A year ago, we sent out a small e-mail survey with one simple question: “Why do you read Gear Technology?” At that time, we were extremely gratified, even somewhat overwhelmed, by the enthusiastic and appreciative response of our readers, and I wrote about the survey and the results in my editorial
in the September/October 2008 issue. When we sent out the survey this year with the same question, you’d think we would have been prepared for the results. We weren’t. If anything, our readers are even more appreciative than they were a year ago.
Sure, Gear Expo undoubtedly has a ton to offer attendees in education, research and networking alone, but what really draws the crowd in are the
physical products and technology on
display from exhibitors. Otherwise it
would just be another technical meeting
or social reception—and AGMA could save a few bucks on space to say the least.
When you push 850 horsepower and 9,000 rpm through a racing transmission, you better hope it stands up. Transmission cases and gears strewn all over the racetrack do nothing to enhance your standing, nor that of your transmission supplier.
Often, the required hardness qualities of parts manufactured from steel can only be obtained through suitable heat
treatment. In transmission manufacturing, the case hardening process is commonly used to produce parts with a hard and wear-resistant surface and an adequate toughness in the core. A tremendous potential for rationalization, which is only
partially used, becomes available if the treatment time of the case hardening process is reduced. Low pressure carburizing (LPC) offers a reduction of treatment time in comparison to conventional gas carburizing because of the high carbon
mass flow inherent to the process (Ref. 1).
The gear tooth fillet is an area of maximum bending stress concentration. However, its profile is typically less specified in the gear drawing and hardly controlled during gear inspection in comparison with the gear tooth flanks. This paper presents a fillet profile optimization technique for gears with symmetric and asymmetric teeth based on FEA and a random search method. It allows achieving substantial bending stress
reduction in comparison with traditionally designed gears. This bending stress reduction can be traded for higher load capacity, longer lifetime, lower noise and vibration and cost reduction.
No matter how well gears are designed and manufactured, gear corrosion can occur that may easily result in catastrophic failure. Since corrosion is a sporadic and rare event and often difficult to observe in the root fillet region or in finely pitched gears with normal visual inspection, it may easily go undetected. This paper
presents the results of an incident
that occurred in a gear manufacturing
facility several years ago that resulted in pitting corrosion and intergranular attack (IGA).
This article examines the dry hobbing capabilities of two cutting tool materials—powder metallurgical high-speed steel (PM-HSS) and cemented carbide. Cutting trials were carried out to analyze applicable cutting parameters and possible tool lives as well as the process reliability. To consider the influences of the machinability of different workpiece materials, a case hardening steel and
a tempered steel were examined.
When children are asked what they want to be when they grow up, the answers are undoubtedly diverse. Some immediately respond with doctor, lawyer
or firefighter while others take a more creative approach with answers
like spy, princess or superhero. The
Addendum Staff has yet to come across
a youngster that seems committed to a
career in gear manufacturing.
"One of the reasons AGMA has been
successful over our 93-year history is
that the association’s agenda, programs
and activities reflect the voices of our members," says Joe T. Franklin, Jr., AGMA President.
Custom Gear and Machine, Inc., of Roscoe, IL, recently purchased a Reishauer RZ400 gear grinder and, on one job, has seen the cycle time drop from 40 minutes to six minutes, according to Tim Rose, vice president
of manufacturing, who runs the business with co-owners Dave Patterson and Mike Rasmann.