Dynamics Simulation and Fatigue Life Study of the Drive System of Rack and Pinion Climbing Vertical Shiplift

A combination method of virtual simulation techniques was proposed for fatigue life of vertical shiplift's big modulus gear. A Three-dimensional assembly model of rack and pinion mechanism was established by SolidWorks and its plug GearTrax, then dynamics simulation was conducted based on ADAMS, the relative error between simulation results and static load was 2.2%, indicating the accuracy of the simulation. Bending stress of the big modulus gear was analysed by ANSYS, the error was 1.6% compared with the theoretical value. Using the obtained load history data and bending stress results, the big modulus gear's fatigue life was predicted based on nominal stress method, the result showed that the big modulus gear could well meet the design requirements.