With the increasing mechanical power capacity of gearboxes, the thermal power limit tends to become the limiting factor. To achieve a balanced system, the gear unit needs extra cooling. Using a fan that is mounted to a fast rotating shaft is a common solution. For this solution an optimal design is investigated.

Approximately one quarter of all servo motors around the world require some type of gear reduction in their applications. From large satellite dishes to precision medical devices, gearboxes boost torque and reduce speed for servos in order for them to be sized more efficiently. While gearbox fundamentals haven't changed much over the past 20 years, their effectiveness has improved significantly, driven mostly by the need to accommodate advancements in servo technology.

Gear drives focus on longevity, quality and customization.

Gearboxes are important assemblies within mechatronic systems. During the design phase of such systems it is essential to know the gearbox behavior under consideration of dynamic interactions with its environment. Holistic system simulation helps the engineer to understand this and to improve, adjust, or optimize gearboxes and their application.

Modern drivetrains with voltage-source inverters not only offer advantages like, for example, variable speed operation, increased efficiency and higher dynamics, but also an increase in failures caused by induced parasitic currents.

Standardized calculation methods such as ISO 6336 and DIN 3990 already exist to determine the load distributions on gears inside a planetary gearbox, but by their very universal nature, these methods offer varying results depending on the gearbox design. Double helical gears, in particular, can benefit from more specific, complex algorithms to reach a maximum level of efficiency. Double helical gears interact with the rest of the gearbox differently than helical or spur gears, and thus benefit from different analytical models outside the standardized methods. The present research project describes the algorithm to determine the load distribution of planetary gearboxes with double helical gears.

For the lubrication of open gear drives used in different industrial applications such as cement and coal mills, rotary furnaces, or where the sealing conditions are difficult, semi-fluid greases are often used in preference to fluid oils. For girth gear applications the greases are used with a splash or spray lubrication system. The selection of such greases influences pitting lifetime and the load-carrying capacity of the gears, as well as wear behavior

Gearing is an essential component in conveyors. The material handling industry appears divided between those who favor high-end three-stage helical bevel gearboxes and those who rely on less expensive worm gearing. But there’s an often over-looked alternative, the two-stage helical bevel gearbox.

As gear efficiency is improved in small steps, it is important to be able to distinguish actual improvements from scatter that can occur while testing. An FZG back-to-back gear test rig was used to investigate how the assembly and re-assembly of the same test setup affects the measurements. A spread in torque loss between one assembly and another of the same test setup were observed. Rig conditions also affected the spread in input torque. With knowledge of how the spread in torque loss varies due to assembly, test results could be distinguished between changes due to assembly and actual differences between tests.

The improvement of the energy efficiency of industrial gear motors and gearboxes is a common problem for many gear unit manufacturers and end-users. As is typical of other mechanical components, the radial lip seals used in such units generate friction and heat, thus contributing to energy losses of mechanical systems. There exist today simulation tools that are already helping improve the efficiency of mechanical systems — but accurate models for seal frictional losses need to be developed. In this paper SKF presents an engineering model for radial lip seal friction based on a physical approach.