Innovative plastic harmonic drive gear system

This report describes a new plastic harmonic drive gear system of compact design which allows high reduction ratios to be achieved. As it is entirely made of plastic and contains few components, it is extremely cost attractive. This article outlines the calculation methods and design details that were necessary for the development of this new gear system for mass production. Information is given about the differences in design between the already existing metal gear systems and the new low-cost plastic systems. The consequential differences in the form of the gear teeth are also described. In addition, test results for prototypes are compared to known gear systems.