UNIT 4

GEARS AND GEAR TRAINS

Mechanical Engineering Dept. 1

Ken Youssefi
GEARS

Mechanical Engineering Dept. 2

 Applications of Gears
• Toys and Small Mechanisms – small, low load, low cost

• Appliance gears – long life, low noise & cost, low to

moderate load

• Power transmission – long life, high load and speed

• Aerospace gears – light weight, moderate to high load

• Control gears – long life, low noise, precision gears

kinematic & stress analysis
Mechanical Engineering Dept. 3
 Types of Gears
Gear (large gear)

Spur gears – tooth profile is parallel to

the axis of rotation, transmits motion
between parallel shafts.

Internal gears

Pinion (small gear)

Helical gears – teeth are inclined to

the axis of rotation, the angle provides
more gradual engagement of the teeth
during meshing, transmits motion
between parallel shafts.

Mechanical Engineering Dept. 4

 Types of Gears

Bevel gears – teeth are formed on a Straight

conical surface, used to transfer motion bevel gear
between non-parallel and intersecting
shafts.

Spiral
bevel gear

Mechanical Engineering Dept. 5

 Types of Gears

Worm gear sets – consists of a

helical gear and a power screw (worm),
used to transfer motion between non-
parallel and non-intersecting shafts.

Rack and Pinion sets – a special

Pinion
case of spur gears with the gear
having an infinitely large diameter,
the teeth are laid flat.

Rack

Mechanical Engineering Dept. 6

 LAW OF GEARING
The common normal at the point of contact between a pair of
teeth must always pass through the pitch point. This is the
fundamental condition which must be satisfied while designing
the profiles for the teeth of gear wheels. It is also known as law
of gearing.

Mechanical Engineering Dept. 7

 Fundamental Law and Involute Curve

rG

Tangent at the
point of contact

rP
Generation of the involute curve

All common normals have to

rG / rP = constant (constant speed ratio)
intersect at the same point P
Mechanical Engineering Dept. 8
Nomenclature of Spur Gear Teeth

Clearance
Fillet radius
Pitch circle
gear diam.
Base Circle

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 Standard Tooth Specifications
Pressure angle
Base
circle

Pitch Pressure angle φ

circle
Pitch
Pitch circle
line
Base
circle
Line of centers

Standard pressure angles, 14.5o (old), 20o, and 25o

Two mating gears must have the same diametral pitch, P,

and pressure angle, φ.
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Ken Youssefi
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Ken Youssefi
1. A pinion having 30 teeth drives a gear having 80 teeth. The profile of the gears is
involute with 20° pressure angle, 12 mm module and 10 mm addendum. Find the
length of path of contact, arc of contact and the contact ratio.

Given :
t = 30
T = 80
ɸ = 20°
m = 12 mm
Addendum = 10 mm

Length of path of contact KL = KP + PL

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Two involute gears of 20° pressure angle are in mesh. The number of
teeth on pinion is 20 and the gear ratio is 2. If the pitch expressed in
module is 5 mm and the pitch line speed is 1.2 m/s, assuming
addendum as standard and equal to one module, find :
1. The angle turned through by pinion when one pair of teeth is in
mesh ; and
2. The maximum velocity of sliding.

Given :
ɸ = 20°
t = 20
G = T/t = 2
m = 5 mm
v = 1.2 m/s
addendum = 1 module = 5 mm

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1. Angle turned through by pinion when one pair of teeth is in mesh

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The following data relate to a pair of 20° involute gears in mesh :
Module = 6 mm, Number of teeth on pinion = 17, Number of teeth on
gear = 49 ; Addenda on pinion and gear wheel = 1 module.
Find :
1. The number of pairs of teeth in contact ;
2. The angle turned through by the pinion and the gear wheel when
one pair of teeth is in contact, and
3. The ratio of sliding to rolling motion when the tip of a tooth on the
larger wheel (i) is just making contact, (ii) is just leaving contact
with its mating tooth, and (iii) is at the pitch point.

Given :
ɸ = 20°
m = 6 mm
t = 17
T = 49
Addenda on pinion and gear wheel = 1 module = 6 mm
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Minimum Number of Teeth on the Pinion in Order to Avoid
Interference
Determine the minimum number of teeth required on a pinion, in order
to avoid interference which is to gear with,
1. a wheel to give a gear ratio of 3 to 1 ; and
2. an equal wheel. The pressure angle is 20° and a standard addendum
of 1 module for the wheel may be assumed.
Given :
G=T/t=3
ɸ = 20° ;
Aw = 1 module
GEAR TRAIN
Two or more gears are made to mesh with each other to
transmit power from one shaft to another. Such a combination is
called gear train or train of toothed wheels.

TYPES OF GEAR TRAINS

Following are the different types of gear trains, depending upon the
arrangement of wheels :

1. Simple gear train,

2. Compound gear train,
3. Reverted gear train, and
4. Epicyclic gear train.
SIMPLE GEAR TRAIN
When there is only one gear on each shaft, as shown in Fig, it is
known as simple gear train. The gears are represented by their
pitch circles.

When the distance between the two shafts is small, the two gears 1
and 2 are made to mesh with each other to transmit motion from
one shaft to the other, as shown in Fig. (a). Since the gear 1 drives
the gear 2, therefore gear 1 is called the driver and the gear 2 is
called the driven or follower. It may be noted that the motion of
the driven gear is opposite to the motion of driving gear.
COMPOUND GEAR TRAIN
When there are more than one gear on a shaft, as shown in
Fig., it is called a compound train of gear.
REVERTED GEAR TRAIN
When the axes of the first gear (i.e. first driver) and the last gear
(i.e. last driven or follower) are co-axial, then the gear train is
known as reverted gear train as shown in Fig.
EPICYCLIC GEAR TRAIN
The axes of the shafts, over which the gears are mounted,
may move relative to a fixed axis. A simple epicyclic gear
train is shown in Fig.

The gear trains arranged in such a

manner that one or more of their
members move upon and around
another member are known as
epicyclic gear trains
TABULATION METHOD
 Revolutions of elements
Step No. Conditions of motion
Arm C Gear A Gear B
Arm fixed-gear A
1 rotates through + 1 +1
0 -TA / TB
revolution i.e. 1 rev.
anticlockwise
Arm fixed-gear A
2 rotates through + x +x
0 -x (TA / TB)
revolutions

Add + y revolutions to
3 all elements +y
+y +y

Total motion
4 +y x+y y -x (TA / TB)
In an epicyclic gear train, an arm carries two gears A and B having
36 and 45 teeth respectively. If the arm rotates at 150 r.p.m. in the
anticlockwise direction about the centre of the gear A which is fixed,
determine the speed of gear B. If the gear A instead of being fixed,
makes 300 r.p.m. in the clockwise direction, what will be the speed of
gear B ?

Given :

TA = 36 ;
TB = 45 ;
NC = 150 r.p.m. (anticlockwise)
 Revolutions of elements
Step No. Conditions of motion
Arm C Gear A Gear B
Arm fixed-gear A rotates
1 through + 1 revolution
i.e. 1 rev. anticlockwise 0 +1 -TA / TB

Arm fixed-gear A rotates

through + x
2 0 +x -x (TA / TB)
revolutions

Add + y revolutions to all

3 elements
+y +y +y

Total motion
4 +y x+y y -x (TA / TB)
Speed of gear B when gear A is fixed
Since the speed of arm is 150 r.p.m. anticlockwise, therefore from
the fourth row of the table,
y = + 150 r.p.m.
Also the gear A is fixed, therefore
x+y=0
x=–y
= – 150 r.p.m.
In a reverted epicyclic gear train, the arm A carries two gears B and
C and a compound gear D - E. The gear B meshes with gear E and
the gear C meshes with gear D. The number of teeth on gears B, C
and D are 75, 30 and 90 respectively. Find the speed and direction of
gear C when gear B is fixed and the arm A makes 100 r.p.m.
clockwise.

Given :
TB = 75 ;
TC = 30 ;
TD = 90 ;
NA = 100 r.p.m. (clockwise)
From the geometry of the figure,
An epicyclic gear consists of three gears A, B and C as shown in Fig.
13.10. The gear A has 72 internal teeth and gear C has 32 external teeth.
The gear B meshes with both A and C and is carried on an arm EF
which rotates about the centre of A at 18 r.p.m.. If the gear A is fixed,
determine the speed of gears B and C.

Given :
TA = 72 ;
TC = 32 ;
Speed of arm EF = 18 r.p.m.
In an epicyclic gear of the ‘sun and planet’ type shown in Fig. 13.13, the
pitch circle diameter of the internally toothed ring is to be 224 mm and
the module 4 mm. When the ring D is stationary, the spider A, which
carries three planet wheels C of equal size, is to make one revolution in
the same sense as the sun wheel B for every five revolutions of the
driving spindle carrying the sun wheel B. Determine suitable numbers
of teeth for all the wheels.

Given :
dD = 224 mm ;
m = 4 mm ;
NA = NB /5

Let TB , TC and TD be the number of teeth on the

sun wheel B, planet wheels C and the internally
toothed ring D.
In an epicyclic gear train, as shown in Fig.13.33, the number of teeth on
wheels A, B and C are 48, 24 and 50 respectively. If the arm rotates at
400 r.p.m., clockwise, find : 1. Speed of wheel C when A is fixed, and 2.
Speed of wheel A when C is fixed.

Ans.
1. 16 r.p.m. (clockwise) ;
2. 16.67 (anticlockwise)