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Manufacturing

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2025-02-27

The State of Gear Machine Tools 2025

As the gear industry steps into 2025, manufacturers are navigating a landscape shaped by geopolitical uncertainties, evolving workforce dynamics, and rapid technological advancements. Alongside Gear Technology’s annual State of the Gear Industry survey, we like to gather insights from leading machine tool manufacturers on the challenges, opportunities, and trends defining the year ahead.

PRODUCT NEWS | 2025-02-27

Star Cutter Offers Advanced FLX Machine with NUM CNC Control System

Star Cutter Company launched the FLX machine in 2024, powered by NUM’s advanced FlexiumPro CNC control system with NUMROTO software to easily program all kinds of different tools. This significant advancement underscores Star Cutter’s commitment to delivering cutting-edge solutions for high-volume tool manufacturers, providing an enhanced platform for automated, high-precision manufacturing.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2025-02-27

Mazak Opens New Customer Solutions Center

As manufacturers continue to face shortages of skilled labor, Mazak helps them address the issue with the opening of its new Customer Solutions Center located in Florence, KY. The secure facility specializes in the development of production-ready, custom automation solutions that allow manufacturers to overcome existing labor issues while increasing production output.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2025-02-27

Helios Gear Products Announces Registration for 2025 Helios Gear Schools

Helios Gear Products is excited to announce that registration is now open for the 2025 Helios Gear Schools. These intensive courses are designed to provide both entry-level and experienced industry professionals with a comprehensive understanding of gear manufacturing.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2025-02-27

Forest City Gear Engineer Invited as Panelist for Harlem Engineering Students

Forest City Gear, an industry-leading manufacturer of fine- and medium-pitch custom gears, is proud to share that Manufacturing Engineer Mark Javurek was invited to serve as a guest panelist for Harlem High School’s engineering capstone class, taught by Chris Noble. 

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2025-02-26

The Tools Essential to Power Skiving

The rise of power skiving to a preeminent cylindrical gear cutting process has been one of the gear industry’s most compelling success stories in recent decades. What began many years ago as a promising, but specialized, cutting process alternative for cylindrical gears with challenging interference contours is now exceeding performance and application expectations across the board.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2025-02-26

Helios Welcomes Engineer Caeden Keith

Helios Gear Products (South Elgin, IL) proudly welcomes engineer, Caeden Keith. Caeden earned his degree in Mechatronics Engineering from Northern Illinois University (NIU). During his time at NIU, he demonstrated his passion for innovation and mentorship by mentoring his high school’s FIRST Robotics Competition Team 5934 and leading NIU’s team in NASA’s BIG Idea Challenge.

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INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-12-16

LIFT Announces Advanced Metallic Production and Processing Center Coming to Detroit in 2025

LIFT, the Department of Defense-supported national advanced materials manufacturing innovation institute, operated by the American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute (ALMMII), today announced that it will introduce its new state-of-the-art Advanced Metallic Production and Processing Center (AMPP) in the new year solving a critical gap in addressing advanced materials challenges across the U.S. industrial base.

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2024-12-12

108 Years Old Is the New 30

It was a busy year for the gear industry. Large and small companies had to navigate the interest rates, tariffs, supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, and the unknown economic outlook with an election year in the U.S. Leaders that normally would be brainstorming their five-year strategic plans had to get comfortable with a day-to-day strategy. As each quarter ended, however, AGMA witnessed resiliency, innovation, collaboration, and even quite a bit of growth for some sectors—it was an exciting year to visit members in person.

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2024-12-12

Gearing Up for Success

As you navigate the ever-evolving landscape of gear manufacturing, it’s become increasingly clear that success isn’t solely determined by the precision of your machines or the latest technological advancements. While these factors remain crucial, the true differentiator in today’s competitive market lies in cultivating and nurturing your most valuable asset: your people.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-12-12

Bonfiglioli Offers Metalworking Solutions at EuroBLECH 2024

Bonfiglioli showcased its latest innovations at EuroBLECH 2024, the premier global event for the metalworking industry. This participation highlighted a suite of cutting-edge solutions tailored to meet the growing demands of smart manufacturing and advanced metal processing.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-12-09

Forest City Gear Celebrates Jacob Hutmacher's 10th Anniversary

Forest City Gear, an industry-leading manufacturer of fine- and medium-pitch custom gears, is proud to recognize Customer Quality Engineer Jacob Hutmacher on his 10thanniversary and thank him for his long-term dedication to the company.  

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-11-21

KISSsoft Offers Service Pack 2 from Current Software Release

KISSsoft has released a more comprehensive functionality with the Service Pack 2 from the current KISSsoft Release satisfying the increasing demand in key industries. This software supports scripts for a variety of tasks, such as creating custom user interfaces, automating report generation, and exporting data.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-11-15

Heidenhain Set to Exhibit New Technologies at PRI 2024

Acu-Rite Solutions, part of the Heidenhain family of brands, is excited to announce its participation in the PRI 2024 Trade Show, scheduled for December 12-14 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Attendees visiting Booth #5267 can explore the latest advancements in CNC upgrade solutions and DRO technology for manual machines. Specifically for machinists looking to achieve next-level accuracy, efficiency, and machine tool profitability.

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INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-11-12

David Brown Santasalo Listed as Top 100 Kirklees Companies for Fifth Consecutive Year

David Brown Santasalo has been recognized as one of the top 100 companies in the ‘Kirklees Top 100’ list for the fifth consecutive year. Now into its fifth year, the Kirklees Top 100 Companies initiative aims to raise the profile of the local business community and forge stronger links around topics of shared interest between the top 100 companies and partners, the University of Huddersfield, Business Kirklees and the 3M Buckley Innovation Center (3M BIC).

EVENT | 2024-11-12

Industrial IoT Conference 2025

The Industrial IoT Conference (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) explores the potential of intelligent machines, prescriptive analytics, sensor driven analytics, and block chain solutions. Attendees learn about the industrial IoT technologies that are driving the transformation in manufacturing, supply chain and operations. Attendees include implementors, manufacturing companies, supply chain professionals, service providers, IoT manufacturers and more. Topics include implementation, warehouse logistics, robotics, sensors, cybersecurity, data analytics and more.

VIDEO | 2024-11-07

Gleason Modernization Programs / P300 Recontrol

Complete Machine Remanufacture on a Gleason P300 - Complete remanufacture addresses all machine functions. The machine is returned to Gleason, where it is completely disassembled and rebuilt. A machine remanufacture is similar to buying a new machine but without the need to purchase new peripherals or to rethink existing process chains.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-11-01

Croix Gear Hires Tom Marino as West Region Sales Representative

Croix Gear, a recognized leader in custom-manufactured loose gears, proudly announces the addition of Tom Marino as Sales Representative for the West Region. With nearly 40 years of industry experience and strong relationships across the gear manufacturing sector, Mr. Marino will play a key role in meeting the diverse needs of Croix Gear’s customers in the Western United States.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-10-23

Forest City Gear Breaks Ground on New Warehouse

Forest City Gear, an industry-leading manufacturer of fine—and medium-pitch custom gears, is pleased to announce the groundbreaking of its new warehouse on October 21. The 50’ x 100’ climate-controlled warehouse will store finished goods while prioritizing storage space in the existing footprint for in-process items for Cut Teeth Only jobs. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-10-18

Nidec Machine Tool Launches New Machine Tool Production Factory in China

Nidec Machine Tool Corporation announced that the construction of a new factory that Nidec Machine Tool (Zhejiang) Corporation, a subsidiary of the Company, had been building in the city of Pinghu, Zhejiang Province, China, has been completed, and that the factory has launched its full-scale operation, on October 11. Constructed to establish a prompt machine tool supply system to meet China’s domestic needs for autos, robots, and industrial machines among others, this new, three-floor factory, whose first-phase construction started in March 2023, covers an area of approximately 66,000m2, including an approximately 18,000m2 first floor.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-10-18

The Nidec Group to Build a Technical Center in China

Nidec Corporation announced that the Nidec Group has decided to construct a technical center to exhibit a comprehensive lineup of its machine tools on Nidec Machine Tool Corporation’s premises in the city of Ritto, Shiga Prefecture.

EVENT | 2024-10-16

CES 2025

Attracting a diverse range of professionals, including executives, engineers, designers, and entrepreneurs, CES (Las Vegas) is an excellent opportunity to connect, collaborate, and grow your professional network. Keynote addresses and panel discussions from industry experts offer valuable insights into market trends, consumer behavior, and emerging technologies that can help guide strategic decisions and future planning. Attendees can interact with new technologies firsthand, gaining a deeper understanding of their features and potential applications. The broad range of exhibits and industries represented at the show can inspire innovative solutions. Industries include 3D printing, AR/VR/XR, AI, cloud computing/data, construction tech, cybersecurity, e-Mobility and more.

EVENT | 2024-10-16

The Bearing Show North America/Lubricant Expo North America

The Bearing Show connects the evolving needs of bearings end-users with the latest technologies serving, OEM development, maintenance professionals and R&D engineers. Meet visitors from OEM’s, machine manufacturers, industrial plants, global distributors, and more. Matching the needs of end-users with the innovation and opportunities occurring throughout the supply-chain is essential. 

EVENT | 2024-10-16

Bauma 2025

From the digital construction site to alternative drives and tomorrow's construction methods, the most important topics will be discussed, and innovative solutions will be presented during Bauma 2025 (Munich). Topics include climate neutrality, drive concepts, digital construction, sustainability, and mining challenges. In view of the high-quality standards of innovation and relevance, it is not surprising that nearly 70 percent of Bauma visitors are top decision-makers in their companies. Bauma offers attendees the ideal opportunity to establish lucrative business relationships and to profitably network with the industry.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-09-26

Sumitomo Drive Technologies Wins 2024 National Metalworking Reshoring Award

Sumitomo Drive Technologies, a brand of Sumitomo Machinery Corporation of America, received the 2024 National Metalworking Reshoring Award. The award was given in recognition of Sumitomo Drive Technologies’ success in bringing manufacturing to the United States through foreign direct investment and to Mexico via nearshoring. The 2024 award was presented on Sept. 13, 2024, at IMTS – The International Manufacturing Technology Show at McCormick Place in Chicago by Harry Moser, founder and president of the Reshoring Initiative.

EVENT | 2024-09-18

CTI Symposium Berlin 2024

CTI Symposium Berlin offers keynote speeches, panel discussions and technical presentations on future powertrain technologies. This includes the exchange of experiences, R&D results and opinions with leading representatives of automobile manufacturers, suppliers, engineering consultants as well as officials. Topics include passenger cars, commercial vehicles, electric motors, transmission components, AI in powertrain development, thermal management, supply chain, powder metallurgy and more.

EVENT | 2024-09-18

Smart Production Solutions (SPS) 2024

With its unique concept, Smart Production Solutions (SPS) covers the entire spectrum of smart and digital automation – from simple sensors to intelligent solutions, from what is feasible today to the vision of a fully digitalized industrial world. SPS, located in Nuremberg, Germany, is an innovative platform for the automation industry with topics on control technology, electric drive systems, HMIs, software, sensors and mechanical infrastructure.

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2024-08-15

Investing in Industry 4.0 for the Gear Manufacturer/Job Shop (Part 2)

This article requires that the reader be familiar with Job Shop Lean, an approach to adapt the principles of lean manufacturing for a job shop, regardless of its size or industry sector. A job shop typically executes a different schedule every day. Each day’s schedule could have a different mix of jobs, due dates, lot sizes, and number of gear operations. Regardless of all these differences, it is important that the shop receives a feasible schedule that does not exceed available capacity constraints on key resources (machines, labor, materials, dies, etc.).


FEATURE ARTICLES | 2024-08-15

The Importance of Workholding Flexibility

The 67,000 sq. ft. facility occupied by Precision Gears Inc. in Pewaukee, WI, contains a full range of gear manufacturing equipment to meet the varied customer demands of the many industries it serves. Founded in 1919, the company possesses both the technologies and experience to efficiently serve the multiple requirements of manufacturers in fields as varied as agriculture, lawn and garden, foodservice, power transmission construction, pumps, and others.

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2024-08-15

Mission to Mars

If all goes as planned, NASA will launch its Sample Retrieval Lander (SRL) Mars mission from Florida’s Space Coast in June 2028, the start of its latest, and greatest, mission to Mars. By sometime in the early 2030s, the SRL mission will have succeeded in traveling to Mars; gathering samples already collected by the Perseverance Rover; launching them into Mars orbit; and capturing and returning them safely to Earth. For NASA’s scientists, the SRL mission is the culmination of a decades-long series of Mars explorations designed to find evidence of life outside of Earth or, at the very least, provide important insights into the origin of life here on Earth.

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2024-08-15

Combi Honing of Gears

As the automotive industry continues to move towards e-mobility, the manufacturing world is adapting to the respective requirements. Large gear ratios are necessary to reduce the high input speeds of electric motors to the required speed of the drive wheels. At the same time, masking noise of combustion engines is now missing, posing challenges to the noise level of transmissions. Principally, two main transmission concepts have become established for e-drive applications: two-stage layshaft transmissions with four gears, and planetary transmissions.

ADDENDUM | 2024-08-15

AI and the Digital Roadmap

During a recent conference session on AI and manufacturing in Las Vegas, one presenter made a valid point about simplifying and accelerating shop floor processes. “AI has the potential to revolutionize the way companies design, develop, manufacture and operate.” This is happening in gear manufacturing shops, automotive OEMs, production plants—even mining facilities.

PRODUCT NEWS | 2024-08-15

Rego-Fix Launches Online Product Finder

Rego-Fix has launched a new online product-finder resource, which allows U.S. manufacturers to quickly and easily find and purchase the Rego-Fix solution that best meets their application needs. Using a variety of search criteria, users can find and learn more about the full lineup of products. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-07-30

Forest City Gear President Appointed as Chair of AGMA Annual Meeting Planning Committee

Forest City Gear is pleased to share that President Kika Young has been appointed as Chair of the AGMA Annual Meeting Committee. The Committee develops programming, curates networking opportunities, and selects future destinations for the AGMA/ABMA Annual Meeting.

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2024-07-23

Investing in Industry 4.0 for the Gear Manufacturer/Job Shop (Part 1)

This article requires that the reader be familiar with Job Shop Lean, an approach to adapt the principles of lean manufacturing  for a job shop, regardless of its size or industry sector. The following articles will give the interested reader a sufficient background on the many differences between Job Shop Lean and Lean.

VIDEO | 2024-07-19

EMAG VSC 400 PS

The EMAG VSC 400 PS offers the integration of power skiving and turning technologies in one machine, a solution that significantly increases both the flexibility and efficiency of production. By using up to four gear skiving tools and six turning tools, you can produce even complex gears in a single clamping operation, which increases productivity enormously.

EVENT | 2024-06-18

Turbomachinery and Pump Symposia 2024

TPS is a vital industry event, offering a forum for the exchange of ideas between rotating equipment engineers and technicians worldwide. TPS is known for its impact on turbomachinery, pump, oil & gas, petrochemical, power, aerospace, chemical and water industries.

VIDEO | 2024-06-03

DMG Mori: 3-Axis vs. 5-Axis Machining

DMG Mori highlights the advantages of 5-axis in order to increase efficiency and precision. This includes avoiding chip nests, reducing clamping positions as well as throughput times by changing from 3-axis to 5-axis machining.  

VIDEO | 2024-06-03

Aerospace Grinding Summit Recap

United Grinding recaps a successful Aerospace Summit 2024 where the industry showcased the latest aerospace technologies and innovations.  Demos included grinding of nonferrous advanced aerospace material with dressable super abrasives on the MÄGERLE MFP 30, improving grinding performance through optimized dressing techniques, single-step finishing of multifeature and mixed-material shaft components containing hard coatings on the Studer S41 and much more! 

EVENT | 2024-06-03

Aachen Conference on Gear Production

Although gears have been indispensable components in various areas such as mechanical engineering, the automotive industry and industrial gear production for many decades, increasing requirements and current market developments are constantly presenting the drive technology sectors with new challenges. The aim of the Aachen Conference on Gear Production is an exchange of knowledge and experience between engineers who work in or are responsible for the design, development, production, assembly and application of gears.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-05-28

Stäubli Appoints New Robotics Director for North America

Stäubli is happy to announce the nomination of Christopher Clark as Stäubli Robotics Director for North America, effective May 1, 2024.

EVENT | 2024-05-28

Okuma and Emuge-Franken Multitasking Event

Emuge-Franken USA is teaming up with Okuma America Corporation to present and demonstrate Multitasking Machining Innovations for complex turbine components on June 13th, 2024, from 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. at Okuma America Corporation located at 11900 Westhall Drive in Charlotte, North Carolina. This complimentary Multitasking Event is designed for manufacturing engineers.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-05-22

Forest City Gear Celebrates Retirement of Brian Getty

Forest City Gear, an industry-leading manufacturer of fine and medium pitch custom gears, is proud to celebrate the retirement of Brian Getty in May. Getty served as Forest City Gear’s Maintenance Technician Lead for 10 years.

EVENT | 2024-04-12

Gleason Gear Process Theory Cylindrical and Bevel Gears

Attendees will gain familiarization with spur, helical, bevel and hypoid gear nomenclature, the use of various cutting methods in Gleason machines as well as the tooling and processes used in gear manufacturing. Topics include gear classification, cutting methods, blank tolerances and configurations, inspection, testing, and workholding. 


INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-04-10

Liebherr Offers Electric Drive Solutions for Construction Machinery

Compact and lightweight – such is the most common requirement for the gearboxes of emission-free, electric drives. With seven basic gearboxes, the LPI series by Liebherr fulfils exactly this need for high power density. With their low weight, reduced installation space and torque ranges from 20,000 Nm to 350,000 Nm, they are ideally suited as drives for crawler and crawler undercarriages. Customized large gearboxes are even available up to the maximum torque of 2,300,000 Nm.

EVENT | 2024-04-05

Zoller 2024 Open House and Technology Days

Explore integrated solutions that make manufacturing more efficient at Zoller Inc.'s 2024 Open House and Technology Days. This two-day event June 12 - 13, 2024, at the company's North American headquarters in Ann Arbor, Michigan, will highlight real customers who have leveraged Zoller technology to optimize their manufacturing processes and boost profits.


EVENT | 2024-04-03

Rapid + TCT 2024

For more than 30 years, RAPID + TCT has defined the crucial role of additive manufacturing and industrial 3D printing by empowering the establishment of an industry that continues to conceive, test, improve and manufacture new products at a faster, more cost-efficient pace. SME and Rapid News Publications team up to produce the annual RAPID + TCT event. which will take place June 25-27 in Los Angeles, CA.

EVENT | 2024-04-03

WZL Gear Conference USA

The 10th WZL Gear Conference - USA is being hosted by Gleason Corporation in Rochester NY and will provide the opportunity for North American companies to connect with WZL and learn about current research activities. For more than 50 years the annual WZL Gear Conference in Aachen, Germany, has been fostering technical collaboration and communication among the members of the WZL Gear Research Circle. The two-day conference is devoted exclusively to the presentation of the latest research in gear design, manufacturing and testing.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-04-02

Horsburgh & Scott Launches Industrial Gearbox Facility in Louisiana

International manufacturer Horsburgh & Scott Company announced that it has established a 32,000-square-foot facility in Slidell, LA, for the repair, service and assembly of industrial gears and gearboxes destined for the defense industry. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-03-20

STLE Launches New “Women in Tribology” Publication and Panel

The Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE) is pleased to announce a new publication and panel dedicated to women and future women in the tribology and lubrication engineering field. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-03-13

ABB Opens Refitted Robotics Facility in Michigan

ABB has opened its refitted US robotics headquarters and manufacturing facility in Auburn Hills, MI, which will support ABB Robotics’ global leadership in developing and manufacturing robotic solutions in the US, for the US and the Americas.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-03-08

RoboDK and Comau Partner to Improve Robotic Simulation

RoboDK announces its strategic partnership with Comau, a global leader in advanced automation solutions and robot manufacturer. The latest version of Comau Roboshop Next Gen software seamlessly integrates with RoboDK, making simulation more advanced. 

EVENT | 2024-03-08

Control 2024

Control 2024 (Stuttgart, Germany) offers the most up-to-date technologies from the fields of vision technology, image processing, sensor technology, as well as measuring and test technology and quality assurance. “Measurement, testing, inspection, evaluation, documentation-end-to-end solutions for these functions are required everywhere because more and more data is being captured, analyzed, linked and fed back to the respective systems in order to achieve transparency and consistency. This is why software and intelligent evaluation algorithms are playing an increasingly important role,” explains Fabian Krüger, project manager.

EVENT | 2024-03-08

Cleanpower 2024

Cleanpower 2024 (Minneapolis, MN.) grows businesses by gathering key decision makers and stakeholders across the wind, solar, storage, hydrogen, and transmission industries for discussion, deal making, networking and a whole lot of fun. The trade show not only brings together the different technologies that make up the renewables mix; onshore wind, offshore wind, solar, storage, and transmission but also the different segments within the industries; manufacturers, construction firms, owner operators, utilities, financial firms, corporate buyers and more. Cleanpower will feature the latest products, services and technologies coming to the renewable energy industry.

EVENT | 2024-03-08

CTI Symposium 2024

CO2 reduction is critical for automotive drivetrain. Here the battery electric drive using renewable energy is the focus. What can we do to increase efficiency and reliability, reduce cost and at the same time reduce the upstream CO2? At CTI Symposium USA 2024 the automotive industry discusses the challenges it faces and promising strategies. Latest solutions in the fields of electric drives, power electronics, battery systems, e-machines as well as the manufacturing of these components and supply chain improvements are presented. For the bigger picture market and consumer research results as well as infrastructure related topics supplement the exchange of expertise.

CTI Symposia drive the progress in individual and commercial automotive transportation. Manufacturer, suppliers and institutions are showing how to master the demanding challenges.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-02-22

Forest City Gear to Host Manufacturing Facility Tour for Rock River Valley Tooling and Machining Association

Forest City Gear, an industry-leading manufacturer of fine and medium pitch custom gears, is pleased to host a manufacturing facility tour for Rock River Valley Machining and Tooling Association (RRVTMA) on Wednesday, February 28 at 5 PM.  

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-02-20

KISSsoft Announces KISSdesign Webinar in March

The KISSdesign system module is a powerful tool for transmission modeling and analysis. MSc. Eng. Aissa Benykhlef from KISSsoft AG will guide attendees through the essential tools and functionalities required for building comprehensive models, with a special emphasis on the Sketcher and its versatile applications in various kinematic models.

EVENT | 2024-02-09

Women in Manufacturing: Assuring Quality for Decades to Come

Wenzel America and Fox Valley Metrology understand the importance of quality and excellence in the manufacturing industry. In this webinar, attendees will hear from the experts on the following subjects:

Advocacy in your career to promote growth and getting that “seat at the table.

Tips to be productive, quality-focused, and intentional at your job.

Important networking and mentoring suggestions that will enhance your industry relationships.

The webinar will be hosted by Rebecca Brinkley, AGMA.

VIDEO | 2024-01-23

Doubling Down on Hera Hobbing

The Helios team recently installed a Hera 200 and Hera 500 at Dayton Gear in Dayton, OH.

VIDEO | 2024-01-23

GMTA Profilator S300

GMTA machines in the S Series are better than broaching and most applications feature a dry machining process. All machine components are designed for especially high static stiffness and optimal dynamic behavior. The following video examines the Profilator S300 with tool changer: 

EVENT | 2024-01-22

Operations, Maintenance & Safety Conference

Clean energy employees are the heart and soul of the industry and keeping them safe is a top priority. American Clean Power's (ACP’s) Operations, Maintenance and Safety Conference (OMS) is the place where leaders from headquarters to the field come together to talk about retention strategies, recruitment techniques and training best practices in an effort to make clean energy stronger and safer. Key exhibitors include Applied Industrial Technologies, ExxonMobil, Intertek AIM, ONYX Insight, Shell Lubricants, Vestas and more. The event takes place in San Diego at the Manchester Grand Hyatt. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-01-10

KISSsoft Announces 2024 Training Schedule

KISSsoft training courses cover various categories - basic, advanced, special - and take place either via Live Stream or at the KISSsoft AG premises in Switzerland. Based always on the current KISSsoft release, they give you the possibility to enhance and deepen your software knowledge and skills with regards to KISSsoft modules and functionalities.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2024-01-08

Forest City Gear Director of Operations Jared Lyford Joins Rock River Valley Tooling & Machining Association Board Of Directors

Forest City Gear, an industry-leading manufacturer of fine and medium pitch custom gears, is proud to announce that Director of Operations Jared Lyford has been elected to the Rock River Valley Tooling & Machining Association (RRVTMA) Board of Directors.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-12-21

Avers Machine & Gear Has Acquired Fox Tool & Manufacturing

Avers Machine & Gear has acquired Fox Tool & Manufacturing located in Woodstock, Illinois. Fox Tool & Manufacturing is an Aerospace Machine shop that is AS9100D Certified, ISO 9001/2015 Certified, and ITAR Registered and has been operating for close to 40 years.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-12-07

Speedgrip Chuck Company Invests $200,000 Grant in Advanced Technologies for Manufacturers

Indiana-based Speedgrip Chuck Company has been awarded a $200,000 Manufacturing Readiness Grant by the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) to boost the company’s investment in advanced manufacturing technology and products.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-12-07

Lena Risse, Precision Toolmaker at Risse Tool Technology is the first ever winner in ANCA’s Inaugural Female Machinist Award

Johanna Boland, Strategy and Communications Manager at ANCA, expressed her pride in introducing the first-ever Female Machinist of the Year award for ANCA. “Since joining this industry I have met and worked with some truly intelligent, driven female leaders. However, let’s face it, female machinists are not that common and encouraging diversity can only make our sector stronger and more successful.”

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-12-01

FCG's Mindy Young Joins Rockford Symphony Orchestra Foundation Board

Forest City Gear is proud to share that Mindy Young, shareholder and third daughter of Fred and Wendy Young, has been invited to join the Rockford Symphony Orchestra Foundation Board. Since 2007, the Board has been dedicated to financing and supporting the mission of the Rockford Symphony Orchestra.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-11-27

GWJ Technology Extends Calculation of Involute Splines

GWJ Technology GmbH introduces an extended version of the calculation module for involute splines within its web-based software solution eAssistant.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-11-22

MPIF Releases New Materials Standard for PM Structural Parts

The 2024 edition of MPIF Standard 35-SP – Materials Standards for PM Structural Parts has been released. This Standard is a must-have document and provides the design and materials engineer with the latest engineering property data and information available to specify materials for structural parts made using the PM process. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-11-20

SDP/SI Passes Recertification AS9100 and ISO 9001 Quality Management System Audit

Stock Drive Products/Sterling Instrument (SDP/SI), a Designatronics, Inc. company, completed and passed its recertification AS9100:D and ISO 9001:2015 quality system audit. The audit, conducted by Intertek over a 5-day period, certifies SDP/SI’s quality management system conforms to AS and ISO standards.

VIDEO | 2023-11-20

Helios Gear School

A quick look inside the 2023 Helios Gear School in South Elgin, IL. 

VIDEO | 2023-11-20

FANUC Collaborative Mobile Machine Tending

FANUC demonstrates mobile machine tending. This mobile manipulator solution is produced by Capriol and features a FANUC CRX-20iA/L collaborative robot integrated with an OTTO 100 Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR). The mobile manipulator demonstrated autonomous, on-demand tending of a ROBODRILL vertical machining center, feeding blanks into the machine via a magazine and removing machined parts via a basket. The machined parts are then washed and dried in a separate washer station and new blanks are kitted into a magazine, ready for the next cycle.

EVENT | 2023-11-16

Industrial IoT Conference 2024

The Industrial IoT Conference (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) explores the potential of intelligent machines, prescriptive analytics, sensor driven analytics, and block chain solutions. Attendees learn about the industrial IoT technologies that are driving the transformation in manufacturing, supply chain and operations. Attendees include implementors, manufacturing companies, supply chain professionals, service providers, IoT manufacturers and more. Topics include implementation, warehouse logistics, robotics, sensors, cybersecurity, data analytics and more.

EVENT | 2023-11-16

DMG Mori Open House Pfronten 2024

Visit DMG Mori's "Home of Innovation" showroom and find out how to optimize your processes with MX - Machining Transformation (Pfronten, Germany). Experience solutions for process integration, automation as well as digital and green transformation. The open house includes 45+ high-tech machines and more than 20 automation solutions, including a world premiere and innovations from various sectors: the DMF 400|11, a new traveling column machine with 4,000 mm travel, and the new PH Cell 500, a modular pallet handling system with a transfer weight of 500 kg. Attendees can also view CELOS X, the holistic digital and data-based ecosystem for optimizing production processes.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-11-10

Shane Herendeen Promoted to MC Machinery Systems Fabrication Division Vice President of Sales

Shane Herendeen has been promoted to fabrication division vice president of sales at MC Machinery Systems in Elk Grove Village, IL.
Herendeen began his 20-year career in the manufacturing industry as a sales engineer with a Midwest Mitsubishi Laser distributor, followed by running his own manufacturing consulting company for several years. He joined MC Machinery Systems in 2010 as national sales manager for fabrication and was promoted to North American sales manager in 2015.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-11-06

KISSsoft Highlights Gear Mesh and Bearing Characteristic Frequencies

KISSsoft supports the user with numerous calculations for different machine elements. The new KISSdesign module in KISSsoft supports the combination of these machine elements in building complex system transmissions containing any number of shafts, gears, and bearings.  

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-11-01

TCI Precision Metals A36 Carbon Steel Blanks Now Available Online

TCI Precision Metals announces that its A36 Carbon Steel, Ready-to-Ship blanks are now available from OnlineMetals.com, an e-commerce metal and plastics supplier. The pre-machined blanks allow customers to order flat, square, and parallel materials to close tolerance specifications.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-10-31

MPIF Elects New Officers

Michael Stucky, business unit director, Norwood Medical, Bellbrook, Ohio, has been elected the 32nd president of the Metal Powder Industries Federation, succeeding Rodney Brennen, Metco Industries, St. Marys, Pennsylvania. His two-year term began at the conclusion of the Federation’s annual MPIF Business Meeting, October 28–30, in Louisville, Kentucky.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-10-20

AGMA Promotes Blackford to Chief Operating Officer

The American Gear Manufacturers Association (AGMA) announced the promotion of Jenny Blackford to the organization’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) today. In her new role, Blackford will oversee the association’s systems and processes, enterprise wide. In addition, she will have expanded roles relative to human and technology resources and investments.

TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2023-10-05

Process and Tool Design Optimization for Hypoid Gears with the Help of the Manufacturing Simulation BevelCut

As the challenges in bevel and hypoid gear manufacturing need to be addressed, the objective of this paper is to show the tool and process design can be optimized based on the results of the manufacturing simulation BevelCut.

PRODUCT NEWS | 2023-10-05

Kapp Niles Provides Digital Solutions for the Closed Loop

With Closed Loop, Kapp Niles offers a system that enables the integration of machining and measuring machines. By using Closed Loop, efficient processes and optimized production are realized. This tool helps companies to improve the quality of their workpieces and to make their processes more efficient.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-10-04

Global Shop Solutions Achieves Milestone with ERP Training Webinar

How many software companies provide free advanced training to their customers dozens of times each year for 15 years straight? Global Shop Solutions, a leading provider of ERP software for manufacturers, does. In fact, they have been doing so for 15 years with Friday Features, a high-level ERP training webinar helping customers simplify their manufacturing by continually improving their ERP skills.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-09-26

TCI Precision Metals Expands Sawing Services for Flexible Material Processing

TCI Precision Metals announced the expansion of its precision sawing services to meet the demands of customers wanting more flexibility in materials processing. Customers with needs ranging from precision sawing to six-sided precision machine-ready blanks can now be accommodated. Computerized precision sawing helps TCI to serve more of the customer’s materials needs. TCI sources aluminum, stainless steel, and other alloys mill-direct, which supports customers needing value-added materials, but the Company also works with customer-supplied materials.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-09-25

Forest City Gear Hosts Gleason Gear School Students

Forest City Gear hosted a tour for students of the Gleason Gear School on September 20, 2023. For more than 70 years, Gleason Cutting Tools' school has led seminars in Rockford, IL on math, gear theory, and the required tooling, manufacture, and inspection of gears. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-09-19

Croix Gear Hires Michael McKernin as Business Development Manager

Croix Gear, recognized as a leader in the custom manufacturing of loose gears, is excited to announce the addition of gear industry veteran, Mike McKernin, as Business Development Manager. With over 32 years of gear manufacturing experience and industry relationships, Mr. McKernin will help meet the diverse needs of Croix Gear’s customers.

EVENT | 2023-09-15

Southtec 2023

Southtec 2023 draws manufacturing suppliers, distributors and equipment builders from across North America and around the world – bringing them together in Greenville, South Carolina. With hundreds of exhibiting companies, attendees can find all the latest technologies and services – plus the experts who build them – ready to demonstrate solutions that can help them grow their business. Visitors can make side-by-side comparisons, discover integrated equipment, hear about industry trends and forecasts, and leverage their purchasing power. 

EVENT | 2023-09-15

Aachen Forum on Gear Production

In this seminar, attendees will learn about gearing, electromobility and their interrelationships. How gearing can increase the efficiency and performance of electromobility, and which components are needed for this. Also, a detailed look at the design and manufacture of gears for electric vehicles. Attendees will explore the challenges of gearing for electromobility, such as adapting to hard-to-reach places, increasing durability, and reducing energy consumption, and discuss how grinding technology and tool design must meet requirements to improve the properties and improve the quality of gears for electric vehicles. The Aachen Forum on Gear Production (AFGP) is held annually in alternation with the Aachen Conference on Gear Production (ACGP). While the Forum at the RWTH Aachen Campus is dedicated to a technical focus (2023 the interlocking in the E-Mobility sector) the conference, on the other hand, is dedicated to various facets of gear technology.

EVENT | 2023-09-15

Advanced Engineering 2024

Advanced Engineering (Birmingham) has rebranded to celebrate the evolution and new developments in the industrial manufacturing. Sectors include aerospace, automotive, defense, composites, marine, rail, energy, medical and more. To ensure that visitors and exhibitors can still easily find relevant contacts, Advanced Engineering exhibitors will now be categorized by the services, products and solutions offered. They will have the opportunity to highlight all of the sectors they work in, removing any limitations created by the specific show zones. Advanced Engineering will welcome back a full speaker program with representatives from some of the leading companies in UK manufacturing including GE, Shell, ZF, Bosch, Siemens, 3M, IBM, Airbus and more. 

PRODUCT NEWS | 2023-08-23

TraceBoss Plus Software Combines Surface Roughness and Crosshatch Measurement and Analysis

Digital Metrology Solutions, provider of measurement software, consulting, and training, has introduced TraceBoss+ (TraceBoss Plus) software, integrating surface texture and crosshatch measurement in a single package.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-08-22

Jergens Appoints Carreon as Product and Business Development Manager for Mexico

Jergens appoints Miguel Carreon as its product and business development Manager for Mexico. In his role Carreon is responsible for sales and related activities for all three product lines throughout Mexico’s 32 states. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-08-21

TE-CO Manufacturing Hires New Vice President of Operations

TE-CO Manufacturing has announced the hiring of Christopher (Chris) Cornelius as its new Vice president of Operations where he will manage day-to-day operations including overseeing engineering, manufacturing and facility operations teams. He is responsible for operations strategy development, implementation and performance measurement, alignment with company goals; and managing budgeting process and P&L responsibilities.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-08-01

GearTec Acquires Triple A for the Large Gear/Gearbox Industry

GearTec, Inc. (Willoughby, OH) is pleased to announce it has purchased the assets of Triple A Inc. (Euclid, OH). Triple A now joins GearTec as a wholly-owned subsidiary of United Stars, Inc. (Beloit, WI). United Stars companies are engineering-driven, best-in-class manufacturers of a wide range of metal products/alloys serving over 20 industries globally.  

EVENT | 2023-07-31

Digital Factory 2023

Join dynamic keynotes and discussions from industry and policy leaders on Digital Design, Digital Manufacturing, Workforce Development, Sustainability and Supply Networks. Current speakers include the CEOs of Rockwell Automation, GE Digital, Formlabs, Autodesk, Re:Build Manufacturing and leaders from Hasbro, MIT, AWS, Steelcase, Atlas Copco, and the State of Massachusetts. Connect with like-minded organizations pushing the limits on digital transformation.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-07-26

Croix Gear Announces New Look

Croix Gear, recognized as a leader in the custom manufacturing of loose gears, is excited to announce new branding for the organization. Ruthie Johnston, CEO/Owner, stated, “We are excited to have our brand reflect how Croix Gear has grown and developed over the past several years. It is a new look, but the same commitment to our customers, team members and industry.”

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-07-19

Frederic (Fred) Marlin Young (1943–2023)

It is with great sadness that Forest City Gear announces the death of Fred Young, former president and CEO. Fred took over the family business, Forest City Gear, in 1967. Founded by his parents in 1955, Fred took the small mom-and-pop shop to a global level, leading the company to manufacture some of the world's most difficult gearing for amazing end uses from NASA's Martian rovers and space station to robotic arms and racing yachts.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-07-18

Regional Sales Manager Aisha Mills-Hendrix From Sandvik Coromant To Speak at Women in Manufacturing SUMMIT

Addressing ways women professionals can overcome obstacles in male-dominated industries, Aisha Mills-Hendrix, regional sales manager, Sandvik Coromant, will present at the Women in Manufacturing (WiM) SUMMIT 2023. The event, set to take place in San Diego, Sept. 25-27, will bring more than 1,000 attendees from various industries across the country. Aisha will deliver her presentation, “Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Advancement, Self-Advocacy, and Resilience” on Tuesday, Sept. 26, from 1 to 1:45 p.m.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-07-06

ANCA Launches Inaugural Female Machinist Award

ANCA, a leading global manufacturer of CNC grinding machines, proudly announces the launch of its first Female Machinist Award. This prestigious accolade aims to recognize and honor the outstanding achievements of female machinists in the tool and cutter grinding industry. By promoting gender diversity and equality, ANCA is dedicated to fostering an industry that excels in every aspect. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-06-28

ANCA's Tool of the Year Award Honors the Innovation and Expertise of Trailblazing Toolmakers

Are you a machinist of high-precision cutting tools? Do you have an amazing tool or design that you want to share with the world? This is your chance to shine. Touted as the Oscars of the cutting tool industry, #ANCATooloftheYear2023 is your chance to achieve global brand recognition as well as cash and other prizes.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-06-27

ABB Expands Large Robot Family

ABB Robotics is expanding its large robot range with four new models and 22 variants, offering more choice, increased coverage and greater performance. The next generation models include the IRB 6710, IRB 6720, IRB 6730 and IRB 6740, suitable for payloads ranging from 150kg to 310kg, with a reach from 2.5m to 3.2m, offering customers greater choice and significant performance and energy efficiency improvements.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-06-27

Forest City Gear Hires Chris Hart as Supplier Quality Engineer

Forest City Gear, an industry-leading manufacturer of fine and medium pitch custom gears, is proud to announce the hire of Chris Hart as Supplier Quality Engineer. Some of his responsibilities in this role include conducting supplier audits and on-site visits, issuing corrective actions to suppliers, and working to improve the partnerships with all our suppliers.  

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-06-20

Mazak's Dan Janka Brings a Lifetime of Manufacturing Experience to AMT Chairman Position

With experience in the manufacturing industry dating back to the age of 13, Mazak President Dan Janka once again has accepted the position of chairman of the board of The Association of Manufacturing Technology (AMT). Janka, an AMT member since 2005, last served as chairman in 2010. He retired from the board in 2013, but remained an active committee member and attended the association’s forecasting conferences.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-06-15

Nord Develops Intelligent Heat Recovery from Machine Tools

Nord Drivesystems continuously looks for opportunities to gain manufacturing efficiencies and implement practices that have less impact on the environment. In 2012, Fertigungstechnik Nord, a member of the Nord Drivesystems Group located in Gadebusch, Germany, developed a concept for heat recovery from machine tools in their production areas.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-06-02

Ross Wegryn-Jones Joins Bourn & Koch

Bourn & Koch, Inc. of Rockford, IL, is pleased to report that Ross Wegryn-Jones has recently joined the company as our National Sales Manager. Ross will be responsible for the sales of gear manufacturing machines, precision grinding machines, and specialty machine tools for unique manufacturing applications. This includes Bourn & Koch horizontal gear hobbers; Fellows gear shapers; Blanchard rotary surface grinders, and Bourn & Koch’s new MT3 vertical grinding machine. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-06-02

Grand Opening: YCM Alliance Michigan Technical Center

YCM Technology (USA), Inc. announces the grand opening of its newest Technical Center in Sterling Heights, MI. The high-tech facility is designed to showcase and demonstrate various complementary machining solutions available through the YCM Alliance for die/mold machining, general parts machining, and ultra-high-speed machining. 

EVENT | 2023-06-02

International Conference on Gear Production 2023

As an accompanying event to the International Conference on Gears 2023, the 5th International Conference on Gear Production is one of the most important biannual meeting points for the gear manufacturing industry both for technical experts and for decision-makers. Current challenges and solutions are presented and discussed, strongly emphasizing new potentials in productivity and/or the flexibility of gear manufacturing processes.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-05-30

Forest City Gear Attends 2023 AGMA Strategic Networking and Leadership Forum

Forest City Gear’s President Kika Young, Director of Operations Jared Lyford, and Value Stream Manager John Cochran attended the 2023 American Gear Manufacturers Association (AGMA) Strategic Networking & Leadership (SNL) Forum in Fort Worth, TX. The annual event is held to offer mid-level managers and executives within the gear manufacturing industry opportunities to network and educate one another.  

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-05-30

Forest City Gear Hires Kevin Rogers as Quoting Engineer

Forest City Gear, an industry-leading manufacturer of fine and medium pitch custom gears, is proud to announce the hire of Kevin Rogers as Quoting Engineer. Some of his responsibilities in this role include reviewing and generating new requests for quotes and working with clients to determine their orders’ special requirements.  

EVENT | 2023-05-12

Fabtech 2024

Fabtech provides a 'one-stop-shop' for metal forming, fabricating, welding, and finishing trade show. Attendees can meet with 1,300+ suppliers, discover innovative solutions, and find the tools to improve productivity and increase profits. There is no better opportunity to network, share knowledge and explore the latest technology.

EVENT | 2023-05-12

Motion + Power Technology Expo 2023

Produced by AGMA, Motion + Power Technology Expo (Detroit) is a three-day show that connects professionals looking for motion power solutions with manufacturers, suppliers, and buyers. Attendees will find new power transmission parts, materials, and manufacturing processes. Buy, sell, and get business done with organizations in aerospace, automotive, agricultural, energy, construction and more.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-05-05

Forest City Gear Expands Cylindrical Gear Grinding Capacity

Forest City Gear has expanded its capacity for the grinding of high-precision internal and external gears with the addition of two Kellenberger K100 cylindrical grinders.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-05-04

Punch Powertrain Stellantis JVs Start Largescale Serial Production of Novel Hybrid eDCT

Punch Powertrain and Stellantis commence large-scale serial production of the unique and highly anticipated eDCT/DT2 transmission. The manufacturing starts within the scope of the companies' 2 joint ventures: ‘e-Transmissions’ and ‘e-Transmissions Assembly’. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-04-26

Mitsubishi Electric Automation Releases CNC Oscillation Cutting Function

Mitsubishi Electric Automation, Inc. announces the upgrade option of Vibration Cutting Control (VCC) via hardware to its M8 Series CNC as a solution to eliminate chip strands while machining difficult to cut material, such as stainless steel, at faster cutting speeds.

EVENT | 2023-04-24

Automatica 2023

Automatica is a trade fair for intelligent automation and robotics covers the entire value-added chain: from components to systems; from services to applications—for all manufacturing sectors. It offers an overview of current developments and innovations and thus provides the necessary orientation and investment security.

EVENT | 2023-04-11

Reliable Plant 2023

This three-day event offers attendees learning sessions and case studies on the latest industrial lubrication and oil analysis technologies. The comprehensive conference schedule covers every facet of the machinery lubrication industry and includes workshops on topics such as employee performance, lubrication fundamentals, condition-based maintenance and maintenance planning.

EVENT | 2023-04-11

Dritev 2023

The International VDI Congress “Dritev” is one of the world’s largest automobile congresses. Hundreds of experts with an R&D background meet every year to exchange thoughts on current developments in the field of drivetrain and transmission. It’s the ideal place to reach out to long-known fellow experts, find new project partners and pave the way to establish new business ties.

VIDEO | 2023-04-10

DMG Linear Pallet Pool for Multi-Machine Automation

This DMG Mori video looks at a linear pallet pool for multi machine automation with up to 10 machines, 5 setup stations and up to 99 pallets. Ideal automation for multiple machines and short pallet changing time due to twin fork shuttle technology.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-04-06

Forest City Gear Attends AGMA Annual Meeting in Florida

Three members of Forest City Gear’s board of directors—President Kika Young, Mindy Young, and Appy Mikel—attended the 2023 AGMA/ABMA annual meeting in March. The meeting, hosted by the American Gear Manufacturers Association and the American Bearing Manufacturing Association, was held at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-04-04

Liebherr Examines 2022 Business Outlook

Difficult general conditions, rapidly rising food and fuel prices, as well as the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and related regional lockdowns weighed on economic development and slowed economic growth in the past business year. Nevertheless, Liebherr’s total revenue increased significantly compared to the previous year. The group achieved increased revenue in 10 of its 13 product segments, some of them significant. It thus surpassed its previous record from 2021 by €950 million.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-03-24

AGMA Announces New Board of Directors and Officers at Annual Meeting

The American Gear Manufacturers Association (AGMA) has changed its board of directors. These changes took place at the 2023 AGMA Annual Meeting in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-03-23

TIMTOS 2023 Concludes With Great Success

TIMTOS 2023 concluded successfully today, attracting over 45,000 on-site visitors from home and abroad, including nearly 6,000 international visitors from more than 100 countries. Among them, delegations were from Turkey, Vietnam, Indonesia, Spain, and Algeria. The top five countries with the highest turnout were Japan, Malaysia, India, South Korea, and Thailand. The online exhibition will continue to run until April 6 and has already reached 7,000 visitors from nearly 15 countries. 

EVENT | 2023-03-23

CTI Symposium USA 2024

CO2 reduction is critical for automotive drivetrain. Here the battery electric drive using renewable energy is the focus. What can we do to increase efficiency and reliability, reduce cost and at the same time reduce the upstream CO2? At CTI SYMPOSIUM USA 2023 the automotive industry discusses the challenges it faces and promising strategies.

EVENT | 2023-03-23

Automate 2023

Between intimate workshops, news making keynotes, networking events, innovation competitions and live demonstrations, Automate offers comprehensive automation education and cutting-edge robotics, vision, AI, motion control and other technologies. Automate delivers the latest innovations in manufacturing automation technology from more than 600 leading exhibitors. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-03-22

Forest City Gear Attends Training Retreat Hosted by DMG MORI

Two Forest City Gear employees, CNC Supervisor Mike Miller and CNC Lead/Programmer Josh Gates, recently attended a four-day training retreat in Pfronten, Germany hosted by DMG MORI. The event featured various seminars and opportunities for guests to experience firsthand DMG’s newest equipment and technologies, as well as networking and a taste of German culture.

PRODUCT NEWS | 2023-03-20

NUM Offers Tool Grinding Software to Denmark Tooling Company

TN Vaerktoejsslibning, Denmark’s second-largest precision tooling company, is deploying Numroto, the programming system for tool grinding from NUM across its entire production floor. The company cites highly successful long-term experience of the software, together with excellent technical support from NUM, as the key reasons for choosing to standardize on Numroto.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-03-14

Hansen Industrial Transmissions NV Celebrates its 100th Anniversary

What started as a small workshop in Antwerp in 1923 has developed into a world-leading industrial gear unit manufacturer. For 100 years, Hansen Industrial Transmissions NV (HIT) has operated at the forefront of power transmission technology and shaped the industry with its industrial gearbox solutions. Since 2011, the company, headquartered at a state-of-the-art facility in Edegem with 260 employees, has been part of Sumitomo Drive Technologies. HIT supplies industrial gearboxes to a wide range of industries such as extraction material handling, energy, environment, and specialist applications in key industries.

PRODUCT NEWS | 2023-03-08

All-Directional Y-Axis Turning

Sandvik Coromant, a cutting tool and tooling system specialist, has introduced a new method for turning complicated shapes and pockets with a single tool. Y-axis turning offers benefits such as reduced cycle time, improved component surface quality and more stable machining.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-03-08

Embracing Equity for Women in STEM

This year’s International Women’s Day (IWD) follows the theme of “embracing equity”—focusing on giving fair opportunities for everyone to succeed. As a business invested in its people, metal-cutting leader Sandvik Coromant highlights the experience of its president, Helen Blomqvist.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-03-01

Forest City Gear Promotes Zac Denny to Setup Technician

Forest City Gear, an industry-leading manufacturer of fine and medium pitch custom gears, is proud to announce the promotion of Zac Denny to Setup Technician. In this role, he will oversee setup and operation of the MZ130 and Koepfer 153 machines.

EVENT | 2023-03-01

Gleason e-Drive Days 2023

Gleason's e-Drive Days online webinar addresses the specific requirements and challenges of e-Drive transmission manufacture, with particular attention to minimizing gear noise. The event showcases the latest developments in design, simulation, cutting and hard finishing, as well as suitable inspection and analysis tools to achieve most efficient and quiet gears. Day one examines gearbox design and optimization; day two looks at the manufacturing of e-Drive gears; day three offers in-process inspection and gear noise analysis. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-02-28

Croix Gear & Machining Announces New President

Croix Gear & Machining, recognized as a leader in the custom manufacturing of loose gears, announced the hiring of Michael J. Lindsay as President. Mr. Lindsay will assume responsibility for all manufacturing and business operations. Mr. Lindsay brings a proven track record for continual improvement in supply chain, scheduling, production, and quality to Croix Gear. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-02-27

Southern Gear Adds Capacity for Large Ring Gears

Southern Gear has added two Hwacheon VT-1150+ Vertical Turning Centers to its gear production operations, both capable of high-speed, complete machining of ring gears and other cylindrical parts with diameters of 1,320 mm and lengths up to 950 mm. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-02-21

United Grinding North America Backs Reshoring Initiative

United Grinding North America is proud to announce its sponsorship of the Reshoring Initiative, a nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing good, well-paying manufacturing jobs back to the United States. They accomplish this by helping companies more accurately assess their total cost of manufacturing overseas and working to shift the collective thinking of management from "offshoring is cheaper" to "local reduces cost."

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-02-15

Forest City Gear Completes Annual AS9100 / ISO 9001 Quality Audit

Forest City Gear recently completed and passed its annual AS9100/ISO 9001:2015 quality system audit. The third-party audit company, Quality Systems Registrar (QSR), evaluated Forest City Gear’s quality management systems to ensure compliance with AS and ISO standards. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-02-13

State of the Gear Industry Perspectives: Forest City Gear

State of the Gear Industry Perspectives takes an in-depth look at the challenges and opportunities in gear manufacturing today and in the future. Our seventh installment online is an interview with Kika Young, president, and Jared Lyford, director of manufacturing operations at Forest City Gear (FCG). 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-02-13

Southern Gear Announces HUBzone Certification

Southern Gear, a veteran-owned small business specializing in the manufacture of precision gears, is pleased to announce its certification as a Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) business by the United States Small Business Administration (SBA).

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2023-02-13

2023 State of the Gear Industry

Gear Technology’s annual State-of-the-Gear-Industry survey polls gear manufacturers about the latest trends and opinions relating to the overall health of the gear industry. As in years past, the survey was conducted anonymously, with invitations sent by e-mail to gear industry companies—primarily in North America, but also including some respondents from around the world. Nearly 200 individuals responded to the survey.

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2023-02-13

Remaining Competitive

In manufacturing, there are many aspects of a company that contributes to success. However, there is one characteristic that rises to the very top of the prioritized list. This is the ability to be competitive.

PRODUCT NEWS | 2023-02-10

Jergens Inc. Introduces New Compact Zero-Point System (ZPS) Modules and Pull Studs

Jergens now offers two new zero-point-system (ZPS) installation choices for compact, light-duty applications. SP140 and K02 pull studs utilize pneumatics and a mechanical spring in a small package.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-02-10

New Powder Metallurgy Industry Roadmap Released

The Metal Powder Industries Federation (MPIF) has announced the release of the 2023 PM Industry Roadmap. The update reviews current and future demands of key markets and identifies the technical barriers, challenges, opportunities, and priorities that will drive the powder metallurgy (PM) industry's continued growth. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-02-09

State of the Gear Industry Perspectives: Kapp Technologies

State of the Gear Industry Perspectives takes an in-depth look at the challenges and opportunities in gear manufacturing today and in the future. Our sixth installment online is an interview with Shane Hollingsworth, vice president of sales, Kapp Technologies.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-02-06

State of the Gear Industry Perspectives: Helios Gear Products

State of the Gear Industry Perspectives takes an in-depth look at the challenges and opportunities in gear manufacturing today and in the future. Our fifth installment online is an interview with Adam Gimpert, president, Helios Gear Products.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-02-06

PMT Premier Machine Tools Limited Acquired by Seco Tools

As of February 1st, 2023, the Irish company PMT Premier Machine Tools Ltd (PMT), a supplier of machining solutions for the medical industry, will become part of the products and services offered by Seco. Seco will increase its presence in the medical segment with this acquisition by offering integrated manufacturing solutions.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-02-01

KISSsoft Adds Data Export from Contact Analysis

Contact analysis can be used to calculate the transmission error and determine the profile modifications of a gear stage. In addition, a wide range of important gear-specific parameters can be calculated, such as tooth root stress, distribution of Hertzian pressure, oil film thickness, and many more.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-01-31

State of the Gear Industry Perspectives: Liebherr

State of the Gear Industry Perspectives takes an in-depth look at the challenges and opportunities in gear manufacturing today and in the future. Our third installment online is an interview with Peter Wiedemann, managing director, Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH and Scott Yoders, vice president sales, Liebherr Gear Technology, Inc. 


INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-01-30

State of the Gear Industry Perspectives: Klingelnberg

State of the Gear Industry Perspectives takes an in-depth look at the challenges and opportunities in gear manufacturing today and in the future. Our second installment online is an interview with Christof Gorgels, vice president, innovation and technology at Klingelnberg. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-01-20

DMG MORI Updates Solar Panel System Project

In January 2022, it was announced that DMG MORI Manufacturing USA, Inc. (DMM) would be investing an estimated $3.4 million towards the installation of a 2,000 kilowatt (kW) solar panel system on the roof of its manufacturing site in Davis, California. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-01-19

Renowned Indian Gear Manufacturer Chooses NUM for CNC Grinding Machine Upgrade Project

Bharat Gears Ltd., one of India’s largest gear manufacturers, has successfully retrofitted a Reishauer RZ361A gear grinding machine with an advanced NUM Flexium+68 CNC system.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-01-18

Metal Exchange Corporation Names President of Manufacturing

Metal Exchange Corporation is pleased to announce that Mark Butterfield has been promoted to president of manufacturing.  In his new role, Butterfield will be responsible for the overall strategic, financial, commercial, organizational, and operational aspects of all manufacturing across the Pennex and Electro Cycle, Inc. brands. 

VIDEO | 2023-01-18

Forest City Gear Taps Helios Gear for Custom Cutting Tools

The Helios team delivered custom gear cutting tools to Forest City Gear in Roscoe, IL. See what Forest City Gear had to say about the process.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-01-17

MPIF Announces Distinguished Service Award Recipients

The Metal Powder Industries Federation's (MPIF) Awards Committee has announced the recipients of the 2023 MPIF Distinguished Service to Powder Metallurgy (PM) Award that recognizes individuals who have actively served the North American PM industry for at least 25 years and, in the minds of their peers, deserve special recognition.

EVENT | 2023-01-17

IEEE Aerospace Conference 2025

Big Sky, Montana. The International IEEE Aerospace Conference, with AIAA and PHM Society as technical cosponsors, is organized to promote interdisciplinary understanding of aerospace systems, their underlying science and technology, and their applications to government and commercial endeavors. The annual, weeklong conference is set in a stimulating and thought-provoking environment. The 2025 conference will be the 46th in the series.
EVENT | 2023-01-17

AGMA Gearbox CSI

A good understanding of individual failure modes and the failure scenarios that led to the actual system failure is an essential skill to designing gear/bearing systems that will operate properly for their full design life. In this course, we will define and explain the nature of many gear and bearing failures and we will also discuss and describe various actual failure scenarios. In addition, a detailed primer on bearing technology prefaces the failure scenario discussions. You will gain a better understanding of various types of gears and bearings. Learn about the limitation and capabilities of rolling element bearings and the gears that they support.  Grasp an understanding of how to properly apply the best gear-bearing combination to any gearbox from simple to complex.

EVENT | 2023-01-17

AGMA Gear Manufacturing and Inspection

While function and rating are important factors in a successful gear design, to be truly optimal and successful, the gear designer must also design the gears to be manufactured and inspected. In this course, therefore, we will address key factors in a wide variety of manufacturing and inspection processes to enable the gear designer to better design optimal gears considering both rating and the necessary manufacturing and inspection processes to produce the gears as designed. We will also help the designer to understand how to interpret inspection data so that they can ensure that the gears meet the design. To be clear, this is not a course in how to operate the various machines. Rather it addresses the design provisions that are required to allow the gears to be optimally manufactured and inspected. The learner will develop a broad understanding of the methods used to manufacture and inspect gears, as well as interpret how the resultant information can be applied and interpreted in the design process.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-01-16

Velo3D Hires Dr. Robin Stamp as Director of Solutions Engineering

Velo3D, Inc. has appointed Dr. Robin Stamp as director of solutions engineering to help grow the adoption of Velo3D’s metal additive manufacturing technology with new customers and in new industries. In his role, Dr. Stamp will oversee the development of new standards with regulatory agencies, qualification of new metal alloys for use in the Sapphire family of printers, and the collaboration with partners and agencies.

EVENT | 2023-01-12

KISSsoft Training - Basic: Shaft and Bearing Calculation

In the KISSsoft training program until summer 2023, you will find introductory training courses, advanced training courses and special training courses on selected topics. KISSsoft will be offering training in Bubikon, Switzerland and live streams, which will allow you flexibility and planning security, as well as the opportunity to interactively ask questions and participate in discussions in a virtual setting.

EVENT | 2023-01-12

KISSsoft Training - Basic: KISSsys - Modeling Gearboxes

In the KISSsoft training program until summer 2023, you will find introductory training courses, advanced training courses and special training courses on selected topics. KISSsoft will be offering training in Bubikon, Switzerland and live streams, which will allow you flexibility and planning security, as well as the opportunity to interactively ask questions and participate in discussions in a virtual setting.

EVENT | 2023-01-12

KISSsoft - Advanced: KISSsys - System Calculations

In the KISSsoft training program until summer 2023, you will find introductory training courses, advanced training courses and special training courses on selected topics. KISSsoft will be offering training in Bubikon, Switzerland and live streams, which will allow you flexibility and planning security, as well as the opportunity to interactively ask questions and participate in discussions in a virtual setting.

EVENT | 2023-01-12

KISSsoft Training - KISSsys - Model Customization

In the KISSsoft training program until summer 2023, you will find introductory training courses, advanced training courses and special training courses on selected topics. KISSsoft will be offering training in Bubikon, Switzerland and live streams, which will allow you flexibility and planning security, as well as the opportunity to interactively ask questions and participate in discussions in a virtual setting.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2023-01-11

Auto Gear Joins Gear Motions

Gear Motions is proud to announce that Auto Gear Inc. has joined the Gear Motion’s family. Auto Gear located in Syracuse, New York, specializes in efficient and economical low-volume gearbox production, from design to delivery. 

EVENT | 2023-01-11

CIMT 2023

Since founding in 1989, the China International Machine Tool Show (CIMT) held in every odd year has been successfully held 17 sessions so far. CIMT is the most prestigious, largest scale and most influential professional machine tool exhibition in China, regarded by the global machine tool industry as with the same popularity of EMO in Europe, IMTS in the United States, and JIMTOF in Japan. 

EVENT | 2023-01-11

Gear Dynamics & Gear Noise Short Course

The 4-day Gear Dynamics & Gear Noise Short Course will be held on the Ohio State campus from June 5-8, 2023. The course content is based on the results of 30+ years of gearing research, problem solving and consulting work by the OSU faculty. The course will be taught in the “in-person” mode with limited enrollment, with no online component.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-12-27

AGMA FTM Papers Deadline is Approaching

Those who wish to make submissions for the 2023 AGMA Fall Technical Meeting (FTM) have until January 13, 2023. Late submissions will not be accepted.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-12-22

Desktop Metal Offers Open House to See Production System P-50 Print Metal Parts

The Production System P-50 is designed to be the fastest way to 3D print metal parts at-scale. Powered by Desktop Metal's Single Pass Jetting technology, the P-50 can achieve speeds up to 100 times those of legacy powder bed fusion additive manufacturing technologies and enable production quantities of up to millions of parts per year at costs competitive with conventional mass production techniques.

VIDEO | 2022-12-14

WFL Operational Data Acquisition System

With the myWFL operational data acquisition system, you can maintain an overview around the clock and exploit the optimization potential for the smart factory. The software not only has a user-transparent display, but also improves machine utilization. All data in the production environment is collected and analyzed to achieve higher productivity. Shorter production times and a more effective design of the Smart Factory processes thus go hand in hand.

PRODUCT NEWS | 2022-12-07

Dimensional Control Systems (DCS) Examines E-Powertrain Electric Motor Geartrain Simulated Testing with the Digital Twin

The performance of an Electric Vehicle Power Unit is directly connected with critical tolerances. Tolerances drive opportunities for performance enhancement with cost reduction. The tests normally used to determine and validate tolerances are both expensive and time consuming with prototype parts. By replacing the initial tests with Digital Twin simulations, results can be obtained quickly, and at a much lower cost. This article discusses one of these tests and the results. 

PRODUCT NEWS | 2022-12-06

Jorgensen Partners with Will-Fill on Coolant Management System

As of November 1, Jorgensen Conveyor and Filtration Solutions has entered into a partnership with Will-Fill, a manufacturer of fully automatic coolant monitoring and managing systems. The strategic partnership allows Jorgensen to offer customers complete and worry-free coolant management systems, such as the company’s recently launched PermaClean, that provide both filtering and measuring capabilities for an all-in-one solution.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-12-02

Sandvik Coromant and NAIT Renew 15-Year Partnership

Sandvik Coromant and NAIT (Northern Alberta Institute of Technology) recently celebrated a 15-year partnership with a new contract extension that will be in effect until Dec. 31, 2025.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-12-01

Chiron Applies AM Coating Solution to Brake Disks

How can the protective layer be applied to the brake disk more quickly and more effectively? And how can it be made to stay on for longer? “The solution is intelligent coatings, as can be applied to brake disks using our AM coating system” says Dr. Géza Koscsák - the head of additive mat the Chiron Group. He has played a prominent role in developing the new system and reaching the decision to opt for the high-speed deposition welding process in his previous job as head of advanced development. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-11-30

AGMA Partners with India’s Premier Communications Company

The American Gear Manufacturers Association (AGMA) is partnering with Virgo Communications & Exhibitions to publish Gear Technology India, the Indian branch of the Gear Technology magazine.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-11-23

Jorgensen Announces New Company President and COO

With a definitive business plan in place for the future, Jorgensen Conveyor and Filtration Solutions has promoted Karl Kleppek to the position of company president and COO. Effective immediately, Kleppek, director of sales and marketing, takes over for former president Charles (Chuck) D’Amico. D’Amico maintains an active role in the company as CEO and chairman of the board and will focus on strategy development and direct customer relationships. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-11-16

DBS deliver ADI Segmented Girth Gear

The team at the David Brown Santasalo (DBS) purpose-built state-of-the-art facility in Jyvaskyla, Finland were delighted to have a further opportunity to work with Europe’s largest iron ore producer, manufacturing another impressive segmented ADI (Austempered Ductile Iron) girth gear.

VIDEO | 2022-11-16

Helios Solves Gear Cutting Tool Challenges with Delta Gear

The Helios team recently delivered custom gear cutting tools to Delta Research in Livonia, MI. This video examines what Delta Research had to say about the process.

VIDEO | 2022-11-16

Liebherr Machine Training Center

This brief video looks at the Machine Training Center (MTC) at the Liebherr Academy in Kempten.

VIDEO | 2022-11-16

Remote Monitoring of Girth Gear Performance

Inadequate lubrication conditions lead to excessive displacement. Vibration and temperature can reveal cracks and misalignment. Profile deformation leads to worsening conditions, and wear speed diagnoses current gear protection while predicting critical wear. But a monitoring partnership that understands that integrated system will get you the best at all stages of your gear. It’ll prevent failures and upgrade your efficiency. Learn more about Kluber and DALOG's remote monitoring of girth gear performance.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-11-15

GWJ Technology Releases Latest Version of SystemManager

GWJ Technology GmbH presents the new version of its system calculation software SystemManager as an extension of its well-known solutions eAssistant as a web solution and TBK as a classic desktop application.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-10-17

Dontyne to Present DIGGS and Equator Gear Measurement Solutions at Renishaw Auburn Hills

Renishaw Auburn Hills takes place November 2-3, 2002, in Auburn Hills, Mich. The event features demonstrations and conversations on intelligent automation, form measurement, circular geometry, surface finish, EV batteries, additive manufacturing, gear manufacturing optimization and more. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-10-10

Kyzen to Exhibit Metalnox Alkaline Cleaners with Corrosion Inhibitors at FABTECH 2022

Kyzen, the global leader in innovative environmentally friendly cleaning chemistries, will exhibit at FABTECH 2022, scheduled to take place November 8–10 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. The Kyzen Clean team will highlight Metalnox M6314CP and Metalnox M6324CP in Booth #B5017.

EVENT | 2022-10-07

IMTEX 2023

IMTEX is a flagship event for the Indian metal cutting industry. It is South Asia's apex exhibition showcasing the latest trends as well as technological refinements from India and other global players. The event attracts visitors from a wide spectrum of manufacturing and ancillary industries including key decision and policy makers as well as industry captains who are keen to source latest technologies and manufacturing solutions for their product lines.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-09-29

Nitrex Including in the "American Dream" Amazon and Bloomberg Series

Nitrex Metal Inc. (“Nitrex”) is pleased to announce that it has been selected for the “American Dream” series airing on Bloomberg and Amazon Prime. The series explores the inspiring entrepreneurial stories of the men and women who founded and built incredible companies from the ground up. 

PRODUCT NEWS | 2022-09-29

Helping Electric Vehicle Manufacturers Compete

Manufacturers must produce lighter and more compact EV transmissions from tough materials such as low-alloy steels—and those that rely on traditional manufacturing processes risk falling behind. Mats Wennmo, Global Automotive Transmission Manager at the metal cutting specialist Sandvik Coromant, explains why gear skiving is crucial for competitive manufacturing.
 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-09-27

Forest City Gear Employees Attend IMTS 2022

Employees from Forest City Gear recently attended the 2022 International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) at Chicago’s McCormick Place Convention Center. This year’s show attracted more than 86,000 registrants looking to experience the latest and greatest in manufacturing technology.  

EVENT | 2022-09-22

IFPE 2023

IFPE, the International Fluid Power Exposition, is the leading North American exhibition bringing together the fluid power, power transmission and motion control industries. IFPE is co-located with CONEXPO-CON/AGG, held at the Las Vegas Convention Center. 

EVENT | 2022-09-22

PowerGen International 2023

PowerGen is the largest network and business hub for electricity generators and solution providers engaged in power generation. Power producers, utilities, EPCs, consultants, OEMs, and large-scale energy users gather at PowerGen International to discover new solutions as large, centralized power generation business models evolve into cleaner and more sustainable energy sources

EVENT | 2022-09-22

IPPE 2025

The International Production & Processing Expo is the world’s largest annual poultry, meat and feed industry event of its kind. A wide range of international decision-makers attend this annual event to network and become informed on the latest technological developments and issues facing the industry. 

EVENT | 2022-09-22

AGMA Operator Precision Gear Grinding

Explore gear grinding processes, machine kinematics and set-up, pitfalls, failures and expectations related to finish ground gearing.  Learn definitions of gearing component features, process steps from blanking, through heat treatment to finished part ready to ship.  Study aspects of Quality Assurance, Inspection Documentation and corrective actions for measured non-conformances.  Understand pre-heat treat, heat treatment and post-heat treatment operations including the hows and whys to produce finished gears that conform and perform to end user expectations.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-09-19

Forest City Gear Promotes Sovina to Quality Assurance Manager

Forest City Gear recently announced the promotion of Amy Sovina to quality assurance manager. Sovina has worked at Forest City Gear since 1994, starting as a CNC machine operator, then moving on to gear hobbing technician, gear inspector, and most recently customer quality engineer.

PRODUCT NEWS | 2022-09-09

KISSsoft Offers Manufacturing Deviations and Flank Waviness Estimations

With the help of KISSsoft, the user can now estimate the influence of manufacturing deviation on the resulting transmission error and excitation force.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-09-09

The new Klingelnberg GEARS inline Customer Magazine is here

In this latest edition, issue 9, of the GEARS inline Customer Magazine, Klingelnberg once again presents all sorts of trends and innovations from the world of gears. This time, the machine manufacturer focuses primarily on the hot topic of noise behavior and analysis.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-09-07

OnRobot Previews D:PLOY for Machine Tending at IMTS 2022

D:PLOY automatically discovers and configures all the components in a robotic cell—including any leading collaborative or light industrial robot arm and toolswhile also integrating external I/O from sensors and machines. D:PLOY will be available for all common robotic applications, making deployment up to 80% faster.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-09-07

Atlanta Gear Works Signs Agreement with McClain Industrial Technologies, Inc.

Atlanta Gear Works has announced a new working agreement with Jim McClain, general manager of McClain Industrial Technologies, Inc., DBA MiTek, a manufacturers’ rep that will help the gearbox repair and manufacturing firm spread its 34-year reputation in pulp and paper to the steel and aluminum industries.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-09-02

KHK Highlights Broad Range of Miter Gears

KHK USA Inc. announces its extensive selection of miter gears. These gears are available in high precision grades to perform at demanding torques and speeds, and they are also available in commercial grades for economical applications. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-09-01

Universal Robots' UR20 Cobot Makes US Debut at IMTS 2022

The tedious task of loading and unloading parts into machines has long been a bread-and-butter application for cobots gaining significant traction in the industry. With its 1,750 mm (68.9 in) reach and 20kg payload (44.1 lbs.), the new UR20  from Universal Robots greatly expands automation opportunities such as the ability to reach further into machines, tend several machines in the same cycle, and handle 25% heavier parts. Despite being UR’s heaviest robot, the UR20 is the lightest cobot in its class, weighing only 64kg (141.1 lbs.) making it both a versatile technical tool and a manual laborer.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-09-01

Hyperion to Showcase New Materials and Services at IMTS 2022

Hyperion Materials & Technologies manufactures hard and super-hard materials for a wide variety of industries and applications, including cemented carbide blanks for gear cutting and hobbing. Hyperion will showcase its gear tool blanks and many other products and manufacturing solutions at IMTS 2022, Sept. 12 to 17 in Chicago.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-08-31

Seco and Partners to Host First Hybrid Aerospace Innovation Event

Seco and its technical partners will host the company’s first hybrid (physical and virtual) Inspiration Through Innovation (ITI) event on Wednesday, September 28, 2022. The event will be focused on the aerospace manufacturing segment, with machining demonstrations, an inspiring seminar program, and networking opportunities.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-08-30

Stäubli Robotics to Show New Manufacturing Technologies at IMTS 2022 in Chicago

At IMTS 2022, Stäubli Robotics will exhibit advanced robots used to help manufacturers meet new challenges and changing market demands across a range of industries worldwide. The company will present live demos recreating real-world applications in industrial manufacturing, with an emphasis on robotic machine tending.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-08-29

Applied Cobotics Offers Augmented Reality Training

Applied Cobotics by PBC Linear recognizes the need for consistent and engaging training programs to help scale up the existing workforce and invite a new generation into the manufacturing industry. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-08-19

AGMA Hosts Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony and Open House at National Training Center

The AGMA National Training Center (NTC) Open House and Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony is next week Wednesday, August 24th, at Richard J. Daley College in Chicago.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-08-09

Liebherr Mining Expands in Australia

Liebherr-Australia has announced the expansion of their Perth mining facility, which will strengthen the company’s ability to deliver accelerated zero emission solutions to the wider market. Liebherr-Australia’s growing involvement in the development and implementation of zero emission technology with Australian customers illustrates the necessity for this investment in infrastructure and signifies Liebherr’s commitment to these industry-leading projects.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-07-21

Milton CAT Tonawanda Hosts Successful Open House

To celebrate the opening of the Tonawanda facility, Milton CAT recently hosted an open house on June 17-18. Event activities included meeting the team, tours, machine and technology demonstrations, capability information stations, red tag specials, a Global Operator Challenge, and refreshments.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-06-27

Ceratizit Adds Midwest Territory Sales Engineers

With the addition of two new sales engineers in the company’s Midwest Territory, Ceratizit USA looks to continue its double-digit growth while continuing to support and optimize customer tooling and machining processes.

PRODUCT NEWS | 2022-06-27

Klingelnberg P 152 Latest Addition to Measuring Center Family

Klingelnberg has developed a new precision measuring center. The P 152 is the latest addition to the family of Klingelnberg precision measuring centers. It is capable of measuring components with a maximum outside diameter of 1,520 mm and workpiece weights up to 8,000 kg with the usual precision. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-06-24

Velo3D Opens New European Technical Center in Augsburg, Germany

Velo3D, Inc. has announced the opening of its European Technology Center in Augsburg, Germany to manage the company’s operations in Europe, host customers for trainings, and conduct meetings with customers and partners. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-06-24

Nidec to Exhibit Gearmaking Machines at IMTS 2022

Nidec Machine Tool (Wixom, Mich.), responding to the needs of the industry, is debuting the new GE15HS gear hobbing machine at IMTS 2022 in Booth #237036. Emphasizing high speed, precision and efficiency, the new machine produces gears for electric and hybrid cars, as well as for robotic and automation applications.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-06-23

Telit Opens Corporate Headquarters in California

Telit, a global enabler of the Internet of Things (IoT), recently announced a new global corporate headquarters in Southern California. Following the CEO’s move to the U.S., the new headquarters is in the City of Irvine—Orange County’s technology hub—and will support Telit’s strategy to grow its connected devices and solutions business worldwide. The Irvine office will also serve key projects and customers in the region, widening its U.S. presence that currently includes offices in Ill., FL., and N.C. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-06-17

Milton CAT Opens New York Location

Milton CAT, the Northeast’s Caterpillar (CAT) equipment dealer, has opened its 13th location, a 40,000 sq. ft. purpose-built, Tonawanda, NY, facility. Every feature of the facility is in place to improve safety and efficiency so Milton CAT can support western New York equipment owners with machine sales, machine service, CAT parts, CAT work tools, hydraulic hose repair, and Trimble technology from SITECH Northeast.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-06-15

Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence Announces Tech Start-Up Winners

Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division recently announced the winners of its first cohort of start-ups selected to help the manufacturing industry operate more sustainably and efficiently. The company launched its Sixth Sense open innovation platform in January 2022 to challenge how multinationals approach innovation and help nurture creative solutions to emerging manufacturing challenges by connecting with world-class companies to solve some of humanity’s biggest challenges. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-05-06

Ransohoff Offers LeanDrum Parts Washer

The Ransohoff LeanDrum platform provides a low cost, energy efficient, reliable solution for your high-volume cleaning application.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-04-22

KISSsoft for Gear Manufacturing

KISSsoft is a well-known software system that addresses gear manufacturing as a holistic process. With over 4,000 licenses sold worldwide, its functionality is dedicated to gear manufacturing and gear inspection and makes it easier for engineers—in the areas of calculation, manufacturing, and quality assurance—to collaborate and exchange data.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-04-21

AGMA Offers Show Floor Tour at RAPID + TCT 2022

Join AGMA on the RAPID show floor (Thursday May 19, 2022, in Detroit, MI) and talk with 12-15 exhibitors to learn about the many different types of printers and materials currently in use in metal 3D printing. Exhibitors will speak directly to the gear industry audience with targeted information. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-04-21

Mazak and Sandvik Host Aerospace Event

Mazak’s new INTEGREX i-H series platform with SmoothAi CNC and the VARIAXIS i-700T with turning capability will be on-hand at the Experience Tech Aerospace Event co-hosted by Mazak at Sandvik Coromant Center in Mebane, NC (May 11-12, 2022).

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-04-18

Liebherr Helps Customers Master E-mobility Gear Challenges

New drive technologies in e-mobility are changing the requirements for gears and, therefore, the quality of the tooth-flank surfaces. Manufacturers of gears have to adapt their manufacturing process accordingly. It’s good to be able to rely on a technology partner with expertise covering the entire range of production processes and technologies, which enables them to find suitable solutions even for special challenges.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-04-08

Forest City Gear Announces Appointment of New President, Kika Young

Forest City Gear is proud to announce the appointment of Kika Young as president of the company.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-03-16

Sandvik Coromant Appoints Head of Sustainable Business

Camilla Nevstad Bruzelius, currently deputy head of the global agenda department at the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, has been appointed head of sustainable business at Sandvik Coromant as of March 21, 2022.

PRODUCT NEWS | 2022-03-15

Southern Gear Expands Bevel Gear Production

Southern Gear has added two rebuilt Gleason No. 102 Generators to its production capabilities to meet growing demand for smaller, high-precision straight bevel gears produced with the Coniflex process. 
EVENT | 2022-03-07

International Conference on Gear Production 2022

 Current challenges and solutions are presented and discussed, strongly emphasizing new potentials in productivity and/or the flexibility of gear manufacturing processes. Do not miss an event outlining new trends for the gear producing industry of tomorrow at the International Conference on Gear Production 2022. 

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-03-02

Wendy Young (1952 - 2022)

PRODUCT NEWS | 2022-02-23

Product News

The complete Product News section from the January/February 2022 issue of Gear Technology, with new technology from Marposs, Solar Atmospheres, Mahr, Kennametal, Kapp Niles, Southern Gear, SMW Autoblok, WFL Millturn, Doosan Robotics and LK Metrology.

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2022-02-21

A World of Smart Processing & Digital Advancements

It’s that time of year again! Pandemic fears, supply chain issues, economic growth sprinkled in with some economic uncertainty. Every year, we take an in-depth look at the State of the Gear Industry and every year provides an interesting and colorful array of challenges, surprises and new innovations. Gear Technology spoke with Prasad Kizhakel, Chief Sales Officer at the Klingelnberg Group, Udo Stolz, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Gleason Corporation, and Shane Hollingsworth, Vice President Sales at Kapp Technologies to assess what the next five years in gear manufacturing may look like from the machine tool providers

EVENT | 2022-02-19

AMB 2024

The metalworking fair (Stuttgart, Germany) promises developments for metal-cutting and metal-removing, machine tools, precision tools, measuring systems and quality assurance, robots, workpiece and tool handling, industrial software & engineering, components, assemblies and accessories.

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-02-09

United Grinding Receives UX Design Awards Nomination for C.O.R.E.

Customer Oriented Revolution (C.O.R.E.), from the United Grinding Group, has been nominated in the UX Design Awards for its outstanding u...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2022-02-01

Junker Offers 6S and 6L Platform Grinding Machines

New linear motors and hydrostatic guides in the 6S and 6L grinding machine series open up new potential. Higher speeds, various detailed ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-01-27

Jergens Appoints National Sales Manager for Workholding Group

Jergens brings on Joseph Farkas as national sales manager for its workholding solutions group as Ken Marvar looks to retire in April. Far...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2022-01-21

Helios Announces New Gear Shaping Machine

For the first time, gear manufacturers can now access the all-new model M673 CNC gear shaping machine, designed and built by Monnier + Za...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2022-01-04

Solar Achieves Impressive Results with Sintering Vacuum Furnace

In 2021, Solar Atmospheres of Western PA reported that they were retrofitting a vacuum furnace for use in a new Metal Injection Molding (...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-12-20

Ingersoll Cutting Tools Expands Hi-Feed Face Mill Family

The Hi-Feed Face Mill Family from Ingersoll offers strong tangential inserts and reliable dovetailed insert seating. These unique diamond...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-12-15

FANUC Offers Mobile Apps for CNC Product and Maintenance Support

FANUC America has released a suite of new mobile apps for quicker delivery of vital information. The CNC Comparison, the CNC Functions Ca...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-12-06

Bredel Achieves Flexibility with WFL Turning-Milling Machine

Bredel in Delden, manufacturer of industrial hose pumps, has invested in a M65-G Millturn turning-milling centre from WFL. The machine to...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-11-30

United Grinding Introduces RoboLoad System

With the introduction of the new STUDER roboLoad system, United Grinding now offers manufacturers simple, seamless part-loading automatio...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-11-15

Walter Introduces New Face Milling Cutter

Walter has introduced the Xtra·tec XT M5009 face milling cutter for face milling, roughing, and rough finishing with wiper inserts...
EVENTS | 2021-11-01

Calendar

Calendar of early 2022 events
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-11-01

Industry News

he complete Industry News section from the November/December 2021 issue of Gear Technology.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2021-11-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from the November/December 2021 issue of Gear Technology.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-11-01

Metal Injection Molding Conference Registration Now Open

Registration has opened for MIM2022: International Conference on Injection Molding of Metals, Ceramics and Carbides. MIM2022 is a global ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-10-21

Mitsubishi Electric Introduces Software Solutions for CNC Machines

The future of manufacturing is ‘smart’. The factories of tomorrow will use data-driven insights to create predictive cyber-ph...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-10-15

United Grinding Offers Latest Machine Tool Tech at C.O.R.E.

On October 13-14, United Grinding North America opened its doors for Evolution to Revolution, a precision CNC grinding industry event fil...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-10-11

United Grinding Partners with Titans of CNC for Grinding Education

United Grinding has partnered with Titans of CNC, the well-known global manufacturing education provider, to support specialized educatio...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2021-10-11

Liebherr Presents Latest Skiving Technologies

Gear skiving is considerably more productive than gear shaping and more flexible than broaching, but it also has its pitfalls. Minimal er...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-09-28

Ingersoll Introduces NuMaxHF Line of Milling Tools

The NuMaxHF line of new hi-feed milling tools from Ingersoll Cutting Tools offers extreme ramping capabilities versus traditional hi-feed...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-09-27

FANUC Offers Retrofitting Program to Fight Against Cyberattacks

FANUC America introduces an upgrade solution for legacy CNC machines running on operating systems older than Windows 10. The Panel i Repl...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-09-24

United Grinding Offers Evolution to Revolution Event

Evolution to Revolution is a two-day event in Miamisburg, OH where attendees can interact with CNC grinding and precision experts. Expert...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-09-22

Ingersoll Offers Three Carbide Head Styles for MultiSurfer Product Line

Ingersoll Cutting Tools offers quick-change interchangeable solid carbide heads for slotting, facing and threading. Features and benefits...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-09-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the September/October 2021 issue of Gear Technology
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2021-09-01

MPIF Examines State of the Powder Metal Industry

Thanks to material development and additive manufacturing opportunities, it’s important for the gear and power transmission industries to monitor the trends, technologies and future forecasts in the powder metal market.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2021-09-01

The Next Era of Workholding

We asked what the future holds for workholding and the industry did not disappoint. All the machining trends such as automation, robotics, sensors, 3D-printed parts, etc. are finding their way into workholding equipment.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2021-09-01

The Undercut Phenomenon

“It appears that undercut can be eliminated in some cases but in most cases, the elimination of undercut, for example by increasing the root fillet radii of a pinion, results in performance problems in the operation with its mate. My question is, when can I eliminate undercut and why is it not possible in most cases?”
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2021-09-01

Characteristic Value-Based Process Design of Gear Hobbing Processes with Radial Infeed

This report focuses on the combined consideration of the infeed and the subsequent axial machining with additional variation of the workpiece width in order to evaluate the influence of the infeed with increasing or decreasing full cut area.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-08-25

CNC Broach Tool Offers Spline Broaching Inserts in Seven to Ten Days

Many machine shops vend out the broaching process to specialty broaching houses when there are splines required in the part they are manu...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-08-09

Schunk Announces New Vice President of Toolholding and Workholding Sales

Schunk is proud to announce the promotion of Michael Gaunce to vice president of sales, toolholding and workholding. Gaunce joined S...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2021-08-01

Product News

Gear-related new technology from Klingelnberg, WFL, Junker, Schunk and more.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2021-08-01

Hard Finishing of Cylindrical Gears

Power Skiving with Integrated Cutter Resharpening
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-07-09

Junker Develops All-in-One Grinding Machine

Sullair LLC. located in Michigan City Indiana, a Junker customer since 2011 has changed their finishing process to eliminate the demand t...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2021-07-01

Teaming Up to Solve Bevel Gear Grinding Application Challenges

Norton | Saint-Gobain Abrasives and Gleason Works Collaborate to Achieve a High Performance Gear Grinding Solution
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2021-07-01

Current and Future Gearmaking Challenges in Workholding

Quick-change capability and high clamping forces deliver both flexibility and strength.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2021-07-01

Increasing Energy Efficiency through Improved Gear Surfaces in e-Mobility

With e-Mobility, there are constantly increasing demands on service life.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2021-07-01

Potentials for Process Monitoring in Bevel Gear Grinding

Since the macro geometry of bevel gears is directly dependent on the manufacturing process, there are limitations in the combination of pre-machining and hard finishing processes which are related to the geometry of the gaps.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-06-25

Xometry Offers Complete Guide to CNC Machining

Computer numerical control (CNC) machining was invented more than 50 years ago, and since then, its high capacity for precision and autom...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-06-24

Norton Offers New IDeal-Prime Internal Diameter Grinding Wheels

Saint-Gobain Abrasives recently introduced its new high performance Norton IDeal-Prime Internal Diameter Grinding Wheels for precision ap...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-06-16

MHI Launches Two New Hobbing Machines

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Machine Tool Co., Ltd., a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group, announces the June 2021 launch of ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-06-14

MPT Expo Preview: Norton | Saint-Gobain Abrasives

Saint-Gobain Abrasives has announced it will be featuring new Norton Quantum Prime Grinding Wheels at Motion + Power Technology Expo...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-06-08

Helios Gear Offer Abrasives for Gear Manufacturers

Demand for ground gears continues to grow, especially in the automotive and truck power transmission industries. Consequently, manufactur...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-06-02

Krebs & Riedel Celebrate 125 Years of Grinding Technology

The cornerstone of the Krebs & Riedel grinding wheel factory in Bad Karlshafen was laid some 125 years ago. Today the family-owned co...
ADDENDUM | 2021-06-01

Not Your Average Drone Delivery

It’s getting complicated. First it was the Amazon packages dropping into the backyard via an unmanned vehicle. This was followed by numerous companies working on autonomous vehicles for buses, taxis and even two-seater air shuttles. Now, a prototype unmanned aerial tanker refueled a F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter jet in early June. That’s right—a drone just refueled a fighter jet in mid-air.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2021-06-01

Product News

Gear-related new technology from Affolter Group, Liebherr, PTG Holroyd, BMW Motorrad and more.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-05-27

Helios Gear Examines Preventative Maintenance to Reduce Machine Downtime

Gear manufacturers of all types and sizes must consider preventative maintenance as fundamental to their operations. Manufacturers too of...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-05-27

MPIF Announces Upcoming Powder Metal Courses

Registration has opened for the Basic Powder Metallurgy (PM) Short Course, the powder metallurgy industry's longest-running course, w...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-05-24

Norton Quantum Prime Grain Optimizes Grinding Wheel Performance

Saint-Gobain Abrasives has announced the introduction of Norton Quantum Prime Grinding Wheels featuring new, proprietary nano-crystalline...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-05-17

Danobat Introduces New Cylindrical Grinding Machine

The new CG generation is the perfect combination of productivity, versatility and compact design. With its new core technology and the pr...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-05-14

Advantages of Chamfering

State-of-the-Art Chamfer Cutting Technologies for Cylindrical Gears
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-05-06

Weiler Abrasives Expands Tiger Product Line to Include Cups, Cones and Plugs

Weiler Abrasives has expanded its popular Tiger brand of abrasives to include cups, cones and plugs for metal fabrication, including fab ...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2021-05-01

Making Room for Productivity and Quality Requirements in Gear Grinding

A look at how gear grinding comes with unique production challenges.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2021-05-01

Driving Down Gear Noise in E-Mobility

Gleason Combi Honing system meets eDrive transmission standards.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2021-05-01

Product News

Gear-related new technology from Liquidtool Manager, Marposs, EDM Intelligent Solutions, Helios Gear Products, Kapp Niles Metrology and more.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2021-05-01

Grinding it Out

My wife, Wendy, and I have been taking on a lot of DIY home improvement projects lately around the house.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-04-27

Helios Gear Announces New CNC Gear Deburring Machines

Helios CNC gear chamfer-deburring machines increase profitability for job shops and high-mix manufacturing. “Gear manufacturer...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-04-26

ANCA Provides Complete Skiving Cutter Solution for EV Transmissions

ANCA's TX and MX machines offer skiving cutter sharpening

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-04-21

BMW Motorrad Uses Junker JUCRANK for Different Grinding Operations

BMW Motorrad uses the JUCRANK non-cylindrical grinding machine for different grinding operations on boxer crankshafts. These are assemble...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-04-15

PTG Holroyd and Siemens Collaborate on Gear Grinding Center

A new precision gear grinding center from PTG Holroyd hasn’t simply been designed to bring greater levels of efficiency and accurac...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-04-12

Affolter Group Introduces Latest Gear Hobbing Machine

Affolter Group has introduced the AF160 is the most versatile Affolter gear hobbing machine to date. “The AF160 is designed for hig...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-04-05

Kitagawa NorthTech Offers Chucks 101 Webinar

Kitagawa Northtech will hold its free Chucks 101 webinar on April 13, 2021 from 10:00 - 11:00 CST. This is a great educational presentati...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-03-30

Weiler Abrasives Offers Productivity Program

Weiler Abrasives is offering its Weiler Consumable Productivity (WCP) program to help end users better manage their abrasives costs and i...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-03-23

Liebherr Expands Generating and Profile Grinding Technology

Liebherr recently introduced a new series of generating and profile grinding machines for hard machining of external and internal gears o...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-03-22

Helios Offers Hobbing Solutions for Plastic Gears

External plastic gears, like their metal counterparts, use the hobbing process for productive manufacturing. However, the difference in m...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-03-19

FANUC CNC and Robotics Integration Simplifies Operations

FANUC America introduces the next step in complete robotics and CNCs integration for more efficient operations. FANUC CNCs now have the a...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-03-11

Big Kaiser Adds Chip Blower for use with Hydraulic and Milling Chucks

Big Kaiser Precision Tooling has updated its offering of Chip Blowers, which are designed to make removing chips and coolant from parts a...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-03-02

MHI Introduces Gear Shaping Machine for Small-Module Gears Used in Robots

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Machine Tool Co., Ltd., a Shiga-based part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) Group, has newly develo...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2021-03-01

Effects of Different Shot Peening Treatments in Combination with a Superfinishing Process on the Surface Durability of Case-Hardened Gears

How the increasing demands on power transmission and reduction in mass of modern gearboxes lead to gear designs that are close to their load-carrying capacity limits.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2021-02-24

Lessons Learned

No one succeeds in any field without help. Fifty years ago, I filled out a job application, took a physical, and counted t...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-02-22

Fatigue Strength and Service Calculation of Gears

Bevel gear design is well-established. Flank geometry optimization is used worldwide to ensure satisfactory low-noise emis...

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-02-19

EMAG Group Acquires Samputensili Machine Tools and Samputensili CLC

The acquisition of Samputensili Machine Tools and Samputensili CLC by the EMAG Group - including the 87 employees across two sites near B...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-02-12

A Lesson in Workholding Fundamentals

Evolution of a Real-World Workholding Solution

GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2021-01-27

New Tools, Same Challenges

An online forum I occasionally visit recently posted a photo of a vintage drafting board and joked about younger people no...

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2021-01-06

Methods Machine Tools Introduces JobShop Cell PRO

Methods Machine Tools, Inc. has introduced the JobShop Cell PRO, a new standard automation solution featuring the RoboDrill D21SiBadv Ver...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2021-01-06

Short Timer's Stick

Long before Star Trek’s “red shirt” was a pop culture reference for a doomed minor character, many war movies and police dramas created a ...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2021-01-01

2021 State of the Gear Industry

Reader Survey Results. Gear Technology's annual State-of-the-Gear-Industry survey polls gear manufacturers about the latest trends and opinions relating to the overall health of the gear industry. As in years past, the survey was conducted anonymously, with invitations sent by e-mail to gear industry companies – primarily in North America, but also including some respondents from around the world.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-12-28

Don't Forget the Follow-Up!

One of the cardinal rules of design engineering is that you will never overcome physics. It is an applied science so misunderstanding or ignoring m...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-12-21

Helios Announces Strategic Approach to Large-Gear Deburring

Chamfer-deburring of large gears — considered here to be those over 1-meter diameter — demand significant labor that comes wi...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-12-16

Some Help From Your Friends

Making great products is a team effort. It annoys me when the host of a certain house remodeling show claims credit for how wonderful her project t...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-12-02

The Fun Part

In the last blog posting, I covered the importance of developing a Product Specification and getting all the “stakeholders” to agree on what a succ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-11-30

Wisconsin Gear Expands Capabilities with Helios Gear Hobbing Machine

“It is the story we love to tell: a traditional job shop takes the leap by investing in new CNC machinery, and they discover easier...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-11-25

Dillon Offers Pin Location Jaws for Air Chucks

Dillon Manufacturing, Inc. full grip (pie) blank jaws manufactured for Northfield, Microcentric and others, are CNC milled to provide max...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-11-19

C-B Gear & Machine Expands Capability with 5-Axis Milling

C-B Gear & Machine has expanded its precision milling capability with the addition of a new DMG MORI DMU 210P2 5-axis milling center....
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-11-17

Forest City Gear Expands Threaded Wheel Grinding Capabilities

Forest City Gear now can perform hard fine finishing of larger diameter cylindrical gears faster and more efficiently in higher volumes w...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-11-11

The Terror of an Empty Sheet

Today’s title does not refer to writer’s block. After 660 contributions to the magazine and blog, I still have a few things to cover ahead of my pl...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-11-04

Facing Down Contact Ratio

Before we move on from helix angle restrictions, I want to say a few things about face contact ratio. Soon after the appearance of the first helica...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2020-11-01

Rebuilding a Legacy

Bourn & Koch provides retrofit Fellows 10-4 machine for gear shaping.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2020-11-01

HMC and Liebherr Collaborate on Large Scale Gear Production Project

A visit to the HMC Gears plant in Indiana kicked off an extensive project which resulted in the creation of a unique solution for exceptional demands: With the LC 4000, Liebherr forges new paths in large-scale gear cutting production and unites diverse machining methods in one highly efficient machine for the American gear specialist.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-10-30

Dillon Offers Chucks for Various Workholding Applications

Dillon Manufacturing offers their full line of chucks for various workholding applications. Application chucks such as the universal ball...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-10-28

But What About ...

Some of you are probably calling forth the gear deities to smite me for promoting a “free thinking” approach to helix angles; I understand complete...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-10-27

Junker Offers Non-Cylindrical Grinding Machine for Process Reliability

BMW Motorrad uses the JUCRANK non-cylindrical grinding machine for different grinding operations on boxer crankshafts. These are assemble...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-10-26

Machine Tool Builders Offers Three Hamai Hobbing Machine Configurations

Machine Tool Builders has recently introduced the new Hamai machine to the North American market. Hamai offers three different finer pitc...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-10-23

Weiler Abrasives Adds Color-Coding to Brushes for Stainless Steel

Weiler Abrasives has introduced color-coding on its most popular brushes for stainless steel. The color-coding helps stop cross-contamina...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-10-21

It All Depends ...

Regular followers of this blog know whenever I say “it all depends,” that I am compelled to credit industry legend Ray Drago for stealing his catch...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-10-14

Closing the Gap

We left the gear tribe arguing over how to solve the problems that were cropping up with the new-fangled double helical or herringbone designs. Fas...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-10-09

Weiler Abrasives Expands Large Diameter Cutting Wheels

Weiler Abrasives has expanded its offering of Tiger and Wolverine large diameter cutting wheels for chop saws and stationary saws, and ha...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-10-08

Kadia Installs Deburring Automation Cells to Increase ZSO Production

Besides honing, mechanical deburring is the second business area of Kadia. The company's portfolio includes a wide variety of deburri...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-09-16

Learning the Ropes

Ever wonder about the origin of common phrases? As the son of a sailor, I have always enjoyed maritime history and nautical fiction, although some ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-09-03

Toyoda Days 2020 Examines Gear Skiving

As part of Toyoda's VIP Days 2020, attendees can meet with Will Terry, automotive proposal engineer, to discuss gear skiving. Staying...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2020-09-01

Best Practices to Improve Results in Gear Deburring

All cutting and machining operations produce some type of burr or leave sharp edges on metal components. These unwanted byproducts are especially troublesome when producing precision components such as gears. The burrs can loosen from the gear - either during assembly or later when the gear is in operation - and damage components or lead to critical part failure.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-08-26

Finding Good Candidates

Once you commit to developing the talented team members your business needs, how do you decide who to invest in? The “washout rate” at professional...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-08-24

Big Kaiser Adds Noventa from Sphinx to Milling Cutter Lineup

Big Kaiser Precision Tooling introduces the Noventa from Sphinx, the newest addition to its milling cutter lineup. The Noventa is ideal f...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-08-21

Helios Introduces Hera 200 CNC Gear Hobbing Machine

Helios Gear Products exclusively offers the Helios Hera 200 CNC gear hobbing machine. This machine, manufactured by YG Tech, provides gea...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-08-07

Schunk Announces New Vice President of Toolholding and Workholding Sales

Schunk is proud to announce the promotion of Allan Logan to vice president of sales, toolholding and workholding.Logan has more than 20 y...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-08-01

IMTS Future Tech

The Digital Manufacturing Revolution Evolves in 2020 IMTS will offer two comprehensive digital programs, IMTS Network and IMTS Sp...

FEATURE ARTICLES | 2020-08-01

2020 Powder Metal Trends

20/20 is considered to be perfect vision, but the year 2020 outlook is quite obscure. We can view the current state of the PM industry through short-term, fear-tinted glasses or gain a clearer picture of long-range opportunities. Just like U.S. manufacturing in general, the PM industry has been impacted negatively by the pandemic.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2020-08-01

Selecting Correct Size of Hob/Gashing Cutter

How does one select the correct size of hob/gashing cutter like hob OD, length and number of flutes for teeth cutting process based on tip circle diameter and face width of job?
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-07-31

GF Machining Solutions Offers Automated Machine Calibration for Milling Machines

Changes in ambient temperature or working environment and machining parts over long periods of time all impact a milling machine's ge...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-07-24

Kennametal Introduces HPX Solid Carbide Drill for Steel Applications

Kennametal has introduced an expansion its solid carbide drilling portfolio, the HPX drill for high performance, large volume drilling in...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-07-24

Help Wanted

Northwest Pennsylvania’s Oil Region has a long history in manufacturing. Many of the widgets that made oil extraction and processing possible were ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-07-23

WFL Gives Machine Tools a Second Life

Decades of use on a WFL Millturn can lead to machine and equipment wear and loss of relative performance. Regular upgrades and services s...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-07-15

Norton Offers Grinding Solution for Ductile and Grey Cast Iron Applications

Norton Winter Ironclad Superabrasive Foundry Wheels offer a solution for ductile and grey cast iron applications such as fettling and sna...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-07-13

PTG Holroyd Introduces New Gear Grinding Center

A brand-new gear grinding center from Holroyd Precision promises to bring even higher levels of intelligence and efficiency to the produc...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2020-07-01

Product News

The latest gear industry products from WFL Millturn, NUM, Superior Abrasives, GWJ Technology, Helios Gear Products, CAS Dataloggers and SMW Autoblok.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2020-07-01

The Perfect Time for Power Skiving

Italian gear manufacturer Metalcastello’s investment in new Gleason Power Skiving technology gives the company a strong competitive edge as the world’s industries gear up for the post-pandemic.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2020-07-01

Supply Chain Management Users Guide

We asked a few industry suppliers to provide some insight into gear manufacturers' supply chain challenges during the pandemic.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2020-07-01

High Traction Differentials

This article explains how gear ratio can improve traction in a differential.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-06-30

FANUC Offers Free Trial Version of CNC Guide

FANUC America is offering a free trial version of CNC Guide – FANUC’s PC-based virtualization platform for control design, tr...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-06-29

Helios Introduces TM 1000-CNC Gear Deburring and Chamfering Machine

Helios Gear Products has announced the latest technology improvement to its Tecnomacchine (“TM”) series of gear deburring and...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-06-25

Superior Abrasives Offers Surface Conditioning Belts

Superior Abrasives, LLC introduces Shur-Brite Surface Conditioning Belts which feature an open structure to resist overheating, part disc...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-06-24

Mid-Game Adjustments

People of a certain age well remember The A-Team, a television show about a team of ex-military guys who went around righting wrongs and b...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-06-18

NUM Software Provides 'Off the Shelf' Solution for Non-Circular Grinding

NUM provides manufacturers of CNC cylindrical grinding machines with an elegant means of adding non-circular grinding capabilities to the...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-06-17

Hoffmann Group Taps WFL Millturn to Test and Optimize Tools

Pushed to the Maximum

With over 4,000 employees and an extensive range of tools, operating equipment and personal protec...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-06-17

Hitting the Refresh Button

Around the world, athletes are finally being allowed to start training ahead of their teams resuming play. Some fans are unhappy with the proposed ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-06-16

Big Kaiser Expands Jet-Through Hydraulic Chuck Line for 5-Axis Machining

Big Kaiser expands its jet-through hydraulic chuck line to include the BCV interface and additional inch sizes.The HDC jet-through type h...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-06-15

Fanuc America Introduces 5-Axis Simulation to CNC Training

Fanuc America is expanding its CNC training offerings to include 5-axis simulation to further develop the next-gen manufacturing workforc...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-06-10

How Do We Fix This?

No political commentary today; just trying to get your attention! Although the headline is “on topic” for me. I am in my 50th year in th...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2020-06-01

Influence of the Contact Conditions in Cold Rolling on the Density Profile of Powder Metallurgical (PM) Gears

Due to production by pressing and sintering, PM gears are porous. Since pores reduce the loaded area and are also probable crack initiators, the porosity determines the strength of the PM component. PM gears can be densified to increase their local density and, therefore, the load-carrying capacity. PM gears are compacted locally since they are mainly loaded directly at the surface. A common process to densify PM gears locally is the cold rolling process. The contact conditions in the cold rolling process determine the density profile and, therefore, the material properties of the PM component. The influence of the contact conditions in cold rolling of PM gears on the resulting density profile is yet to be investigated.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-05-27

Family Recipes

My last post on helix angles and the constraining theories adopted at some shops reminded me that younger readers might not be aware that there was...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-05-20

Röders GmbH Offers Flexible Gearwheel Production with 5-Axis Machining Centers

The manufacture of gearwheels for machine building applications usually involves machines especially designed for the purpose. Important ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-05-20

Ask the Expert: 5/20/20 Edition

From time to time I’ll be doing some brief Ask the Expert questions and answers. These questions will be on topics that might be very familiar ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-05-15

Superior Abrasives Introduces Shur-Kut Coated Cartridge Rolls

Superior Abrasives, LLC introduces Shur-Kut Coated Cartridge Rolls which feature a specially wrapped design which produces new layers for...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-05-07

J.Schneeberger Maschinen AG. Offers Modern Drive Technology for Several Grinding Operations with Corvus Series

The Corvus series machine is designed to offer, high horsepower 5-axis CNC tool grinder for pelletizers, slab mill cutters, and other app...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-05-04

Star SU Offers Solid Carbide Gundrills for Medical Machining

Star SU is producing Solid Carbide Gundrills that are used for machining challenging medical grade materials. Star Single Flute Solid Car...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2020-05-01

Inside Look at the Hard Finishing Cell

Gleason Combines Threaded Wheel Grinding with GRSL Gear Inspection
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2020-05-01

The All-in-One Application Advantage

A Look at Complex, High-Performance Five-Axis Machining Solutions.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2020-05-01

Optimal Polymer Gear Design: Metal-to-Plastic Conversion

Nowadays, the progress in polymer materials and injection molding processing has enabled a drastic expansion of plastic gear applications. They are used not only for lightly loaded motion transmissions, but also in moderately loaded power drives in automotive, agriculture, medical, robotics, and many other industries.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2020-05-01

Prototyping on Bevel Gear Cutting and Grinding Machines

Why Prototyping with End-mills on Bevel Gear Machines? Manufacturing of spiral bevel and hypoid gears can be conducted in several ways.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-05-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the May 2020 issue of Gear Technology.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-04-29

Seco Cutters Enable Smooth Disc Milling Operation

To address the difficulties manufacturers face when performing disc milling operations in hard-to-machine materials, Seco Tools has annou...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-04-16

Siemens Offers Sinumerik 828D CNC Through Fast Package Program

To offer a fast solution to US-based machine tool builders, system integrators and retrofitters, Siemens is stocking typical system packa...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-04-14

Ingersoll Adds Insert to Superfinishing High-Feed Face Mills

Ingersoll has introduced its Gold-Max 4 FFIN. Features include cutting diameters from 2.00” thru 8.00”, two insert types, eac...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-04-09

Helios Announces NEO Power Skiving Machine

Helios Gear Products announces a new line of machine tools from YG Tech that serves gear manufacturers seeking a power skiving solution. ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-04-06

OrderFox Opens Up Digital CNC Marketplace Platform

The coronavirus shutdown is an extreme situation for the entire economy and is hitting the CNC industry hard. Although there is huge unce...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-03-25

Working from Home

Navigating the COVID-19 Crisis

Many of you are working from home this week, some for the first time. As a veteran of this challenge, I ho...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-03-18

United Grinding Partners with Dynamic Machine

United Grinding North America Inc. announced it has entered into a partnership with Dynamic Machine of Detroit, a Troy, Michigan-based CN...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-03-11

Finding Future Superstars

Fans of American football have moved on to the next phase of their pre-draft preparation: digesting the advice of hundreds of experts on which play...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-03-04

Gleason Vertical Power Skiving Machines Equipped with On-Board Cutter Resharpening Unit

A fully integrated on-board cutter resharpening unit is now available for Gleason Vertical Power Skiving machines, allowing for the compl...
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2020-03-01

Keeping Things Moving

Over the past month, everything about our world has changed. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought most aspects of our lives to a grinding halt. We can’t go out to eat. We can’t travel. We can’t even go to church. A lot of businesses are struggling. But at the same time, there are a lot of people who are busier than ever. In some cases, frighteningly so.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2020-03-01

Tinkering with Carbide

Everybody's working with carbide tools these days, but carbide materials are expensive. However, these cutting tool companies think they might have some solutions to extend tool life and reduce costs.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-02-26

After Further Review

Unless it is your team being robbed, you probably hate having a live broadcast interrupted by a video review. We sometimes feel this way during a d...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-02-19

Known Unknowns

In my last posting I mentioned the need for humility and skepticism. Before anyone think this is heading off into political commentary, let me expl...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-02-13

Haas to Showcase Gear Skiving Developments at GrindTec 2020

There are an infinite number of different gear geometries. Nevertheless, engineers keep coming up with new variants. Gearboxes are becomi...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-02-04

Forest City Gear Adds Finish Grinding Capacity

Forest City Gear has expanded its capacity for very high precision finish grinding of external, internal, straight and helical gears and ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-01-30

Weiler Abrasives Partners with Pacesetter Sales & Associates

Weiler Abrasives, a leading provider of abrasives, power brushes and maintenance products for surface conditioning, announced that effect...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2020-01-24

Kyocera Develops New Generation of High-Performance Milling Cutters

Kyocera Corporation announced its new MEV series of efficient, multi-functional milling cutters for metal machining applications. The n...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2020-01-22

The Perks of Being a Role Model

If you have been a long time “individual contributor” you may wonder why you should accept the un-requested “promotion” to role model within your o...
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2020-01-01

The Tradition Continues

You may have noticed a few changes around here. Most notably, the face on this page isn't the one you're used to seeing here. As you've probably heard by now, Michael Goldstein, founder and Publisher since 1984, has stepped back from his day-to-day duties and transferred the operation of Gear Technology, Power Transmission Engineering and Gear Technology India to the American Gear Manufacturers Association.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2020-01-01

Improving Cost Efficiency in Heat Treatment

The future gives the gear market plenty to think about in areas like automation, additive manufacturing and machine learning.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2020-01-01

The Latest in Broaching

From standardization to automated, Industry 4.0 capable broachers, here's the latest in what's being developed in the field of broaching.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2020-01-01

Bevel Gear Generators Get Better with Age

An economical modernization program gives Designatronics' tried-and-true Gleason No. 102 Coniflex generators a new lease on life for fast, reliable production of smaller precision straight bevel gears.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2020-01-01

CNC Manufacturing of Circular Faced Cylindrical Gears

Spur cylindrical gears are usually cut using a hob and therefore present an essentially straight face to which crowning can be added to prevent edge contact. Rather than using a rack or hob, it is possible to cut cylindrical gears with a face mill cutter. In the following presentation, these gears are termed "spurved," i.e. — a contraction of "spur" and "curved."
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2020-01-01

Grinding Wheel Wear, Dressing, Tip Advance and Work Phase Angle Adjustment after Corrections

Are there rules to aid in grinding process optimization?
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-12-23

Sumitomo Electric Carbide Joins OMIC R&D

The Oregon Manufacturing Innovation Center Research and Development (OMIC R&D) recently welcomed Sumitomo Electric Carbide, Inc. as i...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-12-18

Dillon Collet Chucks and Jaws Allow More Aggressive Machining for Shorter Cycle Times

Collet pad top jaw systems from Dillon Manufacturing allow more varied geometries to be securely gripped, while also allowing more aggres...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-12-18

Solar Adds Machining Capacity with CNC Lathe

To support rapid growth within their mechanical testing department, Solar Atmospheres of Western Pennsylvania has recently invested in a ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-12-16

Fives Opens Center of Competency for Controls Engineering

At a grand opening ceremony, Fives DyAG Corp. (Smart AutomationSolutions Division) celebrated the inauguration of its new center of compe...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-12-13

EMAG Offers R 300 Hobbing Machine to HKS Dreh-Antriebe

Rotary actuators are jacks-of-all-trades: They are implemented whenever an object must be rotated or swiveled—this is necessary d...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-11-26

Weiler Abrasives Raises $100,000 to Support Pocono Mountains United Way

The generous employees of Weiler Abrasives Group, the Cresco-based global abrasives manufacturer, raised more than $40,000 in their annua...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-11-22

Tyrolit Offers Grinding Technologies for Medical Applications

The trend of an ever-aging society has increasingly brought medical advancements and medical technology into the spotlight. At the same t...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-11-20

Liebherr and Morat Swoboda Collaborate on E-Mobility Solutions

Few topics are currently so intensely discussed as climate and the question of future-viable mobility. Stress caused by car traffic, particularly a...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-11-14

Mytec HydraClamp Offers Power Skiving and Gear Shaping Benefits

Skiving has been around for a long time, but recent advances in technology have improved the speed and effectiveness of this gear-makin...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-11-12

Mitutoyo Announces Partnership with Titans of CNC

Mitutoyo America Corporation is pleased to announce a sponsorship agreement with Titans of CNC, a free project-based education platform t...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-11-12

Forest City Gear Expands Gear Shaping Capacity

Forest City Gear has expanded its capacity for the shaping of high precision internal and external gears with the addition of the latest ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-11-11

Liebherr Examines Universal Chamfering

Johannes Weixler has developed a new universal chamfering application – with the dynamic mathematical assistance of colleagues.&nbs...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-11-08

PTG Holroyd Offers Rotor Grinding Machine

The TG350E rotor grinding machine from UK-based Holroyd Precision is rapidly making a name for itself as the preferred choice among indus...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-11-01

The Skiving Evolution

Machine Tool Providers Discuss the Latest Benefits, Technologies and Considerations
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2019-11-01

Reverse Cutter Hand for Face Milling and Face Hobbing

Is a left-hand cutter required for a left-hand face mill part?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2019-11-01

A Comparative Study of Polymer Gears Made of Five Materials

The wear behavior of polymer gears made of five different materials has been investigated using an existing polymer gear test rig. Step loading tests at a constant speed of 1,000 rpm were performed. Significant differences in failure modes and performance have been observed for the five polymer gear materials for gear engagements of gears, with the same material as each other.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-10-30

What Do You Want to Know?

AGMA’s acquisition of the assets of Randall Publications LLC, the company responsible for both
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-10-29

Emuge Expands Slim Line Chucks for 5-Axis Milling Versatility

Emuge Corp. has expanded its line of FPC Milling/ Drilling Chucks products to include Slim Line models that are designed to enhance 5-Axi...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-10-28

Helios Introduces Hera 150 Gear Hobbing Machine

Helios Gear Products exclusively introduces the Helios Hera 150 gear cutting solution from YG Tech to North American gear manufacturers. ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-10-24

Finding the Leading Edge

I had planned to attend the MPT Show in Detroit last week and participate in Gear Technology ‘s Ask the Expert panel, but...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-10-23

ANCA Launches GCX Linear to Meet Growing Skiving Cutter Demands

The new GCX Linear offers a purpose-built solution for manufacturing and sharpening skiving cutters. With a five axis CNC grinder powered...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-10-03

Kennametal Expands Carbide End Mill Line

Kennametal has announced the latest addition to its best-selling HARVI line of high-performance solid end milling tools, the HARVI I TE f...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-09-26

TCI Precision Metals Adds Duplex Milling Technology

TCI Precision Metals has announced the installation of its newest high tech milling machine. The new Amada, THV800 is the latest in preci...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-09-26

Thoughts on Team Building

The last post suggested constructing a fighting robot machine as a team building exercise. As a sole proprietor for the last eleven years, I am a b...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-09-24

Robot Fighting Time?

We watch lots of reality shows on cable television. Home remodeling shows, veterinary medicine shows, game warden shows, and car rebuilding shows a...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-09-12

Where Did All the Dealmakers Go?

An old business associate called the other day with a training request. To the best of my knowledge, he’s among the last “manufacturer’s representa...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-09-03

Weiler Abrasives Launches New Website

Weiler Abrasives has launched a new website designed to improve user experience and provide access to purchase product through select dis...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-09-01

MPT Expo Map and Listings

Find the exhibitors you want to visit at the first-ever Motion+Power Technology Expo (formerly Gear Expo).
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-09-01

The Additive Advantage

How 3-D printing is changing the powder metal performance game.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2019-09-01

Design Parameters for Spline Connections

This article provides a guideline for the selection of a suitable standard in connection with the kind of spline to be designed and manufactured. Some basic formulae have been explained, together with a strategy on how to find standard tooling by calculating an appropriate profile shift factor for the spline to be designed.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-08-16

Norton Will Highlight Xtrimium Grinding Wheels During Motion + Power Technology Expo

Norton Xtrimium gear grinding wheels will be highlighted at the Motion + Power Technology Show Booth #2607, October 15-17, 2019 at the Co...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-08-14

Fabtech Preview: Weiler Abrasives

Weiler Abrasives, a leading provider of abrasives, power brushes and maintenance products for surface conditioning, will attend Fabtech 2...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-08-08

Mitutoyo Introduces New Shop Floor CNC Machine

Mitutoyo America Corporation is pleased to announce the release of the MiSTAR 555 CNC Shop Floor Coordinate Measuring Machine to its CMM ...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-08-01

Taking the Wait Out of High Quality Gear Blanks

Forest City Gear makes the investment to bring gear blanking in-house, giving it complete control over quality and delivery: because failure’s not an option.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-08-01

Super Skiving Cutter

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) conducted a comparison test between the super skiving cutter and the pinion skiving cutter used in the conventional skiving process and the test results are reported here.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-08-01

Show Stoppers

When you go to MPT Expo, make sure to visit the exhibitors in our special advertising section!
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-08-01

A Tale of Two Gear Companies

Experiencing a Dickensian dilemma in its essence, a Los Angeles based manufacturing company was faced with the good fortune of ever increasing orders for steel gears from a good customer with a new recreational product in very high demand. Confronting the possibility of an untold number of lonely late nights tending to the whims of a 1950s era manual hobber was an unpalatable prospect no one desired.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-07-30

CMTS 2019: Index and Mitcham Machine Tools

At CMTS 2019, Index and Mitcham Machine Tools will be demonstrating how to increase output per operator via integrated automation and sin...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-07-29

Helios Introduces Hera 30 CNC Gear Hobbing Machines

The Helios Hera 30 offers gear manufacturers a next-generation CNC hobbing solution for fine- and ultra-fine-pitch gears. Exclusively sup...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-07-26

Timely Course Corrections

Mrs. Curtis’ account of their family firm’s transition from general machining to noted gearbox manufacturer is an important reminder that success o...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-07-25

Gear Origins: Reinventing the Family Business

Sometimes the old family recipe needs updating… My husband’...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-07-18

Helios Gear Products Upgrades Gear Deburring Machine

Helios Gear Products, formerly Koepfer America, recently announced the newly upgraded 2019 Tecnomacchine (“TM”) model TM 200-...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-07-17

KISSsoft Offers Feasibility Assessment for Power Skiving

As a part of Gleason, we have a strong partner behind us when it comes to specific manufacturing know-how. For example, KISSsoft can now ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-07-16

Watching the Chips Fly

It was a real treat to spend a day at a gear shop this week. After all these years, I still enjoy watching a round blank get transformed into a gea...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2019-07-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from the July 2019 issue of Gear Technology.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-07-01

Chamfering: Hard vs Soft Parts and Before vs After Heat Treating

The author conducts a simple experiment to verify his anecdotal knowledge about chamfering hard vs soft parts.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2019-07-01

Tooth Thickness Tolerance and AGMA 2002-C16

A reader asks: We are currently revising our gear standards and tolerances and a few questions with the new standard AGMA 2002-C16 have risen. Firstly, the way to calculate the tooth thickness tolerance seems to need a "manufacturing profile shift coefficient" that isn't specified in the standard; neither is another standard referred to for this coefficient. This tolerance on tooth thickness is needed later to calculate the span width as well as the pin diameter. Furthermore, there seems to be no tolerancing on the major and minor diameters of a gear.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-07-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the July 2019 issue of Gear Technology.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-06-25

64+ Years of Gears—Geoff Ashcroft

1955. Fresh out of high school, (actually grammar school), 16 years old, unqualified academically and financially to continue full time education. ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-06-24

Methods Machine Tools Announces Fanuc Robodrill EcoPlus

Methods Machine Tools, Inc., has announced the introduction of the new Fanuc RoboDrill EcoPlus, offering a larger 21 tool capacity and in...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-06-20

Walter Solid Carbide Milling Cutters Provide High Metal Removal Rates

Walter has introduced the MC319/MC320 Advance Line of solid carbide milling cutters that have been specially engineered to meet the needs...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-06-18

Claude Gosselin: Gears — Why Not?

When I graduated as a mechanical engineer in 1978, I landed a job in the “cold section” at Pratt & Whitney Canada (PWC) in Montreal. In those d...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-06-13

Rockford: Should it be Renamed Gear City USA?

Rob Swiss’ origin story reached me the very same day his new hometown, Rockford, Illinois, ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-06-12

TCI Provides Blanks for CNC Skills Championship

TCI Precision Metals will provide custom Machine-Ready Blanks to the National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS), in support of t...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-06-12

Oelheld Introduces Forging Lubricants

Oelheld recently announced a line of forging lubricants at Forge Fair 2019. The company is also a proud member of the Forging Industry As...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-06-11

Heidenhain Opens CNC Controls Training Center in Chicago

Heidenhain has recently opened its TNC-CNC Academy. This expanded CNC controls training center in the Chicago area is available for users...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-06-11

Rob Swiss — The Accidental Engineer

Another young man discovers you need not be an expert machinist to succeed as a gear engineer. Spoiler alert: never tangle with a grinding wheel; they are undefeated in all time.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-06-07

Weiler Abrasives Introduces CrossFlex Honing Brushes

Weiler Abrasives, a leading provider of abrasives, power brushes and maintenance products for surface conditioning, has introduced its ne...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-06-06

History for a Worldwide Audience

Baby Boomers (as American kids born between 1946 and 1964 are called) learned a lot about World War II. From Pearl Harbor thru the atomic bomb drop...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-06-04

And may you have the joy of passing something on…

One of the reoccurring themes in our “origin stories” project is the willingness of people to school us in the sometimes confusing world of gears. ...
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2019-06-01

The Do-It-Yourself Mentality

Finding capable, dependable machinists is one of the great challenges of modern manufacturing. Most gear manufacturers we talk to would hire more machine operators - if only they could find them. They lament the fact that their workforce is getting older and grayer, and they don't know what to do.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-06-01

Identifying Equipment Failure

How machine tool maintenance has evolved in recent years in gear manufacturing.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-06-01

Fine Grinding on Klingelnberg Bevel Gear Grinding Machines

One way to implement the growing performance requirements for transmissions is by optimizing the surface finish of the gearing. In addition to increasing the flank load capacity and the transmittable torque, this also allows for improvements in efficiency. On Oerlikon bevel gear grinding machines from Klingelnberg, fine grinding can be implemented efficiently in bevel gear production - even in an industrial serial process.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-06-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the June 2019 issue of Gear Technology./
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-05-29

Helical and Spur Gear Producer Selects Holroyd Precision Gear Grinding Center

Developed for one-off or batch grinding of precision spur and helical gears, worms, screws and rotors of up to 350 mm diameter and 160 mm...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-05-28

Planting Good Seeds

We are enjoying the origin story project very much and ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-05-24

Jergens Appoints Marvar National Sales Manager for Workholding Solutions Group

Jergens, Inc. announces that Ken Marvar assumed the role of national sales manager, Jergens Workholding Solutions Group. “In his ne...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-05-24

Finding the Limits

Jim Richard’s account of his journey from youthful experimenter to designer of cutting edge gear processing equipment illustrates the amazing thing...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-05-21

My Origin Story: James Richards

James Richards’ entry int...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-05-16

Rocket Scientists are Gear People Too!

Dr. Handschuh’s origin story reminds us that the future...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-05-13

United Grinding Expands Two-in-One Grinding Concept

Based on a highly efficient and productive two-in-one concept, Walter Helitronic Vision Diamond 400 L, Helitronic Power Diamond 400 and H...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-05-07

Dave Hinz — My Story

Sometimes there is a “gear guy” lurking inside an ordinary engineer. Risking the embarrassment of a poor result on an unexpected “pop quiz” was...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-05-03

Star SU Announces Hobbing and Shaping Machine Lines from Samputensili

Star SU LLC is pleased to announce it has expanded its comprehensive gear manufacturing product offering to include a line of horizonta...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-05-02

A Fresh Set of Eyes

Hanspeter Dinner’s account of his “baptism by fire” into the gear industry contains a number of important lessons for other “newbies”; some reminde...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-05-01

Cutting Tool Dynamics

Meeting Today’s Requirements for High-Quality Gears
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2019-05-01

Prediction of Process Forces in Gear Honing

Gear honing is a highly productive process for the production of small and medium sized gears and is used mainly in the serial production of the automotive industry. The low robustness of the process is a particular challenge in gear honing. The consequences range from an inadequate gear quality to an early breakage of the honing tool. In order to describe the processmachine interaction, the machining forces must be known.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2019-05-01

Generative Gear Milling

This paper outlines the basic principles of involute gear generation by using a milling cutter; the machine and cutting tool requirements; similarities and differences with other gear generative methods; the cutting strategy; and setup adjustments options. It also discusses the applications that would benefit the most: for coarse-pitch gears the generative gear milling technologies offer improved efficiency, expanded machine pitch capacity, decreased cutter cost, and a possibility for reducing the number of machining operations.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-04-30

Studer Offers Versatile Grinding Machine for Large Tasks

The new S31 performs complex and varied grinding tasks precisely and reliably. It can be used to produce small to medium-sized workpieces...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-04-30

Forest City Gear Launches Advanced Turning and Milling Facility for Gear Blank Production

Forest City Gear has expanded its turning and milling operations with a state-of-the-art facility designed to greatly improve lead times ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-04-29

3M Introduces High Performance, Precision Structured Internal Grinding Wheels

Specifically designed abrasive tools require tight wheels, geometry, and tolerance for mass production. Companies that grind in the most ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-04-26

Open Mind and Grob Systems Announce Joint 5-Axis Machining Seminar

Open Mind Technologies USA, a developer of CAD/CAM software solutions worldwide, has announced a joint 5-Axis Machining Technology Semina...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-04-25

Applying the Fundamentals

Yefim Kotlyar’s origin story is a great lesson to anyone entering the o...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-04-24

Yefim Kotlyar — My Story

Yefim Kotlyar is a wonderful example of how gears unite the world. His background is much different than mine, yet we share a deep appreciation...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-04-23

Studer Offers S33 Universal Cylindrical Grinding Machine

Universal and flexible. These are the features of the new S33, the CNC universal cylindrical grinding machine from Studer. With distances...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-04-17

Weiler Abrasives Recognized for "Leading a Warriors Charge" Campaign

Weiler Abrasives, a provider of abrasives, power brushes and maintenance products for surface conditioning received the People's Choi...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-04-16

Joe Arvin — My Story

Today’s origin story is by one of the true “good guys” in our trade. I first met Joe in 1989 when I was job hunting. He could tell I was in a b...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-04-12

Dillon Jaw Boring Rings Allow Better Grip on Large Diameter Chucks

Dillon Jaw Forming rings, or Jaw Boring Rings, provide uniform pressure on jaws for a more consistent bore on large diameter chucks. They...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-04-02

Don't Let Them Fade Away!

It occurred to me that some readers may be unfamiliar with Darle W. Dudley, author of many respected gear reference books. A quick on-line “name ch...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-03-21

My Story: Ernie Reiter

In the last semester of my senior year of mechanical engineering, I recall having a discussion with my study group friends about the purpose of our...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-03-20

Holroyd Precision Grinding Machine Cuts Manufacturing Time at Mayekawa

Mayekawa Manufacturing Company, the global industrial refrigeration specialist headquartered in Japan, has purchased one of Holroyd Preci...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-03-14

Helios Gear Products Introduces Hera 90 CNC Gear Hobbing Machine

Helios Gear Products (formerly Koepfer America) now exclusively offers the Helios Hera 90 CNC gear hobbing machine from YG Tech for the N...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-03-07

Coaching Trees

March Madness is upon us once again, that wonderful tim...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-03-05

Drake Manufacturing Offers Preventive Maintenance Program

A machine tool investment is intended to boost productivity but also requires maintenance to ensure that it continues working at an optim...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-03-01

The Quick-Change Advantage

Workholding Systems Continue to Focus on Speed and Efficiency to Improve Machining Operations
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-02-28

Gone but Not Forgotten

Continuing our discussion of veteran machine tools, it occurs to me that many of our younger readers may not be aware that the United States was on...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-02-27

Gleason to Acquire Faessler Honing Business from Daetwyler Group

Gleason Corporation has announced the signing of a definitive agreement with Daetwyler Industries AG and MDC Max Daetwyler AG to acquire ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-02-26

Old Soldiers

Almost every week, it seems, we read of the passing of ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-02-21

Be Ready to Change Roles

One of the common threads in the origin stories we have posted is the frequency with which the person had to change roles. Specialization is for in...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-02-06

Sandvik Coromant Enables Single-Setup Gear Production with Power Skiving Solution

A new power skiving solution composed of CoroMill 178 and CoroMill 180 cutters from Sandvik Coromant is being released to help automotive...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-02-05

Many Ways In — But Just One Way Up

We’ll get back to our “origin story” project soon. One thing I have noticed about the guest blogs so far is that the people kept moving up the ladd...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-01-30

From Co-op to Vice President: Octave A. LaBath

I was attending the University of Cincinnati in the college of engineering. After my freshman year in 1960, I started my co-op job with the Cincinn...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-01-24

Old Methods to Teach New Technology

For most of human history, skills were passed from one generation to the next by some form of apprenticeship. Only in the last couple of centuries ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-01-22

Retail Management Career to Gear Manufacturing: Who Would Have Guessed?

In 2012, Rj Link International hired Matt Rossiter as a gear machinist and entered him into the Rock River Valley Tooling & Machining Associati...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-01-21

Helios Gear Products Represents Yunil Machine Tools in North America

Helios Gear Products, LLC (formerly Koepfer America, LLC) proudly announces its new long-term representation agreement with YG Tech Co., ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-01-18

Getting into the Gear Trade: Chris Trochelman

Here is the first of our guest blogs on the topic of how you entered the gear trade. Chris Trochelman (pictured above, fa...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-01-14

Dillon Offers Large Diameter Chucks

Dillon Manufacturing specializes in premium chuck jaw products for large diameter (15-60 inch) chucks. Matching specialized workholding t...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-01-10

Weiler Abrasives Expands Small Diameter Cutting Wheel Offering

Weiler Abrasives has expanded its offering of small diameter cutting and snagging wheels for high-speed die grinders to include Tiger AO,...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-01-10

The Journey Continues

An apprentice ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-01-08

EMAG Combines Vertical Turning Technology with Finish Grinding

When it comes to machining times, combining various machining processes in one setup offers enormous savings potential. With the combinat...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-01-08

Luck of the Draw

Forty-eight years ago, I was fini...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2019-01-03

How Did You Get in Here?

Happy New Year! In just a few weeks we will begin our SIXTH year of this blog. While it has been great fun posting about the gear trade with you, w...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2019-01-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the January/February 2019 issue of Gear Technology.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2019-01-01

CNC Milling of Straight and Spiral Bevel Gears

Contrary to what appears to be popular belief, 5-axis CNC gear manufacturing is not limited to milling with end mill, ball mill or CoSIMT (Conical Side Milling Tool — it is the generic form of the Sandvik InvoMill and Gleason UpGear tools.) tools, where throughput is too low to prevent production at any significant level. Straight and spiral bevel gear manufacturing on 5-axis CNC machines using face mill cutters provides essentially the same throughput as conventional gear cutting machines — with added benefits.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-01-01

Beautiful on the Inside

Automotive gear manufacturers have implemented significant improvements in external planetary gear manufacturing yielding quieter gears. In addition, process stability has increased due to the post-heat treatment finishing processes employed. This article explains various complete solutions for cutting and finishing internal ring gears.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-01-01

The Growth of Australian Regenerative Load Testing

Historically, gearbox original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and repair organizations have tended to offer their customers no-load, full speed (spin) tests as a standard performance test. If a load test was specified, the supplier would probably offer a locked torque back-to-back simulated load test, which requires a large investment in tooling to connect shafts of the test and slave gearboxes.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2019-01-01

Getting in Sync

Gear skiving is here to stay, and as a result of this industry shift, it’s become paramount to improve how well machining spindles synchronize with each other.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-12-21

Weiler Abrasives Appoints New Director of Sales - West

Weiler Abrasives, a provider of abrasives, power brushes and maintenance products for surface conditioning, has announced the promotion...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-12-20

Don't Go Chasing Superstars

There is a great deal of buzz these days around the shortage of skilled workers for our manufacturing operations. Almost as much as there is concer...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-12-18

ANCA iView Measuring System Enables Faster and More Accurate Grinding

A survey by McKinsey showed that in manufacturing, approximately 749 billion hours are worked each year around the world. Of these, about...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-12-18

Methods Machine Tools Appoints General Manager for Memphis Technology Center

Methods Machine Tools, Inc., North America's foremost supplier of leading-edge precision machine tools and automation, has announced ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-12-18

Why Would I Want to Work for You?

Why are some jobs more attractive than others? Why are some organizations able to succeed with “players” cut from other companies? Why are some pla...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-12-11

Handling Changes

It is the solemn du...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-12-04

Dealing with Obsolescence

Emerging technology gets lots of coverage in all forms of media; obsolete technology is still the backbone of our economy. Self-driving vehicles ex...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-11-26

Marposs Offers Grinding Gauge for Immediate Machine Compensation

Marposs Corp. has announced the availability of its new P3dME electronic gauge amplifier for post-process monitoring of smooth and groo...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-11-20

A Time for Gratitude

An early winter storm has knocked out our Internet connection as I write this. A startling reminder of just how much we rely on the world wide web ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-11-15

Beautiful on the Inside

Higher Quality Internal Gears

GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-11-13

What Do You Really Need to Know?

I am pretty certain I told this story before, but it is worth repeating in the context of preserving corporate memory. When AGMA first offered ISO ...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2018-11-01

Spin City

Grinding Wheel Technology Focuses on Speed, Efficiency and Time Savings
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2018-11-01

Why Select Gear Grinding with cBN

Cubic Boron Nitride (cBN) abrasive wheels, which are a specially engineered abrasive grain referred to as a superabrasive, typically yield 2,200 - 2,500 parts per dress with one wheel lasting as long as four to six months.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2018-11-01

The Influence of a Grinding Notch on the Gear Bending Strength Rating

To achieve the requested quality, most gears today are ground. The usual grinding process includes treating the gear flank but disengaging before reaching the root rounding area. If the gear is premanufactured with a tool without protuberance, then at the position where the grinding tool retracts from the flank a grinding notch in the tooth root area is produced. Such a notch may increase the bending stresses in the root area, thus reducing the strength rating.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2018-11-01

PentacMono-RT: High-Performance Face Milling Cutter Heads

The theory behind the latest bevel gear cutting tools is explained in detail.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-11-01

Institutional Memory

There is an old joke that a consultant is someone who borrows your watch in order to tell you what time it is. Unfortunately, there is an element o...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-10-30

New Things in an Old Box

To conclude our loo...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-10-25

Changing Bearings

Just as “conventional thinking” h...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-10-19

Liebherr Introduces New Gear Grinding Machine

Based on its LGG 280 generating grinding machine, Liebherr recently presented the larger LGG 400 M model at IMTS in Chicago. The new L...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-10-19

Gleason Announces Hobbing Machine with Integrated Chamfer Hobbing

The new Genesis 160HCD Hobbing Machine for cylindrical gears integrates a newly developed process for chamfer cutting. Chamfer Hobbing ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-10-18

How to Upgrade a Classic

If you are a f...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-10-17

Kennametal Releases Latest Helical Milling Cutter

Kennametal recently released its newest helical milling cutter, the Harvi Ultra 8X.Using a 95 mm (3.74 in.) axial depth of cut, 20 mm (...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-10-16

Is it Worth Upgrading?

GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-10-02

Necessity as the Mother of Invention

When you offer rebuilding service...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-09-27

Acceptable Fixes

You do not always have to say “no” when confronted with non-conforming parts. Here are a few “fixes” I have been comfortable authorizing:

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-09-21

Norton | Saint-Gobain Increases Grinding Productivity with Winter Vitrified CBN Wheels

Saint-Gobain Abrasives has announced the introduction of its new Norton Winter Vitron7 cBN Grinding Wheels. The wheels feature a high-p...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-09-19

Adjust Tolerances or Expectations?

There is a great deal of science involved in measuring things, but considerably less on what the baseline dimensions and clearances should be. This...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-09-18

Grinding Machines Increase Quality and Productivity at Nixon Gear

Two new grinding machines were recently added to production at Gear Motions’ Nixon Gear Division in Syracuse, NY.The Studer S121 is...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-09-14

The Usual Suspects

Once you accept that “stuff” happens in even the best of machine shops, you can begin to assess where the problems are likely to occur and start th...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-09-07

Something is not Right Here

Another benefi...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-09-05

Hainbuch Taps Hänel for Mandrel Prototype Test

Hard work and first-class teamwork between the gear factory Hänel and Hainbuch has paid off. The new mandrel Mando G211 for gear manufacturers, sui...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-09-04

Gearbox Design: Let the Fun Begin

It is perfectl...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2018-09-01

NVH Potential of PM Gears for Electrified Drivetrains

Electrification has already started to have a noticeable impact on the global automotive industry. As a result, the drivetrains of hybrid (HEV) and full electric vehicles (EV) are facing many challenges, like increased requirements for NVH in high speed e-Drives and the need for performance improvements to deal with recuperation requirements. Motivated by the positive validation results of surface densified manual transmission gears which are also applicable for dedicated hybrid transmissions (DHTs) like e-DCTs, GKN engineers have been looking for a more challenging application for PM gears within those areas.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2018-09-01

Powder Metal Through the Process Steps

Powder metal (PM) gears normally sell due to the lower cost and their relatively high mechanical performance. The reason behind the lower cost is that most of the machining is omitted due to the net-shape forming process. So how net-shape are powder metal gears? In this article some hard-to-find information about the tolerances through the manufacturing steps will be presented.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2018-09-01

Influence of Different Manufacturing Processes on Properties of Surface-Densified PM Gears

The properties of both shot-peened and cold rolled PM gears are analyzed and compared. To quantify the effect of both manufacturing processes, the tooth root bending fatigue strength will be evaluated and compared to wrought gears.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2018-09-01

Chamfering-Deburring Still a Player - Now More than Ever

Chamfering and deburring have been described as "unloved," a "necessary evil" and, in fact - "dead." After all, manual deburring is still common in many shops.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2018-09-01

The Evolution of Gear Chamfering

The latest technological solutions help keep chamfering and deburring operations in-line -- often without increasing cycle times.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2018-09-01

Deburring - The Underestimated Task

Deburring or chamfering of gear teeth is gaining attention in practical settings. And with a view to make the production sequence as efficient as possible, it is becoming increasingly important to be able to implement the deburring tasks directly on the cutting machine after spiral cutting.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-08-16

IMTS 2018: Meister Abrasives

At IMTS 2018, Meister Abrasives (Booth N-237341) will be displaying innovative products that can be custom-tailored to provide users with...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-08-15

IMTS 2018: A Field Guide

Chicago Preps for the Next Manufacturing Technology Extravaganza Matthew Jaster, Senior Editor
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-08-13

International Gear Conference 2018

Lyon, France. Mechanical transmission components such as gears, rolling element bearings, CVTs, belts, chains, etc. are present in every industrial...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-08-08

Methods Machine Tools Names Director of Financial Services

Methods Machine Tools, Inc., North America's foremost supplier of leading-edge precision machine tools and automation, has announced ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-08-07

Walter Surface Technologies Acquires Blackstone Supply Agreement from Sundisc Abrasives

Walter Surface Technologies recently announced the acquisition of the Fastenal Blackstone supply agreement and all related inventory from...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2018-08-01

Influences of the Residual Stress Condition on the Load-Carrying Capacity of Case-Hardened Gears

Highly loaded gears are usually casehardened to fulfill the high demands on the load-carrying capacity. Several factors, such as material, heat treatment, or macro and micro geometry, can influence the load-carrying capacity. Furthermore, the residual stress condition also significantly influences load-carrying capacity. The residual stress state results from heat treatment and can be further modified by manufacturing processes post heat treatment, e.g. grinding or shot peening.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-08-01

Competitive Analysis

Designers love...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-07-20

Bourn & Koch Promotes Joe Goral to Business Unit Manager for Grinding Machine Tools

Bourn & Koch, Inc. is pleased to announce that Joe Goral Sr. has accepted a new position within the company as business unit manage...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-07-11

Maximum Power Density

For some applications, maximum power density is worth the cost and difficulty of a complex epicyclic or “planetary” design. If, like me, you prefer...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-06-28

Suns and Planets

The first planetary drive I helped take apart had three stages of through hardened spur gears encased in a simple cast iron tube with plates on both ends. Both input and output shafts rotated on taper roller bearings, but everything else had simple bronze bushings.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-06-26

Planetary Gearboxes: A Wheel Inside a Wheel

We will never ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-06-26

Zoller Highlights Smart Factory Solutions

Zoller Inc. has a new digital playground in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The tooling, inspection and tool management company now has 44,000+ sq. ft. of spa...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-06-21

Gear Materials: More Inside Heat Treating Trivia

In our last bl...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-06-20

Gear Materials: You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know

Before we leave our study of materials, I want to share a few thoughts on heat treating, lab tests, and hardness testing. When you start working wi...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-06-12

Can We Use This Instead?

Right up there with the dreaded “blank sheet of paper” is the inevitable question of “Can we use this instead?” It came as a real shock to me the f...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-06-07

Methods Machine Tools Celebrates 60th Anniversary

Methods Machine Tools, Inc. is celebrating its 60th anniversary. Founded in November of 1958, with three employees and a few refurbishe...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-06-04

Junker Group Extends Grinding Machine Range with Corundum Line

The Junker Group has extended its range of grinding machines: With its new Zema corundum line, the company is offering efficient solution...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2018-06-01

Cutting Down on Setup Time

With increasingly smaller returns from improving the speed of the actual gear grinding process, improving your setup time has become a primary way to keep improving efficiency. Here's the latest on how you can do that today.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2018-06-01

Human Machine Interface (HMI) in Gear Manufacturing

"Documentation is not a Substitute for an Intuitive Interface." The author explores the development of modern controls for a CNC gear grinding machine.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2018-06-01

Standard Samples for Grinder Burn Etch Testing

A different method to produce a sample that has a very consistent amount of thermal damage.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-05-31

Parsing the Fine Print

If my last posting prompted you to look at a copy of a material cert, you probably noticed that the cert has much more information on it than just ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-05-24

The Right Stuff

Even the most brilliant gear design will fail if the wrong material is used to make the parts. Our understanding of metallurgy and alloying element...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-05-22

Further Modifications

You might be thinking this conversation would logically move to other tooth modifications. Gear Technology has and will c...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-05-18

Parametric Design

One of the scariest things a gear designer can face is a blank sheet of paper. This is why most of our products are “derivative” rather than “revol...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-05-17

Computer Games

You kids are spoiled! Back in my day it took at least a day to see the results of computer modeling, longer if the courier dropped the box of input...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-05-10

What’s Your Angle?

Hulet self-unloader image courtesy of ASME. Interesting things happen when you start using “non-standard” gear geometry. As early as th...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-05-08

Making Things Work

There is an old saying that if the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Imagine that you are tasked by your employer to de...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2018-05-01

More Solutions, Greater Challenges

As coating technology improves to handle harsher conditions, cutting tool manufacturers are faced with new challenges during the resharpening process.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2018-05-01

Broaching in the 21st Century

Back around 2005-2010, the most exciting things that were happening in broaching had little to do with broaching. What was happening - and continues to evolve today - was the emergence of on-the-edge CNC, software and servo drive technology. Together, they practically transformed a metalworking process as old as water into a viable, alternative consideration for producing high-volume part runs.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-04-30

EMAG Gets Smart with Mobile Analytics

Machine data has never been easier to collect, distribute and analyze. Monitoring production lines, evaluating tools and surveying tool conditions ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-04-25

The Long and Short of It

One of the problems with “tribal knowledge” is that the terminology can confuse those who are not fully immersed in that community. I have lost ...

GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-04-19

Hunting for a Solution

Most of you are excused for missing the attempted humor in the above headline. So, I will violate the first rule of comedy and explain the joke. An...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-04-17

How Many Teeth Do You Want?

Designing gears is somewhat of a mathematical puzzle. You have lots of interconnected factors to play with in hopes of finding the “best” overall s...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-03-20

Minimal Worm Expertise

Worm gearing has long been a big part of the mechanical world. If you work in the gear trade, “civilians” will rightly expect you to know things ab...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-03-07

Gleason Segmented Collets Bring Improved Performance to Workholding

Gleason has introduced a new segmented collet for its workholding that delivers significant improvements for the clamping of both cylindr...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2018-03-01

A Look at Intelligent Workholding and Toolholding

New Solutions Aim at Reducing Changeover Times and Improving Reliability
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-03-01

Out of Your Depth?

How did that over pin calculation work out? My congratulations if you managed to work your way through it without tearing your hair out. Guess what...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-02-28

It Gets Complicated

Why did something as simple as a standard tooth form fail to get traction? While the old joke about the number of opinions at any meeting of engine...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-02-15

Starting Your Book of Knowledge

A big part of the consulting business is reminding people of what they already know. Of course, your consulting career will be rather short if you ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-02-12

IIoT Spotlight: The Job Shop

As IIoT solutions become more readily available throughout the manufacturing sector, challenges continue when you start looking specifically at the...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-02-07

Seven Stages of Expertise

There is no “gear expert” merit badge for you to earn. I have posted before about the limited amount of gear education included in the standard eng...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-02-01

Understanding Spur Gears

Spur gears have been around “forever.” That ancient astronomical device recovered from the Mediterranean Sea a few years ago shows the antiquity an...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-01-31

IIoT Spotlight: A Look at Honeywell Connected Plant

One of the most relevant topics in manufacturing right now is predicting process conditions and equipment failures for continuous improvement on th...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-01-30

Appreciating the Spur Gear

When the average civilian hears the word “gear,” if they think of mechanical things at all, they envision a big spur gear, perhaps in a clock or wi...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2018-01-25

One Step at a Time

Regular readers know that I am a big fan of both the Boy and Girl Scout programs. My children were scouts. My wife and I were scout leaders. One of...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-01-12

Sandvik Coromant InvoMilling CAD/CAM Software Offers Additional Five-Axis Functionality

Cutting tool and tooling system specialist Sandvik Coromant has extended the functionality of its InvoMilling software. Th...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2018-01-04

Marposs Electrical Gauge Actuators Provides Increased Control and Reduced Maintenance time for E-Fenar and Blú Systems

Marposs has enhanced its gauging solutions for grinding machines with new electrical gauge actuators. As compared to former hydraulic and...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2018-01-01

Analysis of the Influence of the Working Angles on the Tool Wear in Gear Hobbing

A calculation method is developed to estimate tool wear on hobs.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2018-01-01

Globalization's Effect Upon Gear Steel Quality

Background on the development of a high-speed, automatic hardness tester for gear steels.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2018-01-01

We'd Grow Faster If We Could

It's probably no surprise to anyone that the majority of the gear industry had a pretty good year in 2017, and that most gear manufacturers are expecting a pretty good 2018 as well. After all, most major economic indicators - including the ones that focus on the manufacturing sector - have been positive for some time.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2018-01-01

Praewema Antriebstechnik Develops Precise Machining Solutions for Planetary Gearing

The DVS gearing specialist Praewema Antriebstechnik continues to expand its technological expertise in order to keep pace with the growing significance of planetary geartrains for automatic and particularly electric vehicles, with the associated need for even higher-precision production of toothed gear components.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2018-01-01

Holding Fast, Bouncing Back

Business is finally starting to get back to usual in the big gear world, which offers us a chance to look back at the greatest lesson on how to survive an economic downturn. Includes the sidebar: "Brass Tacks with Klingelnberg."
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2018-01-01

Skiving is Thriving on a Global Scale

Call it new wine in old bottles, or old wine in new bottles, but gear skiving has certainly aged well over time. Gear skiving's evolution, perhaps gaining momentum most dramatically since around 2004, has ultimately led to rather dramatic technological advancement and cost saving in the manufacture of certain gears.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-12-27

Holroyd 8EX Rotor Milling Machine and CS700E Tool Management Center Ordered by Chinese Air Compressor Manufacturer

One of China's leading manufacturers of air compressors has once again demonstrated its confidence in the ultra-precise technologies ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-12-27

Trying to Reason with the Holiday Season

I am a big fan of randomness; to me living in a place where the weather was the same everyday would be a real trial. Given the need some of our spe...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-12-21

NUM Flexium+ CNC Platform Forms Base for Star Cutter's New NTG 6RL

NUM's latest-generation CNC systems are helping the US manufacturer Star Cutter Company to maintain its position as a world leader in...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-12-20

Vomat Filtration Systems Provide 100 Percent Separation of Clean and Dirty Grinding Oil

To manufacture precision tools, tool manufacturers must optimally coordinate all parameters involved in the process such as edge preparat...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-12-18

Liebherr PHS Allround Pallet Handling System Offers Flexible Production with 4- and 5-Axis Machining Centers

Liebherr Automation Systems introduced its new PHS Allround pallet handling system, designed to enable a broad range of shops to engage i...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-12-14

Engineering Safety (Part Two)

To an engineer there are no accidents, only unanticipated consequences of situations that need to be better understood. We even have a rule about i...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-12-13

Forest City Gear Expands Small Diameter ID/OD Grinding Capability

Forest City Gear has expanded its capabilities for the hard finishing of smaller diameter gears with particularly tight ID and length tol...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-12-12

Engineering Safety (Part One)

Watching the movie Deepwater Horizon got me thinking about current attitudes on workplace safety. (Full disclosure — I am a bit of a cr...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-12-06

The Future of Books

Moving required getting rid of lots of books. My much better half is also a reader and we made about a dozen trips to the resale shop to put our su...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-11-30

Slater Tools Indexable Punch Broach Tooling Offers Simple Setup to Machine Numerous Shapes on Presses and CNC Machines

Slater Tools announces its range of indexable punch broaches and holders to machine shapes in workpieces where rotary broaching may not b...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-11-30

Still Pumped About Herringbones

I rambled on about herringbone gear in my last posting but still have more to share on these once commonplace gears. Today we’ll cover the use of c...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-11-29

Mitutoyo Quick Image CNC 2D Vision Measuring System Introduces New Models with Moving Stage

Mitutoyo America Corporation announced the release of the Quick Image CNC (QI-C), the latest addition in the Quick Image Series of 2D vis...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-11-16

Herringbones 102

Imagine for a moment that your boss invented the herringbone tooth form and tasked you with building machines to cut them. This was the situation P...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-11-10

Koepfer America TM200 R3 Gear Deburring Machine Offers Automatic Loading

As automation continues to transform the manufacturing industry, gear deburring often remains an operation performed by hand. This burden...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-11-08

Gleason 410SCG Shaving Cutter Grinding Machine Speeds Up Shaving Cutter Re-Sharpening

Gleason is meeting the global need for fast, high quality re-sharpening of shaving cutters up to 400 mm in diameter and Module 14 with th...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-11-07

Jenoptik Industrial Metrology Hommel-Etamic Wavemove Measuring Station Features Eight-Axis CNC Measurement Technology

The Jenoptik Industrial Metrology division offers a fully automated measuring station which can be operated directly by staff on the prod...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-11-07

Discouraging Change

One of the neat things about the Gear Expo is seeing people you once worked with. Sometimes though, they remember your interactions in greater deta...
ASK THE EXPERT | 2017-11-01

Friction Coefficient of Differently Treated Steel Surfaces

A reader asks about ion-nitride finished shafts and the proper friction coefficient to be used for calculations.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-11-01

Material Assets

You get one shot to make a first impression. One opportunity to show your customers, vendors and suppliers that you provide a steady, reliable product that will generate repeat business. How do you make this happen? What tools and strategies are available to get gear materials (forgings, gear blanks, etc.) shipped faster and more efficiently in today's tech-heavy, fast-paced, manufacturing environment?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2017-11-01

Three-Face Blade Technology

The author compares the standard two-face blade technology with the three-face blade technology for manufacturing bevel gears.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-11-01

Industry News

Gear Technology hosts dinner for technical contributors to the gear industry during this year's AGMA Fall Technical Meeting and Gear Expo in Columbus, OH. Plus other news from around the industry.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-10-27

Staying Engaged

I recently got a phone call with questions about a drawing from 1981. The caller saw “Schultz” in the signature block and thought it was me. Flatte...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-10-27

Storage Problems

One of my favorite science fiction books is A Canticle for Leibowitz, by Walter M. Miller, Jr., originally published in 1960. This post-ap...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-10-25

Gear Expo Day 1

GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-10-12

Thinking Big

My local newspaper’s lead story today concerned the explosive demolition of a highway bridge in nearby Tionesta, PA. As luck would have it, our mos...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-10-10

Appreciating the Shiny Stuff

I lament the rise of the “Service Economy.” This past Friday was National Manufacturing Day; I did not know that until my editor brought it to my a...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-10-05

How Much Education is Enough?

My last posting may have left you thinking I was anti-intellectual. Far from it; my point is that education is fundamentally different than trainin...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-10-03

Sandvik Coromant CoroMill 745 Face Milling Cutter Provides Higher Metal Removal Rates for Roughing and Semi-Finishing Milling Operations

Cutting tool and tooling system specialist Sandvik Coromant has unveiled a new, high-feed version of the CoroMill 745 face mill...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-09-21

Liebherr LC 280 Gear Hobbing Machine Updates Tested Design with New Components

The newly developed LC 280 α gear hobbing machine provides Liebherr quality with maximum flexibility and short delivery times. The ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-09-21

Who Do You Think You Are?

My last posting recommended preparing an “elevator pitch” ahead of attending the AGMA Fall Technical Meeting and Gear Expo. I have gone through thi...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-09-20

DVS Technology Group Presenting Gear Grinding Solutions at EMO

The EMO fair booth of DVS Technology Group in Hall 17, Booth C46 will be focusing on the high-precision machining of components for power...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-09-14

Developing Resilience

For many years, “robust” was a popular business buzz word. The idea was to make certain your procedures and processes were “strong” enough to withs...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-09-07

Liebherr LS 180 E Gear Shaping Machine Offers Flexibility for Small Workpieces

Internal, external, spur, helical - everything is possible with the new LS 180 E gear shaping machine. This machine masters all types of ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-09-05

Planning for Disaster

The massive flood damage in Houston will take years and billions of dollars to repair. Even with plenty of warning, there was no way to evacuate mi...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-09-01

Gear Expo 2017 and ASM Heat Treat 2017 Booth Previews

The latest technology on display in Columbus, OH. October 24-26.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-09-01

What's New and Noteworthy in Powder Metal

First, the facts: powder metallurgy is a cost-effective method of forming precision net-shape metal components that allows for more efficiently designed products. It saves valuable raw materials through recycling and the elimination of costly secondary-machining. PM competes with wrought steel gears as the technology continues to advance. You'll find PM components in everything from automobile transmissions to aircraft turbine engines, surgical equipment and power tools.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2017-09-01

Wear Investigation of Finish Rolled Powder Metal Gears

When manufacturing powder metal (PM) gears lead crowning is not achievable in the compaction process. This has to be accomplished either by shaving, grinding or honing. Each of these processes has their merits and draw backs. When employing rolling using a roll burnishing machine lead crowning can be accomplished but due to errors in profile a hard finishing operation such as grinding is used by the industry. In this paper a helical PM gear that has sufficient tolerance class after rolling has been tested in a test rig for durability and the wear has been studied.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-08-31

Cost Reduction Ideas

A commentator recently asked for “real world” examples of how he could reduce costs and win more orders. Improved technology is often cited as the ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-08-24

Effective Instructions

Have you ever tried to assemble something with poorly written or translated instructions? The classic image of a befuddled father on Christmas Eve ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-08-17

Meister Abrasives HPL Grinding Wheels Naturally Release Lubricant as they Grind

Meister Abrasives new HPL (High Performance Lubrication) Grinding Wheels rely on premium grade CBN crystals fixed with durable, porous, i...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-08-08

Taking on the Impossible

Those multi-trillion-dollar figures thrown around for infrastructure repair make progress seem impossible without huge tax increases and a long com...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-08-08

WZL Gear Conference Highlights Latest Technology

Liebherr Gear Technology Inc. recently hosted the 7th WZL Gear Conference in the USA 2017 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. This two-day program o...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-08-03

Haas Multigrind CA and CB Machines Utilize High-Capacity Grinding Wheel Shelf Magazines

All Haas Multigrind grinding centers are available with an automatic wheel changer.  This feature enables Haas customers to combine ...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-08-01

Gear Expo 2017

AGMA Sets Up Shop in Living Laboratory of the Midwest. Columbus, Ohio recently surpassed Indianapolis as the second largest city in the Midwest behind Chicago, according to the United States Census Bureau. This could change come the 2020 census, but there's no denying Buckeye Nation is going places.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-08-01

Speed Matters - In Racing and in Hobbing

RCD Engineering's switch from manual to CNC hobbing operations breaks gear manufacturing lead time records with Bourn & Koch 100H in their gear production pit crew.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-08-01

Skiving - A Manufacturing Renaissance

Skiving will be front and center when the gear industry comes together in Columbus this October. Attendees will find dedicated skiving equipment, multifunctional machines with skiving options and a slew of new cutting tools, machine designs and modifications to make the process more efficient and robust.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-08-01

Hard Scudding - The Future Has Arrived

As the science of Scudding has rapidly evolved, the interest in the more advanced process Hard Scudding is increasing.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-08-01

The Multifunctional Option

Toyoda's new GS300H5 Gear Skiving Center is the first in the world to equip a skiving function to a general purpose horizontal machining center (HMC), through which mass production of gear parts is achieved. CNC controls and a high speed rotary table were developed specifically to achieve high-speed, multifunctional machining, as a compact and lightweight product, simple in programming functions.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2017-08-01

Efficient Hard Finishing of Asymmetric Tooth Profiles and Topological Modifications by Generating Grinding

In order to improve load-carrying capacity and noise behavior, gears usually have profile and lead modifications. Furthermore, in gears where a specified tooth-flank load application direction (for drive and coast flanks) is a design enhancement, or even compulsory, the asymmetric tooth profile is a further solution. Nowadays, many gears need to be hard finished. Continuous generating grinding offers a very high process efficiency, but is this process able to grind all modifications, especially asymmetric gears? Yes, it is!
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-07-20

Authority and Responsibility

We all got a lesson in leadership from that unfortunate collision between a U.S. Navy destroyer and a container ship off the coast of Japan. The Na...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-07-06

Heule Tool COFA-C Series Carbide Coated Blades Designed for Deburring Elliptical and Contoured Surfaces

Heule Tool Corporation introduces new COFA-C Series tooling for deburring elliptical or contoured surfaces in larger diameters. Replacea...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2017-07-01

MicroPulse and MicroShift for Ground Bevel Gearsets

Grinding of bevel and hypoid gears creates on the surface a roughness structure with lines that are parallel to the root. Imperfections of those lines often repeat on preceding teeth, leading to a magnification of the amplitudes above the tooth mesh frequency and their higher harmonics. This phenomenon is known in grinding and has led in many cylindrical gear applications to an additional finishing operation (honing). Until now, in bevel and hypoid gear grinding, a short time lapping of pinion and gear after the grinding operation, is the only possibility to change the surface structure from the strongly root line oriented roughness lines to a diffuse structure.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2017-07-01

Surface Characteristics of Hobbed Gears

Gear hobbing is one of the most productive manufacturing processes for cylindrical gears. The quality of the gears is a result of the tool quality, the precision of the workpiece, tool clamping and kinematics of the machine. The dry gear hobbing process allows machining of gears with a quality according to the DIN standard up to IT 5. To evaluate which gear quality is possible to machine with a given clamping and hob, it is useful to simulate the process in advance.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-06-27

Seco Tools PCBN Insert Grade Family Expanded with Four New Hard Turning Grades

Seco Tools has expanded its family of PCBN insert grades to cover the entire spectrum of hard part turning applications. Using a new bimo...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-06-27

MPIF Announces Award-Winning Powder Metal Parts

The winners in the 2017 Powder Metallurgy (PM) Design Excellence Awards competition, sponsored by the Metal Powder Industries Federation ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-06-23

A Calling, Not a Job

In driving around my new hometown, I am struck by the grandeur of some of the older homes and buildings. Oil City, Pennsylvania was once home to gi...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-06-15

Relocation Time

Today I moved for the seventh time in my career. It is the first time on my tab though so I am probably paying more attention to the process than i...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-06-13

Mastercam 2018 Focuses on Efficiency and Speed

Mastercam 2018 was recently introduced at EASTEC where attendees were impressed with the tools the software has available to get parts off...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-06-09

A Lesson Learned and Acted On

I have been getting lots of windshield time this year between business travel, house hunting, relocation, and even a few days of vacation. Our fabu...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-06-01

Gear Grinding Today

New divisions, open houses and the continued rise of the Industrial Internet of Things - There's been a lot going on in gear grinding in the past year.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-06-01

Anatomy of a Rebuild

Nuttall Gear taps Machine Tool Builders for shop floor upgrades.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2017-06-01

Ground and Hobbed Globoidal Worm Sets

A reader wants to know: Are profile ground and hobbed globoidal worm sets better than multi-axis CNC generated globoidal worm gear sets for reduction of noise and vibration?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2017-06-01

Twist Control Grinding

This paper introduces the latest process developments for the hard-finishing of gears, specifically in regard to controlling the so-called flank twist.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2017-06-01

Surface Structure Shift for Ground Bevel Gears

Ground bevel and hypoid gears have a designed motion error that defines parts of their NVH behavior. The surface structure is defined by the hard finishing process.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-05-31

Junker JUMAT Machine Offers Simultaneous Grinding of ID, OD and Faces of Gears

Junker has introduced the JUMAT 6S 18-20S-18, the latest of Junker's JUMAT series of modular grinding machines, which is capable of g...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-05-30

Leadership or Management?

My last post mentioned the big changes in the gear industry during my 47 year tenure, and the importance of visionary leadership. I have come to un...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-05-19

Exploring New Methods

I have been following developments on gear making in general-purpose CNC machines with great interest. The advent of affordable gear grinding seems...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-05-18

ANCA Motion LinX Linear Motor Technology Now Equipped on Grinding Machines for Improved Chip Evacuation

Highly polished flutes and gash surfaces improve chip evacuation and aid tool performance. The smoother surface enables swarf (or chips) ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-05-15

Liebherr ChamferCut Process Allows Chamfering to Occur During Machining Process

Liebherr has optimized chamfering with the ChamferCut technology and opened it up for completely new applications. The chamfering process...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-05-11

Here There Be Dragons

On the AGMA Helical Gear Rating Committee we frequently deal with how to warn users away from potentially dangerous designs. Some years ago our won...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-05-05

Heller HF Series 5-axis Machining Center Designed for Machining Complex Prismatic Parts

Heller Machine Tools introduces its versatile HF Series 5-axis horizontal machining centers to North America for machining complex prisma...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-05-04

Walter MC232 Perform Milling Cutters Provide Universal Applicability for Milling Operations

Walter has added to its range of solid carbide milling cutters with the introduction of its MC232 Perform product line. These three versa...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-05-01

Upgrading Your Toolbox

Manufacturers focus on tool design, materials, coating, machine tool options and cutting parameters.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-05-01

Industry News

Faydor Litvin, 1914-2017; Michael Goldstein receives AGMA Distinguished Service Award.
ADDENDUM | 2017-05-01

The Guy Who Put the Gearbox Up Front

As the Indianapolis 500 begins its second hundred years, it is a good opportunity to recall the guy who put the gearbox "up front."
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-04-21

LMC Workholding Receives Governor's Century Business Award to Honor 100 Years of Business

LMC Workholding received the Governor's Century Business Award honoring its 100 years in business and was one of eight Indiana compan...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-04-13

Dillon Manufacturing Workholding Products on Display at EASTEC

Dillon Manufacturing will feature a wide variety of workholding products in EASTEC Booth #5385, including soft jaws, hard jaws and full g...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-04-13

Fundamentals of Maintenance

Modern cars and trucks are wonderfully reliable and durable. As much as I love old cars I cannot cleanse my memory of the heartbreaking behavior th...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-04-11

Why Things Break

I used to tease our maintenance staff that there were only two reasons a machine went down: it went down because we worked on it or because we did ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-04-06

Holroyd Precision Absolute Care Maintenance Program Offers CNC Upgrade Packages and Machine Refurbishment Services for Holroyd Machines

As part of its ‘Absolute Care' machine tool maintenance program, Holroyd Precision is offering a range of CNC upgrade packages ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-03-31

EMAG VLC 100 GT Combines Vertical Turning and Finish Grinding in One Package

When it comes to machining times, combining various machining processes in one setup offers enormous savings potential. With the combinat...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-03-30

Open Source Part II

One of the things I mention when teaching about gears is the long history of great minds who have contributed to our field. Early readers of Ge...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-03-21

Worm Gears: Higher Energy Efficiency and Less Strain on Resources

Introduction The concepts of sustainability and energy efficiency are gaining importance in power transmission engineering. Mor...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-03-15

Kitagawa NorthTech Productivity Team Designs Custom Engineered Workholding Services

Kitagawa NorthTech, Inc. provides turnkey and custom engineered workholding services. Known for their standard and advanced chucks, the c...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-03-14

Shared Knowledge

If you think you know something, try teaching it. Putting aside the average engineer’s aversion to public speaking, the prospect of organizing your...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-03-13

Sandvik Coromant Silent Tools Milling Adapters Designed to Improve Damping Characteristics

The latest Silent Tools milling adapters from cutting tool and tooling systems specialist Sandvik Coromant are designed to offer improved...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-03-10

Third Wave Systems AdvantEdge Software Offers Process Kinematics for Cylindrical Hobbing

Third Wave Systems has released the new AdvantEdge Gear Machining v1.0. As part of the new release, the first version will include cylind...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-03-09

Ipsen CompuCore Offers Competitive Option for Controls Retrofits for Vacuum Furnaces

Ipsen is introducing a new, competitively priced option for controls retrofits in the form of CompuCore. Available for installation on mo...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-03-06

Siemens Announces Limited-Time Offer for Users of Machine Tools with Sinumerik CNCs

Siemens has announced a limited-time offer, effective until May 31, 2017. Under this program, users of any machine tool with Sinumerik CN...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-03-02

The First Steps are the Hardest

Apprenticeships are frequently mentioned as the key to rebuilding America’s manufacturing sector. The people who usually say this often have limite...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-03-01

Message Received

Big Data Expands Process Capabilities for Multi-Axis Machining.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-03-01

5-Axis Gear Manufacturing Gets Practical

Exciting new machine, cutting tool and software technologies are compelling many manufacturers to take a fresh look at producing their larger gears on machining centers. They're faster than ever, more flexible, easy to operate, highly affordable - and for any type of gear.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-03-01

It Doesn't Matter How Efficient Your Plant Is

To ensure profitability and avoid losses, accurately quoting jobs is the first line of defense.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2017-03-01

Universal Hobs

Another expert takes a crack at a previously answered question about double-helical gears and universal hobs.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2017-03-01

Performance of Gears Manufactured by 5-Axis Milling

Free form milling of gears becomes more and more important as a flexible machining process for gears. Reasons for that are high degrees of freedom as the usage of universal tool geometry and machine tools is possible. This allows flexible machining of various gear types and sizes with one manufacturing system. This paper deals with manufacturing, quality and performance of gears made by free form milling. The focus is set on specific process properties of the parts. The potential of free form milling is investigated in cutting tests of a common standard gear. The component properties are analyzed and flank load-carrying capacity of the gears is derived by running trials on back-to-back test benches. Hereby the characteristics of gears made by free form milling and capability in comparison with conventionally manufactured gears will be shown.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-03-01

Industry News

Educational initiatives, company news, acquisitions and people in the industry are all featured this issue.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-02-24

Controx-Neuhauser Saw Blades and Side Milling Cutters On Display at PMTS

Controx-Neuhauser is presenting a full line of standard saw blades and side chip clearance saws suitable for a wide range of precision cu...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-02-22

ANCA Machine Tools Promotes Keith Grillot to Sales Manager for U.S. and Canada

ANCA Machine Tools (AMT) has named Keith Grillot sales manager for its U.S. and Canadian markets, according to Russell Riddiford, ANCA pr...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-02-16

Mitsui Seiki PJ812 Offers High-Precision Milling for Components with Critical Tolerances

The new Mitsui Seiki PJ812 Precision Profile Center is a three-axis CNC vertical jig mill engineered to perform high-precision contour ma...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-02-16

Lowering That Overhead, Part II

How many of you have any idea what your company spends on perishable tooling? Working for small companies with tight wad owners perhaps made me mor...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-02-14

Faster is Not Always Better

That old “Overhead” article reminded me of what a shock it was when we first moved into cellular manufacturing. After years of investigating ways t...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-02-06

Röhm Chucks Improve Part Clamping for Oil and Gas Industry Applications

In booth 1315 at Houstex 2017, Röhm Products of America will showcase two chucks that optimize part clamping specifically for applic...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-02-03

Best Carbide Cutting Tools Joins Ceratizit Group

Best Carbide Cutting Tools, LLC has joined global carbide specialist, Ceratizit Group. Through this partnership, Best Carbide will have a...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-02-03

Chevalier Grinder Features Rough and Fine-Grinding Cycles

The FSG-1224ADIII is fully automatic on the X- and Y-axis, includes 2-axis servo control and a new PLC controller that features a grind c...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-01-31

History Lessons

An eye exam got me wondering about how things were designed and developed before the computer age. The office I visit has all the latest medical eq...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-01-25

Heimatec Angle Heads Offers Heavy-Duty Industries Standard or Custom Milling, Drilling and Tapping Solutions

Heimatec announced the immediate availability of its newest development, a line of standard and custom angle heads, available in all popu...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-01-19

Gears That Time Forgot

My consulting practice covers a very wide range of products — from 4-inch circular pitch mill stands to 180-NDP handheld medical devices — I see th...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-01-17

In Praise of Old-School Technology

A wise man once pointed out that everyone drives a used car. We hear many reports on self-driving cars, electric cars, hybrid cars, and other plane...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-01-12

The Essential Gear Book?

Continuing our discussion of gear training…   What one book would you advise a newbie to purchase, read, and keep handy in the years ahe...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-01-10

Language Barrier

I have great admiration for people who can speak multiple languages, a skill that had eluded me despite two fairly serious efforts to learn a secon...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-01-05

Preserving Our Stuff

  Continuing my rant on important things carelessly trashed by idiots…   A favorite joke in the old car hobby is “My widow will ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-01-03

Mazak Integrex i-200S AM Offers All-in-One Milling and Additive Manufacturing Capabilities

Mazak continues to fortify its industry leadership in hybrid multi-tasking machine technology with the introduction of its new Integrex i...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2017-01-03

Reflections on a Blog

This posting is the start of our fourth year of blogging on the gear industry. When the idea was first presented to me I did not have a firm idea o...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-01-01

Slow and Steady

The results of our Annual State of the Gear Industry Survey (See page 26) provided insight on 2016 as well as forecasts for 2017. Here is additional insight from some of the industry's leaders.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2017-01-01

Oil-Out Endurance Under the Lens

Oil-out conditions, or conditions in which an aircraft is operating without any oil in its gearbox or transmission, are devastating for an aircraft's hardware. Even the sturdiest gears usually can't last 30 minutes under such conditions before they catastrophically fail, and the whole system usually follows shortly after. That doesn't leave pilots with a whole lot of time to find a suitable location to land in the case of an oil-out emergency.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2017-01-01

Best Tooling for Hard Milling a Gear Tooth on 5-Axis Machining Center

What is the best tooling to use when hard milling a gear tooth on a 5-axis machining center? And what makes it the best? We have just bought a DMG Mori mono-block and are not getting the finishes at the cycle times we require.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2017-01-01

Industry News

News from around the Gear Industry
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-12-27

Monnier + Zahner MZ 500 D-Drive Gear Hobbing Machine Introduced as Compact Ultra-Fine Pitch Gear Manufacturing Solution

The Monnier + Zahner ("MZ") 500 D-drive gear hobbing machine offers CNC technology in a compact footprint for top-quality fine-...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-12-20

Mitutoyo CNC Cylindricity Measuring System Boasts High Rotational Accuracy

Mitutoyo has announced the release of the RA-6000CNC, a custom-built CNC roundness/cylindricity measuring system with best-in-class accur...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-12-19

Sandvik Coromant GC1130 Steel Milling Grade Operates in Both Wet and Dry Conditions

Cutting tool and tooling systems specialist Sandvik Coromant has made its high performance steel milling grade, GC1130, available for use...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-12-16

LMT Tools CarbideLine-H Hob Designed for Machining and Finishing Large Lot Size Workpieces

The large family of carbide hobs from LMT Fette now has a name: CarbideLine. It comprises the CarbideLine-S solid carbide tools, the Carb...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-12-15

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries MSS300 Skiving Machine Designed for Manufacturing Automotive Internal Ring Gears

The opening of the JIMTOF machine tool show in Tokyo, Japan marked the debut of MHIMTC's new MSS300 super skiving gear machine. This ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-12-15

Repair, Replace, or Rebuild?

      I enjoy watching car auctions on cable television. Some of my enjoyment comes from the commen...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-12-13

Job Satisfaction

    Every once in a while you need a reminder of why you enjoy your work. This week I got to witness final testing of a...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-12-07

Röhm KZF-S External Clamping Collet Chucks Designed for Gear Surface Face Grinding

Röhm Products of America now offers a powered external clamping chuck for gear surface face grinding. The KZF-S collet chuck is espe...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-12-06

It’s a 24/7/52 World

    This curmudgeon recently got a good lesson on how the Internet has changed the world. My adult children have been trying to get...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-11-25

Kitagawa Digital Grip Force Analyzer Software Determines Workholding Gripping Force

Kitagawa NorthTech, Inc. has introduced their new Digital Grip Force Analyzer software and kit (PC Version) for machine tool users and ma...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-11-22

Thanksgiving

I was going to reflect on how November 22, 1963 changed so many things, but decided it wasn’t an anniversary ending in a five or a zero and I would...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-11-18

EMAG VL 4 H Modular Hobbing Machine Combines Hobbing and Chamfering into Single Operation

Koepfer has demonstrated its capabilities in a multitude of projects for a broad clientele. The company's gear cutting experts meet t...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-11-17

Liebherr Gear Shaping Machine Offers Short Setup Times and Flexibility

Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH has expanded its machine portfolio for small workpieces with the small-footprint (Platform 1) LS 180 F shapi...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-11-15

Seco Tools Jabro-Solid2 JS554 Solid-Carbide End Mill Gains New Neck Diameter Options

The Jabro-Solid2 JS554 range of solid-carbide end mills has improved its utility and versatility with smaller neck diameter options. Thes...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-11-15

Friends in High Places

U.S.-based motorsports have had a lot to cheer about in Formula One this season with the debut of the first American team in thirty years. Haas F1,...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-11-10

LMC Workholding Details Full Line of Workholding Products

LMC Workholding now offers a new corporate capabilities brochure featuring its full line of workholding products. The new literature feat...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-11-10

Change Begins at Home

From reports I have gotten, 2016 is proving to be a challenging year for the gear industry. Traditional markets such as mineral extraction and gas/...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-11-07

TecnoMacchine Deburring and Chamfering Machines Now Offered by Koepfer America

Koepfer America has expanded its line of gear manufacturing solutions by partnering with TecnoMacchine. TecnoMacchine manufactures CNC de...
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2016-11-01

Our Next Leader

No, not that president! I mean Matt Croson, the new president of the American Gear Manufacturers Association, who started in June and has been busy getting to know the gear industry and AGMA's members.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2016-11-01

Locating Multiple Bore Diameters Via Hobbing

Attached photos (Figs. 1-2) show a bushing to locate one single bore. This will be used to locate one single bore diameter of a gear wheel. What is (the latest) technology for common clamping a bushing to locate multiple bore diameters in hobbing?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2016-11-01

The Role of Natural Frequencies in Grinding Systems Vibration

Excessive machine tool vibration during a precision grinding operation can result in poor workpiece quality in the form of chatter, rough finishes, burn, etc. One possible reason for excessive vibration is directly associated with the relationship between natural frequencies of a machine tool system and the operating speed of the grinding wheel spindle.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2016-11-01

Influence of Topography Deviations on the Psychoacoustic Evaluation of Ground Bevel Gears

In the design process of transmissions, one major criterion is the resulting noise emission of the powertrain due to gear excitation. Within the past years, much investigation has shown that the noise emission can be attributed to quasi-static transmission error. Therefore, the transmission error can be used for a tooth contact analysis in the design process, as well as a characteristic value for quality assurance by experimental inspections.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2016-11-01

Optimal Flank Forms for Large Bevel Gears

At first sight the appearance of 5-axis milling for bevel gears opens new possibilities in flank form design. Since in comparison to existing machining methods applying cutter heads no kinematic restrictions exist for 5-axis milling technology, any flank form can be machined. Nevertheless the basic requirements for bevel gears did not change. Specifications and functional requirements like load carrying capacity and running behavior are still increasing demands for design and manufacturing. This paper describes the demands for gear design and gives an overview about different design principles in the context of the surrounding periphery of the gear set.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-11-01

Industry News

News from around the Industry
EVENTS | 2016-11-01

Calendar

Calendar of events
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-10-31

Toyoda GS300H5 Gear Skiving Center Offers Skiving Function on a Horizontal Type Machining Center

Toyoda's new GS300H5 Gear Skiving Center is the first in the world to equip a skiving function to a general purpose horizontal type m...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-10-31

LMC Workholding Announces Pat Klein as Vice President of Machine Tool Products

LMC Workholding announces Pat Klein as the new vice president of machine tool products. Klein has a diverse manufacturing sales backgroun...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-10-20

Walter MC341 Supreme Carbide Milling Cutter Designed for Machining Steel and Stainless Steel

The new MC341 Supreme carbide shoulder/slot milling cutter from Walter is specially designed for extended tool life when machining steel ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-10-20

Non-Traditional Manufacturing

While 3-D printing looks for its place in the manufacturing world, other non-traditional methods are finding their way into our gear shops. Some, s...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-10-18

Two Problems, Two Machines, Two Solutions

Delta’s Investment in New Mitsubishi Equipment Adds Capacity, Reduces Cycle Time Dwight Smith, Vice President, Mitsubishi Hea...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-10-11

The Birth of an Industry

Do you know your company’s origin story? I have worked at seven different gear companies and have visited dozens more; all of them seem to have an ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-09-29

One Step at a Time

My first drafting class involved a lot of pencil sharpening. It was a boring exercise that the students found somewhat insulting. There were pencil...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-09-19

Holroyd Tool Management Center Improves Accuracy and Repeatability of Milling Large Helical Rotors

A newly developed ‘large diameter' CNC cutter grinding machine from Holroyd Precision Ltd is designed to bring considerable adv...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-09-13

Reinventing the Factory

McCormick Place will be transformed into a wonderland of machinery and tooling this weekend for the 2016 version of the International Machine Tool ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-09-09

IMTS 2016: Norton Saint-Gobain Abrasives (N-7051)

Saint-Gobain Abrasives has launched a new line of centerless grinding wheels to its bonded abrasives portfolio.Norton Century45 Centerles...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-09-02

IMTS 2016: LMC Workholding (W-1314)

LMC Workholding is exhibiting at IMTS and will display a variety of its workholding product line, including face drivers, wheel chucks, c...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-09-01

IMTS 2016: German Machine Tools of America (GMTA) (N-6924)

Rasoma Machining Centers Now available from German Machine Tools of America (GMTA), a full line of Rasoma machining centers, includi...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2016-09-01

Product News

News on the latest products in the industry.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2016-09-01

Innovating Against the Tide

During a year with a strong dollar, tanked oil prices and a number of soft markets that just aren't buying, one might expect spline manufacturers to be experiencing the same tumult everyone else is. But when I got a chance to speak with some of the suppliers to spline manufacturers at IMTS about how business is going, many of the manufacturing industry's recent woes never came up, and instead were replaced by a shrug and an "eh, business is doing pretty well."
ASK THE EXPERT | 2016-09-01

Same Hob for Two Gears

I make all the double helical gears that go into a gearbox - four different gears in this unit. If the gear module for the bull gear and the intermediate gear are the same (these are the two individual gears that mate), and the gear module for the high-speed pinion and high-speed gears are the same (these are the other two individual gears that mate in the gear box as well), is it then possible to just use two hobs in this setup to make all four gears, since they mate together with each other? We are currently using a different gear hob for each gear.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2016-09-01

Increased Tooth Bending Strength and Pitting Load Capacity of Fine-Module Gears

The common calculation methods according to DIN 3990 and ISO 6336 are based on a comparison of occurring stress and allowable stress. The influence of gear size on the load-carrying capacity is considered with the size factors YX (tooth root bending) and ZX (pitting), but there are further influences, which should be considered. In the following, major influences of gear size on the load factors as well as on the permissible tooth root bending and contact stress will be discussed.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2016-09-01

A Proposed Pre-Finish Cylindrical Gear Quality Standard

This proposed standard would not make any recommendations regarding the required quality for any application. The intent is to establish standard pre-finish quality classes for typical finishing operations, which only include the inspection elements that are important to properly evaluate pre-finish gear quality as it applies to the finishing operation. It would be the responsibility of the manufacturing/process engineer, quality engineer, or other responsible individual to establish the required pre-finish quality class for their application.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-09-01

Industry News

News From Around the Gear Industry
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-09-01

Contingency Planning

I got caught up in a messy but foreseeable travel delay coming home from my first trip to China. Foreseeable because airplanes are machines and mac...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-08-23

Time for the Clan to Gather

  Has your e-mail inbox been full lately? It is a sure sign that the International Machine Tool Show (IMTS) is rapidly approaching. This ye...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-08-11

Reboots

  A commercial touting the reboot of MacGyver just appeared on my office TV screen and I recall with fondness its tales of improvi...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-08-09

LMC Workholding to Showcase New Global Partner, Rotomotors

LMC Workholding is introducing its newest global partner, Rotomors of Turin, Italy, at IMTS. LMC will be showing a new 2.2-meter automati...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-08-08

Gleason Introduces P90CD and P90iC Horizontal Hobbing Machines

Gleason Corporation introduces the P90CD and P90iC horizontal hobbing machines. Now, two new machines from the P-Series enhance the ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-08-02

Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

  Our Facebook page recently displayed some great vintage photos of the old Mesta Machine shop. Back when American firms built the biggest ...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2016-08-01

IMTS 2016 Booth Previews

Comprehensive descriptions of what you will find in the booths of many leading gear industry suppliers at IMTS 2016.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2016-08-01

Chamfering and Deburring - the Underrated Process

Chamfering and deburring of cylindrical gears does not get much love from manufacturers. The process is seen as a necessary evil since it is adding cost without adding value. However, there are good reasons for not underrating this important auxiliary process. Chamfering and deburring takes care of several issues which may come up during the manufacture of quality gears.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2016-08-01

Updating Modern Production Processes

Gear Technology interviews Scott Yoders of Liebherr about the latest gear machining technologies of relevance to automotive manufacturers.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-08-01

Hardinge Talent 42 and 51 CNC Turning Centers Present Numerous Options and Features

Hardinge Inc. has announced the release of their newest family of CNC Turning Centers, the Talent 42 and 51. The Hardinge Talent Series ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-07-28

Engis Multi-Stroke Honing Machines Offer Customers Low-to-Mid-Volume Options

Engis Corporation has greatly increased its capacity with the addition of multi-stroke honing machines for small-to-medium batch sizes. ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-07-20

Covering All Angles

Klingelnberg Hosts 6th WZL Gear Conference in the USA 2016  Matthew Jaster, Senior Editor ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-07-19

Continuing Education

Gear Technology has a major interest in educating its readers. Cutting-edge technical papers are a primary component of o...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-07-15

IMTS 2016 Tooling and Workholding Pavilion to Showcase Advances in Accuracy and Efficiency

Innovative machinery from around the world will be on display at IMTS - The International Manufacturing Technology Show. Key to maximizin...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-07-15

Walter M4000 Family Helical Milling Cutters Expanded to Include Three New Models

Walter has announced the addition of the M4256, M4257 and M4258 high-performance helical milling cutters to its M4000 family. The M4000 p...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-07-01

Mitutoyo Quick Vision Active CNC Vision Measurement System Offers Interchangeable Objective Zoom Lenses

Mitutoyo America Corporation has announced the addition of the Quick Vision Active series to the line-up of vision measurement systems. T...
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2016-07-01

Life in High Gear

Most books related to the gear industry are more about the business side or the technical aspects of what we do.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2016-07-01

IMTS: Welcome to the Main Event

It's hard to think of a show more essential to attend than IMTS. It's the cornerstone event for the industry, the center of the universe for a week, the one show to rule them all.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2016-07-01

Improved Broaching Steel Technology

Broaching is a machining technique commonly used to cut gear teeth or cam profiles for the high volume manufacture of power transmission parts used in vehicles (Refs. 1–2). This article shows how the right gear blank material can make all the difference if you want to get more parts out of each tool.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2016-07-01

Influence of Hobbing Tool Generating Scallops on Root Fillet Stress Concentrations

While designing gear and spline teeth, the root fillet area and the corresponding maximum tensile stress are primary design considerations for the gear designer. Root fillet tensile stress may be calculated using macro-geometry values such as module, minor diameter, effective fillet radius, face width, etc.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-06-28

The Importance of Record Keeping

    Very rarely does a gearbox designer have the opportunity to see his or her products at work many years later. Recently I was as...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-06-23

Revisiting the Bad Old Days

  Unless you are involved with rebuilding old equipment, it may be entirely possible to never see a tooth flank with “progressive pitting.”...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-06-21

MPIF Announces Award-Winning Powder Metal Parts

The winners in the 2016 Powder Metallurgy (PM) Design Excellence Awards competition, sponsored by the Metal Powder Industries Federation ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-06-21

Missing the Geek Squad

  One of the things I miss most about full-time work is the presence of knowledgeable, in-house technical support for my comput...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-06-20

Affolter Develops Worm Power Skiving Machine

Affolter Technologies SA, a technology and market leader in micro gear hobbing machines for the aerospace, medical and micromechanical in...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-06-08

EMCO Umill 1800 5-Axis Milling-Turning Machine

The Umill 1800 from Mecof, part of EMCO Group, offers milling and turning solutions designed to meet the needs of mold makers and aerospa...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-06-08

Methods Machine Tools, Inc. Announces Jerry Rex as New COO

Methods Machine Tools, Inc. announced the appointment of Jerry Rex as Chief Operating Officer of all Methods Machine Tools operations. Th...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2016-06-01

Worm Gear Efficiency Estimation and Optimization

This paper outlines the comparison of efficiencies for worm gearboxes with a center distance ranging from 28 - 150 mm that have single reduction from 5 to 100:1. Efficiencies are calculated using several standards (AGMA, ISO, DIN, BS) or by methods defined in other bibliographic references. It also deals with the measurement of torque and temperature on a test rig — required for the calibration of an analytical model to predict worm gearbox efficiency and temperature. And finally, there are examples of experimental activity (wear and friction measurements on a blockon- ring tribometer and the measurements of dynamic viscosity) regarding the effort of improving the efficiency for worm gear drivers by adding nanoparticles of fullerene shape to standard PEG lubricant
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2016-06-01

Bevel Gear Cutting Methods

THE FINAL CHAPTER This is the last in the series of chapters excerpted from Dr. Hermann J. Stadtfeld's Gleason Bevel Gear Technology - a book written for specialists in planning, engineering, gear design and manufacturing. The work also addresses the technical information needs of researchers, scientists and students who deal with the theory and practice of bevel gears and other angular gear systems. While all of the above groups are of course of invaluable importance to the gear industry, it is surely the students who hold the key to its future. And with that knowledge it is reassuring to hear from Dr. Stadtfeld of the enthusiastic response he has received from younger readers of these chapter installments.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2016-06-01

Product News

News about the Latest Products
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2016-06-01

The Comprehensive Gear Grind

Looking for some simple yet useful advice heading into IMTS 2016? Never second guess your machine tool investment. Flexibility is a mandatory requirement in gear manufacturing today. Accuracy, reliability and efficiency must improve with each new machine tool purchase. Innovation is always the end game. So it comes as no surprise that IMTS 2016 attendees will have plenty of gear grinding technologies to consider this fall.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2016-06-01

Hail to the Quick-Change King

It's the year of the quick-change tool. From chucks to mandrels, workholding manufacturers across the industry are seeing a continuing trend from their customers: give us more quickchange.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2016-06-01

Innovations for High Productivity Generating Grinding

In comparison to the visionary Industry 4.0 - or the Fourth Industrial Revolution - the machine tool industry can appear rather down-to-earth.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2016-06-01

Apologies

I'd like to apologize to the dedicated people working on revisions to the AGMA 925 standard and the Technical Report ISO 15144-1, both of which deal with the issue of micropitting. In the March/April issue of Gear Technology, we published an opinion piece in our Voices column that harshly criticized the methods for predicting micropitting outlined in ISO 15144-1.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-05-24

Unforgettable Characters

One of my favorite features in the old Reader’s Digest magazine was the Unforgettable Character column. Each featured person would be celebrated fo...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-05-19

Barter Time?

Another week — another interesting conversation with a concerned company president. Bookings are down and he has been thinking of ways to broade...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-05-16

Sandvik CoroMill 745 Offers Multi-Edge Milling Concept

Offering high productivity and a low cost per edge, the CoroMill 745 has a double-sided, multi-edge design that is ideal for large b...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-05-11

Elliot Tool Technology Carbide-Roll Burnishing Tools Designed to Eliminate Grinding, Honing and Polishing Processes

Carbide-Roll Burnishing Tools by Elliott Tool Technology, which produce a mirror-like surface finish while eliminating secondary operatio...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-05-10

Farm System or Free Agents?

  I had a great conversation with a dedicated company president recently. Rather than get bogged down in the current market slump, he was f...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-05-09

Bourn & Koch Legacy Machine Tools Can be Remanufactured, Retrofitted or Repaired

Over the last four decades, through numerous acquisitions Bourn & Koch, Inc. has become the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) for...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-05-04

Holroyd EX Rotor Milling Machines Rough Mill and Finish Machine Stainless Steel Rotors

A little over two years after building one of the world's largest rotor milling machines - an EX Series ‘8EX' model - for a...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-05-02

Fives Machining Systems Diagnostic Communication System Added to Cincinnati and Giddings & Lewis Machine Tools

Fives Machining Systems is introducing a new remote diagnostics capability that allows machine operators to connect with Fives Cinci...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-05-01

Industry News

Lastest news from around the industry.
EVENTS | 2016-05-01

Calendar

Calendar of Events
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-04-29

GMTA SynchroFine 205 HS Gear Honing Machine Designed to Optimize Gear Finishing

Now available from German Machine Tools of America (GMTA), the Präwema SynchroFine 205 HS gear honing machine features direct-driven...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-04-27

Houghton International HOCUT 4650 Heavy Duty Bi-Metal Honing Fluid Meets All Global Chemical Regulations

Houghton International has launched a new water-based metal removal fluid for use in automotive honing operations. HOCUT 4650 improves ma...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-04-26

No Fantasy Draft

Chicago will once again host the National Football League draft for former college players. Millions of fans will tune in to see where their favori...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-04-20

Dillon Manufacturing Reversible Hard Jaws Suitable for Both ID and OD Workholding

Reversible hard jaws from Dillon Manufacturing, Inc., which are suitable for ID and OD workholding, can decrease the time and cost of too...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-04-19

Ransohoff WasteWizard Features Siemens Controls and Expandable Modules

Ransohoff has introduced the next generation of its WasteWizard solution recycling system, which now features advanced Siemens controls w...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-04-15

Holroyd Precision Limited Zenith 400 Helical Profile Grinder Works with Aluminum Oxide, CBN and Vitrified CBN Technologies

Precision Technologies Group company, Holroyd Precision Limited, is to supply one of its ultra-precise Zenith 400 helical profile grinder...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-04-14

Complex Antiques

I have a wonderfully complex gearbox to reverse engineer. It is a critical component for a thriving company that is the only known gearbox of its t...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-04-07

Slow Times Don’t Last

    A number of people have contacted me recently, seeking ideas for new markets. If I knew where the work was hiding, I would go g...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-04-06

Siemens Sinumerik CNCs Upgraded to 4-Axis, Doubles Output

The expanded contour machining cycle for Sinumerik CNCs now facilitates 4-axis turning on lathes. Two turning tools, opposite one another...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-04-04

Big Kaiser Mega Perfect Grip Milling Chuck Designed to Eliminate End Mill Pullout

Big Kaiser introduces the Mega Perfect Grip from Big Daishowa, a simple to handle, heavy-duty milling chuck for heat resistant super allo...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-03-31

Delta College Receives CNC Equipment Entrustments

Delta College recently received several large entrustments of equipment from leading manufacturers, allowing them to upgrade their CNC fa...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-03-31

Emuge FPC Mill-Drill Chucks Deliver Rigidity, Vibration Dampening and Machining Speed

Emuge Corp., in partnership with Albrecht Precision Chucks, has introduced high precision/performance Emuge FPC Mill/Drill Chucks that pr...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-03-30

LMC Workholding Celebrates 100th Anniversary

LMC Workholding is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2016, having provided quality products, services and solutions to the workholding...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-03-29

Saint-Gobain Norton Quantum3 Depressed Center Grinding Wheels Designed to Decrease Downtime, Improve User Comfort

Saint-Gobain Abrasives has introduced Norton Quantum3 (NQ3) Depressed Center Grinding Wheels. Featuring a proprietary grain along with a ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-03-29

Avoiding Mission Creep

It may be difficult for younger readers to imagine, but we once got our instructions verbally from our supervisors. Yes, in a time before e-mail an...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-03-23

Suhner Rego-Fix reCool Directly Applies Coolant-Lubricant Mix to Cutting Edge, Improves Tool Life

Rego-Fix has launched a cost-effective and efficient attachment for the application of coolant-lubrication liquids through a tool based o...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-03-18

Sumitomo DFC Double-Side 90° Milling Cutter Offers High Wear Resistance, Precision and Efficiency

New from Sumitomo Electric Carbide Inc., the DFC Double-Sided 90º Milling Cutter is engineered for exceptional precision and efficie...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-03-11

GMTA Offers Rasoma Machine Tools in North America

German Machine Tools of America (GMTA) now offers a full line of Rasoma machining centers, including vertical turning centers, four-axis ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-03-10

Your Results May Vary

  We have all seen the Internet meme of politicians wearing corporate logos so the public will know who their backers are. I would like to ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-03-04

Walter Parting Blade Adaptors Improve Tool Life

Walter has introduced new parting blade adaptors for BMT/DO machines that ensure precision cooling of both the insert and the parting bla...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-03-04

Emuge Appoints Dan Doiron to Project Manager of Milling

Emuge Corp. has announced the appointment of Mr. Dan Doiron to the position of Project Manager, Milling. In his new position Doiron will ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-03-03

When Do We See the Gears?

In 1971, the American gear business was far different from today. I am unaware of any modern company with a formal gear cutter’s apprenticeship; at...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2016-03-01

Practical Gear Characteristics: Process Characteristics of the Most Popular Cutting Methods

The cutting process consists of either a roll only (only generating motion), a plunge only or a combination of plunging and rolling. The material removal and flank forming due to a pure generating motion is demonstrated in the simplified sketch in Figure 1 in four steps. In the start roll position (step 1), the cutter profile has not yet contacted the work. A rotation of the work around its axis (indicated by the rotation arrow) is coupled with a rotation of the cutter around the axis of the generating gear (indicated by the vertical arrow) and initiates a generating motion between the not-yet-existing tooth slot of the work and the cutter head (which symbolizes one tooth of the generating gear).
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2016-03-01

Plastic Gearing Continues Converting the Unconverted

Plastic gears are everywhere today - throughout your car, at the oceans' lowest depths, in deep space. The question, when is a metal gear a candidate for plastic conversion, can be addressed in three words, i.e. what's the application?
ASK THE EXPERT | 2016-03-01

Hard-Finishing Spiral Bevel Gears

Could you explain to me the difference between spiral bevel gear process face hobbing-lapping, face milling-grinding and Klingelnberg HPG? Which one is better for noise, load capacity and quality?
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-02-23

Reviving Old Ideas

My last blog may have sounded like I didn’t think there was anything really new to be found in the gear trade. Actually I think there are numerous ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-02-18

Something to Look Forward to

With Super Bowl 50 behind us, the sporting public can turn its attention to basketball and hockey while baseball teams start spring training. Those...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-02-09

Discovering Gears

Recently, an attorney told me that his eleven-year-old daughter had “discovered” gears in a science class and was excitedly learning all she could ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-02-05

Pferd Cast Cut Carbide Burs Feature High Stock Removal Rate, Smooth Milling Action

Pferd Inc. has introduced Cast Cut, a new line of high-performance carbide burs specially designed for work on cast iron. They are charac...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-01-28

Room for Improvement

Previous blogs here have celebrated the great advances made in gear industry design capabilities and machine tools. As the “paper of record” for th...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-01-21

Nostalgia Time

I am less of an airplane fan than most engineers, but the news reports of Air France scheduling special “last flights” for its retiring Boeing 747 ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-01-18

Seco PCD05 and PCD20 Milling Insert Grades Designed for Use with Turbo 10 Cutters

Seco has introduced two new PCD-tipped milling insert grades – PCD05 and PCD20 – for use with Turbo 10 cutters. Suited to aer...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2016-01-14

Better Tools, Better Gears?

  Previous blogs have discussed how fortunate we are to live in an age with the very best in gear making technology. Modern gear grinding m...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-01-12

German Machine Tools of America Incorporate Hard Scudding Process

The scudding industry took another step forward recently with a new process known as Hard Scudding. The conventional Scudding process wor...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2016-01-08

Walter Milling Grades Utilize Tiger-Tec Silver Technology

Walter has introduced the WKK25S, WSM45X and WNN15, a trio of new milling grades that deliver an array of benefits to the user, thanks to...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-12-24

Samputensili SG 160 Sky Grind Introduces Dry Grinding of Gears to Star SU Line

Samputensili has recently launched a world premiere at EMO Milan 2015. The new machine, the SG 160 Sky Grind, is designed to eliminate th...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-12-11

Emuge-Franken Solid Carbide End Mills Launched in North America

Emuge Corp. recently announced the introduction of an extensive line of high-performance solid carbide end mills for applications ranging...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-12-10

Doing Nothing is Not Without Risk

One last thought before we leave the subject of evaluating incoming quotes — doing nothing is risky. The gear business may seem like a stable, well...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-11-19

The Importance of Prompt No Quotes

Before going on an extended blog series on my “points system” for evaluating business opportunities, I want to talk about the importance of issuing...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-11-16

Hewland Installs Klingelnberg Oerlikon G60 Spiral Bevel Gear Grinding Machine

Hewland Engineering recently announce the installation of a Klingelnberg Oerlikon G60 spiral bevel gear grinding machine. Utilizing Kling...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-11-11

Jergens Appoints Steve Schmidtke as Group Manager for Workholding Solutions Group

Jergens, Inc. recently appointed Steve Schmidtke as the group manager for the Workholding Solutions Group. “In his new role, Schmid...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-11-11

Koepfer America K-Powered CNC Gear Hobbing Machine Provides Next Step in Repowering Old Models

Koepfer America recently completed the next step in its K-Repowered CNC re-control program with the first K160 Repowered CNC Gear Hobbing...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-11-05

You Are Lost Without Records!

The guys who taught me to estimate all had great memories for part shapes, features — even part numbers. It takes years to develop that kind of tal...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-11-03

Index New CNC Multi-Spindle Lathe MS16 Plus Has a Total of 27 NC Axes

Designed to supplant cam-controlled multi-spindle lathes up to 22 mm bar diameter, the new Index MS16 Plus of the Index MultiLine series ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-11-03

The Task No One Enjoys

What task has to be done at every gear shop that no one enjoys? If you’ve followed this blog with any regularity you know how much I admire the uns...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-11-02

Heller 5-axis Machining Center Provides Reduced Setups, High Precision

The recently introduced CP 4000 series horizontal machining centers accomplish horizontal, vertical and tilted turning with A and B axis ...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2015-11-01

Buyers Guide

The 2015 Gear Technology Buyers Guide was compiled to provide you with a handy resource containing the contact information for significant suppliers of machinery, tooling, supplies and services used in gear manufacturing.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2015-11-01

Process Model for Honing Larger Gears

Hard finishing technology, e.g. — honing — is used to manufacture high-performance gears. Gear honing is primarily used to hard finish small- and medium-sized automotive gears. And yet trials have shown that gears with a module larger than mn = 4 mm can also be honed efficiently, but problems often occur due to unstable process design. In this paper a model to improve the process design is described.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-10-06

One World Now

My Saturday morning routine now includes watching a bit of “futball” from the English Premier League. The next day an American football game was br...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-09-22

How Reliable is Our Information?

How much can we trust our understanding of how things work? There was a special joint web ex meeting this week between two AGMA committees that got...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-09-18

Koepfer 'Repowered' Model 160 Gear Hobbing Machine to Be Shown at Gear Expo

Koepfer America will showcase a selection of gear hobbing machines.First is the “Repowered” Koepfer Model 160 gear hobbing ma...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-09-17

Questions Should Not Be Disruptive

Continuing my rant on disruptive employees: a few posts ago I mentioned the ill will I engendered early in a new job by questioning the large perce...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-09-11

Sandvik Coromant CB7015 CBN Grade Delivers High Quality Finishing of Transmission Components

Sandvik Coromant’s CB7015 is a CBN grade for a broad range of applications and designed to deliver optimal finish quality in the pr...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-09-10

A Century of Gears

The American Gear Manufacturers’ Association [AGMA] will celebrate its 100th Anniversary in 2016. The party will begin with the Fall Tec...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-09-09

Klingelnberg to Showcase Oerlikon G 30 Bevel Gear Grinding Machine at Gear Expo

Klingelnberg will be exhibiting its capabilities with a presentation of cutting-edge technology “made in Germany” in the form...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-09-03

When Good Employees Screw Up

A friend of mine is the inspection department for a custom machine shop. He is also the process engineer and, occasionally, a machine operator. Rec...
ASK THE EXPERT | 2015-09-01

Liebherr - Barber Colman Hob Settings

I would like some instructions for setting the degrees and minutes on a Liebherr or Barber Colman hob. Our machines use a Vernier scale to match the lead angle of the cutter to the part to form straight teeth. There is a dispute on how to do this task, and I wanted insight from another professional.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2015-09-01

Local Simulation of the Specific Material Removal Rate for Generating Gear Grinding

Generating gear grinding is one of the most important finishing processes for small and medium-sized gears, its process design often determined by practical knowledge. Therefore a manufacturing simulation with the capability to calculate key values for the process — such as the specific material removal rate — is developed here. Indeed, this paper presents first results of a model for a local analysis of the value. Additionally, an empirical formula — based on a multiple regression model for a global value describing the process — is provided.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-09-01

Industry News

News from the Gear Industry
PRODUCT NEWS | 2015-09-01

Product News

News about New Products
ASK THE EXPERT | 2015-09-01

Gear Macrogeometry

I have outsourced gear macrogeometry due to lack of resources. Now I received the output from them and one of the gears is with —0.8× module correction factor for m = 1.8 mm gear. Since bending root stress and specific slide is at par with specification, but negative correction factor —0.8× module — is quite high — how will it influence NVH behavior/transmission error? SAP and TIF are very close to 0.05 mm; how will that influence the manufacturing/cost?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2015-09-01

Gear Tooth Surface Roughness of Helical Gears Manufactured by a Form Milling Cutter

Manufacturing involute gears using form grinding or form milling wheels are beneficial to hobs in some special cases, such as small scale production and, the obvious, manufacture of internal gears. To manufacture involute gears correctly the form wheel must be purpose-designed, and in this paper the geometry of the form wheel is determined through inverse calculation. A mathematical model is presented where it is possible to determine the machined gear tooth surface in three dimensions, manufactured by this tool, taking the finite number of cutting edges into account. The model is validated by comparing calculated results with the observed results of a gear manufactured by an indexable insert milling cutter.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-08-25

Walter Cut Grooving Tool Delivers Improved Chip Control and Tool Life

Walter recently introduced the Walter Cut G1011-P, a new grooving tool that can enhance surface quality, extend tool life, and improve pr...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-08-11

Butterfly Effect

I’ve been traveling quite a bit lately, and wonder if perhaps we take the convenience of air travel for granted. Who would have expected an hour to...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-08-05

Gleason Genesis 200GX Threaded Wheel Grinding Machine to be Introduced at Gear Expo

Gleason recently announced it will introduce advanced machines, tooling, and global customer support services covering a wide array of pr...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-08-03

Heiko Machine Tools Chosen to Sell Cesar Galdabini Products

Heiko Machine Tools (Canton, MI) recently announced that it has been chosen by Cesar Galdabini SPA (Milan, Italy) as the sales and market...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2015-08-01

Tooth Flank Fracture - Basic Principles and Calculation Model for a Sub-Surface-Initiated Fatigue Failure Mode of Case-Hardened Gears

Cracks initiated at the surface of case-hardened gears may lead to typical life-limiting fatigue failure modes such as pitting and tooth root breakage. Furthermore, the contact load on the flank surface induces stresses in greater material depth that may lead to crack initiation below the surface if the local material strength is exceeded. Over time the sub-surface crack propagation may lead to gear failure referred to as “tooth flank fracture” (also referred to as “tooth flank breakage”). This paper explains the mechanism of this subsurface fatigue failure mode and its decisive influence factors, and presents an overview of a newly developed calculation model.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-07-30

Junker and Zema to Exhibit Gear Grinding Machines Together at EMO Milano

At EMO Milano 2015, Junker Group and Zema will be exhibiting together for the first time in Europe: Zema will be demonstrating a cylindri...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-07-30

New Ways to Make Old Parts

My last post discussed reviewing the ratings and designs of “legacy products,” those venerable parts and gearboxes still being ordered twenty, thir...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-07-28

Brainstorming to Better Products

Many gear companies are not in a position to develop new products but most of them could make their current products better. Business schools may p...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-07-21

A Long Hot Summer

We are having a bit of a heat wave in the Chicago area, not the deadly type of 1996, but uncomfortable for much outside activity. I marvel at the t...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-07-17

Index 'Bevel Gear Hobbing Package' Produces Gears With Tooth Height in a Module Range of 0.6 to 4 mm

Index recently developed a “bevel gear hobbing” package, which consists of a control cycle and four Index cutter heads with m...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-07-14

Absolute Machine Tools Now Selling Tongtai MT Series Lathes

Tongtai recently announced its newest MT Series Lathes that have been developed for improving cycle times and turning processes for the a...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-07-13

Cimcool Cimperial 861 Metalworking Fluid Increases Tool Life and Provides Superior Lubricity

Cimcool recently announced the release of Cimperial 861 with InSol technology, a hybrid lubricity, semi-synthetic metalworking fluid, whi...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-07-10

Broaching Machine Specialties to Supply Ekin Products in North America

Broaching Machine Specialties (BMS) recently announced a strategic partnership with Ekin of Bilbao, Spain.Ekin has been supplying machine...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-07-06

Mitutoyo LEGEX 4 CNC Machine Provides High-Accuracy Measurements

Mitutoyo America Corporation recently released the latest LEGEX CNC coordinate measuring machine (CMM). The LEGEX 4 delivers accuracy in ...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2015-07-01

Product News

News on the latest Products from the Industry
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2015-07-01

I Like Big Gears and I Cannot Lie!

Many years ago, when asked how the five-meter gear was checked, the quality manager responded, “When they’re that big, they’re never bad!” That may have been the attitude and practice in the past, but it no longer serves the manufacturer nor the customer. Requirements have been evolving steadily, requiring gears to perform better and last longer.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-06-26

Samputensili Acquires Gear Shaving Machine Technology Company Sicmat

Samputensili recently announced the acquisition of Sicmat S.p.A., a company specializing in gear shaving machine technology.Due to the sy...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-06-26

True Gear & Spline Increases Grinding Capacity With New Niles ZP 12

True Gear& Spline Ltd. recently added CNC gear profile grinding to their machining capabilities with their newly installed Niles ZP 1...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-06-24

Junker Builds New Platform for Cylindrical and Non-Cylindrical Grinding of Workpieces

Junker recently built a new platform for cylindrical and non-cylindrical grinding of workpieces with a swing diameter of 470 mm and a par...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-06-17

Emuge EF Series Drills Incorporate Special Geometry for Faster Penetration and Longer Tool Life

Emuge Corp. recently announced the North American debut of its line of high-performance solid carbide drills. The new Emuge EF series dri...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-06-12

NCSIMUL CAM Streamlines CNC Programming

Spring Technologies, vendor of software that optimizes the use of NC Machines, recently announced the worldwide launch of NCSIMUL CAM. Th...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-06-11

Decisions, Decisions

Twenty years ago, a colleague devoted many hours to developing an all-inclusive computer program that would convert a twenty-question form into fin...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-06-10

Junker Delivers 500th Grinding Machine to Volkswagen Group

Grinding machine manufacturer Junker recently celebrated a milestone as the Volkswagen Group recently purchased their 500th Junker grindi...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-06-04

Things We Don’t Know

Noted gear consultant and gear educator Ray Drago is fond of saying that a consultant’s best answers usually start with “it depends.” Those of you ...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2015-06-01

An Approach to Pairing Bevel Gears from Conventional Cutting Machine with Gears Produced on 5-Axis Milling Machine

Developed here is a new method to automatically find the optimal topological modification from the predetermined measurement grid points for bevel gears. Employing this method enables the duplication of any flank form of a bevel gear given by the measurement points and the creation of a 3-D model for CAM machining in a very short time. This method not only allows the user to model existing flank forms into 3-D models, but also can be applied for various other purposes, such as compensating for hardening distortions and manufacturing deviations which are very important issues but not yet solved in the practical milling process.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2015-06-01

Bevel Grinding Rolling Right Along

When Dr. Hermann J. Stadtfeld speaks, people tend to listen. Considered one of the world’s foremost experts on bevel gears, Stadtfeld, the vice president of bevel gear technology at Gleason, recently revealed several cutting-edge advancements that the company has been working on.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2015-06-01

Gear Grinding is Getting Easier, Better, Faster, Stronger

Liebherr is well-known as one of the world’s largest privately owned companies — a titan in heavy industry specializing in cranes, trucks and mammoth earth moving and mining equipment.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2015-06-01

Good Morning, Class

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.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2015-06-01

Gear mesh, NVH Evaluation

The question is quite broad, as there are different methods for setting various types of gears and complexity of gear assemblies, but all gears have a few things in common.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-06-01

Industry News

News from Around the Gear Industry
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-05-28

Formula 1 Gearbox Designs

As mentioned in my last blog, Formula 1 gearboxes are now highly integrated into the overall car design. The days of a “spec” transmission from a t...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-05-26

Short Lived Gearbox Designs

“All memorable quotations referring to gearboxes involve expletives.” Peter Wright             The author of Fo...

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-05-13

Hewland Engineering Expands Grinding Capabilities

Hewland Engineering recently announced a multi-million pound investment in state-of-the-art spiral bevel grinding capability, due to arri...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-05-12

Business of Sports, Cont.

Picking up from last week on W. Edwards Deming… We’re constantly hearing sports terms and metaphors used in business c...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-05-05

Building Your Team

The National Football League (NFL) held its annual draft of college players here in Chicago this past week. It is probably the most publicized huma...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2015-05-01

Times Arent A-Changin for Broaching, and Thats Just Fine

In 1964, a young and tidy Bob Dylan sang away in that infamous voice of his, all nasally and grating yet wonderfully distinct, opining to the fervent masses: “The times, they are a-changin.”
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2015-05-01

Hypoid Gears with Involute Teeth

This paper presents the geometric design of hypoid gears with involute gear teeth. An overview of face cutting techniques prevalent in hypoid gear fabrication is presented. Next, the specification of a planar involute rack is reviewed. This rack is used to define a variable diameter cutter based upon a system of cylindroidal coordinates; thus, a cursory presentation of cylindroidal coordinates is included. A mapping transforms the planar involute rack into a variable diameter cutter using the cylindroidal coordinates. Hypoid gears are based on the envelope of this cutter. A hypoid gear set is presented based on an automotive rear axle.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2015-05-01

Gear Mesh Assembly

When assembling a pair of gears, what is a good method for setting and checking their mesh?
ADDENDUM | 2015-05-01

Henry Maudslay

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.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-04-30

Gleason Introduces New Bevel Gear Lapping Technology

Gleason Corporation recently announced SmartLAP, a technology for lapping bevel gear sets, with increased productivity, control and data ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-04-27

Abtex Introduces Machine for Deburring Powdered-Metal Parts

Abtex Corporation recently announced a new machine for deburring powdered-metal parts when they’re still in the “green”...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-04-21

Play Through, Old Friend

One of the consequences of growing older is saying good bye to friends you have made along the way. Word reached me this week that one of the best ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-04-10

Meghan Summers-West Named President of CNC Software

Meghan Summers-West was recently appointed president of CNC Software, Inc., the developer of Mastercam CAD/CAM programming...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-04-09

How Much is Too Much?

My inner curmudgeon got loose in the last blog and I want to assure you that I, too, love big horsepower. My concern is that it be applied safely. ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-04-07

Horsepower Race

[starbox]As the Tool Time host used to say, “The answer is more power.” My little lathe/mill combo has a whopping .75 horsepower and I’ve managed t...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-04-02

Evolving Equipment

[starbox]How long should gear manufacturing equipment last? I posted before about some very “veteran” gear cutting machines that are still earning ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-03-25

Sunnen Introduces SSH-1680 Honing System

Sunnen’s new SSH-1680 honing system makes the efficiency, accuracy and consistency of power-stroke honing, affordable to&...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-03-24

What Gear Trade Milestones Have You Witnessed?

[starbox]Last week’s blog on the Century of AGMA Timeline brought to mind a humorous story of our now adult daughter’s first “play store” set. If y...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-03-19

Junker Acquires Majority Share in Brazilian Grinding Machine Manufacturer

The Junker Group recently added Brazilian grinding machine manufacturer ZEMA to its corporate group. ZEMA was founded back in 1953, has m...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-03-12

GMTA Introduces the SynchroFine 205 HS Gear Honing Machine

German Machine Tools of America (GMTA) recently introduced the Präwema SynchroFine 205 HS gear honing machine. It features direct-dr...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-03-09

Sandvik Introduces New CoroMill QD Groove Milling Concept

The main challenge in groove milling is often chip evacuation. Chip issues can harm production efficiency, lower component quality or cau...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-03-06

Index to Demonstrate Modular Eight-spindle Automatic CNC Turning Machine at PMTS 2015

Index will demonstrate its MS22C-8, a modular eight-spindle automatic CNC turning machine, producing brass connector parts at PMTS 2015, ...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2015-03-01

Solving the Forgings Paradox

The process of forging metal into shapes possesses a surprisingly long and storied history. For example, the method of hot rolling can trace its protracted existence all the way back to an enigmatic Italian polymath named Leonardo da Vinci (you may have heard of him), who reportedly invented the rolling mill one lazy day in the 1400s.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2015-03-01

Measuring Residual Stress in Gears

I have heard that X-ray diffraction does not tell the whole story and that I should really run a fatigue test. I understand this may be the best way, but is there another method that gives a high degree of confidence in the residual stress measurement?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2015-03-01

Prediction of Surface Zone Changes in Generating Gear Grinding

One process for hard finishing gears is generating gear grinding. Due to its high process efficiency, generating gear grinding has replaced other grinding processes such as profile grinding in batch production of small- and middle-sized gears. Yet despite the wide industrial application of generating gear grinding, the process design is based on experience along with time- and cost-intensive trials. The science-based analysis of generating gear grinding demands a high amount of time and effort, and only a few published scientific analyses exist. In this report a thermo-mechanical process model that describes influences on the surface zone in generating gear grinding is introduced.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2015-03-01

A Practical Approach for Modeling a Bevel Gear

The geometry of the bevel gear is quite complicated to describe mathematically, and much of the overall surface topology of the tooth flank is dependent on the machine settings and cutting method employed. AGMA 929-A06 — Calculation of Bevel Gear Top Land and Guidance on Cutter Edge Radius — lays out a practical approach for predicting the approximate top-land thicknesses at certain points of interest — regardless of the exact machine settings that will generate the tooth form. The points of interest that AGMA 929-A06 address consist of toe, mean, heel, and point of involute lengthwise curvature. The following method expands upon the concepts described in AGMA 929-A06 to allow the user to calculate not only the top-land thickness, but the more general case as well, i.e. — normal tooth thickness anywhere along the face and profile of the bevel gear tooth. This method does not rely on any additional machine settings; only basic geometry of the cutter, blank, and teeth are required to calculate fairly accurate tooth thicknesses. The tooth thicknesses are then transformed into a point cloud describing both the convex and concave flanks in a global, Cartesian coordinate system. These points can be utilized in any modern computer-aided design software package to assist in the generation of a 3D solid model; all pertinent tooth macrogeometry can be closely simulated using this technique. A case study will be presented evaluating the accuracy of the point cloud data compared to a physical part.
EVENTS | 2015-03-01

Calendar

The complete technical calendar from the March/April 2015 issue of Gear Technology.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-02-25

Gear Motions' Oliver Gear Division Acquires New Hera 350 Gear-Hobbing Machine

Gear Motions, a precision gear manufacturer, recently acquired new gear-cutting technology for its Oliver Gear Division in Buffalo, NY. ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-02-13

German Machine Tools of America Releases the Präwema SynchroFine 205 HS

Now available from German Machine Tools of America (GMTA), the Präwema SynchroFine 205 HS gear honing machine features direct-driven...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-02-06

Marposs Acquires FL Tool Holders

Marposs S.p.A. (Bologna, Italy) recently announced the acquisition of FL Tool Holders LLC of Livonia, Michigan, a manufacturer of precisi...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-02-04

Walter Introduces Titex DC150 Carbide Drills

Walter, a leader in the metalworking industry with over 90 years of experience in precision cutting tools for milling, drilling, boring a...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-01-29

Feedback and Comments

[starbox] We are starting our second year of this blog and are pleased that it was named one of the Top 50 Design and Development Blogs on the Int...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-01-22

Seco Tools' Carbide Recycling Program Continues to Expand

Seco Tools, LLC recently reported that it collected 15 percent more used carbide in 2014 than the previous year for its North American Ca...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2015-01-13

Do You Know Your Design DNA?

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-01-09

Taylor Hobson Introduces New High Resolution Instruments

A new series of high resolution instruments offering automated simultaneous surface and contour inspection has been introduced by Taylor ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2015-01-07

Easy CNC App Now Available for Android Devices

Siemen's Easy CNC app is now available for Android devices. Easy CNC contains all the current training manuals for Siemens Sinumerik ...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2015-01-01

Getting in Gear with the Chain of Innovations

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.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2015-01-01

Quality and Surface of Gears Manufactured by Free-Form Milling with Standard Tools

The recently available capability for the free-form milling of gears of various gear types and sizes — all within one manufacturing system — is becoming increasingly recognized as a flexible machining process for gears.
EVENTS | 2015-01-01

Calendar

Calendar of Events
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-12-23

Anticipation

[starbox]   A lasting memory from childhood is how long it took for future events to occur. We started looking forward to Christmas when...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-12-09

A Day That Changed the Future

[starbox] I didn’t start working in the gear business until 1971, but the events of 30 years earlier affected me from the moment I walked into t...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-12-04

Overcoming Adversity

[starbox] My last blog concerned project management and the problems of staying on schedule. I thought it only fair to pass on some techniques I...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-11-24

MHI Develops 'Super Skiving System' for High-speed Gear Cutting

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) has completed development of the “Mitsubishi Super Skiving System” for machining inte...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-11-13

A Good Waste of Time

GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-11-11

The War to End All Wars

[starbox] As the son of a World War II sailor, I was raised with an honest respect for our nation’s veterans. The massive size of WW II and its ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-11-10

Koepfer Introduces New 'H' Series Hobbing Machines

Koepfer America, L.L.C., introduces the CLC “H” series of heavy duty horizontal gear hobbing machines to the North American g...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-11-07

The Importance of Perseverance

GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-11-04

Catalog Season

The holiday gift catalogs have started to arrive at my house. Over the years our gift list has been pared down, but we occasionally see something unique that is just perfect for someone on the list.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2014-11-01

Making it in Mobile

"If it's broken, bring it on in." That's the advice offered by Roy Parker, president and owner of Jones Welding Company Inc.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-10-30

Moving the Goal Posts

[starbox]
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-10-29

History Lessons

GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-10-21

Fall Technical Meeting Report

GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-10-09

Bad Career Moves

My e-mail correspondent was worried about making a bad career move. Since it is unlikely that people starting out in the gear trade today will work...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-09-23

E is for Effort

[starbox] The second step in my performance evaluation procedure looks at the effort a team member puts into his or her job. From our first day ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-09-17

Dillon Air Chucks Provide Maximum Gripping Surface

Dillon pin-location top jaws hold small and delicate parts – such as those often machined using air chucks - firmly without damagin...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-09-15

Sandvik Introduces InvoMilling 1.0 During IMTS

Sandvik Coromant introduced InvoMilling 1.0 during IMTS in Chicago. The InvoMilling solution was released as software supported by dedica...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-09-12

A Day We Can Never Forget

[starbox] Yesterday marked a day 13 years ago on which the world changed for all of us. Time forever more to be marked as “before” those terribl...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-09-09

Have You Been to the Circus Yet?

[starbox] As mentioned before in this space, the bi-annual International Machine Tool Show (IMTS) is back in Chicago (September 8 – 3th). I’ll b...
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2014-09-01

Cracking the WIP

Over the past few months I've talked with several different gear manufacturers who are in the process of upgrading their gear making equipment with modern CNC machine tools. Each of these manufacturers has come to the realization that in order to stay competitive, he needs to streamline operations and become more efficient...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2014-09-01

Gear Manufacturer Benefits from CAM Initiatives and Advanced Manufacturing Technology

Multiple CAM initiatives at Snyder Industries are improving safety, quality and productivity for parts ranging from 50 to 5,000 lbs.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2014-09-01

Simulation of Deviations in Hobbing and Generation Grinding

The hobbing and generation grinding production processes are complex due to tool geometry and kinematics. Expert knowledge and extensive testing are required for a clear attribution of cause to work piece deviations. A newly developed software tool now makes it possible to simulate the cutting procedure of the tool and superimpose systematic deviations on it. The performance of the simulation software is illustrated here with practical examples. The new simulation tool allows the user to accurately predict the effect of errors. With this knowledge, the user can design and operate optimal, robust gearing processes.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-08-28

Specialization is for Insects

[starbox] The sports world was abuzz recently over a girl pitching her Little League team into the World Championship Tournament. For some this ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-08-26

Disneyland for Engineers

[starbox] After living in the Chicago area for 10 years I have made peace with the congestion, high prices, long commute tim...

GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-08-19

The Challenge of Maintaining Excellence

[starbox] I blogged earlier about best-selling business books trumpeting rapid growth schemes rather than sustainable performance. Building a succ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-08-14

The Problem of Certainty

[starbox] In writing about unforeseen consequences there is a risk of inspiring such conservatism in design that the resulting product is no lon...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-08-12

Unforeseen Consequences

[starbox] For something that causes so much trouble for so many people, you would think there would be lots of consideration given to the unforese...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-08-07

Calmness Under Fire

So far, I expect my ideal “leader” to have commitment and vision. A third requirement is calmness under fire. While my life has been blessedly free...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-08-05

Make No Small Plans

[starbox] “Make no small plans” has been attributed to a variety of people over the years, but that doesn’t undermine its importance to fledglin...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2014-08-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from the August 2014 issue of Gear Technology.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2014-08-01

Honing of Gears

The honing of gears - by definition - facilitates ease of operation, low noise and smoother performance in a transmission. Honing also contributes to reduced friction in the powertrain. Both the intense cutting (roughing process) as well as the functionally fine- finishing of transmission gears can be performed in one setup, on one machine.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2014-08-01

Importance of Contact Pattern in Assembly of Bevel vs Cylindrical Gears

Why is there so much emphasis on the tooth contact pattern for bevel gears in the assembled condition and not so for cylindrical gears, etc?
ASK THE EXPERT | 2014-08-01

The Pros and Cons of Fully Ground Root Fillets

For maximum life in carburized and ground gearing, I have been advised that fully grinding a radius into the root gives maximum resistance against fatigue failures. Others have advised that a hobbed and unground radius root form is best. Which is best, and why?
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-07-24

Leadership 101 — Commitment

[starbox] Much of what I believe about leadership I learned from the scouting program. I was a scout as a boy and when my children reached that ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-07-17

Reader Outreach

One of the objectives of this — or any — blog is to encourage two-way communication with its readers. Which reminds that Gear Tech...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-07-10

If You Are Going to Make Buggy Whips…

[starbox] If you are going to make buggy whips, they better be good ones. That is the lesson I took away from reading about hundred-year-old Wis...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-07-08

Better to be Lucky than Smart

[starbox] The special 30th Anniversary Issue of Gear Technology magazine represents a lot of extra work on the part of...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-07-06

PTG Revises Maintenance and Support Services

U.K.-based Precision Technologies Group (PTG) has totally revised its range of machine tool maintenance and support services, to provide ...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2014-07-01

No Compromising on Quality at Allison Transmission

Gleason 350GMS helps put higher quality, more reliable gears into its next-generation TC10 automatic transmission.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2014-07-01

The Influence of Tool Tolerances on the Gear Quality of a Gear Manufactured by an Indexable Insert Hob

Recently, a new type of hob with carbide inserts has been introduced, providing higher cutting speeds, longer tool life and higher feed rates when compared to re-grindable, high-speed steel hobs. But with this kind of hob, new challenges occur due to positional errors of the cutting edges when mounted on the tool. These errors lead to manufacturing errors on the gear teeth which must be controlled. In this paper, the tooth quality of a gear manufactured by hobs with different quality classes is analyzed using a simulation model in combination with Monte Carlo methods.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-07-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the July 2014 issue of Gear Technology.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-07-01

You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know

[starbox] If ever a situation cried out for a short, texting-friendly acronym it is the unavoidable problem of “You don’t know what you don’t kn...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-06-24

Industry Gathers for United Grinding Symposium

The world's largest event in the grinding machine industry drew to a close in Thun (Switzerland) with an enthusiastic audience. Every...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-06-12

The Error of Hiding Failures

[starbox] The General Motors ignition switch fiasco remains in the headlines, having cost many lives, millions of dollars, and a number a career...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-06-11

DiaGrind 535-5 Offers Advantages in Gear Honing and Grinding

The multifunctional metalworking fluid DiaGrind 535-5 has many enthusiastic users all over the world. They range from small shops to mult...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-06-05

Is the 10,000 Hour “Rule” a Myth?

Malcomb Gladwell popularized the notion that 10,000 hours of repetition could make you a virtuoso in his 2008 book, Outliers: The ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-05-27

The Arsenal of Democracy

[starbox] The Memorial Day holiday means different things to different people. To some it is the official start of summer, although the erratic ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-05-23

Vomat Offers Temp Stability During Grinding

In order to produce high-performance cutting tools, tool manufacturers go to great lengths to get all manufacturing parameters right. Production conditions have tremendous influence on the final quality of the tool...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-05-22

Sunnen Releases HTE Honing System

Sunnen's new HTE honing system, the company's most cost-effective small-diameter hone, produces ideal bore geometry and surface finish, while eliminating problems from bad tool-to-part alignment...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-05-22

Failing Boldly

[starbox] Aside from the pure mechanical beauty of it, my favorite thing about the Indy 500 is the tradition. What’s more, few events can match ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-05-20

Ideas Ahead of Their Time

[starbox] The magazine is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year and many special features will be published about technological breakthroug...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-05-15

The Journey or the Destination?

I belong to a number of online technical forums besides contributing to the occasional “Ask the Expert” column here at Gear Technology.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-05-13

A Sure Sign of Spring

[starbox] Over the years, some of the luster has come off the Indianapolis 500, but it remains a major cultural influence. I caught the racing b...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-05-08

Treasured Gear Books

[starbox] This week’s Helical Gear Rating Committee meetings included a much hoped for improvement: a new member! Not only that, a new member un...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-05-06

The Peer Review Process

[starbox] I began this blog with an appeal for abstracts for the 2014 AGMA Fall Technical Meeting. For those of you who had an abstract accepted...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2014-05-01

Moving Parts

Machine tools boost speed and throughput with automation technology.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2014-05-01

The Technology Shift

Decades ago, technology shifted from HSS to indexable inserts in turning and milling. This movement wasn't immediately realized in gear hobbing because coated PM-HSS hobs and complex gear profiles remained highly effective and productive methods. Only fairly recently have gear manufacturers started to take a serious look at indexable technology to cut gear teeth.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-05-01

Machine Marks on Gear Flanks

What causes shaving cutter marks on gear flanks and can they be prevented?
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-05-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the May 2014 issue of Gear Technology.
ADDENDUM | 2014-05-01

In Aviation, Pants Are Optional

The long and colorful history of aviation is comprised of many chapters and giants. The chapter we're reviewing in this installment of Addendum is the invention and development of the retractable landing gear.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-05-01

Sercos Highlights Automation Solutions for Machine Tools

Sercos International, supplier of the Sercos automation bus, registered high interest in Sercos-capable products at Hannover Fair...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-05-01

So How Much is This Going to Cost?

[starbox] Estimating is a necessary evil in every shop. Nobody wants to do it, but if it doesn’t get done there is no business. Fortunately, we ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-04-29

Sunnen Offers Single Stroke Honing Options

Sunnen Products Company introduces a quantum improvement in a key manufacturing process for cast-iron hydraulic valve bodies using a precision single stroke honing process...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-04-24

Working Dinosaurs

[starbox] Reflecting upon “transformative technology,” I remember the sadness I felt at the Cincinnati Gear Company auction when a group of pris...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-04-22

Quick-Change Spline Rolling Racks Offer Numerous Benefits

U.S. Gear Tools Inc. of Swannanoa, NC has developed the R/C Rack System, a quick-change tooling alternative for spline rolling machines...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-04-22

Different Consequences

[starbox] In the most recent issue of Gear Technology, the Publisher’s Page recounts the inaugural issue’s coverage of “transformative ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-04-17

More Adventures in Modifying Machines

[starbox] In my last posting I wrote about some of the projects I have been involved with to squeeze a bigger part in an existing machine. Most ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-04-15

EMAG Introduces Small Grinding Center

Demand for components such as gearwheels, planetary gears, chain gears or flanged components for cars typically runs in quantities of millions...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-04-15

If the Shoe Doesn’t Fit …

[starbox] Blogging about emerging 3-D printing technology reminded me of occasions when it was necessary to “stretch the envelope” to get things...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-04-10

Necessity is the Mother of Invention

[starbox] My last post may have been too hard on the emerging 3-D printing technology. We’ve always celebrated inventors in this country and per...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-04-08

A Tool Looking for a Task?

[starbox] I have been hearing a lot about 3-D printing and how it will revolutionize manufacturing in the United States. Millions are slated to ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-03-28

Gleason Cutting Tools Recognized as John Deere Partner-Level Supplier

Gleason Corporation announced that its Gleason Cutting Tools Corporation facility in Rockford, Illinois has for the second year in a row earned Partner-level status...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-03-27

United Grinding Announces New President

United Grinding North America, Inc. recently announced that current president and CEO, Rodger Pinney, has been elected as vice chairman...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-03-26

Affolter Offers Gear Hobbing Center

Affolter Technologies SA presents its most recent innovation. "The GEAR AF110 sets a new benchmark in regards to flexibility, high precision and stiffness...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-03-24

Great Moments in Gear Rating

[starbox] By now readers of this Blog are aware of my interest in gear trade history. The more I learn about how we got to this point in our und...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-03-14

Abtex Offers Tri-Ten Deburring System

Abtex Corporation has designed and built the largest and most technologically advanced Tri-Ten deburring system in its 34 year history...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-03-12

Sunnen Releases Honing Catalogs

Sunnen Products Company has just released two new tooling/accessory catalogs for engine honing and rebuilding. The honing catalog include...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-03-12

Frequently Asked Questions (and Other TLA or FLA)

[starbox] The advent of texting naturally leads to a desire for reduced typing. I like websites that have a “Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) ta...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-03-10

Hunting for an Argument

[starbox] One of the first things I learned about gears was the importance of having a “hunting tooth” combination. This was not open to discuss...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-03-06

PTG Holroyd Produces Large Helical Profile Milling Machine

Holroyd manufactured one of the world’s biggest high precision screw rotors for a major gas compression project in the Far East usi...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-03-05

United Grinding Invites Customers to Grinding Symposium

The United Grinding Group – Körber Schleifring up until EMO 2013 – has clearly understood the signs of the times in the ...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-03-03

Time Flies When You Are Making Gears

[starbox] On Saturday I began my 44th year in the gear industry. I remember way too many details of my first day as a drafting apprentice at the...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-03-01

GT Extras

GT Videos featuring R&P Metrology, the latest from our Twitter and LinkedIn feeds and an introduction to gearboxfailure.com
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2014-03-01

The Next Transformation

Every so often manufacturing is jolted out of its inertia by a transformative technology – one that fundamentally changes not only the way products are made, but also the economics of the business.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2014-03-01

Brad Foote and 3M Collaborate on Testing of Ground Parts

Cubitron II wheels are put to the test in this case study.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2014-03-01

In Search of a Competitive Advantage

The grinding/abrasives market is rapidly changing, thanks to new technology, more flexibility and an attempt to lower customer costs. Productivity is at an all-time high in this market, and it’s only going to improve with further R&D. By the time IMTS 2014 rolls around this September, the gear market will have lots of new toys and gadgets to offer potential customers. If you haven’t upgraded any grinding/abrasives equipment in the last five years, now might be a good time to consider the investment.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2014-03-01

New ECM Furnace Improves Manufacture Efficiency of PM Components

The heat treatment processing of powder metal (PM) materials like Astaloy requires four steps -- de-waxing, HT sintering, carburizing and surface hardening -- which are usually achieved in dedicated, atmospheric furnaces for sintering and heat treat, respectively, leading to intermediate handling operations and repeated heating and cooling cycles. This paper presents the concept of the multi-purpose batch vacuum furnace, one that is able to realize all of these steps in one unique cycle. The multiple benefits brought by this technology are summarized here, the main goal being to use this technology to manufacture high-load transmission gears in PM materials.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2014-03-01

Technological Potential and Performance of Gears Ground by Dressable CBN Tools

Dressable vitrified bond CBN grinding tools combine the advantages of other common tool systems in generating gear grinding. Yet despite those technological advantages, there is only a small market distribution of these grinding tools due to high tool costs. Furthermore, scant literature exists regarding generating gear grinding with dressable CBN. This is especially true regarding the influence of the grinding tool system on manufacturing-related component properties. The research objective of this report is to determine the advantages of dressable CBN tools in generating gear grinding.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2014-03-01

Product News

The complete product news section from the March/April 2014 issue, featuring quick-change spline rolling racks from U.S. Gear Tools.
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-02-28

Internships: How Does the Employer Benefit? Part II

[starbox] In my previous post I talked about the official ways an internship program benefited our company. Today I’d like to talk about a coupl...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-02-26

Internships: How Does the Employer Benefit?

[starbox] The first question my boss asked me when I suggested we start an intern program was “What’s in it for us?” Fortunately I had done my h...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-02-12

PTG to Showcase Grinding in Germany

PTG Deutschland GmbH, the German-based division of Britain’s Precision Technologies Group, has chosen GrindTec 2014 to showcase its...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-02-03

Burka-Kosmos Offers Latest Grinding Wheel

The Mira Ice product line of gear grinding wheels was developed in order to meet the requirements of profile grinding larger gears. A new...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-02-03

Time for a Gear Awards Show?

[starbox] It is that time of year when some of our favorite television shows are pre-empted by awards shows. Every facet of the entertainment bu...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-01-31

Barn Find Gearboxes

INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-01-27

United Grinding to Display Innovations at GrindTec 2014

United Grinding, the largest single-source provider of complete and integrated grinding solutions, will showcase its latest grinding, ero...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-01-27

How Did You Become a Gear Expert?

[starbox] Some months ago I got a call from a young engineer asking how he could get into the consulting business. It was a flattering call but a ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-01-24

Oelheld Develops HSS Grinding Oil

SintoGrind HSS was especially developed for profile and flute grinding of steel alloys and in particular for High-Speed-Steel and medical...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-01-21

Enerpac Announces New Workholding Solutions

Enerpac announces their new E215 Workholding Catalog featuring 232 pages of valuable information on their full range of high pressure hyd...
GEAR TALK WITH CHUCK | 2014-01-17

Gear Training Then and Now

[starbox] Blogging about gear training brings to mind the widely attended Illinois Tool Works Gear School that Bob Moderow operated on behalf of h...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-01-16

Sandvik Teams With Star SU for Gear Milling

Sandvik Coromant has teamed up with Star SU on an extended basis. Beginning as an authorized OEM agent, and now a national channel partne...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2014-01-01

Super-Sized Quality Control

It's not easy being big. Maybe that's not exactly how the phrase goes, but it's applicable, particularly when discussing the quality requirements of large gears. The size alone promises unique engineering challenges. BONUS Online Exclusive: Big or Small - Inspection is Key to Success.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2014-01-01

Power Skiving of Cylindrical Gears on Different Machine Platforms

It has long been known that the skiving process for machining internal gears is multiple times faster than shaping, and more flexible than broaching, due to skiving's continuous chip removal capability. However, skiving has always presented a challenge to machines and tools. With the relatively low dynamic stiffness in the gear trains of mechanical machines, as well as the fast wear of uncoated cutters, skiving of cylindrical gears never achieved acceptance in shaping or hobbing, until recently.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2014-01-01

The XL Gears Project

Much of the existing guidelines for making large, high-performance gears for wind turbine gearboxes exhibit a need for improvement. Consider: the large grinding stock used to compensate for heat treatment distortion can significantly reduce manufacturing productivity; and, materials and manufacturing processes are two other promising avenues to improvement. The work presented here investigates quenchable alloy steels that, combined with specifically developed Case-hardening and heat treatment processes, exhibits reduced distortion and, in turn, requires a smaller grinding stock.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2014-01-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the January/February 2014 issue of Gear Technology.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-12-19

CNC Technology Expands with Sinumerik from Siemens

Industrial corporations are facing deep-rooted changes in the world of manufacturing. These changes are taking place alongs...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-12-13

MSC Adds 15,000 Kennametal Cutting Tools

MSC Industrial Supply Co., a distributor of metalworking and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) solutions, services and supplies to...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-12-10

NUM Offers CNC Solution for Gear Production

NUM has announced a high performance CNC solution for gear production machines that fully automates threaded wheel grinding. Incorporatin...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-12-10

LMC Workholding Names Vice President of Dealer and OEM Sales

LMC Workholding has named Brian Lane vice president of Dealer and OEM Sales.  Lane has over 40 years of experience with Bardons &...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-12-02

Gleason to Acquire IMS Koepfer Cutting Tools GmbH

Gleason Corporation has announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire IMS Koepfer Cutting Tools GmbH of Eisenbach, Germany f...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-11-26

Hardinge Introduces Collets for Rotary Transfer Machines

Hardinge Inc. (Elmira, NY) manufactures a complete line of collets for Hydromat rotary transfer machines to help customers fully meet hig...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-11-22

C&B Machinery Offers Clamp Bore Disc Grinding Machine

C & B Machinery has received multiple orders for its latest generation Model CBV-3 Clamp Bore disc grinding machine. The automotive i...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-11-12

Körber Schleifring Becomes United Grinding

Körber Schleifring, a global provider of grinding machine technology and its North American arm United Grinding Techologies are now ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-11-07

Gleason Announces Complete Power Skiving Solutions

Gleason Corporation has announced their complete set of Power Skiving solutions, providing an economical process ideally suited for the p...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-11-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the November/December 2013 issue of Gear Technology.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-11-01

3M Introduces Cubitron II Conventional Wheels for Gear Grinding

3M Abrasive Systems is introducing 3M Cubitron II Conventional Wheels for Gear Grinding, giving engineers new tools to take the manufactu...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-10-30

Ipsen Offers Furnace Maintenance Best Practices

The recent tightening of process regulations, such as Nadcap and AMS 2750E, have been in the spotlight for a few months now. Customers lo...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-10-22

Felsomat Offers FlexHobbingCenter FHC

The FHC 180 with integrated automation, cannot only hob, but also chamfer and deburr simultaneously without increasing the downtime. The ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-10-11

GMTA Hires Manger of Controls Engineering and Programming

Effective October 1, Maik Schminke was named manager of controls engineering and programming at the Ann Arbor facility of GMTA. According...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-10-01

Untraditional Gear Machining

Look beyond the obvious, and you may well find a better way to machine a part, and serve your customer better. That’s the lesson illustrated in a gear machining application at Allied Specialty Precision Inc. (ASPI), located in Mishawaka, Indiana.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-10-01

The Art of Versatility - Grinding at Gear Expo and EMO

Whether you spent time at Gear Expo in Indianapolis or EMO in Hannover, there was certainly new technology attracting attention. Machine tools are faster, more efficient and can integrate numerous functions in a single setup. Grinding technology is turning science upside down and inside out with high-speed removal rates and increased throughput.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2013-10-01

Opportunity Knocked

For anyone involved in gear manufacturing, Gear Expo is an absolute treasure. In 2013, it was bigger and more varied than it's been in a decade. With 226 exhibitors covering every conceivable gear-related technology, Gear Expo offered visitors unparalleled opportunities to interview potential new suppliers.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-09-26

Hardinge Offers Latest Workholding Equipment

When it comes to tool holding, value is all about precision and reliability that will transmit to the finished part. Hardinge toolholde...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-09-23

Gear Expo Recap: Sandvik Coromant Demos InvoMilling

The InvoMilling process, a unique approach to milling spur and helical gears using indexable insert cutters was front and center during G...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-09-20

Gear Expo Recap: MHI Touts Gear Shaping Technology

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) has completed the development of a new gear shaping machine, the ST40A, capable of cutting a broa...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-09-10

Eaton Brings Forging Operation In-House

Diversified industrial manufacturer Eaton has announced that its South Bend, Indiana, facility has added a $1.9 million cross-wedge-rolli...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-09-09

Ingersoll Offers Modular Milling System

Chip-Surfer from Ingersoll provides a modular milling system for NC, Swiss and live tooling applications. Highlights include interchangea...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-09-06

Okuma Introduces Maintenance App

Okuma America Corporation has released a new app that displays scheduled maintenance and inspection reminders. Depending on the particula...
VOICES | 2013-09-01

Letters to the Editor

Readers respond to our "Job Shop Lean" column and the "My Gear is Bigger than Your Gear" article.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-09-01

New Technology Roll Call

Interviews with exhibitors at ASM's Heat Treat 2013 exposition, which is co-located with Gear Expo.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-09-01

How to Inspect a Gearbox

Although a comprehensive on-site gearbox inspection is desirable in many situations, there may be constraints that limit the extent of the inspection such as cost, time, accessibility and qualified personnel. This article describes the equipment and techniques necessary to perform an on-site gearbox inspection.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2013-09-01

New-Formula Acetylene Cool for Heat Treatment

Acetylene with DMF solvent enables benefits of low-pressure vacuum carburizing.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-08-22

Gear Expo Preview: Norton Abrasives Booth 1153

Norton Abrasives, a brand of Saint-Gobain, has developed and launched Norton Vitrium3, the next generation of bonded abrasives products, ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-08-13

Sandvik Expands Gear Milling Family

The CoroMill 176 range of full profile hobs for spur gears, helical gears and splines has now been extended to incorporate module 3-10 ap...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-08-01

Gear Expo 2013 - An Oscar-Worthy Indy Production

We are well into an odd-number year, so it must be just about time for another Gear Expo. Indeed, the big show -- Gear Expo 2013 -- kicks off in Indianapolis at 9:00 a.m. Tuesday, September 17, wrapping up Thursday the 19th at 4:00 p.m. And whether you are exhibiting or attending, the bottom line is you are going -- a good thing for you, your company and the tightly knit U.S. gear industry.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-08-01

Showstoppers - Gear Expo 2013

Our special advertising section featuring Gear Expo exhibitors.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2013-08-01

Girth Gear Inspection - Pre- and Post-Manufacture

What are the ins-and-outs of quality inspection of girth gears, from both a manufacturer and buyer perspective? Our experts respond.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2013-08-01

Automotive Transmission Design Using Full Potential of Powder Metal

For metal replacement with powder metal (PM) of an automotive transmission, PM gear design differs from its wrought counterpart. Indeed, complete reverse-engineering and re-design is required so to better understand and document the performance parameters of solid-steel vs. PM gears. Presented here is a re-design (re-building a 6-speed manual transmission for an Opel Insignia 4-cylinder, turbocharged 2-liter engine delivering 220 hp/320 N-m) showing that substituting a different microgeometry of the PM gear teeth -- coupled with lower Young’s modulus -- theoretically enhances performance when compared to the solid-steel design.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-08-01

Leading the Way in Lead Crown Correction and Inspection

Forest City Gear applies advanced gear shaping and inspection technologies to help solve difficult lead crown correction challenges half a world away. But these solutions can also benefit customers much closer to home, the company says. Here's how…
PRODUCT NEWS | 2013-08-01

Product News

The complete Product News Section from the August 2013 issue of Gear Technology.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2013-08-01

Gear Expo - Mecca Meccanica

It's an ideal time for a pilgrimage to AGMA’s Fall Technical Meeting and Gear Expo, which take place in Indianapolis.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-07-24

Methods Machine Tools Appoints Concept as Midwest Distributor

Methods Machine Tools, Inc. has appointed Concept Machine Tool (Minneapolis, MN & Delafield, WI) as distributor in the Midwest U.S. c...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-07-02

Polygon Improves Process for Medical Implant Broaching

Innovation in orthopedic medical implants continues to improve. As a result, manufacturing processes required to make those parts are ada...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-06-20

Norton Grinding Abrasives Feature Bond Technology

Norton Abrasives, a brand of Saint-Gobain, has developed and launched Norton Vitrium3,  the next generation of bonded abrasives prod...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-06-04

OML Delivers Multiple Workholding Solutions

OML’s MC Modular Workholding System uses fixed and movable vise jaws and patented self-locking CLAK parallels to achieve multiple c...
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2013-06-01

Boom or Bust - Are You in the Right Markets

Over the past few months we've talked with a lot of gear manufacturers. Many of them tell us business is strong, while others are struggling with reduced demand. The difference between them isn't so much in the quality of their manufacturing operations, but rather trends in the end markets they serve.
ASK THE EXPERT | 2013-06-01

Worn Gear Contact Analysis

How does one perform a contact analysis for worn gears? Our expert responds.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2013-06-01

Tooth Root Optimization of Powder Metal Gears - Reducing Stress from Bending and Transient Loads

This paper will provide examples of stress levels from conventional root design using a hob and stress levels using an optimized root design that is now possible with PM manufacturing. The paper will also investigate how PM can reduce stresses in the root from transient loads generated by abusive driving.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2013-06-01

How to Design and Install Bevel Gears for Optimum Performance - Lessons Learned

Bevel gears must be assembled in a specific way to ensure smooth running and optimum load distribution between gears. While it is certainly true that the "setting" or "laying out" of a pair of bevel gears is more complicated than laying out a pair of spur gears, it is also true that following the correct procedure can make the task much easier. You cannot install bevel gears in the same manner as spur and helical gears and expect them to behave and perform as well; to optimize the performance of any two bevel gears, the gears must be positioned together so that they run smoothly without binding and/or excessive backlash.
EVENTS | 2013-06-01

Liebherr Touts Technology at Latest Gear Seminar

For two days in Saline, Michigan, Liebherr's clients, customers and friends came together to discuss the latest gear products and technology. Peter Wiedemann, president of Liebherr Gear Technology Inc., along with Dr.-Ing. Alois Mundt, managing director, Dr.-Ing. Oliver Winkel, head of application technology, and Dr.-Ing. Andreas Mehr, technology development shaping and grinding, hosted a variety of informative presentations.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-05-31

Holroyd Launches Worm Gear Grinding Stations

Holroyd Precision Limited has launched a brand new, full CNC machine range that is specifically designed to provide ultra-high levels of ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-05-21

Abtex Releases Deburring Brochure

Abtex Corporation has published a new, four-page, full-color brochure on its line of end deburring systems. The new brochure contains spe...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-05-10

Machine Tools Matter at EMO

From September 16 to September 21, 2013, this year’s EMO Hannover will be opening its doors.  At the wor...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-05-03

Leistritz Offers Keyseating Technology

Keyseating is a fundamental and traditional method to cut keyways in bores that has been stagnant and without development for many decade...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2013-05-01

Liebherr LFG Grinding Machine

This machine concept facilitates highly productive profile grinding for large workpieces. The range for external and internal gears comprises models for manufacturing workpieces up to 2,000 millimeters – for industrial gear units, wind power, and marine propulsion applications
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-05-01

Job Shop Lean - Assembly

The Tiger Team from Hoerbiger looks for ways to cut waste and improve throughput in the company's assembly cell.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-05-01

If You Rebuild It, They Will Buy It

It’s been said that the best ideas are often someone else's. But with rebuilt, retrofitted, re-controlled or remanufactured machine tools, buyer beware and hold onto your wallet. Sourcing re-work vendors and their services can require just as much homework, if not necessarily dollars, as with just-off-the-showroom-floor machines.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-05-01

Operating Pressure Angle

What is the difference between pressure angle and operating pressure angle?
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-05-01

Delivering Big Gears Fast

When a customer needed gears delivered in three weeks, here’s how Brevini Wind got it done.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-05-01

Heavy-Duty Demands - Modern Coating Technology Examined

The hob is a perfect example of how a little manufacturing ingenuity can make a reliable, highly productive cutting tool. It's an engineering specimen that creates higher cutting speeds, better wear resistance and increases rigidity. The cutting tool alone, however, can't take all the credit for its resourcefulness. Advanced coating technology from companies like Sulzer, Oerlikon Balzers, Ionbond, Seco Tools and Cemecon helps improve cutting tools by reducing overall costs, increasing tool life and maintaining the highest levels of productivity. The following is a quick recap of new technologies and the latest information in the coating market.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2013-05-01

Reinventing Cutting Tool Production at Gleason

Investment in advanced new manufacturing technologies is helping to reinvent production processes for bevel gear cutters and coarse-pitch hobs at Gleason - delivering significant benefits downstream to customers seeking shorter deliveries, longer tool life and better results.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-03-27

Gleason Offers Profile Grinding on Threaded Wheel Gear Grinding Machines

Gleason Corporation  recently announced the availability of a Profile Grinding option for its 300TWG Threaded Wheel Grinding Machine...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-03-25

ANCA to Demonstrate CNC Tool and Cutter Grinder

The new, affordable ANCA MX5 CNC tool and cutter grinder will be demonstrated at EASTEC Booth 1152. Designed with the volume end-mill pro...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-03-21

Gleason Cutting Tools Recognized as John Deere Partner-Level Supplier

Gleason Corporation recently announced that its Gleason Cutting Tools Corporation facility in Rockford, Illinois has earned Partner-level...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-03-20

Tool Grind Workholding System Limits Runout

MicroPlus, ANCA's new high accuracy workholding and tool support system, significantly reduces tool runout during grinding, enabling ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-03-19

Renishaw System Tests Accuracy of Machine Tools

The new Renishaw XR20-W calibration system measures the angular position of rotary axes to within ±1 arc second, wirelessly, for t...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-03-15

Vargus Offers Reliable Gear Milling Tools

A well-known gear manufacturer in the United States had an application they were currently using conventional hobbing methods on. They ha...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-03-12

EMAG Offers Hard Turning and Grinding Advantages

The advantages of the process combination hard turning + grinding lie in process stream consolidation, improved component quality and gre...
ASK THE EXPERT | 2013-03-01

Workholding Options

Question: We manufacture some gears that require an axial face as a datum, as well as locating on the bore for centering. Other gears use only the bore for both axial and radial locating. What type of workholding is appropriate for each type of part? Is there workholding that will work for both types?
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-03-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the March/April 2013 issue of Gear Technology.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-03-01

How Gear Hobbing Works

Hobbing is one of the most fundamental processes in gear manufacturing. Its productivity and versatility make hobbing the gear manufacturing method of choice for a majority of spur and helical gears.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-02-19

LMC Workholding Completes Expansion

LMC Workholding recently completed a $2 million expansion at its Logansport, Indiana facility with several new machines, all green lighti...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-02-18

Heidenhain Releases CNC Training Tools

Heidenhain Corporation has released a unique online interactive training tool for CNC instruction called Heidenhain Interactive Training ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-02-05

Gleason Adaptive Honing Solutions Save Cycle Times

Honing is a fast, well-proven process in the gear manufacturing industry. It is used in high-volume production environments where every ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-01-31

Hardinge Releases Collet Adaptation Chucks

Hardinge HCAC Collet Adaptation Chucks will adapt most spindles to accept C-series pull back collets, J-series pull back collets, station...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-01-22

Big Kaiser Expands Workholding Line

Big Kaiser Precision Tooling Inc. has strengthened and expanded its Unilock line of 5-axis workholding product offerings. These multi-axi...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-01-09

Sunnen Introduces New Honing Features

Sunnen Products introduces new servomotor and drive technology under the hood of its three primary vertical honing platforms, bringing ad...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-01-07

Lexair Offers Unique Workholding Vice

OML's new Genius five-axis vice turns workholding concepts on their head with a unique design that maximizes clamp force at the top o...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2013-01-01

Progress in Gear Milling

Sandvik presents the latest in gear milling technologies.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2013-01-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from the January/February 2013 issue of Gear Technology.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2013-01-01

Balancing: Smoke and Mirrors No Longer

By virtue of collected anecdotal accounts, equations and problem solving, balancing is discussed as more math and common sense, and less smoke and mirrors.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2013-01-01

Gear Material Selection and Construction for Large Gears

A road map is presented listing critical considerations and optimal use of materials and methods in the construction of large gears.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2013-01-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the January/February 2013 issue of Gear Technology.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-12-27

Gleason Offers Wobble Compensation in Gear Grinding

Conventional grinding cycles for cylindrical gears typically involve a significant amount of time dedicated to the manual alignment of th...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-12-03

Norton Abrasives Announces Brand Standards Program

Norton Abrasives, a brand of Saint-Gobain Abrasives, has announced the introduction of a new global Norton brand standards program. The s...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-11-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the November/December 2012 issue of Gear Technology.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-11-01

Waterjet Service Inc. Changes Name to WSI Waterjet Systems International

WSI Waterjet Systems International (formerly named Waterjet Service Inc.) , the globally established, recommended and trusted designer, m...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-10-25

Belzer Joins NTMA Executive Team

NTMA board of directors chairman Roger Atkins announced that John Belzer, president, TCI Precision Metals, Gardena, California has agreed...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-10-25

Sunnen Provides Honing Supply Catalog

Sunnen Products' new 192-page Precision Honing Supplies catalog is a complete guide for making perfect holes. Broken into 12 tabbed s...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-10-22

Renishaw Named Best U.K. Electronic and Electrical Plant

Renishaw's assembly facility at Woodchester in Gloucestershire has been named as the U.K.'s Best Electronics & Electrical Pla...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-10-19

Emuge Introduces Tap Holders

Emuge Corp. has introduced the KSN5 and KSN6 Softsynchro Tap Holders. The holders are designed for tapping operations in components used ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-10-18

Methods Machine Tools Introduces FEELER FT Turning Centers

Methods Machine Tools, Inc., a supplier of innovative precision machine tools, automation and accessories, has introduced FEELER FT-Serie...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-10-16

Sunnen Offers Multi-Feed Honing Technology

Sunnen’s newly patented multi-feed honing technology gives users a choice of tool-feed modes to achieve the shortest cycle times, l...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2012-10-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from the October 2012 issue of Gear Technology.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2012-10-01

Gear Grinding Gets Integrated at IMTS 2012

The latest machines, tooling and technology for gear grinding were featured at IMTS 2012.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2012-10-01

Differential Gears

What are the manufacturing methods used to make bevel gears used in automotive differentials?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2012-10-01

Repair of High-Value, High-Demand Spiral Bevel Gears by Superfinishing

Following is a report on the R&D findings regarding remediation of high-value, high-demand spiral bevel gears for the UH–60 helicopter tail rotor drivetrain. As spiral bevel gears for the UH–60 helicopter are in generally High-Demand due to the needs of new aircraft production and the overhaul and repair of aircraft returning from service, acquisition of new spiral bevel gears in support of R&D activities is very challenging. To compensate, an assessment was done of a then-emerging superfinishing method—i.e., the micromachining process (MPP)—as a potential repair technique for spiral bevel gears, as well as a way to enhance their performance and durability. The results are described in this paper.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-09-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the September 2012 issue of Gear Technology.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2012-09-01

Sicmat Utilizes NUM CNC Systems

A high-performance, 11-axis CNC system from NUM has enabled machine tool manufacturer Sicmat to create a gear honing machine that sets a new industry standard for post-hardening fine finishing.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2012-09-01

IMTS 2012 Product Preview

Previews of manufacturing technology related to gears that will be on display at IMTS 2012.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2012-09-01

Refurbishing a Ball Mill ; Bevel Gear Backlash

Our experts comment on reverse engineering herringbone gears and contact pattern optimization.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2012-08-01

Case Study Involving Surface Durability and Improved Surface Finish

Gear tooth wear and micropitting are very difficult phenomena to predict analytically. The failure mode of micropitting is closely correlated to the lambda ratio. Micropitting can be the limiting design parameter for long-term durability. Also, the failure mode of micropitting can progress to wear or macropitting, and then go on to manifest more severe failure modes, such as bending. The results of a gearbox test and manufacturing process development program will be presented to evaluate super-finishing and its impact on micropitting.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2012-08-01

High-Performance Sintered-Steel Gears for Transmissions and Machinery: A Critical Review

Except for higher-end gear applications found in automotive and aerospace transmissions, for example, high-performance, sintered-steel gears match wrought-steel gears in strength and geometrical quality. The enhanced P/M performance is due largely to advances in powder metallurgy over last two decades, such as selective surface densification, new materials and lubricants for high density and warm-die pressing. This paper is a review of the results of a decade of research and development of high- performance, sintered-steel gear prototypes.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2012-08-01

IMTS 2012 Product Preview

Booth previews from exhibitors showing products and services for the gear industry.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2012-08-01

Powder Metal Magic

Capstan Atlantic, located in Wrentham, Massachusetts, produces powder metal gears, sprockets and complex structural components. The company has provided unique powder metal products in a variety of industries including automotive, business machines, appliances, lawn and garden equipment and recreational vehicles.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2012-06-01

Growing Pains - Renewables Hang on in Turbulent Energy Market

The turbines are still spinning. They’re spinning on large wind farms in the Great Plains, offshore in the Atlantic and even underwater where strong tidal currents offer new energy solutions. These turbines spin regularly while politicians and policy makers— tied up in discussions on tax incentives, economic recovery and a lot of finger pointing—sit idle. Much like the auto and aerospace industries of years past, renewable energy is coping with its own set of growing pains. Analysts still feel confident that clean energy will play a significant role in the future of manufacturing—it’s just not going to play the role envisioned four to five years ago.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2012-06-01

Runout, Helix Accuracy and Shaper Cutters

Our experts discuss runout and helix accuracy, as well as the maximum number of teeth in a shaper cutter.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2012-05-01

Full Speed Ahead

Indexable carbide insert (ICI) cutting tools continue to play a pivotal role in gear manufacturing. By offering higher cutting speeds, reduced cycle times, enhanced coatings, custom configurations and a diverse range of sizes and capabilities, ICI tools have proven invaluable for finishing and pre-grind applications. They continue to expand their unique capabilities and worth in the cutting tool market.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2012-05-01

An Innovative Way of Designing Gear Hobbing Processes

In today’s manufacturing environment, shorter and more efficient product development has become the norm. It is therefore important to consider every detail of the development process, with a particular emphasis on design. For green machining of gears, the most productive and important process is hobbing. In order to analyze process design for this paper, a manufacturing simulation was developed capable of calculating chip geometries and process forces based on different models. As an important tool for manufacturing technology engineers, an economic feasibility analysis is implemented as well. The aim of this paper is to show how an efficient process design—as well as an efficient process—can be designed.
EVENTS | 2012-05-01

Technical Calendar

The complete Technical Calendar from the May 2012 issue of Gear Technology.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2012-03-19

Abtex Introduces Machine Compatible Deburring System

Abtex Corporation has expanded its Tri-Ten series of deburring systems to include a model that is designed to accept precision ground par...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2012-03-01

Ask the Expert - Bevel Gear Mounting

I am currently writing a design procedure for the correct method for setting up bevel gears in a gearbox for optimum performance...
VOICES | 2012-01-01

The Global Challenge to America's Engineering and Innovation Position

John P. Walter and Abby Dress analyze the challenges facing America's manufacturers to remain competitive in a global environment.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2012-01-01

New Energy - Same Challenges

Uncertainty casts a shadow over future business opportunities for manufacturers serving the new energy markets.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2011-11-01

Liebherr's LDF350 Offers Complete Machining in New Dimension

The objective, according to Dr.- Ing. Hansjörg Geiser, head of development and design for gear machines at Liebherr, was to develop and design a combined turning and hobbing machine in which turning, drilling and hobbing work could be carried out in the same clamping arrangement as the hobbing of the gearings and the subsequent chamfering and deburring processes.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2011-11-01

Sicmat Releases Raso 200 Dynamic Shaving Machine

The Raso 200 Dynamic has been developed to offer all the characteristics of a gear shaving machine with a competitive price.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2011-11-01

Minimum Setup Time, Maximum Machining Capability

Hainbuch offers workholding solutions for United Gear.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2011-10-01

LMT Fette Introduces SpeedCore

New material technology allows for more efficient and flexible hobbing.
EVENTS | 2011-10-01

EMO Hannover - More than Machine Tools

Some gear-related highlights from the recent EMO show in Hannover, Germany.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2011-09-01

Reliable and Efficient Skiving

Klingelnberg's new tool and machine concept allow for precise production.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2011-09-01

Next Stop Cincinnati

What's not to like about a more focused, user-friendly Gear Expo? Booth Previews.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2011-08-01

Chiming in on Gear Noise: Three Experts Have their Say

It is said that “The squeaky wheel gets the grease.” Ok, but what about gear noise? We talked to three experts with considerable knowledge and experience in this area.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2011-08-01

Gear Material Risks and Rewards

Technology investments lead to product innovation at gear materials suppliers.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2011-08-01

Manufacturing Method of Large-Sized Spiral Bevel Gears in Cyclo-Palloid System Using Multi-Axis Control and Multi-Tasking Machine Tool

In this article, the authors calculated the numerical coordinates on the tooth surfaces of spiral bevel gears and then modeled the tooth profiles using a 3-D CAD system. They then manufactured the large-sized spiral bevel gears based on a CAM process using multi-axis control and multi-tasking machine tooling. The real tooth surfaces were measured using a coordinate measuring machine and the tooth flank form errors were detected using the measured coordinates. Moreover, the gears were meshed with each other and the tooth contact patterns were investigated. As a result, the validity of this manufacturing method was confirmed.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2011-08-01

State-of-the-Art Broaching

There are a number of companies working to change the way broaching is perceived, and over the past 10 years, they’ve incorporated significant technological changes to make the process more flexible, productive and accurate.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2011-08-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the August 2011 issue of Gear Technology.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2011-06-01

Gear Hobbing Technology Update

Q&A with Liebherr's Dr. Alois Mundt.
EVENTS | 2011-06-01

PM Design Winners Announced at Powdermet 2011

Design innovation, superior engineering properties, high end-market visibility and sustainability distinguish the winners of the 2011 Design Excellence awards, the annual powder metallurgy (PM) design competition sponsored by the Metal Powder Industries Federation.
EVENTS | 2011-06-01

Technical Calendar

The complete Technical Calendar from the June/July 2011 issue of Gear Technology.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2011-03-01

Zoller and Ingersoll Partner for Measuring Hob Cutters

With growing markets in aerospace and energy technologies, measuring hob cutters used in gear cutting is becoming an essential requirement for workpieces and machine tools. Zoller, a provider of solutions for tool pre-setters, measuring and inspection machines and tool management software, has developed a new partnership with Ingersoll/Germany for shop floor checking of hob cutters by a combined hardware and software approach.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2011-03-01

Grinding, Finishing and Software Upgrades Abound

Machine tool companies are expanding capabilities to better accommodate the changing face of manufacturing. Customers want smaller-sized equipment to take up less valuable floor space, multifunctional machines that can handle a variety of operations and easy set-up changes that offer simplified operation and maintenance.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2011-03-01

Optimal Modifications of Gear Tooth Surfaces

In this paper a new method for the introduction of optimal modifications into gear tooth surfaces - based on the optimal corrections of the profile and diameter of the head cutter, and optimal variation of machine tool settings for pinion and gear finishing—is presented. The goal of these tooth modifications is the achievement of a more favorable load distribution and reduced transmission error. The method is applied to face milled and face hobbed hypoid gears.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2011-01-01

Gear Chamfering Robot

Banyan Technologies introduces a robotic chamfering device suitable for deburring, chamfering and radiusing the edges of slew bearing ring gears.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2011-01-01

Big Gears Better and Faster

Indexable carbide insert cutting tools for gears are nothing new. But big gears have recently become a very big business. The result is that there's been a renewed interest in carbide insert cutting tools.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2011-01-01

Spiral Bevel Gears: Tribology Aspects in Angular Transmission Systems, Part IV

This article is part four of an eight-part series on the tribology aspects of angular gear drives. Each article will be presented first and exclusively by Gear Technology, but the entire series will be included in Dr. Stadtfeld’s upcoming book on the subject, which is scheduled for release in 2011.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2010-11-01

The Effect of Straight-Sided Hob Teeth

It is well known that hobs with straight-sided teeth do not cut true involutes. In this paper, the difference between the straight side of a hob tooth and the axial profile of an involute worm is evaluated. It is shown that the difference increases as the diametral pitch increases, to the extent that for fine-pitch gearing, the difference is insignificant.
EVENTS | 2010-11-01

Technically Speaking, a Huge Success

A recap of the AGMA 2010 Fall Technical Meeting.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2010-09-01

What's the Big Attraction - IMTS 2010

The great thing about a trade show the size of IMTS is the amount of options available to attendees. If you’re into cars, fighter jets, machine tools, fighting robots, manufacturing relics or simply the latest technology advancements in a particular industry, you’ll find it at IMTS 2010.
EVENTS | 2010-08-01

PM Community Gathers for Annual Event

The metal powder industry gathered in force this past June for PowderMet 2010, the 2010 International Conference on Powder Metallurgy and Particulate Materials.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2010-07-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the July 2010 issue of Gear Technology.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2010-06-01

Faster Honing to Mirror Fishises on Gear Faces and Bores

Stringent NVH requirements, higher loads and the trend towards miniaturization to save weight and space are forcing transmission gear designers to increasingly tighten the surface finish, bore size and bore-to-face perpendicularity tolerances on the bores of transmission gears.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2010-06-01

Single-Pass Honing Holds the Line on PM Sprockets

Bore finishing system from Sunnen helps Cloyes Gear and Products achieve high accuracy, productivity and process capability.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2010-06-01

Hard Turning Large-Diameter Parts

Fuji's VTP-1000 is designed for highly accurate fine finishing of cylindrical components up to one meter in diameter.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2010-06-01

Bending Fatigue, Impact and Pitting Resistance of Ausform-Finished PM Gears

The powder metal (P/M) process is making inroads in automotive transmission applications due to substantially lower costs of P/M-steel components for high-volume production, as compared to wrought or forged steel parts. Although P/M gears are increasingly used in powered hand tools, gear pumps and as accessory components in automotive transmissions, P/M-steel gears are currently in limited use in vehicle transmission applications. The primary objective of this project was to develop high-strength P/M-steel gears with bending fatigue, impact resistance and pitting fatigue performance equivalent to current wrought steel gears.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2010-05-01

KISSsoft Update Integrates Parasolid CAD Core

The machine element package by KISSsoft for the design and optimization of components like gears, shafts, bearings and others is now available in the new version 04/2010.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2010-05-01

Your Tax Dollars at Work: U.S. Commerce Department, Your Boots on the Ground Overseas

Easily one of the central issues affecting U.S. manufacturing is what one might call the exports deficit—the inability of American companies to sell products to, for instance, Asian markets, developing countries and other ports of call—due to what they perceive to be unfair trade agreements and or policies.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2010-05-01

Software-Based Process Design in Gear Finish Hobbing

In this paper, the potential for geometrical cutting simulations - via penetration calculation to analyze and predict tool wear as well as to prolong tool life - is shown by means of gear finish hobbing. Typical profile angle deviations that occur with increasing tool wear are discussed. Finally, an approach is presented here to attain improved profile accuracy over the whole tool life of the finishing hob.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2010-05-01

The Counterfeit Culture: Fake Products and Parts Present Global Market Challenges

It’s happened to most manufacturers at one point or another. A defective product comes back from a customer in need of repair. Perhaps a bearing or a gear drive has failed, and the customer simply needs a replacement. Upon further examination, the company realizes it was never one of its products in the first place, but a fabricated copy that snuck into the market. The manufacturing community has been dealing with counterfeit products for decades, but used machinery dealers and Internet shoppers seem to continuously get hit by scam artists.
VOICES | 2010-03-01

Crowning: A Cheap Fix for Noise and Misalignment Problems

Fred Young, CEO of Forest City Gear, talks about sophisticated gear manufacturing methods and how they can help solve common gear-related problems.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2010-03-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from the March/April 2010 issue of Gear Technology.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2010-03-01

New Developments in Gear Hobbing

Several innovations have been introduced to the gear manufacturing industry in recent years. In the case of gear hobbing—the dry cutting technology and the ability to do it with powder-metallurgical HSS—might be two of the most impressive ones. And the technology is still moving forward. The aim of this article is to present recent developments in the field of gear hobbing in conjunction with the latest improvements regarding tool materials, process technology and process integration.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2010-03-01

The Road Leads Straight to Hypoflex

A new method for cutting straight bevel gears.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2010-03-01

High-Temperature Testing of Stanyl Plastic Gears: A Comparison with Tensile Fatigue Data

This paper shows an experimental study on the fatigue lifetime of high-heat polyamide (Stanyl) gears running in oil at 140°C. Based on previous works (Refs. 1–2), an analysis is made correcting for tooth bending and calculating actual root stresses. A comparison with tensile bar fatigue data for the same materials at 140°C shows that a good correlation exists between gear fatigue data and tensile bar fatigue data. This insight provides a solid basis for gear designers to design plastic gears using actual material data.
EVENTS | 2010-03-01

Shot Peening Up Close and Personal

U.S. Shot Peening and Blast Cleaning Workshop.
EVENTS | 2010-01-01

Calendar

The technical calendar from the January/February 2010 issue of Gear Technology.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2010-01-01

All-in-One Broaching Capability

Faster, more efficient manufacturing offered with table-top design from American Broach & Machine.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2010-01-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from the January/February 2010 issue.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2010-01-01

Producing Profile and Lead Modifications in Threaded Wheel and Profile Grinding

Modern gearboxes are characterized by high torque load demands, low running noise and compact design. In order to fulfill these demands, profile and lead modifications are being applied more often than in the past. This paper will focus on how to produce profile and lead modifications by using the two most common grinding processes—threaded wheel and profile grinding. In addition, more difficult modifications—such as defined flank twist or topological flank corrections—will also be described in this paper.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2009-11-01

Robotic Gear Deburring System Automates Chamfering

Compass Automation unveiled its Robotic Deburring System at Gear Expo 2009.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2009-11-01

Cutting Gears on a Machining Center

Depo provides all-in-one machining capabilities for the gear industry.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-09-01

Comparison of PM-HSS and Cemented Carbide Tools in High-Speed Gear Hobbing

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.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2009-09-01

Grinding Gears for Racing Transmissions

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.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-09-01

Gear Corrosion During the Manufacturing Process

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).
PRODUCT NEWS | 2009-08-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from the August 2009 issue of Gear Technology.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-07-01

Extending the Benefits of Elemental Gear Inspection

It may not be widely recognized that most of the inspection data supplied by inspection equipment, following the practices of AGMA Standard 2015 and similar standards, are not of elemental accuracy deviations but of some form of composite deviations. This paper demonstrates the validity of this “composite” label by first defining the nature of a true elemental deviation and then, by referring to earlier literature, demonstrating how the common inspection practices for involute, lead (on helical gears), pitch, and, in some cases, total accumulated pitch, constitute composite measurements.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2009-07-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from the July 2009 issue of Gear Technology.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2009-07-01

Gear Milling on Non-Gear Dedicated Machinery

Imagine the flexibility of having one machine capable of milling, turning, tapping and gear cutting with deburring included for hard and soft material. No, you’re not in gear fantasy land. The technology to manufacture gears on non gear-dedicated, mult-axis machines has existed for a few years in Europe, but has not yet ventured into mainstream manufacturing. Deckel Maho Pfronten, a member of the Gildemeister Group, took the sales plunge this year, making the technology available on most of its 2009 machines.
ADDENDUM | 2009-07-01

You Want It When

What do glam and avant garde rock star Brian Eno, AGMA and Seattle Gear Works have in common? Admittedly, not much. But there is a connection of sorts.
EVENTS | 2009-06-01

Events

PowderMet 2009, plus the full technical calendar for Gear Technology's June 2009 issue.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-06-01

Innovative Concepts for Grinding Wind Power Energy Gears

This article shows the newest developments to reduce overall cycle time in grinding wind power gears, including the use of both profile grinding and threaded wheel grinding.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-05-01

Repair via Isotropic Superfinishing of Aircraft Transmission Gears

The objective of this paper is to demonstrate that transmission gears of rotary-wing aircraft, which are typically scrapped due to minor foreign object damage (FOD) and grey staining, can be repaired and re-used with signifi cant cost avoidance. The isotropic superfinishing (ISF) process is used to repair the gear by removing surface damage. It has been demonstrated in this project that this surface damage can be removed while maintaining OEM specifications on gear size, geometry and metallurgy. Further, scrap CH-46 mix box spur pinions, repaired by the ISF process, were subjected to gear tooth strength and durability testing, and their performance compared with or exceeded that of new spur pinions procured from an approved Navy vendor. This clearly demonstrates the feasibility of the repair and re-use of precision transmission gears.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2009-05-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from the May 2009 issue of Gear Technology.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-05-01

How Are You Dealing with the Bias Error in Your Helical Gears

This paper initially defines bias error—the “twisted tooth phenomenon.” Using illustrations, we explain that bias error is a by-product of applying conventional, radial crowning methods to produced crowned leads on helical gears. The methods considered are gears that are finished, shaped, shaved, form and generated ground. The paper explains why bias error occurs in these methods and offers techniques used to limit/eliminate bias error. Sometimes, there may be a possibility to apply two methods to eliminate bias error. In those cases, the pros/cons of these methods will be reviewed.
ADDENDUM | 2009-03-01

Honk if You Love Gears

The Addendum Team announces plans for the Gear Vanity Plate Hall of Fame.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-03-01

The Effect of Superfinishing on Gear Micropitting

Results from the Technical University of Munich were presented in a previous technical article (see Ref. 4). This paper presents the results of Ruhr University Bochum. Both research groups concluded that superfinishing is one of the most powerful technologies for significantly increasing the load-carrying capacity of gear flanks.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-03-01

Grinding Induced Changes in Residual Stresses of Carburized Gears

This paper presents the results of a study performed to measure the change in residual stress that results from the finish grinding of carburized gears. Residual stresses were measured in five gears using the x-ray diffraction equipment in the Large Specimen Residual Stress Facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2009-03-01

Cutting Edge Grinders Are Great - But How's Your Workholding

Capacity is key today, and the best way to ensure that you are squeezing every dime out of that new machine is to complement it with innovative workholding.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-03-01

Hob Tool Life Technology Update

The method of cutting teeth on a cylindrical gear by the hobbing process has been in existence since the late 1800s. Advances have been made over the years in both the machines and the cutting tools used in the process. This paper will examine hob tool life and the many variables that affect it. The paper will cover the state-of-the-art cutting tool materials and coatings, hob tool design characteristics, process speeds and feeds, hob shifting strategies, wear characteristics, etc. The paper will also discuss the use of a common denominator method for evaluating hob tool life in terms of meters (or inches) per hob tooth as an alternative to tool life expressed in parts per sharpening.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2009-01-01

Big Gears - High Standards, High Profits

Natural resources—minerals, coal, oil, agricultural products, etc.—are the blessings that Mother Earth confers upon the nations of the world. But it takes unnaturally large gears to extract them.
EVENTS | 2009-01-01

Events

The complete Events section from the January/February 2009 issue of Gear Technology.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-01-01

Gear Failure Analysis Involving Grinding Burn

When gears are case-hardened, it is known that some growth and redistribution of stresses that result in geometric distortion will occur. Aerospace gears require post case-hardening grinding of the gear teeth to achieve necessary accuracy. Tempering of the case-hardened surface, commonly known as grinding burn, occurs in the manufacturing process when control of the heat generation at the surface is lost.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-01-01

Effects of Gear Surface Parameters on Flank Wear

Non-uniform gear wear changes gear topology and affects the noise performance of a hypoid gear set. The aggregate results under certain vehicle driving conditions could potentially result in unacceptable vehicle noise performance in a short period of time. This paper presents the effects of gear surface parameters on gear wear and the measurement/testing methods used to quantify the flank wear in laboratory tests.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2009-01-01

The Capacity of Superfinished Vehicle Components to Increase Fuel Economy, Part I

This paper will present data from both laboratory and field testing demonstrating that superfinished components exhibit lower friction, operating temperature, wear and/ or higher horsepower, all of which translate directly into increased fuel economy.
EVENTS | 2008-11-01

Events

The complete Events section from the November/December 2008 issue of Gear Technology
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2008-09-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the September/October 2008 issue of Gear Technology.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2008-09-01

Lapping and Superfinishing Effects on Surface Finish of Hypoid Gears and Transmission Errors

This presentation is an expansion of a previous study (Ref.1) by the authors on lapping effects on surface finish and transmission errors. It documents the effects of the superfinishing process on hypoid gears, surface finish and transmission errors.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2008-08-01

Influence of Grinding Burn on Pitting Capacity

This paper intends to determine the load-carrying capacity of thermally damaged parts under rolling stress. Since inspection using real gears is problematic, rollers are chosen as an acceptable substitute. The examined scope of thermal damage from hard finishing extends from undamaged, best-case parts to a rehardening zone as the worst case. Also, two degrees of a tempered zone have been examined.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2008-08-01

Guidelines for Modern Bevel Gear Grinding

This paper acknowledges the wide variety of manufacturing processes--especially in grinding--utlized in the production of bevel gears...
VOICES | 2008-07-01

Entrepreneurialism and Survival in the Global Market

Joe Arvin of Arrow Gear gives his insight on what it takes to succeed in today's gear industry.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2008-06-01

The Powder Metal Method

Despite economic uncertainty, the future looks promising for PM Gears.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2008-06-01

HMC Lassos World's Largest Gear Grinder

Hofler Rapid 6000 Makes North American Debut at Highway Machine Company.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2008-05-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the May 2008 issue of Gear Technology.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2008-05-01

Manufacturing Net-Shaped, Cold-Formed Gears

A net-shaped metal forming process has been developed for manufacturing quality, durable, high-yield and cost-efficient gears for high-volume production.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2008-03-01

Operational Condition and Superfinishing Effect on High-Speed Helical Gearing System Performance

An experimental effort has been conducted on an aerospace-quality helical gear train to investigate the thermal behavior of the gear system. Test results from the parametric studies and the superfinishing process are presented.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2007-11-01

Dontyne Debuts GATES Software

Dontyne Systems, a U.K. company founded by Michael Fish and David Palmer, recently unveiled a new software program for its Gear Production Suite.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2007-11-01

Optimal Choice of the Shaft Angle for Involute Hobbing

With reference to the machining of an involute spur or helical gear by the hobbing process, this paper suggests a new criterion for selecting the position of the hob axis relative to the gear axis.
EVENTS | 2007-11-01

Gear Expo 2007 Recap

The general impression—whether encouraged by AGMA or developed anecdotally—is that Gear Expo 2007 was a reasonable—though certainly relative—success
VOICES | 2007-09-01

Uncovering Core Competencies

How can a company grow its business or plan for growth when its niche area only accesses the smaller part of the pie?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2007-09-01

The New Freedoms: Bevel Blades

Today, because of reduced cost of coatings and quicker turnaround times, the idea of all-around coating on three-face-sharpened blades is again economically viable, allowing manufacturers greater freedoms in cutting blade parameters, including three-face-sharpened and even four-face-sharpened blades.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2007-08-07

Koepfer America Launches Large Capacity CNC Hob Sharpening Machine

Koepfer America developed the new KFS250 CNC hob sharpening machine, which is  based on its KFS100 series.  The KFS250 series h...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2007-08-01

True Bending Stress in Spur Gears

In this paper, an accurate FEM analysis has been done of the “true” stress at tooth root of spur gears in the function of the gear geometry. The obtained results confirm the importance of these differences.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2007-07-11

LMC Workholding Offers Large Size Chuck

LMC Workholding offers large size power chucks for high-speed applications and extra large thru-holes for large bore lathes.  LMC of...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2007-07-01

How's Your Lead Time

The gear companies enjoying the most success in today’s global market are those that firmly believe quality is much more than expert craftsmanship and foolproof inspection methodologies.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2007-06-15

Kapp's Rotor Grinding Technology Improves Efficiency by 30 Percent

The Kapp RX 59 allows the rotors used in air compressors to be manufactured on the machines by using a high precision grinding process.Ro...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2007-05-29

Cinetec Grinding Moves Headquarters to Hagerstown, Maryland

Cinetic Landis Grinding Corp. relocated its headquarters and manufacturing/assembly facility approximately 15 miles to Hagerstown, MD. ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2007-05-24

Schafer Gear Adds New Grinding Equipment

Schafer Gear Works invested in new production equipment, including new gear grinding machines in the company's South Bend, IN, and Ro...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2007-05-01

Marco Polo Had it Right

Gear industry suppliers exhibited at the CIMT machine tool show, held in Beijing April 9-15.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2007-03-01

Effects on Rolling Contact Fatigue Performance--Part II

This is part II of a two-part paper that presents the results of extensive test programs on the RCF strength of PM steels.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2007-03-01

Asymmetric Teeth: Bending Stress Calculation

This article includes a brief summary of the characteristics of involute asymmetric teeth and the problems connected with the related bending tests.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2007-03-01

Forest City Puts Teeth in Competitive Strategy with Sunnen's Bore Honing Machine

Forest City Gear president Fred Young has a straightforward strategy for acquiring and retaining business...
ADDENDUM | 2007-03-01

Bowling for Gears

Here's what Dennis was thinking...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2007-02-14

Holroyd?s Plated CBN on High-Rigidity Edgetek Machines Reduces Process Times with Single Lift and Setup

Holroyd's Edgetek machines are produced with high-power/high-speed spindles that optimize the use of plated CBN wheels at surface spe...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2007-02-14

Slater Tools Introduces Rotary Broaching Tool Holder

Slater Tools Inc. released a new, adjustment-free rotary broaching tool holder designed for Swiss- type machines. Slater's new adj...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2007-02-07

Ingersoll Cutting Tools Introduces Insert and Tooling Family

Ingersoll Cutting Tools introduces its Hex-Turn family of inserts and holders. According to the company’s press releaes, the 12...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2007-02-06

Cincinnati Machine Introduces CNC Tape Layer Technology

Cincinnati Machine's new CHARGER Series of machines were designed to improve upon the technology and productivity of CNC composite ta...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2007-01-10

Koepfer’s Versatile MZ 130 Provides Same-Setup Gear Hobbing and Worm Milling

Koepfer’s MZ130 hobbing and worm milling CNC machine from Monnier + Zahner was designed with versatility and ease of use in mind. ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2007-01-09

Makino’s New Grinding Machining Center Grinds, Drills, Bores and Mills on the Same Machine

Makino introduced the G5 Grinder horizontal machining center, capable of grinding, drilling, boring and milling all on the same machine. ...
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2007-01-01

What Do You Think

Publisher Michael Goldstein wants to know what you think about the 2007 redesign of Gear Technology magazine
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2007-01-01

Labor Pains in the American Gear Industry--Any Relief in Sight

Lack of skilled workers mirrors U.S. manufacturing's decline.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2007-01-01

Effects on Rolling Contact Fatigue Performance

This article summarizes results of research programs on RCF strength of wrought steels and PM steels.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2006-11-01

Optimization of the Gear Profile Grinding Process Utilizing an Analogy Process

In order to grind gears burn-free and as productively as possible, a better understanding of the process is required.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2006-09-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from September/October 2006.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2006-09-01

Gear Shaving - Process Simulation Helps to Comprehend an Incomprehensible Process

Due to its economical efficiency, the gear shaving process is a widely used process for soft finishing of gears. A simulation technique allows optimization of the process.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2006-07-01

Drake's Newest Thread Grinder Utilizes Robot Load-Unload System

The GS:TE-LM thread grinder from Drake Manufacturing is fitted with a robot load/unload system that provides maximum throughput for high-volume production of ground threads.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2006-07-01

Product News

The complete Product News section from the July/August 2006 issue.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2006-05-01

A Wellspring of Opinion

For more than 22 years, I've been dropping rocks down the well of the gear industry's public opinion. Most every issue, I drop another rock. Sometimes I think I hear a faint splash, but most times I just wait.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2006-05-01

Gleason's Genesis 130SV Gear Shaving Machine

The 130SV shaving machine from Gleason is the newest of the company's Genesis family of gear production equipment.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2006-05-01

Tool Life and Productivity Improvement Through Cutting Parameter Setting and Tool Design in Dry High-Speed Bevel Gear Tooth Cutting

This article presents some of the findings of cutting investigations at WZL in which the correlation of cutting parameters, cutting materials, tool geometry and tool life have been determined.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-30

Rexnord Sold to Apollo for $1.8 Billion

Apollo Management LP bought Rexnord Corp. from The Carlyle Group for $1.825 billion. The Carlyle Group announced the transaction on th...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-27

SPV Spintec?s Automatic Deburring Machine Designed Especially for Gear Wheels

The new 68 2006 automatic deburring machine from SPV Spintec is designed for deburring of gear wheels, flanges and other circular symmetr...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-27

Rex-Cut?s Fiber Mounted Points Line Reveals Fresh Abrasives

New cotton-fiber mounted points from Rex-Cut Products expose fresh abrasives as they work to deburr and finish in one step with chatter-f...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-20

The Broachman Joins American Broach & Machine

Ken Nemec, a.k.a. "The Broachman", was hired by American Broach & Machine as marketing manager. According to the company's press r...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-20

Mastercam’s Latest CNC Software Enhanced to Provide Multi-Axis Toolpaths

The new Maintenance Release 2 (MR2) software from Mastercam introduces new capabilities including multi-axis toolpaths and Mastercam X a...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-19

New Abrasive Nylon Disc Brushes from Weiler Specialize in In-Machine Deburring

The Burr-Rx line of abrasive nylon disc brushes from Weiler Corp. are specially designed for in-machine deburring applications. The br...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-15

Engineered Tools Opens Gear Cutting Systems Division

Engineered Tools Corp. of Caro, MI, has introduced its new gear cutting system division. Cutter body repair will take place at ETC...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-14

Zimmerman Presents New Milling Machine with Linear Drive

The new FZ 38 from Zimmerman is a CNC portal milling machine driven by linear motors. According to the company's press release, the ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-14

Service Network and Worcester Polytechnik Launch Grinding Consortium

Service Network is spearheading an effort with Worcester Polytechnic Institute to form a grinding research center located in Worcester, M...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-14

Chick Workholding Implements Consumer Design Program

Chick Workholding Solutions invited the CNC marketplace to contribute to the design of its new CNC vise before it is released. The new...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-12

Zero Max’s New Linear Actuators Convert Rotary Motion into Precise Linear Motion

The Roh’lix linear actuators from Zero-Max convert rotary motion to linear travel and carry loads at speeds up to 70" per second, de...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-12

PCB Piezotronics’ New Rotary Torque Sensor System

The rotary torque sensor system from the Force/Torque Division of PCB Piezotronics is designed for automotive driveline and powertrain dy...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-11

United Grinding?s Newest Machine Grinds Shafts and Chucked Workpieces

[photo] The Studen S242 from United Grinding is designed for the hard turning and grinding of high-precision applications for both shaf...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-11

Bourn & Koch Expands

Bourn & Koch completed the addition of a new 20,000 square foot warehouse and a new 20,000 square foot two story engineering office build...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-11

Alpha Gear’s Gearmotor Offers Significant Reduction in Inertia

The TPM from alpha gear drives Inc. is a geared motor containing a rotary actuator based on an AC servo motor and high precision planetar...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-11

Ondrives’ New Gearbox Emphasizes Torque and Speed

A new line of DC motorized worm and wheel reduction gearboxes from Ondrives is fitted with 24V DC motors that operate at 12V DC. Accor...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-11

Norton’s New Gear Grinding Wheels Increase Life of Parallel Axis Spur Gears

The new BRGg VPHS high speed grinding wheels from Saint Gobain are designed to reduce cycle times by increasing metal removal rates. The ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-11

Weiler’s New Brochure Details In-Machine CNC Deburring on Flat Surfaces

Weiler Corp.’s newest brochure details its in-machine CNC deburring of flat surfaces and highlights the company’s Nylox disc br...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-08

Gleason Genesis S130SV Gear Shaving Machine

The 130SV shaving machine from Gleason is the newest of the company’s Genesis family of gear production equipment. Introduced to...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-06

New Multi-Axis Machining Software from NCCS

NCCS announces the new release of the latest version of NCL 9.5 that improves productivity by reducing both programming time and cycle ti...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-04-06

New Depressed Center Wheels Introduced by Camel Grinding Wheels

CGW-Camel Grinding Wheels has introduced Fast Cut Series Aluminum Oxide Type 27 Depressed Center Wheels with N-grade bond for right angle...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-03-20

Balzers Acquires Gold Star Coatings

Balzers Inc. announced a cooperaion agreement to take over the PVD coating operations of Gold Star Coatings, a subsidiary of the industri...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-03-15

Bison Gears Adds Custom AC Motors

Bison Gear and Engineering plans to begin manufacturing their own line of AC motors in their St. Charles, IL, facility beginning in April...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-03-14

Balzers Opens Coating Center in Houston

Balzers, Inc. opened a new coating center in Houston, Texas. As of January 30, 2006, the Houston Center began coating production of ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-03-09

TSA America Relocates, Appoints New Sales Manager

Janice Thomas was appointed sales manager for the gear cutting tools product line of TSA America. According to the company's pres...
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2006-03-01

The Premise and the Promise

Gear Technology was founded 22 years ago on a very simple principle: to provide the best possible educational articles and information for the gear industry.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-03-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from March/April 2006
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-02-15

Gleason Introduces Newest Hobbing Machine

The new Genesis 130H CNC vertical hobbing machine features a design that optimizes dry machining, reduces floor space and improves cycle ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-02-14

Service Network Expands Representation Network

Service Network announced that Precision Machine Tools Inc. as their exclusive representative for the Northeast region. Their princip...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-02-13

New Sales Rep Joins Clifford-Jacobs

Keith Vidourek joined the sales team at Clifford Jacobs. According to the company's press release, Vidourek and his company, Weber...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-02-06

HD Systems Merges with Harmonic Drive Technologies

HD Systems Inc. and Harmonic Drive Technologies, Nabtesco Inc. have merged, effective Jan. 1, 2006. The newly formed joint companny wi...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-02-03

New Brake for Gearless Drives

Ortlinghaus has introduced the DIMO braking system for gearless applications. The brake is electromagnetically actuated. According to...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-01-19

Metaldyne Purchases Forging Technologies

Metaldyne announced its purchase agreement with Forging Technologies Inc. related to the acquisition of Metaldyne's North American fo...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-01-10

Mitsubishi Gear Technology Adds Holroyd Machine

Mitsubishi Gear Technology Center has added the Holroyd GTG2 precision helical grinding machine to its portfolio. Ian Shearing, vice p...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-01-10

Kinefac Introduces Forced Thru-Feed Spline Rolling to China

Kinefac Corp. is introducing its cylindrical die spline rolling process to markets in China, India and other countries in the Far East. ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-01-10

Boston Gear Introduces New Worm Gear Reducer

A new 700 Series Conveyor Flange Adapter (CFA) is specifically designed for increased control and lower maintenance cost on material hand...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2006-01-06

Samputensil Introduces High Capacity Grinding Machine

The new 250G generating grinding machine from Samputensili, introduced at EMO 2005 was developed to achieve a shorter cycle time. Acco...
PRODUCT NEWS | 2006-01-01

Finish Hobbing Crowned Helical Gears without Twist

New tool from LMT-Fette provides combination of operations.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2006-01-01

Kinematical Simulation of Face Hobbing Indexing and Tooth Surface Generation of Spiral Bevel and Hypoid Gears

In addition to the face milling system, the face hobbing process has been developed and widely employed by the gear industry. However, the mechanism of the face hobbing process is not well known.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2006-01-01

Assembling Spiral Gears: Double Taper Can Be Double Trouble

Bevel gear systems are particularly sensitive to improper assembly. Slight errors in gear positioning can turn a well-designed, quality manufactured gear set into a noisy, prone-to-failure weak link in your application.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2006-01-01

Investigation of the Noise and Vibration of Planetary Gear Drives

With the aim of reducing the operating noise and vibration of planetary gear sets used in automatic transmissions, a meshing phase difference was applied to the planet gears that mesh with the sun and ring gears.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2005-11-01

Utilization of Powder Metal and Shot Peening Residual Stress to Maximize Cost and Performance Benefit of Highly Loaded Gearing

This article focuses on bending fatigue strength improvements of P/M gearing from recent improvements in P/M technology, combined with shot peening.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2005-09-01

Gear Finishing with a Nylon Lap

The objective of this research is to develop a new lapping process that can efficiently make tooth flanks of hardened steel gears smooth as a mirror.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2005-09-01

What to Know About Bevel Gear Grinding

Guidelines are insurance against mistakes in the often detailed work of gear manufacturing. Gear engineers, after all, can't know all the steps for all the processes used in their factories.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2005-09-01

A Split Happened on the Way to Reliable, Higher-Volume Gear Grinding

Bevel gear manufacturers live in one of two camps: the face hobbing/lapping camp, and the face milling/grinding camp.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-09-01

Industry News

The complete Industry News section from the September/October 2005 issue of Gear Technology.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2005-09-01

The Unofficial Guide to Gear Expo 2005

Booth Listings for Gear Expo 2005 in Detroit.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2005-07-01

Opportunities for Gear Grinders - Insights from the Machinery Front

Tom Lang of Kapp Technologies shares his views on the trends affecting ground gears.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2005-07-01

Superfinishing Gears - The State of the Art, Part II

In a previous article, the authors identified two misconceptions surrounding gear superfinishing. Here, they tackle three more.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-04-21

New Frequency Inverter from SEW Eurodrive

The Movitrac Lte frequency inverter is a system design to meet the size and startup constraints that industrial applications often place ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-04-21

EMAG Buys Jos. Koepfer & Sohne GmbH

EMAG has acquired majority interest in Jos. Koepfer & Sohne GmbH. Present product lines and personnel will remain, according to the c...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-04-19

Bison Gear Awarded $100,000 Grant

The National Science Foundation has awarded a $100,000 grant to Bison Gear and Engineering to determine the feasibility of a breakthrough...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-04-13

Bock Workholding Introduces New Triangular Workholding System for Machining Centers

The Bock TriSystem workholding system, a triangular, six-station workholding system allows a greater range of tool access angles on horiz...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-04-13

Ikona Gear Appoints Nicola Simon to Board of Directors

Ikona Gear announced the appointment of Nicola Simon to its board of directors. Simon is currently the platform leader for Ballard Pow...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-04-13

Bonfiglioli Acquires Tecnoingranaggi

Bonfiglioli acquired Tecnoingranaggi, a Bologna-based supplier of planetary gear units. According to the company's press release, ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-04-13

New North American Subsidiary for Atlanta GmbH

Atlanta GmbH in Bietingheim-Bissingen, Germany, announced the formation of its new North American subsidiary, Atlanta Drive Systems Inc.,...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-04-13

New Process Monitoring System from Marposs

A new tool and process monitoring system from Marposs is designed to provide continuous monitoring of metalworking processes through seve...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-04-05

Bourn & Koch, Star SU Consolidate Sales

Star SU and Bourn & Koch announced a mutual agreement for consolidation of the sales activities of each company’s machine tool produ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-03-26

First 7-Speed Gearbox has a Shift Plate of DuPont Zytel

A shift plate made of DuPont Zytel nylon carries the fully integrated gear change control system of DaimlerChrysler’s 7G-Tronic seve...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-03-09

New Furnace from Grieve

The No. 943 pit furnace from Grieve is an electrically heated, top loading pit furnace capable of 2,000 degrees F and is suitable for hea...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-03-09

mG miniGears Acquires New Furnace

mG miniGears acquired a high temperatures furnace that can perform at 1,300 degrees C sintering temperature. According to the company&...
ADDENDUM | 2005-03-01

Gear Tattoos

Imagine a shop supervisor with a three-gear drivetrain tattooed on his bicep or a saleswoman with a tiny spur gear silhouetted just above her ankle.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-02-27

Boswell Acquires Majority Interest in SECO/Warwick

Jeffrey W. Boswell has acquired the majority interest in SECO/Warwick and has been named president and CEO. SECO/Warwick Ltd. Poland w...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-02-24

Rexnord Completes Acquisition of Falk Corp.

Rexnord Corp. announced that it has completed the acquisition of Falk Corp. from Hamilton Sundstrand, a subsidiary of United Technologies...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-02-24

New Gear Hobbing Center from Koepfer EMAG

The VSC 250/400 DUO WF from EMAG Koepfer allows complete soft machining of gears on a single machine. According to the company’s ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-02-17

VFS Sells Furnace to Bio-Vac

Vacuum Furnace Corp. sold a vacuum furnace to Bio-Vac Corp. for their Southfield, MI orthopedic coatings plant. The new horizontal two-ba...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-02-14

New Mandrels from LeCount

The new Type G mandrel from LeCount is designed to accomodate most between-center grind operations. A PartLocator is an optional enhan...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-02-13

REM Chemicals and Rosler GmbH Partner in Metal Finishing

REM Chemicals Inc.and Rosler GmbH developed a 20-year global marketing partnership for chemically-accelerated mass finishing processes, m...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-02-11

New Vertical Processing Machine from Inductoheat

The modular Inductoscan vertical processing machine from Inductoheat is designed to ofer customers greater flexibility and higher uptime....
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-02-09

New Bore Finishing Machines from Engis

The six-spindle SPM Series single-pass bore finishing machine from Engis can finish the bores on as many as 480 gears per hour with tool ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-02-09

New Gear Deburring Brushes from Weiler

The Bore-RX line of internal gear deburring brushes from Weiler can increase productivity of in-machine deburring in CNC machining center...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-02-09

New High-Speed Inspection System from Renishaw

Introduced at EMO, the Renscan5 high-speed inspection system from Renishaw delivers part inspection speeds up to 20 times faster than con...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-02-07

Sigma Pool Merges All Grinding Activities

Sigma Pool partners have merged all activities in the field of cylindrical gear grinding under the roof of Liebherr-Verzahntechnik GmbH i...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-01-28

New Wireless Spindle Probe from Marposs

The new Mida TT30 touch-trigger spindle probe from Marposs Corp. incorporates high-frequency signal transmissiom. Additional features ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-01-28

New Lead Angle Gear Roller from Marposs

The M62 DF from Marposs is designed for the dynamic inspection of ring gears with automatic part rotation. The system can also evalua...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-01-19

Saint-Gobain Gaskets Seal in Temperature Extremes

The OmniGasket from Saint-Gobain is constructed with a layer of PTFE adhered to an alloy base.According to the company's press releas...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-01-19

Hexagon Metrology Debuts CNC Measuring Arm at Fabtech

Hexagon Metrology introduced a new CNC articulated measuring arm at Fabtech that president and CEO William Gruber calls ?our version of a...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-01-07

Rush Gears Publishes New Gear Design Guide

Rush Gears published a complete design guide that identifies 120,000 pre-engineered English and Western metric gears, gear formulas, hors...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-01-04

Matlab Increases Heat Treating Capaciy for Gears

Metlab has completed the upgrade of one of its large pit carburizing furnaces, which doubles its capabilities for carburizng, nitriding, ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2005-01-03

Harmonic Drive Introduces New Gearheads

Harmonic Drive Technologies introduced its RGH Series of compact gearheads that offer the accuracy and repeatability typically associated...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2005-01-01

Holroyd Launches New Gear Grinder

New machine promises DIN 2 accuracy and unique features at low cost.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2004-11-01

High Performance Gears Using Powder Metallurgy (PM) Technology

Powder metallurgy (P/M) techniques have proven successful in displacing many components within the automobile drive train, such as: connecting rods, carriers, main bearing caps, etc. The reason for P/M’s success is its ability to offer the design engineer the required mechanical properties with reduced component cost.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2004-11-01

Remedies for Cutting Edge Failure of Carbide Hob due to Chip Crush

Some results of evaluation by this method in the automotive industry.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2004-09-01

Simulation of Hobbing for Analysis of Cutting Edge Failure due to Chip Crush

There are great advantages in dry hobbing, not only for friendliness toward the environment, but also for increasing productivity and for decreasing manufacturing cost. Dry hobbing, however, often causes failures in hob cutting edges or problems with the surface quality of gear tooth flanks. These difficulties are not present when hobbing with cutting oil. Pinching and crushing of generated chips between the hob cutting edge and the work gear tooth flank is considered a major cause of those problems.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2004-09-01

Surface Damage Caused by Gear Profile Grinding and its Effects on Flank Load Carrying Capacity

Instances of damage to discontinuous form ground and surface-hardened gears, especially of large scale, have recently increased. This may be attributed partly to a faulty grinding process with negative effects on the surface zones and the surface properties.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2004-09-01

High Speed Steel: Different Grades for Different Requirements

Hobs, broaches, shaper cutters, shaver cutters, milling cutters, and bevel cutters used in the manufacture of gears are commonly made of high speed steel. These specialized gear cutting tools often require properties, such as toughness or manufacturability, that are difficult to achieve with carbide, despite the developments in carbide cutting tools for end mills, milling cutters, and tool inserts.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2004-05-01

Grinding and Abrasives

Flexibility and productivity are the keywords in today’s grinding operations. Machines are becoming more flexible as manufacturers look for ways to produce more parts at a lower cost. What used to take two machines or more now takes just one.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2004-05-01

Winds of Change in Profile Grinding

Recent breakthroughs in profile grinding software are helping Anderson Precision Gears and others meet wind power’s insatiable appetite for faster production of large, high-quality gears.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2004-04-17

Manufacturing Association Elects New Board of Directors

The Association for Manufacturing Technology has its elected new officers at their 2004 conference in Bonita Springs, FL. David J. Bu...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2004-04-16

New Measuring Machine from Mahr Federal

The MarVision from Mahr Federal is designed to provide a mid-sized solution for high precision applications that require multiple modes o...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2004-04-16

Genstar Acquires Colfax Power Transmission Group

Colfax Power Transmission Group was recently acquired by Genstar Capital L.P., a private equity firm. In a related move, Colfax PT has me...
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2004-03-01

Hobbing Precise, Uniform End Chamfers

The seemingly simple process of placing a uniform chamfer on the face ends of spur and helical gears, at least for the aerospace industry, has never been a satisfactory or cost effective process.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2004-01-27

New Hydrodynamic Brake from Voith Turbo

Voith Turbo has designed a new industrial retarder (hydrodynamic brake) for simulating various load conditions of diesel engines. Four...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2004-01-22

GE to Supply Canada with 660 New Wind Turbines

GE Energy has been selected to supply up to 660 wind turbines, totaling 990 megawatts of wind-generated electricity for eight projects to...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2004-01-22

Executive Promotions at Hawk

Steven J. Campbell was promoted to senior vice president at Hawk Corp. and president of the company's performance racing segment. ...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2004-01-05

Ikona Gear Enters Non-Disclosure Agreement

Ikona Gear has signed a non-disclosure agreement with TM4, a division of Hydro-Quebec. The patented intellectual property involves a g...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2004-01-04

New Managers at M&M Precision

Mark Cowan and John Zahora joined M&M Precision Systems Corp. of Willoughby, OH, in different management positions. According to the ...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2004-01-01

New Potentials in Carbide Hobbing

To meet the future goals of higher productivity and lower production costs, the cutting speeds and feeds in modern gear hobbing applications have to increase further. In several cases, coated carbide tools have replaced the commonly used high speed steel (HSS) tools.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2003-12-21

Equity Firm Acquires Majority of VCST

Fox Paine & Co.,a San Francisco-based private equity firm, has acquired a majority stake in VCST Industrial Products N.V., a Belgium-base...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2003-12-14

Absolute Machine Tools Adds New Product Line

Absolute Machine Tools has entered into an exclusive marketing agreement with Lih Chang Machinery Co., Ltd. of Taiwan to carry its Argo S...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2003-12-06

New Gearbox from Brevini

The S Series gearbox from Brevini features an epicyclical design that increases the available power from the unit without affecting the o...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2003-12-06

New Finishing Process from Kapp

The Kapp Group has introduced a combined process for hard finishing transmission gears that involves two machines?one for grinding and th...
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2003-12-06

New Flathoning Machines from Stahli

The Model DLM flathoning machine 705 from Stahli features a new construction and allows for faster processing speeds. According to the...
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2003-11-01

High Accurate Hobbing with Specially Designed Finishing Hobs

Load-carrying capacity of gears, especially the surface durability, is influenced by their tooth surface roughness in addition to their tooth profiles and tooth traces.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2003-11-01

Gear Grinding 2003

The benefits of ground gears are well known. They create less noise, transmit more power and have longer lives than non-ground gears. But grinding has always been thought of as an expensive process, one that was necessary only for aerospace or other high-tech gear manufacturing.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2003-11-01

Superfinishing Gears -- The State of the Art

Superfinishing the working surfaces of gears and their root fillet regions results in performance benefits.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2003-09-01

Industry News

Complete Industry News for September/October 2003.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2003-09-01

Direct Gear Design: Bending Stress Minimization

Bending stress evaluation in modern gear design is generally based on the more-than-one-hundred-year-old Lewis equation.
REVOLUTIONS | 2003-09-01

Revolutions

Welcome to Revolutions, the column that brings you the latest, most up-to-date and easy-to-read information about the people and technology of the gear industry.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2003-07-01

Product News

Complete Product News for July/August 2003.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2003-07-01

On a Possible Way of Size and Weight Reduction of a Car Transmission

Almost any external tooth form that is uniformly spaced around a center can be hobbed. Hobbing is recognized as an economical means of producing spur and helical gears with involute tooth profiles.
PRODUCT NEWS | 2003-05-01

Product News

Complete Product News for May/June 2003.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2003-05-01

Performance of Skiving Hobs in Finishing Induction Hardened and Carburized Gears

In order to increase the load carrying capacity of hardened gears, the distortion of gear teeth caused by quenching must be removed by precision cutting (skiving) and/or grinding. In the case of large gears with large modules, skiving by a carbide hob is more economical than grinding when the highest accuracy is not required.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2003-05-01

The Two-Sided-Ground Bevel Cutting Tool

In the past, the blades of universal face hobbing cutters had to be resharpened on three faces. Those three faces formed the active part of the blade. In face hobbing, the effective cutting direction changes dramatically with respect to the shank of the blade. Depending on the individual ratio, it was found that optimal conditions for the chip removal action (side rake, side relief and hook angle) could just be established by adjusting all major parameters independently. This, in turn, results automatically in the need for the grinding or resharpening of the front face and the two relief surfaces in order to control side rake, hook angle and the relief and the relief angles of the cutting and clearance side.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2002-11-01

The Barkhausen Noise Inspection Method for Detecting Grinding Damage in Gears

When hardened steel components are ground, there is always the possibility of damage to the steel in the form of residual stress or microstructural changes. Methods for detecting this sort of damage have always had one or more drawbacks, such as cost, time, complexity, subjectivity, or the use of hazardous chemicals.
ADDENDUM | 2002-09-01

Gears of Rockwell Hardness

Nobody's sure what went on in Bolsa Chica, CA, when gear-shaped stones were used there 8,700 years ago, but a popular belief is that at least some activity revolved around manufacturing.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 2002-09-01

Relief Valve

Some of the pressure on American manufacturers seems to be letting up. This is welcome relief, considering the squeeze they have been under for the past few years.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2002-05-01

Carbide Hobbing Case Study

Bodine Electric Co. of Chicago, IL., has a 97-year history of fine-and medium-pitch gear manufacturing. Like anywhere else, traditions, old systems, and structures can be beneficial, but they can also become paradigms and obstacles to further improvements. We were producing a high quality product, but our goal was to become more cost effective. Carbide hobbing is seen as a technological innovation capable of enabling a dramatic, rather than an incremental, enhancement to productivity and cost savings.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2002-05-01

Industry News

Complete Industry News for May/June 2002.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2002-01-01

Net-Shape Forged Gears - The State of the Art

Traditionally, high-quality gears are cut to shape from forged blanks. Great accuracy can be obtained through shaving and grinding of tooth forms, enhancing the power capacity, life and quietness of geared power transmissions. In the 1950s, a process was developed for forging gears with teeth that requires little or no metal to be removed to achieve final geometry. The initial process development was undertaken in Germany for the manufacture of bevel gears for automobile differentials and was stimulated by the lack of available gear cutting equipment at that time. Later attention has turned to the forging of spur and helical gears, which are more difficult to form due to the radial disposition of their teeth compared with bevel gears. The main driver of these developments, in common with most component manufacturing, is cost. Forming gears rather than cutting them results in increased yield from raw material and also can increase productivity. Forging gears is therefore of greater advantage for large batch quantities, such as required by the automotive industry.
VOICES | 2002-01-01

The Gear Analysis Handbook by James L. Taylor Vibration Consultants Inc.

The author has written this book primarily from the viewpoint of analyzing vibrations on heavy industrial and mill gearing that may have been in service for a prolonged time. The purpose is to diagnose problems, especially the source or cause of failure. However, the principles and analysis techniques can be used for all types and sizes of gears, as well as for gear noise analysis.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2001-11-01

Dry Machining for Gear Shaping

Economic production is one of the main concerns of any manufacturing facility. In recent years, cost increases and tougher statutory requirements have increasingly made cutting fluids a problematic manufacturing and cost factor in metalworking. Depending on the cutting fluid, production process and supply unit, cutting-fluid costs may account for up to 16% of workpiece cost. In some cases, they exceed tool cost by many times (Ref. 1). The response by manufacturers is to demand techniques for dry machining (Ref. 2).
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2001-11-01

Properties of Tooth Surfaces due to Gear Honing with Electroplated Tools

In recent years, the demands for load capacity and fatigue life of gears constantly increased while weight and volume had to be reduced. To achieve those aims, most of today's gear wheels are heat treated so tooth surfaces will have high wear resistance. As a consequence of heat treatment, distortion unavoidably occurs. With the high geometrical accuracy and quality required for gears, a hard machining process is needed that generates favorable properties on the tooth surfaces and the near-surface material with high reliability.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2001-09-01

Face Gears: An Interesting Alternative for Special Applications - Calculation, Production and Use

Crown gearings are not a new type of gear system. On the contrary, they have been in use since very early times for various tasks. Their earliest form is that of the driving sprocket, found in ancient Roman watermills or Dutch windmills. The first principles of gear geometry and simple methods of production (shaper cutting) were developed in the 1940s. In the 1950s, however, crown gears' importance declined. Their tasks were, for example, taken over by bevel gears, which were easier to manufacture and could transmit greater power. Current subject literature accordingly contains very little information on crown gears, directed mainly to pointing out their limitations (Ref. 1).
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2001-07-01

Material Properties and Performance Considerations for High-Speed Steel Gear-Cutting Tools

Users of gear-cutting tools probably do not often consciously consider the raw material from which those hobs, broaches or shavers are made. However, a rudimentary awareness of the various grades and their properties may allow tool users to improve the performance or life of their tools, or to address tool failures. The high-speed steel from which the tool is made certainly is not the only factor affecting tool performance, but as the raw material, the steel may be the first place to start.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2001-07-01

Stock Distribution Optimization in Fixed Setting Hypoid Pinions

Face-milled hypoid pinions produced by the three-cut, Fixed Setting system - where roughing is done on one machine and finishing for the concave-OB and convex-IB tooth flanks is done on separate machines with different setups - are still in widespread use today.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2001-03-01

Dry Hobbing Process Technology Road Map

Recent trends in gear cutting technology have left process engineers searching for direction about which combination of cutting tool material, coating, and process technology will afford the best quality at the lowest total cost. Applying the new technologies can have associated risks that may override the potential cost savings. The many interrelated variables to be considered and evaluated tend to cloud the issue and make hobbing process development more difficult.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2001-01-01

Suitability of High Density Powder Metal Gears for Gear Applications

The implementation of powder metal (PM)components in automotive applications increases continuously, in particular for more highly loaded gear components like synchromesh mechanisms. Porosity and frequently inadequate material properties of PM materials currently rule out PM for automobile gears that are subject to high loads. By increasing the density of the sintered gears, the mechanical properties are improved. New and optimized materials designed to allow the production of high-density PM gears by single sintering may change the situation in the future.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2001-01-01

Industry News

Complete Industry News for January/February 2001.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2001-01-01

Robotic Automated Deburring of Aerospace Gears

This report presents some interim results from an ongoing project being performed by INFAC, the Instrumented Factory for Gears. The purposes of this initial phase of the project were to demonstrate the feasibility of robotic automated deburring of aerospace gears, and to develop a research agenda for future work in that area.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2000-11-01

Parallel Axis Gear Grinding: Theory & Application

The goal of gear drive design is to transit power and motion with constant angular velocity. Current trends in gear drive design require greater load carrying capacity and increased service life in smaller, quieter, more efficient gearboxes. Generally, these goals are met by specifying more accurate gears. This, combined with the availability of user-friendly CNC gear grinding equipment, has increased the use of ground gears.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2000-09-01

Gear Up for Performance: An Introduction to Synthetic Lubricants for Fractional Horespower Applications

Editor's Note: The following article details the advantages of synthetic lubricants in certain applications. However, the user should be aware of certain design issues arising from the extract chemistry of the synthetic. For example, some synthetics may have low solvency for additives. Others may not be compatible with mineral oils or nonmetallic components such as seals and paints. Some synthetics may absorb water and may not have the same corrosion resistance as mineral oils. Finally, the user should consider biodegradability or toxicity before switching to any new lubricant. Many of these concerns are present in petroleum-based lubricants as well, so consult a lubrication specialist before specifying a lubricant.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2000-07-01

Precision Finish Hobbing

Nowadays, finish hobbing (which means that there is no post-hobbing gear finishing operation) is capable of producing higher quality gears and is growing in popularity.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 2000-05-01

Geoffrey Parrish, Carburizing: Microstructures and Properties, 2nd ed., ASM, 1999, 247 pages.

Geoffrey Parrish has updated and expanded his previous book: The Influence of Microstructure on the Properties of Case-Carburized Components. It now contains at least twice the material. References and bibliography include 449 citations.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2000-05-01

A Modular Approach to Computing Spiral Bevel Gears and Curvic Couplings

In general, bevel gears and curvic couplings are completely different elements. Bevel gears rotate on nonintersecting axis with a ratio based on the number of teeth. Curvic couplings work like a clutch (Fig. 1).
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2000-03-01

Ferritic Nitrocarburizing Gears to Increase Wear Resistance and Reduce Distortion

Quality gear manufacturing depends on controlled tolerances and geometry. As a result, ferritic nitrocarburizing has become the heat treat process of choice for many gear manufacturers. The primary reasons for this are: 1. The process is performed at low temperatures, i.e. less than critical. 2. the quench methods increase fatigue strength by up to 125% without distorting. Ferritic nitrocarburizing is used in place of carburizing with conventional and induction hardening. 3. It establishes gradient base hardnesses, i.e. eliminates eggshell on TiN, TiAIN, CrC, etc. In addition, the process can also be applied to hobs, broaches, drills, and other cutting tools.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 2000-03-01

Reducing Production Costs in Cylindrical Gear Hobbing and Shaping

Increased productivity in roughing operations for gear cutting depends mainly on lower production costs in the hobbing process. In addition, certain gears can be manufactured by shaping, which also needs to be taken into account in the search for a more cost-effective form of production.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 2000-01-01

Industry News

Industry News for January/February 2000.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1999-09-01

Powder Metallurgy Innovations

Powder metal. To gear makers today, the phrase conjures images of low power applications in non-critical systems. As powder metal technology advances, as the materials increase in density and strength, such opinions are changing. It is an ongoing, evolutionary process and one that will continue for some time. According to Donald G. White, the executive director of the Metal Powder Industries Federation, in his State-of-the-P/M Industry - 1999 report. "The P/M world is changing rapidly and P/M needs to be recognized as a world-class process - national, continental and even human barriers and prejudices must be eliminated - we must join forces as a world process - unified in approach and goals."
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1999-09-01

Gear Grinding With Dish Wheels

The grinding of gears with dish wheels (Maad type grinding machines) is widely viewed as the most precise method of gear grinding because of the very short and simple kinematic links between the gear and the tool, and also because the cutting edges of the wheels represent planar surfaces. However, in this grinding method, depending on the parameters of the gears and one of the adjustments (such as the number of teeth encompassed by the grinding wheels), so-called overtravel at the tip or at the root of the teeth being ground generally occurs. When this happens, machining with only one wheel takes place. As a result, the profile error and the length of the generating path increases while productivity decreases.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1999-05-01

Cutting Tools Roundup

The cutting tool industry has undergone some serious changes in the last couple of years in both technology and the way the industry does business. The emerging technology today, as well as for the foreseeable future, is dry cutting, especially in high volume production settings. Wet cutting continues to be as popular as ever with lubrication advances making it more economical and environmentally friendly. There has also developed a process called "near dry cutting." this process offers many of the benefits of fluids while eliminating many of hte associated problems.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 1999-03-01

Navigating Uncharted Waters in Cyberspace

I'd like to share with you a vision of the future. It takes place in cyberspace, and it's coming soon to a computer near you. Whether you like it or not, and whether you're ready or not, the Internet is changing the way business is conducted.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1999-03-01

Redliner Charts and Gear Inspection

Q&A is your interactive gear forum. Send us your gear design, manufacturing, inspection or other related questions, and we'll put them before our panel of experts.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1999-01-01

ISO 6336-5: Strength and Quality of Materials

This is the fourth and final article in a series exploring the new ISO 6336 gear rating standard and its methods of calculation. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author as an individual. They do not represent the opinions of any organization of which he is a member.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1999-01-01

An Experimental Study on the Effect of Power Honing on Gear Surface Topography

Gear noise associated with tooth surface topography is a fundamental problem in many applications. Operations such as shaving, gear grinding and gear honing are usually used to finish the gear surface. Often, gears have to be treated by a combination of these operations, e.g. grinding and honing. This is because gear honing operations do not remove enough stock although they do create a surface lay favorable for quiet operation. See Fig. 1 for typical honing process characteristics. Gear grinding processes, on the other hand, do remove stock efficiently but create a noisy surface lay.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1999-01-01

Selection of the Optimal Parameters of the Rack-Tool to Ensure the Maximum Gear Tooth Profile Accuracy

An analysis of possibilities for the selection of tool geometry parameters was made in order to reduce tooth profile errors during the grinding of gears by different methods. The selection of parameters was based on the analysis of he grid diagram of a gear and a rack. Some formulas and graphs are presented for the selection of the pressure angle, module and addendum of the rack-tool. The results from the grinding experimental gears confirm the theoretical analysis.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1998-07-01

Industry News

Industry News for July/August 1998.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1998-07-01

Alternative Gear Manufacturing

the gear industry is awash in manufacturing technologies that promise to eliminate waste by producing gears in near-net shape, cut production and labor costs and permit gear designers greater freedom in materials. These methods can be broken down into the following categories: alternative ways to cut, alternative ways to form and new, exotic alternatives. Some are new, some are old and some are simply amazing.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1998-05-01

New Guidelines For Wind Turbine Gearboxes

The wind turbine industry has been plagued with gearbox failures, which cause repair costs, legal expenses, lost energy production and environmental pollution.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1998-05-01

Hard Gear Finishing With CBN-Basic Considerations

For over 50 years, grinding has been an accepted method of choice for improving the quality of gears and other parts by correcting heat treat distortions. Gears with quality levels better than AGMA 10-11 or DIN 6-7 are hard finished, usually by grinding. Other applications for grinding include, but are not limited to, internal/external and spur/helical gear and spline forms, radius forms, threads and serrations, compressor rotors, gerotors, ball screw tracks, worms, linear ball tracks, rotary pistons, vane pump rotators, vane slots, and pump spindles.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1998-05-01

Hobs & Form Relived Cutters: Common Sharpening Problems

Fig. 1 shows the effects of positive and negative rake on finished gear teeth. Incorrect positive rake (A) increase the depth and decreases the pressure angle on the hob tooth. The resulting gear tooth is thick at the top and thin at the bottom. Incorrect negative rake (B) decreases the depth and increases the pressure angle. This results in a cutting drag and makes the gear tooth thin at the top and thick at the bottom.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1998-05-01

Dry Cutting of Bevel and Hypoid Gears

High-speed machining using carbide has been used for some decades for milling and turning operations. The intermittent character of the gear cutting process has delayed the use of carbide tools in gear manufacturing. Carbide was found at first to be too brittle for interrupted cutting actions. In the meantime, however, a number of different carbide grades were developed. The first successful studies in carbide hobbing of cylindrical gears were completed during the mid-80s, but still did not lead to a breakthrough in the use of carbide cutting tools for gear production. Since the carbide was quite expensive and the tool life was too short, a TiN-coated, high-speed steel hob was more economical than an uncoated carbide hob.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1998-03-01

Programmable Separation of Runout From Profile and Lead Inspection Data for Gear Teeth With Arbitrary Modifications

A programmable algorithm is developed to separate out the effect of eccentricity (radial runout) from elemental gear inspection date, namely, profile and lead data. This algorithm can be coded in gear inspection software to detect the existence, the magnitude and the orientation of the eccentricity without making a separate runout check. A real example shows this algorithm produces good results.
VOICES | 1998-03-01

Viewpoint

Jules Kish responds to comments about his article on finding a hunting ratio, and Dr. Sante Basili argues that shaving is still the best way to finish a rough-cut gear.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1998-03-01

New Guideless CNC Shaper for Helical Gears

Product announcements so often trumpet minor, incremental advances with works like "revolutionary" and "unique" that even the best thesaurus can fail to offer a fresh alternative to alert the reader when something really innovative and important is introduced. In the case of Mitsubishi's new CNC gear shaper, the ST25CNC, both terms apply.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1998-01-01

Influence of Gear Design on Gearbox Radiated Noise

A major source of helicopter cabin noise (which has been measured at over 100 decibels sound pressure level) is the gearbox. Reduction of this noise is a NASA and U.S. Army goal. A requirement for the Army/NASA Advanced Rotorcraft Transmission project was a 10 dB noise reduction compared to current designs.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1998-01-01

Production Increase When Hobbing with Carbide Hobs

We are all looking for ways to increase production without sacrificing quality. One of the most cost-effective ways is by improving the substrate material of your hob. Solid carbide hobs are widely used in many applications throughout the world. LMT-Fette was the first to demonstrate the use of solid carbide hobs in 1993 on modern high-speed carbide (HSC) hobbing machines. Since then the process of dry hobbing has been continuously improving through research and product testing. Dry hobbing is proving to be successful in the gear cutting industry as sales for dry hobbing machines have steadily been rising along with the dramatic increase in sales of solid carbide hobs.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1998-01-01

Gear Shaving Basics, Part II

In our last issue, we covered the basic principles of gear shaving and preparation of parts for shaving. In this issue, we will cover shaving methods, design principles and cutter mounting techniques.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1997-11-01

Gear Shaving Basics - Part I

Gear shaving is a free-cutting gear finishing operation which removes small amounts of metal from the working surfaces of gear teeth. Its purpose is to correct errors in index, helix angle, tooth profile and eccentricity. The process also improves tooth surface finish and eliminates by means of crowned tooth forms the danger of tooth end load concentrations in service.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 1997-11-01

Good - Bye, Dad

I sat down to write this editorial about my father, Harold Goldstein, as he approached his 80th birthday in October. I had meant it to be a celebration of his nearly 65 years in the machine tool business. Unfortunately, on August 26, as I was working on it, my father passed away after a long battle with emphysema. This editorial has now become a memorial as well as a celebration.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1997-11-01

Gear Shaving Basics, Part I

Gear shaving is a free cutting gear finishing operation which removes small amounts of metal from the working surfaces of gear teeth. Its purpose is to correct errors in index, helix angle, tooth profile and eccentricity.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1997-09-01

Special Machine Manufacturer Brings Gear Making In-House

When you have a multi-million-dollar transfer line sitting on the shop floor waiting for gears that might take up to two months to get, you have a costly bottleneck.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1997-07-01

Involute Inspection Methods and Interpretation of Inspection Results

What is so unique about gear manufacturing and inspection? Machining is mostly associated with making either flat or cylindrical shapes. These shapes can be created by a machine's simple linear or circular movements, but an involute curve is neither a straight line nor a circle. In fact, each point of the involute curve has a different radius and center of curvature. Is it necessary to go beyond simple circular and linear machine movements in order to create an involute curve? One of the unique features of the involute is the fact that it can be generated by linking circular and linear movements. This uniqueness has become fertile soil for many inventions that have simplified gear manufacturing and inspection. As is the case with gear generating machines, the traditional involute inspection machines take advantage of some of the involute properties. Even today, when computers can synchronize axes for creating any curve, taking advantage of involute properties can be very helpful. I t can simplify synchronization of machine movements and reduce the number of variables to monitor.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1997-07-01

Basic Honing & Advanced Free-Form Honing

Rotary gear honing is a crossed-axis, fine, hard finishing process that uses pressure and abrasive honing tools to remove material along the tooth flanks in order to improve the surface finish (.1-.3 um or 4-12u"Ra), to remove nicks and burrs and to change or correct the tooth geometry. Ultimately, the end results are quieter, stronger and longer lasting gears.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1997-07-01

Structural Analysis of Teeth With Asymmetrical Profiles

This article illustrates a structural analysis of asymmetrical teeth. This study was carried out because of the impossibility of applying traditional calculations to procedures involved in the specific case. In particular, software for the automatic generation of meshes was devised because existing software does not produce results suitable for the new geometrical model required. Having carried out the structural calculations, a comparative study of the stress fields of symmetrical and asymmetrical teeth was carried out. The structural advantages of the latter type of teeth emerged.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1997-07-01

Obtaining Meaningful Surface Roughness Measurements on Gear Teeth

Surface roughness measuring of gear teeth can be a very frustrating experience. Measuring results often do not correlate with any functional characteristic, and many users think that they need not bother measuring surface roughness, since the teeth are burnished in operation. They mistakenly believe that the roughness disappears in a short amount of time. This is a myth! The surface indeed is shiny, but it still has considerable roughness. In fact, tests indicate that burnishing only reduces the initial roughness by approximately 25%.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1997-05-01

New Book For Gear Purchaseres & Specifiers

This book is written for those among us, with or without a technical background, who have an occasional need to use, purchase or specify gears. The author assumes an audience that is not made up of experienced gear designers, but of people who do need to have a basic understanding of the criteria used by the designer. The subjects covered include not only the gears themselves, but their manufacturing methods, the systems that contain them and the terms used to describe them.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1997-05-01

Eddy Current Examination of Gear Systems

Nondestructive examination (NDE) of ferrous and nonferrous materials has long proved an effective maintenance and anomaly characterization tool for many industries. Recent research has expanded its applicability to include the inspection of large, open gear drives. Difficulties inherent in other NDE methods make them time-consuming and labor-intensive. They also present the user with the environmental problem of the disposal of used oil. The eddy current method addresses these problems.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1997-05-01

Profile Grinding Gears From The Solid - Is It Practical

It isn't for everyone, but... Within the installed base of modern CNC gear profile grinding machines (approximately 542 machines worldwide), grinding from the solid isn't frequent, but a growing number of gear profile grinder users are applying it successfully using CBN-plated wheels.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1997-05-01

CNC Gear Grinding Methods

Grinding in one form or another has been used for more than 50 years to correct distortions in gears caused by the high temperatures and quenching techniques associated with hardening. Grinding improves the lead, involute and spacing characteristics. This makes the gear capable of carrying the high loads and running at the high pitch line velocities required by today's most demanding applications. Gears that must meet or exceed the accuracy requirements specified by AGMA Quality 10-11 or DIN Class 6-7 must be ground or hard finished after hear treatment.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 1997-03-01

Spreading The Word

Long-time readers of these pages will know that I have always felt strongly about the subject of professional education. There's nothing more important for an individual's career development than keeping up with current technology. likewise, there's nothing more important that a company can do for itself and it employees than seeing to it they have the professional education they need. Giving people the educational tools they need to do their jobs is a necessary ingredient for success.
EVENTS | 1997-03-01

Technical Calendar

Complete Technical Calendar for March/April 1997.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1997-03-01

The Broaching of Gears

Broaching is a process in which a cutting tool passes over or through a part piece to produce a desired form. A broach removes part material with a series of teeth, each one removing a specified amount of stock.
VOICES | 1997-03-01

Dry Hobbing: Another Point of View

I would like to comment on David Arnesen's article, "Dry Hobbing Saves Automaker Money, Improves Gear Quality," in the Nov/Dec, 1996 issue.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1997-01-01

Hard Coatings on Contaminated Surfaces - A Case Study

Physical Vapor Deposited (PVD) coatings such as TiN (Titanium nitride) have been a boon for cutting tool manufacturers. They reduce wear and, therefore, extend tool life, which in turn reduces production costs. But PVD coatings are expensive, and when they fail, they cost both time and money, and they causes of the failure are not always readily apparent.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1997-01-01

Improved Ion Bond Recoating for the Gear Manufacturing Industry

This article summarizes the development of an improved titanium nitride (TiN) recoating process, which has, when compared to conventional recoat methods, demonstrated tool life increases of up to three times in performance testing of hobs and shaper cutters. This new coating process, called Super TiN, surpasses the performance of standard TiN recoating for machining gear components. Super TiN incorporates stripping, surface preparation, smooth coating techniques and polishing before and after recoating. The combination of these improvements to the recoating process is the key to its performance.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1996-11-01

New Gear Developments at IMTS

The International Manufacturing Technology Show provided one of the biggest ever marketplaces for buying and selling gear-making equipment, with 121601 attenders, making it the largest IMTS ever. The show took place September 4-11 at McCormick Place in Chicago, IL.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1996-11-01

Dry Hobbing Saves Automaker Money, Improves Gear Quality

It takes confidence to be the first to invest in new manufacturing technology. But the payback can be significant. That has been the experience at the Ford Motor Company's Transmission & Chassis Division plant at Indianapolis, IN, which boasts the world's first production application of dry hobbing.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1996-11-01

Chamfering and Deburring External Parallel Axis Gears

The chamfering and deburring operations on gear teeth have become more important as the automation of gear manufacturing lines in the automotive industry have steadily increased. Quieter gears require more accurate chamfers. This operation also translates into significant coast savings by avoiding costly rework operations. This article discusses the different types of chamfers on gear teeth and outlines manufacturing methods and guidelines to determine chamfer sizes and angles for the product and process engineer.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1996-09-01

AGMA & MPIF Develop Standards, Information Sheet for Powder Metal Gears

AGMA and members of the Metal Powder Industries Federation (MPIF) are three years into a joint project to develop specifications and an information sheet on rating powder metal gears. According to committee vice chairman Glen A. Moore of Burgess-Norton Mfg. Co., the first phase of the project, the publication of AGMA Standard "6009-AXX, Specifications for Powder Metallurgy Gears," should be completed in late 1996 or early 1997.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1996-09-01

Alternative Lubrication Methods for Large Open Gear Drives

The type of lubricant and the method of applying it to the tooth flanks of large open gears is very important from the point of view of lubrication technology and maintenance. When selecting the type of lubricant and the application method, it is important to check whether it is possible to feed the required lubricant quantity to the load-carrying tooth flanks, This is necessary to avoid deficient lubrication, damage to the gear and operational malfunctions. It is important to determine the type of lubricant, which may be fluid or grease-like. The consistency of the lubricant will have a direct impact on the ability of the lubrication system to feed adequately the lubricant to the gear. The interactions between the common types of lubricant and the lubrication application methods for open gear drives are shown in Fig. 1.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1996-09-01

Powder Metal Gear Design and Inspection

Powder metallurgy (P/M) is a precision metal forming technology for the manufacture of parts to net or near-net shape, and it is particularly well-suited to the production of gears. Spur, bevel and helical gears all may be made by made by powder metallurgy processing.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1996-07-01

Noise Reduction in Plastic & Powder Metal Gear Sets

The data discussed in this article was taken from an upright vacuum cleaner. This was a prototype cleaner that was self-propelled by a geared transmission. It was the first time that the manufacturer had used a geared transmission in this application.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1996-07-01

Design Implications for Shaper Cutters

A gear shaper cutter is actually a gear with relieved cutting edges and increased addendum for providing clearance in the root of the gear being cut. The maximum outside diameter of such a cutter is limited to the diameter at which the teeth become pointed. The minimum diameter occurs when the outside diameter of the cutter and the base circle are the same. Those theoretical extremes, coupled with the side clearance, which is normally 2 degrees for coarse pitch cutters an d1.5 degrees for cutters approximately 24-pitch and finer, will determine the theoretical face width of a cutter.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 1996-05-01

Other People's Footsteps

Earlier this year, a relative of mine, Sidney Mandell, tragically passed away. I had the good fortune to serve with Sidney on the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the Machinery Dealers National Association (MDNA). Though he started before me, his MDNA career and mine overlapped for about 2 years. As I think back on the many things I learned form him, one of his favorite phrases keeps come to mind: "We walk in the footsteps of those who have gone before us."
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1996-05-01

Cutting Tools Now

The cutting tool is basic to gear manufacturing. Whether it's a hob, broach, shaper cutter or EDM wire, not much gets done without it. And the mission of the tool remains the same as always; removing material as quickly, accurately and cost-effectively as possible. Progress in the field tends to be evolutionary, coming gradually over time, but recently, a confluence of emerging technologies and new customer demands has caused significant changes in the machines, the materials and the coatings that make cutting tools.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1996-05-01

EDM Specialty Gears

The capabilities and limitations of manufacturing gears by conventional means are well-known and thoroughly documented. In the search to enhance or otherwise improve the gear-making process, manufacturing methods have extended beyond chip-cutting - hobbing, broaching, shaping, shaving, grinding, etc. and their inherent limitations based on cutting selection and speed, feed rates, chip thickness per tooth, cutting pressure, cutter deflection, chatter, surface finish, material hardness, machine rigidity, tooling, setup and other items.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1996-03-01

The Effect of Metallurgy on the Performance of Carburized Gears

Gears are designed to be manufactured, processed and used without failure throughout the design life of the gear. One of INFAC's objectives (*see p.24) is to help manufacture of gears to optimize performance and life. One way to achieve this is to identify failure mechanisms and then devise strategies to overcome them by modifying the manufacturing parameters.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1996-03-01

Wear Protection for Gears

Several trends in mechanical engineering are leading to greater surface stress on components and thus to unacceptable wear. These trends include greater stresses due to increased power densities; the need to maintain high precision of components throughout their service life; and the environmental imperative to reduce use of lubricants and additives.
ADDENDUM | 1996-03-01

The Gears of Avon & Other Tragedies

As part of the Addendum Team's never-ending quest to improve the overall cultural tone of the gear industry, we bring you the following: April 23 is the 432nd birthday of William Shakespeare.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1996-01-01

Avoiding Interference In Shaper-Cut Gears

In the process of developing gear trains, it occasionally occurs that the tip of one gear will drag in the fillet of the mating gear. The first reaction may be to assume that the outside diameter of the gear is too large. This article is intended to show that although the gear dimensions follow AGMA guidelines, if the gear is cut with a shaper, the cutting process may not provide sufficient relief in the fillet area and be the cause of the interference.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1996-01-01

The SERCOS Interface Standard

Today motion control systems are migrating from analog to digital technology at an ever increasing rate because digital technology at an ever-increasing rate because digital drives provide performance equal to or exceeding that of analog drives, plus information to run your machine more effectively and manage your quality program and your business. Most of this data is simply not available from analog drives.
PRODUCT NEWS | 1996-01-01

Product News

Welcome to our Product News page. Here we feature new products to the gear and gear products markets.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1995-09-01

The Beginner's Guide to Powder Metal Gears

Increasingly gear designers and product engineers are capitalizing on the economic advantages of powder metallurgy (P/M) for new and existing gear applications. Powder metal gears are found in automobiles, outdoor power equipment transmissions and office machinery applications as well as power hand tools, appliances and medial components.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1995-09-01

Comparison of Surface Durability & Dynamic Performance of Powder Metal & Steel Gears

Surface-hardened, sintered powder metal gears are increasingly used in power transmissions to reduce the cost of gear production. One important problem is how to design with surface durability, given the porous nature of sintered gears. Many articles have been written about mechanical characteristics, such as tensile and bending strength, of sintered materials, and it is well-known that the pores existing on and below their surfaces affect their characteristics (Refs. 1-3). Power transmission gears are frequently employed under conditions of high speed and high load, and tooth surfaces are in contact with each other under a sliding-rolling contact condition. Therefore it is necessary to consider not only their mechanical, but also their tribological characteristics when designing sintered gears for surface durability.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1995-09-01

A Huge Success

Sivyer Steel Corporation, Bettendorf, IA, an ISO-9002-certified casting specialist, is familiar with tackling tough jobs. The company has built an international reputation as a supplier of high-integrity castings, especially those which require engineering and/or full machining. Its not unusual for Sivyer's customers, especially those in the mining, recycling, power generation, valve and nuclear fields, to ask the foundry to produce a one-of-a-kind casting - often something revolutionary - but AnClyde Engineered Products' request was a special challenge, even for Sivyer.
ADDENDUM | 1995-07-01

Gears in Congress & Other Odd Places

Gear Technology's bimonthly aberration - gear trivia, humor, weirdness and oddments for the edification and amusement of our readers. Contributions are welcome.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1995-07-01

George Wyss & Dennis Richmond of Reishauer Corporation

For this interview, we spoke with George Wyss, president, and Dennis Richmond, vice president of Reishauer Corporation about gear grinding and its place in gear manufacturing today.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1995-07-01

INFAC Reports on Recent Hobbing and Heat Treating Experiments

Chicago- Results of recent studies on residual stress in gear hobbing, hobbing without lubricants and heat treating were reported by representatives of INFAC (Instrumented Factory for Gears) at an industry briefing in March of this year.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1995-07-01

Gear Grinding Comes of Age

In the quest for ever more exacting and compact commercial gears, precision abrasives are playing a key production role - a role that can shorten cycle time, reduce machining costs and meet growing market demand for such requirements as light weights, high loads, high speed and quiet operation. Used in conjunction with high-quality grinding machines, abrasives can deliver a level of accuracy unmatched by other manufacturing techniques, cost-effectively meeting AGMA gear quality levels in the 12 to 15 range. Thanks to advances in grinding and abrasive technology, machining has become one of the most viable means to grind fast, strong and quiet gears.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1995-07-01

Hotter, Faster, Harder Cutting

What Is Whisker-Reinforced Ceramic? Whisker-reinforced ceramic as applied to cutting tool inserts comprises a matrix of aluminum oxide into which approximately 50% by volume of high-purity silicon carbide "whiskers" are randomly dispersed. The "whiskers" are, in fact, single crystals having dimensions of approximately 0.6 microns in diameter x 10-80 microns in length. These "whiskers" have a tensile strength on the order of 1,000,000 psi (690 MPa). The composite material that is the best known and most widely applied using this technology is designated WG-300 and manufactured by the Greenleaf Corporation of Saegertown, PA.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1995-07-01

New Concepts in CNC Gear Shaping

In today's economy, when purchasing a new state-of-the-art gear shaper means a significant capital investment, common sense alone dictates that you develop strategies to get the most for your money. One of the best ways to do this is to take advantage of the sophistication of the machine to make it more than just a single-purpose tool.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1995-07-01

A Basic Guide to Deburring and Chamfering Gears

In today's industrial marketplace, deburring and chamfering are no longer just a matter of cosmetics. The faster speeds at which transmissions run today demand that gear teeth mesh as smoothly and accurately as possible to prevent premature failure. The demand for quieter gears also requires tighter tolerances. New heat treating practices and other secondary gear operations have placed their own set of demands on manufacturers. Companies that can deburr or chamfer to these newer, more stringent specifications - and still keep costs in line - find themselves with a leg up on their competition.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1995-07-01

Dry Gear Hobbing

Question: We are contemplating purchasing a hobbing machine with dry hobbing capabilities. What do we need to know about the special system requirements for this technology?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1995-07-01

How to Avoid Errors When Measuring Step Gears

There are problems in dimensional measurement that should be simple to solve with standard measuring procedures, but aren't. In such cases, using accepted practices may result in errors of hundreds of microns without any warning that something is wrong.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1995-07-01

Gear Grinding 1995

Gear grinding is one of the most expensive and least understood aspects of gear manufacturing. But with pressures for reduced noise, higher quality and greater efficiency, gear grinding appears to be on the rise.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1995-05-01

CNC Software Savvy

Question: When we purchase our first CNC gear hobbing machine, what questions should we ask about the software? What do we need to know to correctly specify the system requirements?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1995-05-01

Long-Life, Low-cost, Near-Net-Shape forged Gears

Near-net gear forging today is producing longer life gears at significantly lower costs than traditional manufacturing techniques. Advances in forging equipment, controls and die-making capability have been combined to produce commercially viable near-net-shape gears in diameters up to 17" with minimum stock allowances. These forged gears require only minimal finishing to meet part tolerance specifications.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1995-05-01

Developing a Total Productive Maintenance System

There's a reason they call it catastrophic gear failure: For example, if the line goes down at a large aluminum rolling mill because a gear set goes bad, the cost can run up to a whopping $200,000 a week. Even in smaller operations, the numbers alone (not to mention all the other problems) can be a plant manager's worst nightmare.
ADDENDUM | 1995-03-01

The Second Edition...

Gearing for Munchkins Gene Kasten, president of Repair Parts, Inc., of Rockford, IL, is the proud owner of a miniature Barber-Colman hobber, the only one of its kind in the world. The machine, a replica of the old B-C "A" machine, was built between 1933 and 1941 by W. W. Dickover, who devoted 2, 640 hours of his spare time to the project.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1995-03-01

Industry News

Acquisitions, Contracts, and ISO 9000 Certification
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1995-03-01

What to Look For Before You Leap

Question: We are interested in purchasing our first gear hobbing machine. What questions should we ask the manufacturer, and what do we need to know in order to correctly specify the CNC hardware and software system requirements?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1995-03-01

Mechanical Behavior and Microstructure of Ausrolled Surfaces in Gear Steels

Ausforming, the plastic deformation of heat treatment steels in their metastable, austentic condition, was shown several decades ago to lead to quenched and tempered steels that were harder, tougher and more durable under fatigue-type loading than conventionally heat-treated steels. To circumvent the large forces required to ausform entire components such as gears, cams and bearings, the ausforming process imparts added mechanical strength and durability only to those contact surfaces that are critically loaded. The ausrolling process, as utilized for finishing the loaded surfaces of machine elements, imparts high quality surface texture and geometry control. The near-net-shape geometry and surface topography of the machine elements must be controlled to be compatible with the network dimensional finish and the rolling die design requirements (Ref. 1).
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1995-01-01

CNC Gear Manufacturing - Where Are We Now

These days it's hard to get through breakfast without reading or hearing another story about how the computer is changing the way we live, sleep, eat, breathe, make things and do business. The message is that everything is computerized now, or, if it isn't, it will be by next Tuesday at the latest, Well, maybe.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1995-01-01

CNC Basics

NC and CNC machines are at the heart of manufacturing today. They are the state-of-the-art equipment everybody has (or is soon going to get) that promise to lower costs, increase production and turn manufacturers into competitive powerhouses. Like many other high tech devices (such as microwaves and VCRs), lots of people have and use them - even successfully - without really knowing much about how they operate. But upgrading to CNC costs a lot of money, so it's crucial to separate the hype from the reality.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1995-01-01

How Many Mice Does It Take to Design a Gear

Gear design has long been a "black art." The gear shop's modern alchemists often have to solve problems with a combination of knowledge, experience and luck. In many cases, trial and error are the only effective way to design gears. While years of experience have produced standard gearsets that work well for most situations, today's requirements for quieter, more accurate and more durable gears often force manufacturers to look for alternative designs.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1994-11-01

Gear Hobbing Without Coolant

For environmental and economic reasons, the use of coolant in machining processes is increasingly being questioned. Rising coolant prices and disposal costs, as well as strains on workers and the environment, have fueled the debate. The use of coolant has given rise to a highly technical system for handling coolant in the machine (cooling, filtering) and protecting the environment (filter, oil-mist collector). In this area the latest cutting materials - used with or without coolant - have great potential for making the metal-removal process more economical. The natural progression to completely dry machining has decisive advantages for hobbing.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1994-11-01

Computers and Automation Lead IMTS Innovations

Robots, computers and other signs of high technology abounded at IMTS 94, supporting the claim by many that this was one of the best shows ever. Many of the machines on display had so many robotic attachments and computer gizmos that they looked more like they belonged in some science fiction movie than on the floor of a machine shop.
EVENTS | 1994-11-01

Calendar

Complete calendar for November/December 1994.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1994-11-01

New Innovations in Hobbing - Part II

The first part of this article, which ran in the September/October 1994 issue, explained the fundamentals of gear hobbing and some of the latest techniques, including methods of hob performance analysis and new tool configurations, being used to solve specific application problems. In this issue, the author continues his exploration of hobbing by describing the effects of progress on requirements in accuracy, as well as the latest in materials, coating and dry hobbing.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1994-09-01

New Innovations in Hobbing - Part I

Prior to the introduction of titanium nitride to the cutting tool industry in the early 1980s, there was very little progress in the general application of hobbing in the gear cutting industry. The productivity gains realized with this new type of coating initiated a very active time of advancement in the gear manufacturing process.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1994-09-01

Our Experts Discuss Electronic Gearboxes, Plus Backlash and What to Do about it

Question: In the January/February issue of your magazine, we came across the term "electronic gearbox." We have seen this term used elsewhere as well. We understand that this EGB eliminates the change gear in the transmission line, but not how exactly this is done. Could you explain in more detail?
EVENTS | 1994-07-01

Calendar

Complete calendar for July/August 1994.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1994-07-01

Computerized Hob Inspection & Applications of Inspection Results Part II

Flute Index Flute index or spacing is defined as the variation from the desired angle between adjacent or nonadjacent tooth faces measured in a plane of rotation. AGMA defines and provides tolerance for adjacent and nonadjacent flute spacing errors. In addition, DIN and ISO standards provide tolerances for individual flute variation (Fig. 1).
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1994-05-01

Computerized Hob Inspection & Applications of Inspection Results - Part I

Can a gear profile generated by the hobbing method be an ideal involute? In strictly theoretical terms - no, but in practicality - yes. A gear profile generated by the hobbing method is an approximation of the involute curve. Let's review a classic example of an approximation.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1994-05-01

Designing Hardened & Ground Spur Gears to Operate With Minimum Noise

When designing hardened and ground spur gears to operate with minimum noise, what are the parameters to be considered? should tip and/or root relief be applied to both wheel and pinion or only to one member? When pinions are enlarged and he wheel reduced, should tip relief be applied? What are the effects on strength, wear and noise? For given ratios with enlarged pinions and reduced wheels, how can the gear set sized be checked or adjusted to ensure that the best combination has been achieved?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1994-05-01

Carbide Rehobbing A New Technology That Works!

Many people in the gear industry have heard of skiving, a process wherein solid carbide or inserted carbide blade hobs with 15 - 60 degrees of negative rake are used to recut gears to 62 Rc. The topic of this article is the use of neutral (zero) rake solid carbide hobs to remove heat treat distortion, achieving accuracies of AGMA 8 to AGMA 14, DIN 10-5 and improving surface finish on gears from 8 DP - 96 DP (.3 module - .26 m.).
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1994-05-01

Choosing An ISO 9000 Consultant: Why, When & How

On of the key questions confronting any company considering ISO 9000 certification is, how much is this going to cost? The up-front fees are only the beginning. Dissect the ISO 9000 certification procedure with an eye for hidden costs, and two segments of the process will leap out - the cost of consultants and the cost of making in-house improvements for the sake of passing certification. Most of these costs can be controlled by careful selection f the right consultant in the first place.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1994-01-01

Grinding Bevel Gears on Cylindrical Gear Grinding Machines

Power train designs which employ gears with cone angles of approximately 2 degrees to 5 degrees have become quite common. It is difficult, if not impossible, to grind these gears on conventional bevel gear grinding machines. Cylindrical gear grinding machines are better suited for this task. This article will provide an overview of this option and briefly introduce four grinding variation possibilities.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1994-01-01

Generation of Helical Gears with New Surface Topology by Application of CNC Machines

Analysis of helical involute gears by tooth contact analysis shows that such gears are very sensitive to angular misalignment leading to edge contact and the potential for high vibration. A new topology of tooth surfaces of helical gears that enables a favorable bearing contact and a reduced level of vibration is described. Methods for grinding helical gears with the new topology are proposed. A TCA program simulating the meshing and contact of helical gears with the new topology has been developed. Numerical examples that illustrate the proposed ideas are discussed.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1994-01-01

The Gear Hobbing Process

Gear hobbing is a generating process. The term generating refers to the fact that the gear tooth form cut is not the conjugate form of the cutting tool, the hob. During hobbing both the hob and the workpiece rotate in a continuous rotational relationship. During this rotation, the hob is typically fed axially with all the teeth being gradually formed as the tool traverses the work face (see Fig. 1a).
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1994-01-01

Cutting Worm Gears with Standard Gear Hobs

We make a lot of single-start worm and worm gear sets, and it always seems as though we're buying another special hob. We also do a lot of spur gear cutting, and the spur gear hobs and the worm gear hobs look alike, so we wonder why we cannot use the standard hobs for cutting worm gears too. Can we do this?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1994-01-01

Innovative CNC Gear Shaping

The Shaping Process - A Quick Review of the Working Principle. In the shaping process, cutter and workpiece represent a drive with parallel axes rotating in mesh (generating motion) according to the number of teeth in both cutter and workpiece (Fig. 1), while the cutter reciprocates for the metal removal action (cutting motion).
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1993-11-01

Buyers Guide 1993

Gear Technology's first annual buyers guide
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1993-11-01

Hob Basics Part II

This is Part II of a two-part series on the basics of gear hobbing. Part I discussed selection of the correct type of hobbing operation, the design features of hobs and hob accuracy. This part will cover sharpening errors and finish hob design considerations.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1993-11-01

CBN Gear Grinding - A Way to Higher Load Capacity

Because of the better thermal conductivity of CBN abrasives compared to that of conventional aluminum oxide wheels, CBN grinding process, which induces residual compressive stresses into the component, and possibly improves the subsequent stress behavior. This thesis is the subject of much discussion. In particular, recent Japanese publications claim great advantages for the process with regard to an increased component load capacity, but do not provide further details regarding the technology, test procedures or components investigated. This situation needs clarification, and for the this reason the effect of the CBN grinding material on the wear behavior and tooth face load capacity of continuously generated ground gears was further investigated.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1993-09-01

Hob Basics Part I

The Hobbing Process The hobbing process involves a hob which is threaded with a lead and is rotated in conjunction with the gear blank at a ratio dependent upon the number of teeth to be cut. A single thread hob cutting a 40-tooth gear will make 40 revolutions for each revolution of the gear. The cutting action in hobbing is continuous, and the teeth are formed in one passage of the hob through the blank. See Fig. 1 for a drawing of a typical hob with some common nomenclature.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1993-07-01

CNC Bevel Gear Generators and Flared Cup Gear Grinding

New freedom of motion available with CNC generators make possible improving tooth contact on bevel and hypoid gears. Mechanical machines by their nature are inflexible and require a special mechanism for every desired motion. These mechanisms are generally exotic and expensive. As a result, it was not until the introduction of CNC generators that engineers started exploring motion possibilities and their effect on tooth contact.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1993-07-01

Gear Tip Chamfer and Gear Noise; Surface Measurement of Spiral Bevel Gear Teeth

Could the tip chamfer that manufacturing people usually use on the tips of gear teeth be the cause of vibration in the gear set? The set in question is spur, of 2.25 DP, with 20 degrees pressure angle. The pinion has 14 teeth and the mating gear, 63 teeth. The pinion turns at 535 rpm maximum. Could a chamfer a little over 1/64" cause a vibration problem?
ASK THE EXPERT | 1993-05-01

Using Hobs for Skiving; A Pre-Finish and Finishing Solution

Our company manufactures a range of hardened and ground gears. We are looking into using skiving as part of our finishing process on gears in the 4-12 module range made form 17 CrNiMO6 material and hardened to between 58 and 62 Rc. Can you tell us more about this process?

TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1993-05-01

Computerized Recycling of Used Gear Shaver Cutters

Most gear cutting shops have shelves full of expensive tooling used in the past for cutting gears which are no longer in production. It is anticipated that these cutters will be used again in the future. While this may take place if the cutters are "standard," and the gears to be cut are "standard," most of the design work done today involves high pressure angle gears for strength, or designs for high contact ratio to reduce noise. The re-use of a cutter under these conditions requires a tedious mathematical analysis, which is no problem if a computer with the right software is available. This article describes a computerized graphical display which provides a quick analysis of the potential for the re-use of shaving cutters stored in a computer file.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1993-05-01

Initial Design of Gears Using an Artificial Neural Net

Many CAD (Computer Aided Design) systems have been developed and implemented to produce a superior quality design and to increase the design productivity in the gear industry. In general, it is true that a major portion of design tasks can be performed by CAD systems currently available. However, they can only address the computational aspects of gear design that typically require decision-making as well. In most industrial gear design practices, the initial design is the critical task that significantly effects the final results. However, the decisions about estimating or changing gear size parameters must be made by a gear design expert.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1993-03-01

Frozen Gears

Durability is the most important criterion used to define the quality of a gear. The freezing of metals has been acknowledged for almost thirty years as an effective method for increasing durability, or "wear life," and decreasing residual stress in tool steels. The recent field of deep cryogenics (below -300 degrees F) has brought us high temperature superconductors, the superconducting super collider, cryo-biology, and magnotehydrodynamic drive systems. It has also brought many additional durability benefits to metals.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 1993-03-01

Little Things Mean A Lot

"God is in the details," says the philosopher. What he meant was that on the scale of the universe, it's not just the galaxies, the planets, the mountain ranges, or the major rivers that are important. So are the subatomic particles and the genes. It's the little things that make all the difference.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1993-01-01

Line of Action: Concepts & Calculations

In the past gear manufacturers have had to rely on hob manufacturers' inspection of individual elements of a hob, such as lead, involute, spacing, and runout. These did not always guarantee correct gears, as contained elements may cause a hob to produce gears beyond tolerance limits.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1993-01-01

New Cutting Tool Developments in Gear Shaping Technology

The advent of CNC technology as applied to gear shaping machines has, in the last 10 years, led to an astonishing improvement in both productivity and quality. As is usual when developments such as this take place, the technology of the machine tool suddenly jumps ahead of that of the cutting tool, and the machine is then capable of producing faster than the cutting tool can withstand.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1993-01-01

High Technology Hobs

Today's high technology hobs are visible different from their predecessors. Gear hobs have taken on a different appearance and function with present day technology and tool and material development. This article shows the newer products being offered today and the reasons for investigating their potential for use in today's modern gear hobbers, where cost reduction and higher productivity are wanted.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1992-11-01

1992 Marks Important Gear Design Milestone: Lewis Bending Strenth Equations Now 100 Years old

Columbus' first voyage to the Americas is not the only anniversary worthy of celebration this year. In 1892, on October 15, Wilfred Lewis gave an address to the Engineer's Club of Philadelphia, whose significance, while not as great as that of Columbus' voyage, had important results for the gearing community. In this address, Lewis first publicly outlined his formula for computing bending stress in gear teeth, a formula still in use today.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1992-11-01

Tooth Contact Shift in Loaded Spiral Bevel Gears

An analytical method is presented to predict the shifts of the contact ellipses on spiral bevel gear teeth under load. The contact ellipse shift is the motion of the point to its location under load. The shifts are due to the elastic motions of the gear and pinion supporting shafts and bearings. The calculations include the elastic deflections of the gear shafts and the deflections of the four shaft bearings. The method assumes that the surface curvature of each tooth is constant near the unloaded pitch point. Results from these calculations will help designers reduce transmission weight without seriously reducing transmission performance.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1992-09-01

Base Pitch Tables

There is one dimension common to both members of a pair of properly mating spur gears - the base pitch (BP). This base pitch is equal to the circular pitch of the gear on the base circle (see Fig. 1). For a helical gear, the base pitch can be described in either the transverse or normal plane, and is called the transverse base pitch (TBP) or normal base pitch (NBP), respectively. For parallel axis helical gears, both the TBP and NBP must be the same on both mating gears. For skew axis helical gears, only the NBP must be common.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1992-09-01

CNC Technology and the System-Independent Manufacture of Spiral Bevel Gears

CNC technology offers new opportunities for the manufacture of bevel gears. While traditionally the purchase of a specific machine at the same time determined a particular production system, CNC technology permits the processing of bevel gears using a wide variety of methods. The ideological dispute between "tapered tooth or parallel depth tooth" and "single indexing or continuous indexing" no longer leads to an irreversible fundamental decision. The systems have instead become penetrable, and with existing CNC machines, it is possible to select this or that system according to factual considerations at a later date.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1992-07-01

Grinding of Spur and Helical Gears

Grinding is a technique of finish-machining, utilizing an abrasive wheel. The rotating abrasive wheel, which id generally of special shape or form, when made to bear against a cylindrical shaped workpiece, under a set of specific geometrical relationships, will produce a precision spur or helical gear. In most instances the workpiece will already have gear teeth cut on it by a primary process, such as hobbing or shaping. There are essentially two techniques for grinding gears: form and generation. The basic principles of these techniques, with their advantages and disadvantages, are presented in this section.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1992-07-01

Cutting Low-Pitch-Angle Bevel Gears, Worm Gears and The Oil Entry Gap

Question: Do machines exist that are capable of cutting bevel gear teeth on a gear of the following specifications: 14 teeth, 1" circular pitch, 14.5 degrees pressure angle, 4 degrees pitch cone angle, 27.5" cone distance, and an 2.5" face width?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1992-05-01

Gear Blanking

The term "blanking" refers to the initial metal cutting operations in the process planning sequence which produce the contour of a part starting from rough material. The scope of blanking is: To remove the excess material To machine the part to print specifications, except for those surfaces with subsequent finishing operations. To leave adequate machining stock for finishing operations. To prepare good quality surfaces for location and clamping of the part throughout the process.
MANAGEMENT MATTERS | 1992-05-01

Cost-Cutting ABCs

Cost cutting. It's the aerobics of the 90s for businesses large and small. More than just the latest buzzword or 90-second flash-in-the-panacea, it's a survival technique. Companies that aren't trimming the fat now may not be around in five years to regret that they didn't.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1992-05-01

Gear Finishing by Shaving, Rolling and Honing, Part II

Part I of this series focused on gear shaving, while Part II focuses on gear finishing by rolling and honing.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 1992-03-01

Investment Tax Credits - A Good Idea Whose Time Has Come

Of timing is crucial in the successful implementation of good ideas, then now is the time to reinstate a good idea that fell into disfavor in the mid-1980s. Now is the time to include the investment tax credit as part of whatever inevitable tax structure tinkering is going to take place during this election year.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1992-03-01

Our Experts Discuss Hobbing Ridges, Crooked Gear Teeth, and Crown Shaving

Question: When cutting worm gears with multiple lead stock hobs we find the surface is "ridged". What can be done to eliminate this appearance or is to unavoidable?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1992-03-01

Gear Finishing by Shaving, Rolling and Honing, Part I

There are several methods available for improving the quality of spur and helical gears following the standard roughing operations of hobbing or shaping. Rotary gear shaving and roll-finishing are done in the green or soft state prior to heat treating.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1992-01-01

The Right and Wrong of Modern Hob Sharpening

Precision gears play a vital role in today's economy. Through their application, automobile transmissions are more compact and efficient, ships sail faster, and diesel locomotives haul more freight. Today great emphasis is being placed upon the reduction of noise in all gear applications and, to be quiet, gears must be accurate.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1992-01-01

Optimum Shot Peening Specification - II

Following is the second part of an article begun in our last issue. The first part covered basic shot peening theory, shot peening controls, and considerations that should go into developing a shot peening specification. Part II covers optional peening methods and the relationship of shot peening specifications to the drawings.
EVENTS | 1992-01-01

Calendar

Complete calendar for January/February 1992
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1991-11-01

Optimum Shot Peening Specification - I

Shot peening is widely recognized as a prove, cost-effective process to enhance the fatigue characteristics of metal parts and eliminate the problems of stress corrosion cracking. Additional benefits accrue in the areas of forming and texturizing. Though shot peening is widely used today, the means of specifying process parameters and controlling documents for process control are not widely understood. Questions regarding shot size, intensity, and blueprint specification to assure a high quality and repeatable shot peening process are continually asked by many design and materials engineers. This article should answer many of the questions frequently asked by engineering professionals and to further assist companies interested in establishing a general shot peening specification.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1991-11-01

Recent Developments in Gear Metrology

Metrology is a vital component of gear manufacturing. Recent changes in this area, due in large part to the advent of computers, are highlighted in this article by comparison with more traditional methods.
VOICES | 1991-11-01

Viewpoint

Dear Editor: In Mr. Yefim Kotlyar's article "Reverse Engineering" in the July/August issue, I found an error in the formula used to calculate the ACL = Actual lead from the ASL = Assumed lead.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1991-09-01

SPC Acceptance of Hobbing & Shaping Machines

Today, as part of filling a typical gear hobbing or shaping machine order, engineers are required to perform an SPC acceptance test. This SPC test, while it is contractually necessary for machine acceptance, is not a machine acceptance test. It is a process capability test. It is an acceptance of the machine, cutting tool, workholding fixture, and workpiece as integrated on the cutting machine, using a gear measuring machine, with its work arbor and evaluation software, to measure the acceptance elements of the workpiece.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1991-07-01

Pineapples, Corncobs & Other Hobbing Matters

Two questions on hobbing cover the various types of hobs and their unusual names, as well as the importance of hob swivel angle.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1991-05-01

Carbide Hobs

The following article is a collection of data intended to give the reader a general overview of information related to a relatively new subject within the gear cutting industry. Although carbide hobbing itself is not necessarily new, some of the methods and types of application are. While the subject content of this article may be quite broad, it should not be considered all-inclusive. The actual results obtained and the speeds, feeds, and tool life used in carbide hobbing applications can vary significantly.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1991-05-01

The Lubrication of Gears - Part II

What follows is Part 2 of a three-part article covering the principles of gear lubrication. Part 2 gives an equation for calculating the lubricant film thickness, which determines whether the gears operate in the boundary, elastohydrodynamic, or full-film lubrication regime. An equation for Blok's flash temperature, which is used for predicting the risk of scuffing, is also given.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1991-03-01

Our Experts Discuss...

Question: I have just become involved with the inspection of gears in a production operation and wonder why the procedure specifies that four involute checks must be made on each side of the tooth of the gear being produced, where one tooth is checked and charted in each quadrant of the gear. Why is this done? These particular gears are checked in the pre-shaved, finish-shaved, and the after-heat-treat condition, so a lot of profile checking must be done.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1991-03-01

Hard Finishing By Conventional Generating and Form Grinding

The quality of a gear and its performance is determined by the following five parameters, which should be specified for each gear: Pitch diameter, involute form, lead accuracy, spacing accuracy, and true axis of rotation. The first four parameters can be measured or charted and have to be within tolerance with respect to the fifth. Pitch diameter, involute, lead, and spacing of a gear can have master gear quality when measured or charted on a testing machine, but the gear might perform badly if the true axis of rotation after installation is no longer the same one used when testing the gear.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1991-03-01

Bevel Gear Manufacturing Troubleshooting

The quality of gearing is a function of many factors ranging from design, manufacturing processes, machine capability, gear steel material, the machine operator, and the quality control methods employed. This article discusses many of the bevel gear manufacturing problems encountered by gear manufacturers and some of the troubleshooting techniques used.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1991-01-01

Influence of CBN Grinding on Quality and Endurance of Drive Train Components

The merits of CBN physical characteristics over conventional aluminum oxide abrasives in grinding performance are reviewed. Improved surface integrity and consistency in drive train products can be achieved by the high removal rate of the CBN grinding process. The influence of CBN wheel surface conditioning procedure on grinding performance is also discussed.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1991-01-01

AGMA, ISO, and BS Gear Standards Part II - Pitting Resistance Ratings

In Part I differences in pitting ratings between AGMA 218, the draft ISO standard 6336, and BS 436:1986 were examined. In this part bending strength ratings are compared. All the standards base the bending strength on the Lewis equation; the ratings differ in the use and number of modification factors. A comprehensive design survey is carried out to examine practical differences between the rating methods presented in the standards, and the results are shown in graphical form.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 1990-11-01

Looking To The Future - Part II

Beginning with our next issue, some of the promised changes in format for Gear Technology will begin showing up in these pages. As part of our commitment to provide you with important information about the gear and gear products industry, we are expanding our coverage. In addition to continuing to publish some of the best results of gear research and development throughout the world, we will be adding special columns covering vital aspects of the gearing business.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1990-11-01

Fundamentals of Bevel Gear Hard Cutting

Some years back, most spiral bevel gear sets were produced as cut, case hardened, and lapped. The case hardening process most frequently used was and is case carburizing. Many large gears were flame hardened, nitrided, or through hardened (hardness around 300 BHN) using medium carbon alloy steels, such as 4140, to avoid higher distortions related to the carburizing and hardening process.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 1990-09-01

The 332 Report

In May of this year the U.S. International Trade Commission made public its Report to the President on the condition of the U.S. gear industry. This 200+ page document is the result of a two-year study by the commission, with the help of the AGMA staff and members. It is the most comprehensive and current analytical coverage of the industry conditions and tends presently available. Because of the importance of this report to the industry, GEAR TECHNOLOGY is devoting a good portion of this issue to reprinting the Executive Summary for our readers.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1990-07-01

Efficient Methods for the Synthesis of Compound Planetary Differential Gear Trains for Multiple Speed Ratio Generation

This article presents an efficient and direct method for the synthesis of compound planetary differential gear trains for the generation of specified multiple speed ratios. It is a train-value method that utilizes the train values of the integrated train components of the systems to form design equations which are solved for the tooth numbers of the gears, the number of mating gear sets and the number of external contacts in the system. Application examples, including vehicle differential transmission units, rear-end differentials with unit and fractional speed ratios, multi-input functions generators and robot wrist joints are given.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1990-07-01

Manufacturing of Forged and Extruded Gears

Traditional methods of manufacturing precision gears usually employ either hobbing or shaper cutting. Both of these processes rely upon generating the conjugate tooth form by moving the work-piece in a precise relation to the tool. Recently, attention has been given to forming gear teeth in a single step. Advantages to such a process include reduced production time, material savings, and improved performance characteristics. Drawbacks include complicated tool designs, non-uniformity of gears produced throughout the life of the tooling, and lengthy development times.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1990-07-01

Transmission Errors and Bearing Contact of Spur, Helical, and Spiral Bevel Gears

An investigation of transmission errors and bearing contact of spur, helical, and spiral bevel gears was performed. Modified tooth surfaces for these gears have been proposed in order to absorb linear transmission errors caused by gear misalignment and to localize the bearing contact. Numerical examples for spur, helical, and spiral bevel gears are presented to illustrate the behavior of the modified gear surfaces with respect to misalignment and errors of assembly. The numerical results indicate that the modified surfaces will perform with a low level of transmission error in non-ideal operating environments.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1990-05-01

Shaper Cutters - Design & Application - Part 2

Cutter Sharpening Cutter sharpening is very important both during manufacturing and subsequently in resharpening after dulling. Not only does this process affect cutter "over cutting edge" quality and the quality of the part cut, but it can also affect the manner in which chip flow takes place on the cutter face if the surface finished is too rough or rippled.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1990-05-01

Comparative Load Capacity Evaluation of CBN-Finished Gears

Cubic boron nitride (CBN) finishing of carburized gearing has been shown to have certain economic and geometric advantages and, as a result, it has been applied to a wide variety of precision gears in many different applications. In critical applications such as aerospace drive systems, however, any new process must be carefully evaluated before it is used in a production application. Because of the advantages associated with this process, a test program was instituted to evaluate the load capacity of aerospace-quality gears finished by the CBN process as compared to geometrically identical gears finished by conventional grinding processes. This article presents a brief description of the CBN process, its advantages in an aerospace application, and the results of an extensive test program conducted by Boeing Helicopters (BH) aimed at an evaluation of the effects of this process on the scoring, surface durability, and bending fatigue properties of spur gears. In addition, the results of an x-ray diffraction study to determine the surface and subsurface residual stress distributions of both shot-peened and nonshot-peened CBN-ground gears as compared to similar conventionally ground gears are also presented.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1990-03-01

Shaper Cutters-Design & Applications Part 1

Gear shaping is one of the most popular production choices in gear manufacturing. While the gear shaping process is really the most versatile of all the gear manufacturing methods and can cut a wide variety of gears, certain types of gears can only be cut by this process. These are gears closely adjacent to shoulders; gears adjacent to other gears, such as on countershafts; internal gears, either open or blind ended; crown or face gears; herringbone gears of the solid configuration of with a small center groove; rack; parts with filled-in spaces or teeth, such as are used in some clutches.
EVENTS | 1990-01-01

Technical Calendar

Complete technical calendar for January/February 1990
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1990-01-01

Surface Fatigue Life on CBN and Vitreous Ground Carburized and Hardened AISA 9310 Spur Gears

Spur gear surface endurance tests were conducted to investigate CBN ground AISI 9310 spur gears for use in aircraft applications, to determine their endurance characteristics and to compare the results with the endurance of standard vitreous ground AISI 9310 spur gears. Tests were conducted with VIM-VAR AISI 9210 carburized and hardened gears that were finish ground with either CBN or vitreous grinding methods. Test conditions were an inlet oil temperature of 320 K (116 degree F), an outlet oil temperature of 350 K (170 degree F), a maximum Hertz stress of 1.71 GPa (248 ksi), and a speed of 10,000 rpm. The CBN ground gears exhibited a surface fatigue life that was slightly better than the vitreous ground gears. The subsurface residual stress of the CBN ground gears was approximately the same as that for the standard vitreous ground gears for the CBN grinding method used.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1989-11-01

Hard Finishing and Fine Finishing Part 2

After shaping or hobbing, the tooth flanks must be either chamfered or duburred. Here it is paramount that the secondary burr produced will not be formed into the flank, but to the face of the gear, because during hardening, the secondary burr will straighten up and, due to its extreme hardness, will lead to excessive tool wear.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1989-09-01

Hard Finishing and Fine Finishing Part 1

Profitable hard machining of tooth flanks in mass production has now become possible thanks to a number of newly developed production methods. As used so far, the advantages of hard machining over green shaving or rolling are the elaborately modified tooth flanks are produced with a scatter of close manufacturing tolerances. Apart from an increase of load capacity, the chief aim is to solve the complex problem of reducing the noise generation by load-conditioned kinematic modifications of the tooth mesh. In Part II, we shall deal with operating sequences and machining results and with gear noise problems.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1989-09-01

Gear Grinding Fundeamentals

This article deals with certain item to be taken into consideration for gear grinding, common problems that arise in gear grinding and their solutions. The discussion will be limited to jobbing or low-batch production environments, where experimental setup and testing is not possible for economic and other reasons.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1989-07-01

Estimating Hobbing Times

Hobbing is a continuous gear generation process widely used in the industry for high or low volume production of external cylindrical gears. Depending on the tooth size, gears and splines are hobbed in a single pass or in a two-pass cycle consisting of a roughing cut followed by a finishing cut. State-of-the-art hobbing machines have the capability to vary cutting parameters between first and second cut so that a different formula is used to calculate cycle times for single-cut and double-cut hobbing.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1989-03-01

Deburring & Finishing Gears with Power Brushes

Why Brushes? In this age of hi-tech, robots, automatic machines, machining cells, etc., is there a niche somewhere for power brushes? Let me answer by asking another question. What tool does the gear manufacturer have in his arsenal that allows him to deburr green gears, hardened gears, hobbed gears, ground gears and shaved gears? What tool allows him to deburr powder metal gears - green and sintered - brass gears, bronze gears, stainless gears made of exotic materials such as inconel, waspaloy, or hastaloy, and fiber and plastic gears? How about spur gears, helical gears, sprockets, both internal and external splines, clutch teeth and pump gears?
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1989-03-01

The Wafer Shaper Cutter

In 1985 a new tooling concept for high volume gear production was introduced to the gear manufacturing industry. Since then this tool, the wafer shaper cutter, has proven itself in scores of applications as a cost-effective, consistent producer of superior quality parts. This report examines the first high-production installation at the plant of a major automotive supplies, where a line of twenty shapers is producing timing chain sprockets.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1989-01-01

Fillet Geometry of Ground Gear Teeth

This article investigates fillet features consequent to tooth grinding by generating methods. Fillets resulting from tooth cutting and tooth grinding at different pressure angles and with different positions of grinding wheel are compared. Ways to improve the final fillet of the ground teeth with regard to tooth strength and noise, as well as the grinding conditions, are shown. "Undergrinding" is defined and special designs for noiseless gears are described.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1988-11-01

Gear Tooth Profile Determination From Arbitrary Rack Geometry

This article describes a method of obtaining gear tooth profiles from the geometry of the rack (or hob) that is used to generate the gear. This method works for arbitrary rack geometries, including the case when only a numerical description of the rack is available. Examples of a simple rack, rack with protuberances and a hob with root chamfer are described. The application of this technique to the generation of boundary element meshes for gear tooth strength calculation and the generation of finite element models for the frictional contact analysis of gear pairs is also described.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1988-09-01

Enhanced Product Performance--Through CBN Grinding

Modern manufacturing processes have become an ally of the product designer in producing higher quality, higher performing components in the transportation industry. This is particularly true in grinding systems where the physical properties of CBN abrasives have been applied to improving cycle times, dimensional consistency, surface integrity and overall costs. Of these four factors, surface integrity offers the greatest potential for influencing the actual design of highly stressed, hardened steel components.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1988-09-01

Crowned Spur Gears: Optimal Geometry and Generation

Involute spur gears are very sensitive to gear misalignment. Misalignment will cause the shift of the bearing contact toward the edge of the gear tooth surfaces and transmission errors that increase gear noise. Many efforts have been made to improve the bearing contact of misaligned spur gears by crowning the pinion tooth surface. Wildhaber(1) had proposed various methods of crowning that can be achieved in the process of gear generation. Maag engineers have used crowning for making longitudinal corrections (Fig. 1a); modifying involute tooth profile uniformly across the face width (Fig. 1b); combining these two functions in Fig. 1c and performing topological modification (Fig. 1d) that can provide any deviation of the crowned tooth surface from a regular involute surface. (2)
VOICES | 1988-07-01

Industry Forum

Letters to the editor on a variety of subjects, including couplings, gear planers and ausforming.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1988-07-01

High Speed Hobbing of Gears With Shifted Profiles

The newer profile-shifted (long and short addendum) gears are often used as small size reduction gears for automobiles or motorcycles. The authors have investigated the damage to each cutting edge when small size mass-produced gears with shifted profiles are used at high speeds.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1988-03-01

Contact Surface Topology of Worm Gear Teeth

Among the various types of gearing systems available to the gear application engineer is the versatile and unique worm and worm gear set. In the simpler form of a cylindrical worm meshing at 90 degree axis angle with an enveloping worm gear, it is widely used and has become a traditional form of gearing. (See Fig. 1) This is evidenced by the large number of gear shops specializing in or supplying such gear sets in unassembled form or as complete gear boxes. Special designs as well as standardized ratio sets covering wide ratio ranges and center distanced are available with many as stock catalog products.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1988-03-01

Hard Gear Finishing

Hard Gear Finishing (HGF), a relatively new technology, represents an advance in gear process engineering. The use of Computer Numerical Controlled (CNC) equipment ensures a high precision synchronous relationship between the tool spindle and the work spindle as well as other motions, thereby eliminating the need for gear trains. A hard gear finishing machine eliminates problems encountered in two conventional methods - gear shaving, which cannot completely correct gear errors in gear teeth, and gear rolling, which lacks the ability to remove stock and also drives the workpiece without a geared relationship to the master rolling gear. Such a machine provides greater accuracy, reducing the need for conventional gear crowning, which results in gears of greater face width than necessary.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1988-01-01

KHV Planetary Gearing - Part II

Consisting of only a ring gear b meshing with one or two planets a, a carrier H and an equal velocity mechanism V, a KHV gearing(Fig. 1) is compact in structure, small in size and capable of providing a large speed ratio. For a single stage, its speed ratio can reach up to 200, and its size is approximately 1/4 that of a conventional multi-stage gear box.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1987-11-01

Finishing of Gears by Ausforming

Almost all machines or mechanical systems contain precision contact elements such as bearings, cams, rears, shafts, splines and rollers. These components have two important common requirements: first, they must possess sufficient mechanical properties, such as, high hardness, fatigue strength and wear resistance to maximize their performance and life; second, they must be finished to close dimensional tolerances to minimize noise, vibration and fatigue loading.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1987-11-01

Selection of Hobbing Data

The art of gear hobbing has advanced dramatically since the development and introduction of unique machine and tool features such as no backlash, super rigidity, automatic loading of cutting tools, CNC controls, additional machine power and improved cutter materials and coatings. It is essential to utilize all these features to run the machine economically.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1987-11-01

Good Gears Start With Good Blanks

The quality of the finished gear is influenced by the very first machining operations of the blank. Since the gear tooth geometry is generated on a continuously rotating blank in hobbing or shaping, it is important that the timed relationship between the cutter and workpiece is correct. If this relationship is disturbed by eccentricities of the blank to its operating centerline, the generated gear teeth will not be of the correct geometry. During the blanking operations, the gear's centerline and locating surfaces are established and must be maintained as the same through the following operations that generate the gear teeth.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1987-11-01

Computer Aided Design for Gear Shaper Cutters

Computer programs have been developed to completely design spur and helical gear shaper cutters starting from the specifications of the gear to be cut and the type of gear shaper to be used. The programs generate the working drawing of the cutter and, through the use of a precision plotter, generate enlarge scaled layouts of the gear as produced by the cutter and any other layouts needed for its manufacture.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1987-09-01

Effects of Hob Quality and Resharpening Errors on Generating Accuracy

The modern day requirement for precision finished hobbed gears, coupled with the high accuracy characteristics of modern CNC hobbing machines, demands high tool accuracy.
PUBLISHER'S PAGE | 1987-09-01

Keeping Ahead by Keeping Up

A commitment to boost United States' industrial competitiveness in future years must strike beyond legislative action and economic debates.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1987-07-01

Longitudinal Load Distribution Factor for Straddle- and Overhang-Mounted Spur Gears

A pair of spur gears generally has an effective lead error which is caused, not only by manufacturing and assembling errors, but also by the deformations of shafts, bearings and housings due to the transmitted load. The longitudinal load distribution on a contact line of the teeth of the gears is not uniform because of the effective lead error.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1987-05-01

Hard Cutting - A Competitive Process in High Quality Gear Production

The higher load carrying capacities, compact dimensions and longer life of hardened gears is an accepted fact in industry today. However, the costs involved in case hardening and subsequent finishing operations to achieve these advantages are considerable. For example, in order to achieve desired running properties on larger gears, it has been necessary to grind the tooth flanks. This costly operation can now be replaced, in many cases, by a new Hard Cutting (HC) process which permits the cutting of hardened gears while maintaining extremely low tooling costs.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1987-05-01

Rotary Gear Honing

Rotary gear honing is a hard gear finishing process that was developed to improve the sound characteristics of hardened gears by: Removing nicks and burrs; improving surface finish; and making minor corrections in tooth irregularities caused by heat-treat distortion.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1987-03-01

The Effect of Reverse Hobbing at a High Speed

Today it is common practice when climb hobbing to keep the direction of the hob thread the same as that of the helical gear. The same generalization holds true for the mass production of gears for automobiles. It is the authors' opinion, however, that conventional hobbing with a reverse-handed hob is more effective for the high-speed manufacture of comparatively small module gears for automobiles. The authors have proven both experimentally and theoretically that reverse-handed conventional hobbing, using a multi-thread hob with a smaller diameter is very effective for lengthening the life of the hob and for increasing cutting efficiency at high speeds.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1987-03-01

Economics of CNC Gear Hobbing

NC and CNC metal cutting machines are among the most popular machine tools in the business today, There is also a strong trend toward using flexible machining centers and flexible manufacturing systems. The same trend is apparent in gear cutting. Currently the trend toward CNC tools has increased, and sophisticated controls and peripheral equipment for gear cutting machines are now available; however, the investment in a CNC gear machine has to be justified on the basis of economic facts as well as technical advantages.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1987-01-01

Gear Manufacturing Methods - Forming the Teeth

The forming of gear teeth has traditionally been a time-consuming heavy stock removal operation in which close tooth size, shape, runout and spacing accuracy are required. This is true whether the teeth are finished by a second forming operation or a shaving operation.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1986-11-01

Kinematic Analysis of Robotic Bevel-Gear Trains

In robot configurations it is desirable to be able to obtain an arbitrary orientation of the output element or end-effector. This implies a minimum of two independent rotations about two (generally perpendicular) intersecting axes. If, in addition, the out element performs a mechanical task such as in manufacturing or assembly (e.g., drilling, turning, boring, etc.) it may be necessary for the end-effector to rotate about its axis. If such a motion is to be realized with gearing, this necessitates a three-degree-of-freedom, three-dimensional gear train, which provides a mechanical drive of gyroscopic complexity; i.e., a drive with independently controlled inputs about three axes corresponding to azimuth, nutation, and spin.
VOICES | 1986-11-01

Balance is Critical - Monitoring Essential

These are changing times for industry. Trauma and uncertainty are always a part of change, and change is not always for the better. Change is usually forced, most frequently by competition. Our competitive free enterprise system should be able to respond to competition because that's its basis. These are critical years. If we do not respond effectively to change and competition, it could be disasterous.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1986-11-01

Mirror Finishing of Tooth Surfaces Using A Trial Gear Grinder With Cubic-Boron-Nitride Wheel

In conventional gear grinders, grinding wheels with Alundum grains and a hardness of about 2000 HV have been used for finishing steel gears with hardnesses up to about 1000HV. In this case, the accuracy of the gears ground is greatly affected by wear of the grinding wheel because the difference in hardness is comparatively small when the gears are fully hardened.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1986-09-01

Improved Gear Life Through Controlled Shot Peening

The search for greater gear life involves improvement in cost, weight and increased power output. There are many events that affect gear life, and this paper addresses those relating to fatigue, gear tooth pitting, fatigue strength losses due to the heat treating processes and shot peening technique. The capability of shot peening to increase fatigue strength and surface fatigue life eliminate machine marks which cause stress risers, and to aid in lubrication when properly controlled, suggests increased use and acceptance of the process.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1986-09-01

Tooth Strength Study of Spur Planet Gears

In the design of any new gear drive, the performance of previous similar designs is very carefully considered. In the course of evaluating one such new design, the authors were faced with the task of comparing it with two similar existing systems, both of which were operating quite successfully. A problem arose, however, when it was realized that the bending stress levels of the two baselines differed substantially. In order to investigate these differences and realistically compare them to the proposed new design, a three-dimensional finite-element method (FEM) approach was applied to all three gears.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1986-09-01

Engineering Constants

Rules and Formula for Gear Sizes
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1986-07-01

Bevel Gear Development and Testing Procedure

The most conclusive test of bevel and hypoid gears is their operation under normal running conditions in their final mountings. Testing not only maintains quality and uniformity during manufacture, but also determines if the gears will be satisfactory for their intended applications.
VOICES | 1986-07-01

Viewpoint

Since we are a high volume shop, we were particularly interested in Mr. Kotlyar's article describing the effects of hob length on production efficiency which appeared in the Sept/Oct issue of Gear Technology. Unfortunately, some readers many be unnecessarily deterred from applying the analysis to their own situations by the formidabilty of the mathematical calculations. I am making the following small suggestion concerning the evaluation of the constant terms.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1986-05-01

Generating and Checking Involute Gear Teeth

It has previously been demonstrated that one gear of an interchangeable series will rotate with another gear of the same series with proper tooth action. It is, therefore, evident that a tooth curve driven in unison with a mating blank, will "generate" in the latter the proper tooth curve to mesh with itself.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1986-05-01

Viewpoint

Sub: 'Finding Tooth Ratios' article published in Nov/Dec 1985 issue Let us congratulate you and Orthwein, W.C. for publishing this superb article in Gear Technology Journal. We liked the article very much and wish to impliment it in our regular practice.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1986-05-01

A Wheel Selection Technique for Form Gear Grinding

Until recently, form gear grinding was conducted almost exclusively with dressable, conventional abrasive grinding wheels. In recent years, preformed, plated Cubic Boron Nitride (CBN) wheels have been introduced to this operation and a considerable amount of literature has been published that claim that conventional grinding wheels will be completely replaced in the future. The superior machining properties of the CBN wheel are not disputed in this paper.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1986-05-01

Identification of Gear Noise with Single Flank Composite Measurement

Anyone involved in the design, manufacture and use of gears is concerned with three general characteristics relative to their application: noise, accuracy, and strength or surface durability. In the article, we will be dealing with probably the most aggravating of the group, gear noise.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1986-03-01

Controlling Tooth Loads In Helical Gears

Helical gears can drive either nonparallel or parallel shafts. When these gears are used with nonparallel shafts, the contact is a point, and the design and manufacturing requirements are less critical than for gears driving parallel shafts.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1986-03-01

Design and Selection of Hobs

The following is a general overview of some of the different factors that lead to the specific design. and the selection of the correct tool for a given hobbing application.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1986-03-01

CNC Gear Shaping

Two major processes used for cutting gears, hobbing and shaping. This article describes advanced machine design and cutter materials for gear shaping.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1986-01-01

The Process of Gear Shaving

Gear shaving is a free-cutting gear finishing operation which removes small amounts of metal from the working surfaces of the gear teeth. Its purpose is to correct errors in index, helical angle, tooth profile and eccentricity. The process can also improve tooth surface finish and eliminate, by crowned tooth forms, the danger of tooth end load concentrations in service. Shaving provides for form modifications that reduce gear noise. These modifications can also increase the gear's load carrying capacity, its factor of safety and its service life.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1986-01-01

Lower Grinding Costs and Better Workpiece Quality by High Performance Grinding with CBN Wheels

A considerable improvement in the performance of the machining of hard to grind materials can be achieved by means of CBN wheels.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1986-01-01

Effect of Shot Peening on Surface Fatigue Life of Carburized and Hardened AISI 1910 Spur Gears

Gear surface fatigue endurance tests were conducted on two groups of 10 gears each of carburized and hardened AlSI 9310 spur gears manufactured from the same heat of material
VOICES | 1985-11-01

Industry Forum

One of the current research activities here at California State University at Fullerton is systematization of existing knowledge of design of planetary gear trains.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1985-11-01

Technological Fundamentals of CBN Bevel Gear Finish Grinding

The bevel gear grinding process, with conventional wheels, has been limited to applications where the highest level of quality is required.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1985-11-01

General Equations for Gear Cutting Tool Calculations

The proper design or selection of gear cutting tools requires thorough and detailed attention from the tool designer. In addition to experience, intuition and practical knowledge, a good understanding of profile calculations is very important.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1985-11-01

Gear Shaping Machines CNC Developement

Up until approximately 1968-69, pinion cutter-type gear shaping machines had changed very little since their conception in the early 1900's.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1985-09-01

New Techniques for Aligning and Maintaining Large Ring Gears

This paper presents two new techniques for aligning and maintaining large ring gears. One technique uses lubricant temperature analysis, and the other uses stop action photography.
VOICES | 1985-09-01

Industry Forum

Your May/June issue contains a letter from Edward Ubert of Rockwell International with some serious questions about specifying and measuring tooth thickness.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1985-09-01

Hob Length Effects

Hobbing is probably the most popular gear manufacturing process. Its inherent accuracy and productivity makes it a logical choice for a wide range of sizes.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1985-07-01

Dynamic Analysis of Straight and Involute Tooth Form

The effect of load speed on straight and involute tooth forms is studied using several finite-element models.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1985-03-01

Gear Grinding Techniques Parallel Axes Gears

The fundamental purpose of gear grinding is to consistently and economically produce "hard" or "soft" gear tooth elements within the accuracy required by the gear functions. These gear elements include tooth profile, tooth spacing, lead or parallelism, axial profile, pitch line runout, surface finish, root fillet profile, and other gear geometry which contribute to the performance of a gear train.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1985-03-01

Hard Gear Processing with Skiving Hobs

As we approach the problem of hard gear processing, it is well to take a look at the reason for discussing it at this time. In our present economic atmosphere throughout the world, more and more emphasis is being placed upon efficiency which is dictated by higher energy costs.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1985-03-01

Tooth Forms for Hobs

The gear hobbing process is a generating type of production operation. For this reason, the form of the hob tooth is always different from the form of the tooth that it produces.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1985-01-01

Computer Aided Design (CAD) of Forging and Extrusion Dies for the Production of Gears by Forming

Material losses and long production times are two areas of conventional spur and helical gear manufacturing in which improvements can be made. Metalforming processes have been considered for manufacturing spur and helical gears, but these are costly due to the development times necessary for each new part design. Through a project funded by the U.S. Army Tank - Automotive Command, Battelle's Columbus Division has developed a technique for designing spur and helical gear forging and extrusion dies using computer aided techniques.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1984-10-01

Gear Generating Using Rack Cutters

Universal machines capable of cutting both spur and helical gears were developed in 1910, followed later by machines capable of cutting double helical gears with continuous teeth. Following the initial success, the machines were further developed both in England and France under the name Sunderland, and later in Switzerland under the name Maag.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1984-10-01

Scoring Load Capacity of Gears Lubricated with EP-Oils

The Integral Temperature Method for the evaluation of the scoring load capacity of gears is described. All necessary equations for the practical application are presented. The limit scoring temperature for any oil can be obtained from a gear scoring test.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1984-08-01

Precision Forged Spiral Bevel Gears

A recent U.S. Army Tank-Automotive Command project, conducted by Battelle's Columbus Laboratories. successfully developed the methodology of CAD/CAM procedures for manufacturing dies (via EDM) for forging spiral bevel gears. Further, it demonstrated that precision forging of spiral bevel gears is a practical production technique. Although no detailed economic evaluation was made in this study, it is expected that precision forging offers an attractive alternative to the costly gear cutting operations for producing spiral bevel gears.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1984-08-01

Economics of CNC Gear Gashing vs. Large D.P. Hobbing

Gear gashing is a gear machining process, very much like gear milling, utilizing the principle of cutting one or more tooth (or tooth space) at a time. The term "GASHING" today applies to the roughing, or roughing and finishing, of coarse diametral pitch gears and sprockets. Manufacturing these large coarse gears by conventional methods of rough and finish hobbing can lead to very long machining cycles and uneconomical machine utilization.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1984-05-01

Advantages of Titanium Nitride Coated Gear Tools

A brief introduction to the subject of Thin Film Coatings and their application to gear hobs and shaper cutters is followed by a detailed description of the Chemical Vapor Deposition Process and the Physical Vapor Deposition Process. Advantages and disadvantages of each of these processes is discussed. Emphasis is placed upon: application engineering of coated gear tools based on laboratory and field test results. Recommendations are suggested for tool design improvements and optimization of gear cutting operations using coated tools. Productivity improvements potentially available by properly utilizing coated tools are considered in terms of both tool cost and machining cost.
TECHNICAL ARTICLES | 1984-05-01

CNC Controlled CBN Form Grinding

Borazon is a superabrasive material originally developed by General Electric in 1969. It is a high performance material for machining of high alloy ferrous and super alloy materials. Borazon CBN - Cubic Born Nitride - is manufactured with a high temperature, high pressure process similar to that utilized with man-made diamond. Borazon is, next to diamond, the hardest abrasive known; it is more than twice as hard as aluminum oxide. It has an extremely high thermal strength compared to diamond. It is also much less chemically reactive with iron, cobalt or nickel alloys.
FEATURE ARTICLES | 1984-05-01

Gear Design

A gear can be defined as a toothed wheel which, when meshed with another toothed wheel with similar configuration, will transmit rotation from one shaft to another. Depending upon the type and accuracy of motion desired, the gears and the profiles of the gear teeth can be of almost any form.
INDUSTRY NEWS | 1984-05-01

The Process of Gear Shaving

Gear shaving is a free-cutting gear finishing operation which removes small amounts of metal from the working surfaces of the gear teeth. Its purpose is to correct errors in index, helical angle, tooth profile and eccentricity.
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