teeth on the gear. Obviously this cannot be
tolerated because the gears simply will not mesh. The probability that
interference will occur is greatest when a small pinion drives a large gear, with
the worst case being a small pinion driving a rack. A rack is a gear with a
straight pitch line; it can be thought of as a gear with an infinite pitch
diameter.
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- For the 20 , full-depth, involute system, using no fewer than 18
teeth will ensure that no interference occurs.
- For the 25 , full-depth, involute system, using no fewer than 12 teeth will
ensure that no interference occurs.
Design life
The normal number of load applications per revolution for any given tooth is
typically, of course, one. But consider the case of an idler gear that
serves as both a driven and driving gear in a gear train. It receives two
cycles of load per revolution: one as it receives power from and one as it
delivers power to its mating gears. Also, in certain types of gear trains, one
gear may deliver power to two or more gears mating with it. Gears in a
planetary gear train often have this characteristic.
Rim thickness
The rim thickness factor, K B , accounts for a rim that may be too thin. The
basic analysis used to develop the Lewis equation assumes that the gear
tooth behaves as a cantilever attached to a perfectly rigid support
structure at its base. If the rim of the gear is too thin, it can deform and
cause the point of maximum stress to shift from the area of the gear-tooth
fillet to a point within the rim.
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t
mB R
ht
t R = rim thickness;
ht = whole depth of the gear tooth.
For mB >1.2, the rim is sufficiently strong and stiff to support the tooth, and
K B =1.0.
Gear application
The mesh alignment factor, Cma, is dependent on the application of the gear
pair.
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The precision enclosed gear units are made to tighter tolerances.
Extra-precision enclosed gear units are made to exacting precision and are
often adjusted at assembly to achieve excellent alignment of the gear teeth.
Elastic coefficient
The value of this coefficient depends on the material of the pinion and
the gear. For instance if the pinion and the gear are both steel the elastic
coefficient C p =2300. Simply click on the database icon and you will be
prompted to input the material type for the pinion and the gear, and the
appropriate value will be inserted for calculations. For a complete listing of
values, AGMA standard 2001-C95 can be referenced.
Overload factor, Ko
The primary considerations are the nature of both the driving power
source and the driven machine. An overload factor of 1.00 would be applied
for a perfectly smooth electric motor driving a perfectly smooth generator
through a gear type speed reducer. Any rougher conditions call for a value of
overload factor Ko greater than 1.00. For power sources we will use the
following:
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Factor of safety
Good gear design practice calls for making the pinion teeth harder than the
gear teeth so that the gear teeth are smoothed and work-hardened during
operation. This increases the gear capacity with regard to pitting resistance
and is accounted for by the factor C H .
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