Modified involute helical gears: computerized design, simulation of meshing and stress analysis

The contents of the paper cover: (i) computerized design, (ii) methods for generation, (iii) simulation of meshing,. and (iv) enhanced stress analysis of modified involute helical gears. The approaches proposed for modification of conventional involute helical gears are based on conjugation of double-crowned pinion with a conventional helical involute gear. Double-crowning of the pinion means deviation of cross-profile from an involute one and deviation in longitudinal direction from a helicoid surface. The pinion-gear tooth surfaces are in point contact, the bearing contact is localized and oriented longitudinally, edge contact is avoided, the influence of errors of alignment on the shift of bearing contact and vibration and noise are reduced substantially. The developed theory is illustrated with numerical examples that confirm the advantages of the gear drives of the modified geometry in comparison with conventional helical involute gears. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.