Helical gear teeth are affected by cratering wear — particularly in the regions of low oil film thicknesses,
high flank pressures and high sliding speeds. The greatest wear occurs on the pinion — in the area of
negative specific sliding. Here the tooth tip radius of the driven gear makes contact with the flank of the
driving gear with maximum sliding speed and pressure.
Since we began publishing in 1984, Gear Technology's mission has been to educate our readers. For 31 years, we've shown you the basics of gear manufacturing as well as the cutting edge. We take our educational mission quite seriously, and we go through steps that most publishers don't have time for or wouldn't consider.
Here is some history that bears repeating - or at least re-reading. So take a few minutes to give it up for a long-gone Brit named Henry Maudslay
(August 22, 1771 - February 14, 1831) - also known as "A Founding Father of Machine Tool Technology." You might
also consider him an early leader in inspection, as he also invented the first bench micrometer capable of measuring to one ten-thousandth of an inch.
Introduction
The standard profile form in cylindrical
gears is an involute. Involutes are
generated with a trapezoidal rack — the
basis for easy and production-stable
manufacturing (Fig. 1).
At the dawn of the Industrial
Revolution, so-called mechanics
were tasked with devising the precise methods that would make mass production possible. The result was the first generation of machine tools, which in turn required improved tooling and production methods.
The name Gleason is practically synonymous with gear manufacturing. Since the company was founded in 1865, the technology of gear manufacturing has
been its focus, its core and its competitive advantage.
Gears with a diametral pitch 20 and
greater, or a module 1.25 millimeters
and lower, are called fine-pitch or low-module gears. The design of these gears has its own specifics.