TREVAYNE E.
SOLIS
BSME – III
ME 341 - MACHINE ELEMENTS
TYPES OF GEARS AND ITS USES
A. PARALLEL AXES GEARS
1. SPUR GEAR
Spur gears are one of the most popular types of precision cylindrical gears. These gears feature a simple design
of straight, parallel teeth positioned around the circumference of a cylinder body with a central bore that fits
over a shaft. In many variants, the gear is machined with a hub which thickens the gear body around the bore
without changing the gear face. The central bore can also be broached as to allow the spur gear to fit onto a
spline or keyed shaft
Characteristics / Technical Hints:
– A gear which is the most easiest to manufacture.
– A gear that is easy to use and does not produce axial thrust forces.
– There is no limit in the combination of the number of gear teeth of paired gears.
Applications:
Spur gears are used to transfer motion and power from one shaft to another in a mechanical setup. This
transference can alter machinery’s operating speed, multiply torque, and allow for the fine-tuned control
of positioning systems. Their design makes them suitable for lower speed operations or operational
environments with a higher noise tolerance.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Transmissions
Conveyor systems
Speed reducers
Engines and mechanical transportation systems
Gear pumps and motors
Machining tools
2. GEAR RACK / RACK AND PINION
Gear racks are utilized to convert rotating movement into linear motion. A gear rack has straight teeth cut into
one surface of a square or round section of rod and operates with a pinion, which is a small
cylindrical gear meshing with the gear rack
Characteristics / Technical Hints:
– Easier to manufacture and to use than Helical Racks.
– Can mesh with a spur gear with any number of teeth.
– Simple structure, high rigidity, small and lightweight, and excellent responsiveness.
Applications:
While most consumers are familiar with rack and pinion systems for steering cars and small trucks, rack
and pinion combinations have several other applications. Not only are rack and pinion systems used to
help trains climb steep gradients, but they also provide better brake control, especially in snowy and icy
conditions. The [Link] states that rack and pinion are standard components in most stair lifts. The
rack and pinion mechanism often operates using hydraulic or electrical energy.
Rack and pinions are used for lifting mechanisms (vertical movement), horizontal movement,
positioning mechanisms, stoppers and to permit the synchronous rotation of several shafts in general
industrial machinery. On the other hand, they are also used in steering systems to change the direction of
cars.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Automotive steering
Machine tools
Pick and Place mechanisms
Linear Motion of slides
Toys and Lateral slide gates
3. INTERNAL GEAR
This is a cylindrical shaped gear, but with the teeth inside the circular ring. It can mesh with a spur gear.
Internal gears are often used in planetary gear systems.
Characteristics / Technical Hints:
– Involves more complexity in manufacturing compared, to spur gears.
– By using planetary gear systems, it enables you to create a compact gear system applicable for high
reduction ratio.
– For a pair of internal and external gears meshed, the following 3 interferences might occur:
(a) Involute Interference (b) Trochoid Interference (c) Trimming Interference
– No limit to the combination of the number of gear teeth, of paired gears.
Applications:
Normally, internal gears can be used with the same module spur gears, depending on the number of
teeth combinations, but it is necessary to note the possibilities of getting involute, trochoid or trimming
interferences. For using KHK’s standard stock gears, please consult the PDF formatted “Technical
Information of Internal Gears” section for usable number of teeth combinations.
Internal gears are often used in applications involving planetary gear drives and gear couplings. There
are three major types of planetary gear mechanisms: planetary, solar and star types. Depending on the
type and the pattern of which shafts act as input and output, many variations of speed transmission ratios
and rotational directions are produced.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Factory automation.
Packaging machine.
Industrial robots.
Food processing machine.
Car production machine.
Machine tool industry.
Material handling.
Printing machine
4. HELICAL GEAR
This is a cylindrical shaped gear with helicoid teeth. Helical gears can bear more load than spur gears, and work
more quietly. They are widely used in industry. A disadvantage is the axial thrust force caused by the helix
form.
Characteristics and Technical Hints:
– More strength than the spur gear of the same size; transmits rotational force / power quietly.
– Suitable for use in high speed rotations.
– Produces axial thrust force, need to cope with these extra forces
– There is no limit in the combination of number of gear teeth of paired gears.
Applications:
Most of the reputed geared motor dealers advise using helical gears in applications requiring heavy
load efficiencies and noiseless functioning in automotive applications. The gears are a common feature
in transmissions.
As far as inline helical gears are concerned they can be used in applications which require non-stop
working under tough operating conditions. Inline helical geared motor is defined by high torque and
slow speed applications.
Helical gears can be grouped into two categories namely, Cross helical gears and Double helical
gears. Geared motor dealers ensure that adequate stocks of each are available at their end to avoid
falling short of customer demand.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Printing, earth-moving and fertilizer industries
Port and power industries, steel and rolling mills
Textile industries, food industries, plastic industries, elevators, conveyors, compressors, blowers, cutters
and oil industries
5. HELICAL RACK
This is a linear shaped gear that meshes with a helical gear. A Helical Rack can be regarded as a portion of a
helical gear with infinite radius.
Characteristics / Technical Hints :
– Produces thrust force; coping mechanism must be considered
– Rotates and transmits power more quietly than a helical rack of the same size
– Suitable for use in high speed rotation
– Can mesh with a helical gear with any number of teeth
Applications:
Gear racks are used to transform rotary motion into linear motion. The rack has straight teeth cut into
one face of a square or round section of the rod and mates with a pinion, which is a small cylindrical
gear meshed with a rack. Generally, rack and pinion are collectively referred to as "rack and pinion".
There are many ways to use gears.
The rack and pinions are used for lifting mechanisms (vertical movement), horizontal movement,
positioning mechanisms, stops and allow synchronous rotation of several shafts in general industrial
machinery. On the other hand, they are also used in steering systems to change the direction of travel of
cars.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Printing, earth-moving and fertilizer industries
Port and power industries, steel and rolling mills
Textile industries, food industries, plastic industries, elevators, conveyors, compressors, blowers, cutters
and oil industries
6. DOUBLE HELICAL GEAR / HERRINGBONE GEAR
A gear with both left-hand and right-hand helical teeth. The double helical form balances the inherent thrust
forces. Double helical gears sometimes counteract or nullify the forces to overcome axial thrust. The total face
is made into two equal halves, both with the same helix angle but with opposite hands (1, 2).
Characteristics / Technical Hints:
- A special type of gear that is a side to side (not face to face) combination of two helical gears of
opposite hands
- Herringbone gears do not produce an additional axial load
- More than two teeth will be in mesh at any moment in time
- The side-thrust of one half is balanced by that of the other half
Applications:
The most common application is in power transmission. They utilize curved teeth for efficient, high
capacity power transmission. This offers reduced pulsation due to which they are highly used for
extrusion and polymerization. Herringbone gears are mostly used on heavy machinery.
The double-helical gear, also referred to as the herringbone gear is used for transmitting power between
parallel shafts. It was developed to overcome the disadvantage of the high-end thrust that is present with
single-helical gears.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Transmission of helicopter
Automobiles
Wind Turbines
Aircraft Engines
Ship Turbines
Internal Combustion Engines
B. INTERSECTING AXES GEARS
1. STRAIGHT BEVEL GEAR
This is a gear in which the teeth have tapered conical elements that have the same direction as the pitch cone
base line (generatrix). The straight bevel gear is both the simplest to produce and the most widely applied in the
bevel gear family.
Characteristics / Technical Hints:
– Easier to manufacture than Spiral Bevel Gears.
– Ease of use, produces no thrust force in the negative direction.
– The combination of the Number of teeth of paired gears is important. Those gears produced in
combination do not mesh with other bevel gears.
Applications:
Straight bevel gears have many different uses across industries such as industrial and
commercial, material handling, automotive, pumps, and many other industries. With over a century of
gear manufacturing experience, Gear Motions has worked with customers to produce straight bevel
gears for a wide range of applications.
Bevel gears are used to change the rotation of a shaft and their pitch surface is conic. In a bevel gear
every point remains at a constant distance from a common point, also known as the apex. Their tooth
shape is similar to the one of the spur gear and can be straight or curved.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Food canning equipment
Food packaging equipment
Welding positioning equipment
Lawn and garden equipment
Machine tools, including lathes and mills
Compression systems for the oil and gas markets
Fluid control valves
2. SPIRAL BEVEL GEAR
This is a bevel gear with a helical angle of spiral teeth. It is much more complex to manufacture, but offers
higher strength and less noise.
Characteristics / Technical Hints:
– Suitable for use in high load / rotation. Better than Straight Bevel Gears
– Axial thrust force should be carefully considered.
– Transmits rotational force / power more quietly than Straight Bevel Gears.
– Since these gears are produced as a pair, in accordance with the number of teeth, they do not mesh
with other gears, even if they have the same modules or pressure angles.
Applications:
Spiral bevel gears are designed for applications that require high speed and high torque power. They can
help cut consumer costs by providing long-lasting performance with minimal need for repairs or
replacements.
With spiral bevel gears, there is no need for offsets and a significantly reduced risk of overheating.
Curved teeth and deeper traction between those teeth ensures greater asset availability to improve
flexible performance and extend equipment life.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Aerospace engineering
Air pre-heater
Cement mills
Cone crushes and Sand mixers
Cooling tower
Fork Lift
Mining
Packaging and Food Processing
3. ZEROL BEVEL GEAR
This is a special type of spiral bevel gear, where the spiral angle is zero degree. It has the characteristics of both
the straight and spiral bevel gears. The forces acting upon the tooth are the same as for a straight bevel gear.
Characteristics / Technical Hints:
- The force on the teeth of zerol bevel gears are the same as straight bevel gears, eliminating the
inward thrusting force. Because of this, they can be substituted with straight bevel gears without
changing the attachment conditions or bearings.
- Since zerol bevel gears can be ground, compared to straight bevel gears, they are more accurate,
quiet and have a superior anti-friction quality.
- As with spiral bevel gears, they are used with right-hand and left-hand twist as a set.
- Normally, spiral bevel gears can be rotated only in one direction, but due to the zero twist angle
of zerol gears, they can be rotated in both directions just as with straight bevel gears.
Applications:
Zerol bevel gears are used in place of straight bevel gears when generating equipment of the spiral-type
but not the straight type is available, and may be used when hardened bevel gears of high
accuracy(produced by grinding) are required.
Bevel gears are used as the main mechanism for a hand drill. As the handle of the drill is turned in a
vertical direction, the bevel gears change the rotation of the chuck to a horizontal rotation. The bevel
gears in a hand drill have the added advantage of increasing the speed of rotation of the chuck and this
makes it possible to drill a range of materials.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Aerospace engineering
Air pre-heater
Cement mills
Cone crushes and Sand mixers
Cooling tower
Fork Lift
Mining
Packaging and Food Processing
4. STRAIGHT AND SPIRAL MITER GEAR
Gears which are used as a pair, with the same number of teeth, are called Miter Gears. There are two types of
miter gears; a miter gear of straight bevel gears, and the other is a miter gear of spiral bevel gears. Generally,
they have a shaft angle of 90 degrees, however, KHK offers standardized angular miter gears with the shaft
angle at 45, 60, and 120 degrees.
Straight miter gears
In Straight miter gears, the teeth are straight and parallel to the generators of the pitch cone. Compared with
spiral miter gears, straight bevel gears can be made in smaller sizes. We standardized Straight miter gears as
small as module 0.5 in various materials.
Spiral miter gears
Spiral Miter gears have their teeth formed along spiral lines. They are somewhat analogous to cylindrical type
helical gears in that the teeth are angled; however, with spiral gears the teeth are also curved. Spiral Miter gears
have a strength, oscillation and noise level advantage over straight Miter gears. The disadvantage of Spiral miter
gears is that they produce an axial thrust load. Therefore proper bearing location and firm support are required
for their assembly.
Characteristics / Technical Hints:
– Bevel gears with the gear ratio at 1 is deemed a Miter Gear
– Used for changing rotational or axial directions
Applications:
Their purpose is limited to the change in transmission direction. Because they are a type of bevel gears,
the basic characteristic of bevel gears exist such as presence of gear forms of straight cut, spiral cut and
zerol types.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Aerospace engineering
Cement mills
Cone crushes and Sand mixers
Cooling tower
Packaging and Food Processing
C. NON-PARALLEL AND NON-INTERSECTING AXES GEARS
1. WORM GEAR PAIR
Worm gear pair is the name for a meshed worm and worm wheel. An outstanding feature is that it offers a very
large gear ratio in a single mesh. It also provides quiet and smooth action. However, transmission efficiency is
poor.
Characteristics / Technical Hints:
– Large reduction ratio can be obtained by a single-stage train
– Efficiency is low if compared with parallel-axis gears or intersecting-axis gears
– Worm gear pairs must be designed and produced as a pair. Gear-cutting is applied by a selective
cutting machine in accordance with the base diameter of the meshing worm.
– As with screw gears, slippage occurs on the tooth surface of gears in mesh. Care should be taken for
lubrication. Lack of proper lubrication may cause rapid wear.
Applications:
The applications for worm gears include gear boxes, fishing pole reels, guitar string tuning pegs, and
where a delicate speed adjustment by utilizing a large speed reduction is needed. While you can rotate
the worm gear by worm, it is usually not possible to rotate worm by using the worm gear. This is called
the self-locking feature. The self-locking feature cannot always be assured and a separate method is
recommended for true positive reverse prevention.
Self-evident as this mechanical property is, it barely makes it to the front page of listed features. It's the
energy transforming characteristics of the product that really make the difference. Capable of massive
reduction ratios, the special gearing arrangement cuts speed while maintaining torque.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Automobiles / Advanced Differential Steering Systems
Elevators
Motors that rotates at high velocities
Packaging Machinery
Conveyor Systems
Machine Tools
2. SCREW GEAR
A pair of cylindrical gears used to drive non-parallel and nonintersecting shafts where the teeth of one or both
members of the pair are of screw form. Screw gears are used in the combination of screw gear / screw gear, or
screw gear / spur gear. Screw gears assure smooth, quiet operation. However, they are not suitable for
transmission of high horsepower.
Characteristics / Technical Hints:
– Care should be taken for lubrication. The slippage of the meshed faces transmits rotational force /
power. Lack of proper lubrication may cause rapid wear.
– Efficiency is low when compared to parallel axis / intersecting axis gears.
– Used in low power transmission
– There is no limits to the number of teeth of paired gears. (differing from Bevel Gears)
Applications:
Worm screws are used to transfer force and motion between two perpendicular shafts 90° from
each other; in other words, this turns a radial motion on the x axis to a radial motion on the y axis.
Large reductions can be achieved in small spaces, since their gear ratio is very low.
Irreversible mechanisms can be achieved; which is to say they cannot be driven in one direction.
They enable the output shaft to be rotated.
As a drawback, worm screw mechanisms experience a significant performance loss since they generate
a large loss of energy.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Automatic door system
Musical instruments
Plastic worm screw mechanisms as speed reducers in small motors
Lifts: Worm screws are also used in lifts or screw conveyors
Automotive steering systems
Speed reducers
D. SPECIAL GEARS
1. FACE GEAR
A pseudo bevel gear that is limited to 90° intersecting axes. The face gear is a circular disc with a ring of teeth
cut in its side face; hence the name Face Gear. They are the gear wheel with cogs mortised into its face, usually
in conjugation with a lantern pinion. Face gear enables the transmission of drive through an angle. Their use in
high power, high precision applications have become popular. Face gears have high strength teeth and good
contact geometry, which give high torque capability.
Characteristic / Technical Hints:
- Helps to ensure accuracy and rigidity
- Generated by a shaper cutter with the same diametrical pitch and pressure angle as the pinion
- There is no axial load on a pinion with straight spur teeth
- Meshing is smoother due to oblique contact lines and high contact ratio
Applications:
They are used in aerospace drive system. They are used to transfer power between intersecting shafts as
found in helicopter rotor transmission.
They are also effective with insufficient lubrication, thus increasing the reliability of the aircraft. They
also work with bad alignment between pinion and the rotor gear.
Helicopters using transmission systems based on face gear have a higher safety and survivability. Face
gears are supplied in wholesale to the aerospace industries.
Face gear enables the transmission of drive through an angle. Their use in high power, high precision
applications have become popular. Face gears have high strength teeth and good contact geometry,
which give high torque capability. Face gears help to ensure accuracy and rigidity.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Aerospace drive system
Helicopter transmissions
High speed and High load applications
2. ENVELOPING GEAR SETS
In the enveloping worm gear design, either the contour of the gear teeth or the contour of the worm threads or
the contour of both is modified in such a way that the amount of the contact surfaces increases. Thus, you will
get increased accuracy from the worm gear.
Single-enveloping worm gear sets have a cylindrical worm, with a throated gear partly wrapped around the
worm. Double-enveloping worm gear sets have both members throated and wrapped around each other. Crossed
axis helical gears are not throated, and are sometimes referred to as non-enveloping worm gear sets.
Characteristics / Technical Hints:
- It is throated to increase the contact ratio between the worm and worm wheel teeth.
- Several teeth are in mesh, sharing the load, at all times
- The result is increased load capacity with smoother operation.
- teeth have a higher sliding velocity than spur or helical gears
Applications:
Worm gear sets are especially useful for power transmission applications, but they’re versatile and
powerful enough for many other industrial machinery settings.
A common application for worm-gear reducers is belt-conveyor drives as the belt moves comparatively
slowly with respect to the motor, making the case for a high-ratio reduction. The resistance to back-
driving through the worm wheel can be used to prevent belt reversal when the conveyor stops.
Heat is a concern with worm gears as the motion is essentially all sliding much like a nut on a screw. For
a valve actuator, the duty cycle is likely to be intermittent and heat probably dissipates readily between
infrequent operations.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Valve actuators
Circular saws
Precision drives for telescopes
Belt-conveyor drive
3. HYPOID GEAR
This gear is a slight deviation from a bevel gear that originated as a special development for the automobile
industry. This permitted the drive to the rear axle to be nonintersecting, and thus allowed the auto body to be
lowered. It looks very much like the spiral bevel gear. However, it is complicated to design and is the most
difficult to produce on a bevel gear generator.
Characteristics and Technical Hints:
- Hypoid gears have a large pitch surface with multiple points of contact.
- They can transfer energy at nearly any angle.
- Hypoid gears have large pinion diameters and are useful in torque-demanding applications.
- The heavy work load expressed through multiple sliding gear teeth means hypoid gears need to be well
lubricated, but this also provides quiet operation and additional durability.
- Hypoid gears are common in truck drive differentials, where high torque and an offset pinion are valued.
Applications:
Hypoid gearboxes are generally used where speeds exceed 1000 rpm (although above 8000 rpm, ground
gears are recommended). They are also useful, however, for lower speed applications that require
extreme smoothness of motion or quiet operation.
In multi-stage gearboxes, hypoid gears are often used for the output stage, where lower speeds and high
torques are required.
The most common application for hypoid gearboxes is in the automotive industry, where they are used
in rear axles, especially for large trucks. With a left-hand spiral angle on the pinion and a right-hand
spiral angle on the crown, these applications have what is known as a “below-center” offset, which
allows the driveshaft to be located lower in the vehicle.
Some of the typical industrial applications include:
Automotive Industry
Marine Transmissions
Aviation