Available online at www.sciencedirect. com SciVerse ScienceDirect Procedia Engineering Procesia Engineering 19 2011) 196-202 wawiekevier como proce 1% CIRP Conference on Surface Integrity (CSI) Investigations on Surface Defects in Gear Hobbing F, Klocke’, C. Gorgels', A. Stuckenberg"* “Laboratory for Machine Tools and Production Engineering (IVZL) of RIVTH Aachen University, Steinbachstrafe 19, 32074 Aachen, Germany Abstract, An important property of manufacturing processes is the process reliability, This refers to the macrogeometry and to the achievable surface quality. In dry gear hobbing as the most productive and common manufacturing technology for the soft machining of eylindrical gears sometimes surface defects are noticed. These detects like welded-on chips and smeared areas on the flank are not acceptable. ‘The mechanisms leading to surface defects are not known and understood in total. For the understanding, first the appearance and exact occurrence have to be investigated, Parallel, metallografic investigations are carried out for the characterization of the detects. Further on, the appearing of surface defects and characteristic values generated by a manufacturing simulation for gear hobbing are compared to find influences of the tool and process design on the tendency of dry hobbed gears towards surface defects © 2012 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Open access under CC BY-NC-ND license. Selection and peer-review under responsibility of Prof. E. Brinksmeier Keywords: Machining, Surface defect, Ges, Hobbing * Corresponding author, Tel: +49-241-80.-28471; fax +19-241-8 E-mail address: a stuckenbers@waLrenh-aachen de 1877-7058 © 2011 Published by Elsevier Lid. Open access under CC BY-NCD licens {doi 1010164 proeng 2011.11.101E Klocke eral. / Procedia Engineering 19 (2011) 196 ~202 1. Introduction and objective An important characteristic of production processes is the process reliability. This includes achieving the required quality of each individual workpiece during single or multiple batches. The most common method for rough machining of extemal gears is hobbing. Next to the geometric quality requirements the surface on the flank has to be free of defects. Surface defects are deviations of the tooth flank, which are not explainable by the process kinematics. These surface defects have to he avoided because of e.g. a possible decrease of the case hardening depth and therefore a local minimized load carrying capacity. Additionally surface defects ean conduct to a local higher stock for following manufacturing steps. Causes for the appearance of surface defects are widely unexplored. In [1, 2, 3, 4] surface defects in gear hobbing are mentioned but reasons for their occurrenee or solutions for the avoidance are not [1, 2, 3] or only rudimentarily given [4]. Because of the lack of knowledge concerning the strategy for avoiding surface defects, a systematic approach during the process design is required. In contrast, investigations on the surface quality are documented for many other applications but not for hobbing [5]. The global aim is to avoid surface defects. To reach that aim different investigations like cutting trials in industrial as well as in a laboratory environment are carried out. The current findings are discussed with the help of an example gear under inclusion of the findings of Winkel [4] 2. Experiments on surface defects in gear hobbing and reasons for the avoidance To generate a basis for the investigations, 3 state of the art external gears are chosen. A spur gear, representing standard industrial gearbox gear designs (spur), a helical planetary gear with a modified pressure angle (« = 19.25°), representing automatic transmissions (helical) and a helical gear with high addendum and helix angle (f = 30°), representing modem dual clutch gearboxes (high). In the following the report focuses mainly on the helical planetary gear, Fig. 1 197198 F Klocke et al. / Procedia Engineering 19 (2011) 196 — 202 workpiece: right flank fy helical gear Poa = 98 pm bot m, = 1.35 mm, z =24 A i Gy = 19.25" : HH as al Dae ean right flank root toot: Phra 4 4m dy) = 75mm % = 3.left ‘ip a a % aa ho = 14° % —< cutting parameters: yf ett flank root ve =220 mimin BEY a= 33 pm f, =22/2.8mm = T =372mm FS climbiconventional cutting Ua ropearance o ight detects HB Aprearance of heavy defects Fig. 1. Exemplary surface defects according fo their location (helical gear) With this gear design trials using different process designs in industrial environment are made, The appearance of surface defects is characterized according to the location on the flank. ‘The different characteristic surface defects are shown exemplarily in Fig, 1. Characteristic defects for 3 different process designs for the helical gear are shown. The different process designs are the starting point (parameters in industrial application), the decrease of axial feed and the change from elimb to conventional cutting. On the left side of Fig. 1 the detailed gear and process data, in the middle characteristic defects and on the right side the area of defect appearance on the flank can be seen ‘The upper picture shows a welded-on chip. The middle picture in vertical direction additionally shows a smeared area around a welded-on chip. These two defects are the characteristic defects for this point. The defects have a maximum height of hax = 100 jum. In addition the two typical defect occurrences are shown in a microsection picture. These pictures show the proof that in case 1 the chip is welded on an already well generated flank, in case 2 the workpiece material is smeared-up at the surface. The best surface can be detected for the conventional cut variant. In general every flank has slight surface defects, but these light defects are more an optical interference than a functional failure. The right flank has more defects than the left. By reducing the axial feed the defect loaded area increases slightly. The energy input of the process for the formation of one chip increases with a higher axial feed and cutting speed. For this part the defects are smaller with a higher energy input, The reason may be a warmer workpiece and so a changed chipE Klocke eval /Procedia Engineering 19 2011) 196 ~202 formation during the process. That means for a good cutting process a certain energy level or rather a minimal cutting length or chip thickness has to be exceeded. ‘After discussing the characteristics of surface defects in gear hobbing, the relevance for avoiding has to be discussed more detailed. In Fig. 2 a typical case hardening depth (CHD) distribution for small module gears based on Braykoff [6] is drawn. The typical case hardening depth for a gear with a module of m,=135mm is 0.3mm. With the knowledge of a maximum height of welded-on chips of |.1 mm and a grinding stock of s = 0.05 mm the CHD is reduced in this area up to 50%, This results in a surface hardness of about 660 HV instead of the required hardness of 720 HV +50. According 900 800 38 750 be ‘Welded on Chip s = 0.1 mm 3 «60 HS 7 CHTesnay = 0.3 mm = 3 550 F 4-- ia Peat > 400 4 = aor 3 : neem} 3 : rE - Creasey T CHT = 720 +50 HV > eer nen eT ' | | 0.25 05 1.0 15 20 Surface Distance z [mm] Fig. 2. Example for baedness distibution for small modile gems, based on [6]200 F Klocke et al. / Procedia Engineering 19 (2011) 196 — 202 to Niemann and Winter [7] that means a significant reduction of the allowed stress Gin of 10% and along with that a reduction of the local load carrying capacity, Additionally, the hardness is local out of the given tolerance field. This local decreased hardness can result in damages of the flank. Possible damages are on the one hand pittings and on the other hand flank breakage [8]. So, especially heavy defects have to be avoided 3. Investigations on reasons for surface defects After knowing influences of different cutting parameters on the appearance of defects, measures to avoid them have to be found. To reach this aim the manufacturing process simulation SPARTApro is used [9]. The basis is a geometric penetration calculation similar to other software tools [10, 11]. With the chip geometries, chip forming characteristies can be calculated and the hobbing process can be described In addition to process simulations, findings of Winkel [4] are considered to find an explanation or solution to avoid the deféets for the above shown gear. Winkel documents surface defects at a module m,=2.5 mm gear for different process designs. Especially, the tool pressure angle was varied. His explanations for the appearance of defects are multi flank chips with a thin connection between e.g. the flank and tip part ofa single chip referring to the chip thickness and the eutting length. [1] Fig. 3 shows four characteristic values: the chip thickness, cutting length, kinematic clearance angle and number of cuts as funetion of the cutting edge for the variants with a lower axial feed and the conventional cut. For a better visibility the kinematic clearance angle is only shown for the relevant area of the cutting edge The most significant fact is the higher chip thickness, cutting length and kinematic clearance angle for the conventional cut variant, The higher values can be found especially in that area, where the conventional cut gears are only slightly defect loaded, ef. Fig. 1. This means again that more massive Workpiece: max. chip thickness max. cutting length ey 20 LF] T| [TF LF TF zoos convertnal| ox Boal ssonso zeae | =F Eni Ew Gos i 2 LAAs kinematic clearance angle number of cuts 3 500 Cutting parameters: LF rt ii ao LF Ve = 150/220 mimin = z f, =222.8mm ttt z300 T — -=3.72mm é€ \ © 200 climb/conventional cutting 10 1 Lull 6 4202 4 6 4202 46 cutting edge [mm] cutting edge [mm] Fig. 3. Changing of specific chip geometsiesE Klocke eval /Procedia Engineering 19 2011) 196 ~202 chips and in addition to that 2 higher clearance angle lead to less defects. One more sign for the kinematic clearance angle as a main factor (2, 3] for the appearance of defects shows the comparison between the climb and conventional cut variant. For the conventional eut variant the kinematic clearance angle is A@ynnin=0.3° higher against the others. In addition to that this variant has the lowest defect impact. The reason, especially for the defect smeared areas, may be a too small space between the tool flank and the workpiece. This ean be found as well at Winkel [4]. There friction can be inereased, which leads to a higher temperature on the workpiece flank and therefore to smearing of material AA further reason may be the accompanying inerease of the rake angle with a reduetion of the kinematic clearance angle. This increase leads to a worse chip flow [12] and that to a longer duration of a chip in that area. This leads to a longer heat transfer into the workpiece, which may result in the appearance of smeared areas. For a detailed view on the effects two generating positions, 14 for the climb cutting and -1 for the conventional cutting variant, are investigated more detailed, Fig. 4. Both chips are formed in the highly- defect-loaded area, have a similar maximum chip thickness and are characteristic for the process designs conceming their geometry. Visible is the higher cutting length for the conventional variant in the inspected area The maximum chip thickness of the two process designs is for the climb variant bymax = 0.28 respectively 0.23 mm for the conventional variant. To cut the same tooth gap volume the chips in conventional cutting have a greater base (hob rotation angle « cutting edge length) referring to the chip formation of the tooth flank. The comparison of the two chip geomeities in Fig. 4 is a good example for that. With the knowledge that the conventional cut is the lowest defect-loaded variant, an influence of the chip thickness and the cutting length can be interpreted because of the difference of these values in the same way as the surfaces of the workpieces differ. So chips may have to be massive. Including the results of Winkel [4] more defects would be expectable for the conventional cutting variant caused by the above mentioned visible thin connection between the tip and flank part of the multi flank chip. The fact that his explanation does not work in this case means there must be more influences on the appearance of defects than the chip geometry and further, more detailed knowledge has to be gained Nongioea Shale PRT m= 135mm paisa, climb cutting conventional cutting eit generating positon 14 generating position 1 pean Meamanse® 0.11 Mearns = 0.10 ‘Tool: do = = 75mm -29 18 woe — /S ‘ fig = 14° 7 J 7% Cutting parameters: % Ve 120 mimin 7 fee ty 2.8mm 15 2% t 72mm P TaEniS” BESET RIED enone Waa anuas? WE EESED EEE climb/conventional cutting cutting edge [mm] cutting edge [mm] Fig. 4 Influence ofthe cutting strategy (climb/conveational cutting) on specific chip geometties 201202 F Klocke etal. / Procedia Engineering 19 (2011) 196 Conelusion Investigations on the appearance are made and explanations on reasons for the avoidance of surface defects are given. The investigations are focused on a planetary gear representing modem dry gear hobbing processes. Starting with a data base on surface defeets in gear hobbing, specific surface defects are better known now. The two major defects are welded-on chips and smeared areas, ‘Afterwards under support of a manufacturing simulation the defects are compared with characteristic process values. The comparison shows a good correlation between the appearance of defects and the values cutting length, kinematic clearance angle and the compactness of chips. The results lead to an optimization potential for the process design; not in a predictive way but to optimize processes iteratively. A discussion with former findings leads to the result that this explanation is not applicable in total to explain and avoid the defects in this case. Further investigations focus on a more detailed view on specitie status during the chip formation in gear hobbing with the help of an analogy trial with a single tooth. Acknowledgements ‘This paper is based on the IGF-project NO4271/09. The IGF-project NO4271/09 of the VDW Research Institute ¢.V. was fimnded by the AiF within the program collective research for small and medium enterprises (IGF) of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi) based on a decision of the German Bundestag. References [1] Kobiatks C. ProzeBlanalyse fs das Trockenwalafiasen mit Hartnetallwerkzeugen, Diss, RWTH Aachen, 2002 [2] Komori M, Sumi M, Kubo A. Simulation of hobbing for analysis of eutting edge failure due to ch Technology, September/October 2004, p. 64-69, [3] Komori M, Sumi M, Kubo A. Remedies for cutting edge failure of carbide hob due to chip crush ~ Some results of evaluation by this method inthe automotive industy. In: Gear Technology, NovemberDecember 2004, p. 22-29 [4] Winkel ©. 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