A GEAR-CHAIN BASED TRANSMISSION FOR THE MACHINE ELEMENTS DESIGN LABORATORY

This project describes the collaboration of two instructors, one from the mechanical engineering department and one from the mathematics department with a group of mechanical engineering students to build and analyze a new type of transportation transmission. Current transmissions have torque limitations when working at various vehicle loading conditions. The ideal vehicle transmission is a continuously variable transmission that delivers optimum torque at any loading condition. The motivation for this research project is to design a new transmission that would increase the number of gear ratios using a chain element, and consequentially, increasing the number of available torques to achieve better overall vehicle performance. The new transmission consists of two planetary gears systems linked by a chain. It includes multiple inputs and outputs with the possibility of using one of the outputs to drive other engine components. The system is currently investigated for all possible gear ratios and usable torque configurations. The gear ratios are determined using Willis's formula for planetary gear systems. All possible gear combinations are investigated and their gear ratios mathematically determined. A prototype was designed and built. It is being automatized, currently.