WOLAITA SODO UNIVERSITY

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

Automotive stream
Gear drives

Prepared by: id no

1. Robham solomon ………………………… eng/r/694/10

2. Yosef Alemu ………………………………. eng/r/767/10
3. Kirubel tilahun ………………………….. Eng/r/562/10
4.yohanes Makonnen…………………………. eng/r/292/10
5.nathnael yaro ……………………………. eng/r/273/10
6.mesay tsegaye……………………………… eng/r/451/10

submitted to:

Mr. Tesfaye tamiru (MSc)

submission date

January, 2022
 GEAR DRIVES
INTRODUCTION
Gear drive has become the most important and popular means of motion and power transmission
system. Gears are components of machines for the transmission of power and motion from one
shaft to other separated by small distance. It is a toothed wheel, i.e., wheel with a number of teeth.
It provides with projections known as teeth and in between two teeth, there is a vacant space, which
is called tooth space, to accommodate the incoming tooth in rotation. AS it appears, toothed wheels
avoid the problem of slippage which is quite prominent in belt drive. Hence, these wheels produce
positive drive and no slip. When one gear wheel rotates, other wheel also rotates in the opposite
direction. The motion of meshing gears is similar to that of a pair of two pitch cylinders which roll
without slip.

Basic Theories of Gear Drives

Let us assume that two plain wheels P and Q are fixed to two parallel shafts and pressed tightly in
contact with each other. If wheel P rotates about its axis, other wheel Q also rotates in opposite
direction due to friction. The surface of the two wheels rotates with the same speed if there is no
slipping. Thus, rotary motion is transferred from one shaft to another. It is quite apparent that with
the increase of load to be transferred, the wheels will begin to slip with each other. In order to
prevent slipping, grooves may be cut on the cylindrical surface of the wheel and projections of
metal are added in between them alternatively. These grooves cut and the projections of profile
form teeth and the wheels with these will be called toothed wheels or toothed gears.

What is a Gear drive?

A Gear is a machine component, which is used to transmit mechanical power from one shaft to the
other by successively engaging its teeth.
Gears are one of the most used method of mechanical power transmission in the machines. Power
transmission by the gears have almost 100% efficiency.
Advantages of Gear drive

▪ It is positive drive hence velocity remains constant

▪ Provisions for changing velocity ratios can be made with the help of gear box
▪ Its efficiency is very high

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 ▪ It can be used even for low speeds
▪ It can transmit high torque values
▪ It is compact in construction
Disadvantages of Gear drive
▪ They are not suitable when shafts are distant
▪ At high speeds noise and vibration happens
▪ It requires lubrication
▪ It has no flexibility
Reasons of Gear failure
There are following reasons of Gear failure.
▪ Abrasive wear
▪ Corrosive wear
▪ Initial pitting
▪ Destructive pitting
▪ Scoring
Depending on the requirement and place of use there are several types of Gears.
Types of Gear Failure
Let’s start by looking at the main things that can cause a gear to fail:
• Wear and tear. Wear and tear happen when the gear is used repeatedly, and is practically
inevitable. Small chips, scuffs, and other forms of damage accumulate over time.
• Corrosion. Corrosion is a chemical breakdown that often happens over time, or when the
gear is exposed to certain types of substances.
• Pitting. Pitting occurs as a series of small pits in the gear, and typically happens due to an
improper fit, or with excessive loads or stress.
Gear Failure Prevention
You can prevent almost every type of gear failure with the following precautions:
• Initial quality. First, you’ll need to ensure you’re working with a gear manufacturer that
cares about the quality of their work. Shoddy materials or poor craftsmanship can lead to
gears with flaws, which can suffer more wear and tear over time.

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 • Maintenance. Next, you’ll need to maintain your gears regularly. Some applications
require lubrication, while others will need cleaning. Almost all will require a routine
inspection to evaluate any sustained damage.
• Replacement. If a gear is showing signs of wear and tear, it’s a good idea to replace it
immediately. The longer you wait, the worse things will get.
If you notice one of your gears starting to wear out, don’t let the damage accumulate. Repair
what you can, and replace what you can’t. If you need help with the decision, or if you’re
ready for a new set of gears, contact Federal Gear for a quote today!
Types of Gears
1. Parallel shafts
This is the case when we have to transmit power between two parallel shafts.
▪ Spur gears
Spur Gears are used for the power transfer in the shafts which are parallel to each other. They have
straight teeth as shown in above image.

Fig .1 spur gear

▪ Spur rack and pinion
The long bar shown in the image is known as rack and the gear is known as pinion. We know that
in a gear meshing, generally small Gear is known as Pinion but why the single Gear used here is
known as Pinion.
The reason is we consider the Rack as a very large Gear with infinite diameter so that it looks
almost straight and hence the other gear than rack is known as pinion.

Fig. 2 spur rack and pinion

▪ Helical gears or helical spur gears
Helical gears are almost same as spur gears but they have inclined teeth for uniform and silent
teeth meshing. Power transmitting capacity of helical spur gears is more than that of normal spur
gears.

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 Fig. 3 helical gears or helical spur gear
▪ Double helical gears
The helical gears some unbalanced force remains in the system due to inclined teeth so, to balance
that unbalanced force we use double helical gears which has inclined teeth in both the directions.
One should note that there is a gap between two sets of inclined teeth. Power transfer capacity of
double helical gear is more than simple helical gear.

Fig. 4 double helical gears

2. Intersecting shafts
This is the case when the shafts (between which the power is to be transmitted) are mutually
intersecting.
▪ Spiral bevel gears
Spiral bevel gears are used for power transmission in the shafts which are perpendicular to each
other. Due to spiral teeth, they provide uniform and silent teeth engagement. It has more power
transmitting capacity than zero bevel gears.

Fig. 5 spiral bevel gear

▪ Zero bevel gears
Zero bevel gears or simply Bevel gears have straight teeth. The teeth engagement not as uniform
and smooth as in spiral bevel gears.

Fig. 6 zero bevel gear

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 3. Skew shafts
This is the case when the shafts (between which the power is to be transmitted) are non-parallel
and non-intersecting.
▪ Cross helical gears
Cross helical gears are used for non-parallel and non-intersecting shafts.

Fig. 7 cross helical gears

▪ Worm gears
Sometimes this type of gear arrangement is also known as worm and wheel. Here the long rod
having spiral is the worm. We should note one thing that worm can rotate the Gear but reverse is
not true.

Fig. 8 worm gears

▪ Hypoid gears
Hypoid gears as same as spiral bevel gears but the only difference is that the center line of both
the shafts do not intersect in Hypoid gears. Alternatively, we can say that there is some eccentricity
in the center line of the shafts in the Hypoid gear arrangement

Fig. 9 hypoid gears

Materials used to manufacture gears
Tempered steel is one of the most common materials for different types of gears, and aluminum is
also common. Other materials used are:
• High strength steels
• Forged stainless steels
• Copper-based alloys
• Cast or forged aluminum alloys
• Cast iron or grey cast iron
• Magnesium alloys

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As for plastic materials, which have self-extinguishing properties, polycarbonate (PC),
polyamide or PVC stand out, as well as acetal resins. Moreover, among non-fuel materials.
Applications & Utilities of Gears
The different types of gears are present in many sectors, such as:
• The agricultural sector, in which they play a key role in carrying out mechanized
tasks, such as sowing, ploughing or irrigation, as well as in the tractors themselves.
• In the automotive field, their function is usually to act as transmitters of forces and
to regulate speed.
• As for naval vehicles, gears operate on fishing boats, submarines, workboats or
yachts.
• In the generation of wind power, gears increase the speed of generators, a function
that is also used by cement manufacturing industries. Roller mills are used for the
transport of slabs and for wire rolling mills.
In addition, there are four applications of gears that are particularly emblematic, and which
are implemented in countless sectors and fields.
CONCLUSION

Maintenance of gear drives involves proper selection, proper installation, proper loading of the
unit, proper lubrication, and periodic inspection. Metallic gears have tremendous service life when
properly used and cared for.