Design of Gears

R. K. Pandey, Ph.D.
Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
I.I.T. Delhi, New Delhi-110 106, India
Email: rajpandey@mech.iitd.ac.in 1
Gear: Machine element
which has teeth cut around a
cylindrical or cone-shaped
surface with equal spacing.
Meshed gearsets are used to
transmit rotations and torques
from the driving shaft to the
driven shaft. There are
different types of gears.

Velocity ratio (VR): The ratio of the number of

revolutions of the driving (or input) gear to the
number of revolutions of the driven (or output)
gear. 2
Difference between gear and gearing
Gears are rotating mechanical devices employing
'teeth' in order to transmit torque between
separate axes.

Gearing is task done with gears.

3
 Variety of Gears

Helical gears: teeth are

Spur gears : teeth inclined to the axis of
profiles are parallel to rotation, the angle
the axis of rotation, provides more gradual
transmits motion engagement of the teeth
between parallel shafts. during meshing, transmits
motion between parallel
shafts. 4
 Straight Bevel Gear
Bevel Gear: teeth
are formed on a
conical surface, used
to transfer motion
Spiral Bevel Gear
between non-
parallel and
intersecting shafts.
5
Worm gear set: consists Gear
of a helical gear and a
power screw (worm), used
to transfer motion between
non-parallel and non- Worm
intersecting shafts.

Rack and Pinion set: a Pinion

special case of spur gears
with the gear having an
infinitely large diameter,
the teeth are laid flat.
Rack 6
Gearset: Two
gears in mesh

Pinion: Smaller
of two gears

7
Nomenclature /Terminology

8
9
Law of Gearing
(Constant velocity ratio of gears)

Two teeth come in contact at point Q,

and the wheels rotate in the directions
as shown. TT be the common tangent
and MN be the common normal to the
curves at point of contact Q.

Drawing perpendicular from centres (of

rotation) to MN. Point Q moves in the
direction QC, when considered as a point on
body-1 and in the direction QD when
considered as a point on body-2.

10
Assuming v1 and v2 as velocities of
the point Q on the body-1 and
body-2, respectively. If the teeth
have to remain in contact, then
the components of these velocities
along the common normal MN
must be equal.

v1 cos (α) = v2 cos (β)

ω1/ ω2 = O2 N/ O1 M = O2 P/ O1 P

Law of gearing: The common normal at the point of

contact between a pair of teeth must always pass through
the pitch point. 11
Fundamental law of gearing
Angular velocity ratio between
gears of a gearset must remain
constant throughout the mesh
mV  out / in  rin / rout
VR (velocity ratio) =
(ωp / ωg) = (dg / dp) = (Ng / Np)
12
-Involute profile
-Cycloidal profile
13
Involute
profile

14
15
Torque ratio or Mechanical
advantage ( mA )

mA  1/ mV  in / out  rout / rin

16
Circular pitch : pc   d / N

Diametral pitch : p d  N / d

Module : m  d / N

17
 Module and
corresponding
tooth size

Standard diametric pitch and corresponding tooth size

18
Pressure angle ()
Angle between the line of action (common
tangent) and the direction of velocity at the
pitch point.

19
Pressure angle ()

1. Standard values are 14.50 ,

200 and 250 .
2. 200 most commonly used.
3. 14.50 is now obsolete.

14.50 200 250 20

Note: Two mating gears must have
the same diametric pitch or module
(m) and pressure angle ().

21
Interference and undercutting

The involute tooth

form is only defined
outside of the base
circle. Portion of
tooth below the base
circle will not be
involute and will
interfere with tip of
the tooth on the
mating gear.
22
Difference between base circle, root circle and
dedendum circle.

23
1. Minimum number of teeth needed on pinion
to avoid interference

2. Profile shifted gears to avoid interference

24
Gear manufacturing:
1. Forming (casting, molding,
drawing, extrusion etc.)
2. Machining (milling, shaping,
hobbing etc.)

25
Gear finishing processes:
1. Shaving
2. Grinding
3. Burnishing
4. Lapping
5. Honing
26
Gear materials:
1. Grey cast iron
2. Steels [medium to high
carbon (C35 to C60), alloy
steel]
3. Bronzes [Copper alloys]
4. Thermoplastics
27
For gear design, the following
steps are essential:
1.Kinematics of gear teeth and gear trains
2.Force analysis
3.Design based on tooth bending strength
4.Design based on tooth surface strength

28
Pair of meshed pinion and gear teeth

29
Free body diagrams of pinion and gear

30
Force analysis (Helical gear)
n = normal pressure angle
t = tangential pressure angle
ψ= helix angle
tan n = tan t cos ψ

Wr = W sin n
Wt = W cos  n cos ψ
Wa = W cos n sin ψ
Where W = total force
Wr = radial component
Wt = tangential component (transmitted load)
Wa = axial component (thrust load)
t = pressure angle (20o or 25o)
Wr = Wt tan t
Wa = Wt tan ψ  = helix angle (10, 20, 30, or 40o)
31
American Gear Manufacturers Association
(AGMA) has for many years been the responsible
authority for the dissemination of knowledge pertaining
to the analysis and design of gears and gearing.
AGMA has helped to set national gearing
standards since 1916. The association
also serves the focal point within the
United States for the development of ISO
gearing standards. Today, this work is
carried out by 23 Active Technical
Committees. AGMA standards address
nearly all the critical gearing topics, from
load capacity and lubrication to accuracy
and inspection. 32
Tooth bending strength

Lewis Formula:

W. Lewis (1892)
was the first to
present a formula
for computing the
bending stress in
gear tooth.

33
Assumptions made in deriving Lewis’
equation

1. The load is applied to the tip of a single tooth

i.e. one pair of teeth takes the entire load.
2. The radial component of the load, Wr , is
negligible (it induces compressive load).
3. The load is uniformly distributed across the
full face width.
4. Stress concentration at the tooth fillet is
negligible.
5. Tooth sliding friction forces are negligible.
34
1. Highest point of single-tooth contact (HPSTC)
2. Tip loading

35
36
Bending stress

Lewis’ equation,
where
37
Modifications in Lewis equation according to
AGMA standards (American Gear Manufacturers
Association)
Modified Lewis
equation

Wt tangential transmitted load

Ka application factor (accounts shocks)
KV dynamic factor (account for internally generated vibration)
KS size factor (refer fatigue concept)
KI Idler factor
Pd transverse diametral pitch
F face width of the narrower member
Km load-distribution factor (accounts axial misalignment)
KB rim-thickness factor (gear has rim and spokes)
J geometry factor for bending strength
which includes root fillet stress concentration factor Kf
38
Bending Stress Modifying Factors

Geometry factor J

39
40
Dynamic factor (Kv )

41
Application factor, Ka

42
Size factor, Ks

AGMA has not established

standards for size factor and
recommends that Ks be set to 1.

43
Rim thickness factor, KB

Backup ratio (mB)

KB = -2mB + 3.4 0.5  mB  1.2

KB = 1.0 mB  1.2

44
Load Distribution factor, Km

45
AGMA Bending Fatigue Strengths
for Gear Materials

Sfb is the corrected strength

KL is life factor

KT is the temperature factor

KR is the reliability factor

46
Reliability factor, KR

47
Temperature factor, KT
AGMA recommends using temperature factor
of 1 for operating temperatures (lubricant
temperature) up to 250oF. For higher
temperatures it can be estimated from:

KT=(460+TF)/620
This equation is valid for steel made gears.

48
KL is life factor

49
50
AGMA Bending Fatigue
Strength for the Steels
may be read from Book
by Norton.

51
Surface Durability Analysis

Surface fatigue failure due to

many repetitions of high contact
stresses may be evaluated using
the expression for the surface
contact stress.

52
 Contact Stresses
Two bodies having curved
surfaces are pressed together then
point/line contact changes to area
contact and the stresses
developed in the two bodies will
be 3-D.
53
(a) Two spheres held in (b) Contact stress at
contact by force F face of width 2a 54
Stress
components
below the
surface of
contacting
spheres

55
(a) Two cylinders held in contact by force F;
(b) Contact stress at face of contact of width 2b 56
Stress
components
below the
surface of
contacting
cylinders

57
Plot of
shear
stresses
below the
surfaces
for point
and line
contacts
58
Surface Durability Analysis
pmax = 2W/(  b l)
Where,
pmax = largest surface pressure
W = force pressing the two cylinders
l = length of cylinders

59
 pmax = 2W/(  b l)
1/ 2
 2W (1  ) / E1   (1  ) / E1  
2 2

b
1 1

  l 1/ d1   1/ d 2  

 W 1/ d1   1/ d 2  
c  
2 t

  F cos  (1  1 ) / E1   (1  1 ) / E1  
2 2


60
Proper lubricating system
can minimize the surface
damage due to wear and
corrosion. But, surface
fatigue can occur even with
proper lubrication and it’s
the most common mode of
gear failure and is
characterized by pitting and
spalling of the tooth
surface. The damage is
caused by repeated contact
stresses. 61
 Stress at concentrated line contact
(Buckingham equation)

1/ 2
 W 1/ d1   1/ d 2  
c   t

  F cos  (1  1 ) / E1   (1  1 ) / E1  
2 2


62
AGMA Surface Stress Equation

Cp elastic coefficient, (lb/in2)0.5

Wt transmitted tangential load
Ca overload factor (same as Ka)
Cv dynamic factor (same as Kv)
Cs size factor (same as Ks)
Cm load-distribution factor (same as Km)
Cf surface condition factor
d pitch diameter of the pinion
F face width of the narrowest member
I geometry factor
63
 Surface Geometry Factor (I)

This factor takes into account the radii

of curvature of the pinion/gear teeth
and the pressure angle. AGMS provides
equations for ‘I’ for different type of
gears. Please refer pages 724/725 and
761/764 of the main text book for
procedures of calculation of ‘I’ for spur
and helical gears, respectively.
64
AGMA Elastic coefficient, CP

65
Surface finish factor Cf

AGMA recommends using

surface finish factor of 1 for gears
made by conventional methods.

66
AGMA Surface Fatigue Strength Equation

Refer Table 11-21 for Sfc’

67
68
69
For CH refer Machine
Design book by
Norton.

70
Safety factors against bending failure:

Nb pinion = Sfb/b pinion

Nb gear = Sfb/b gear

71
Safety factor against surface failure:

Nc pinion-gear = (Sfc/c pinion ) 2

The safety factor against surface failure is found by

comparing the actual load to the load that would produce a
stress equal to the material’s corrected surface strength.
Because surface stress is related to the square root of the
load, the surface fatigue safety factor can be calculated as
the quotient of the square of the corrected surface strength
divided by the square of the surface stress for each gear in
the mesh. 72
Please go through the
case study-7C printed on pages
741-747 of the text book
(Machine Design –An Integrated
Approach written by R. L.
Norton. This will bring clarity
related to the gear design.

73
Exercise:
Following figure shows photographic and
schematic views of a reducer (a helical
gear set). The reducer connects a steam
turbine and an alternator in a power plant.
Shafts of the turbine (corresponds to
pinion shaft) and alternator (corresponds
to gear shaft) rotate at 8350 rpm and 1500
rpm, respectively.
74
 …continued
A need arises to determine the fatigue
safety factors of the pinion and gear teeth
for the data mentioned below:
Centre distance = 432 mm
Power to be transmitted = 3 MW
Plant operation= 3 shifts of 8 hours
Expected life of the reducer= 20 years

75
 …continued
Assume involute teeth profiles and
number of teeth on the pinion and gear 20
and 111, respectively. AGMA standard
full depth teeth may be used in design.
Both pinion and gear are made of same
material and the mating teeth surfaces
have equal hardness 60 HRC.

76
…continued

77
 Design steps
Step-1:
Number of teeth on gear and pinion:

(Ng)=111, Np=20
Velocity ratio:
mG= Ng/Np=111/20=5.55
78
Step-2:

Torque on the pinion shaft:

Tp = P/p
= 3.0 x 106 / (2 x x8350 / 60)
= 3430 N-m

79
Step-3:

Output torque:

Tg = mG x Tp = 5.55 x 3430
= 19036.5 N-m

80
Step-4:

Transmitted load will be same on

pinion and gear.

Wt = Tp/(dp/2) = 3430/(0.1319/2)
= 52 x 103 N

81
Step-5:

Velocity factor (Kv):

Pitch line velocity (Vt)

= (dp/2)p
= (0.1319/2) x (2 x x 8350/60)
= 57.66 m/s

Kv = { 78/ [78+ (200 x Vt)0.5]}0.5

=0.648 82
Step-6:

Various factors:

Size factor Ks = 1.0

Rim thickness factor KB = 1.0 (solid-disk gears)
Load distribution factor Km= 1.8
Application factor Ka = 1.25 (Moderate shock)
Idler factor KI = 1.0 (non idler case)
Bending geometry factor Jpinion = 0.428
83
Step-7:
Pinion-tooth bending stress:

bp = {(Wt x pd)/ (F x J)} x ( Ka.Km.Ks.KB.KI/Kv)

= {(52050 x 151.63)/(.190 x 0.428)}

x (2.25/0.65)

= 335.95 MPa
84
Step-8: Gear tooth bending stress:

bg = {(Wt x pd)/ (F x J)} x ( Ka.Km.Ks.KB.KI/Kv)

={(52050 x 151.63)/(.190 x 0.61)} x

(2.25/0.65)

=235.71 MPa

85
Step-9: Length of action:

Zpg = {(rp+ap)2 – (rp cos )2}0.5 +{(rg+ag)2 –

(rg cos )2}0.5 - Cpg sin 

= { (0.0723)2 – (0.06595 x cos(20.7))2}0.5 +

{ (0.3723)2 – (0.366 x cos(20.7))2}0.5 -0.432

x sin (20.7)

=0.0377 + 0.1462 – 0.1527 = 0.0311 m 86

Step-10:
Transverse contact ratio:
mpg =pd x Zpg / (3.14 x cos (20.7)) =1.6

Step-11: Axial contact ratio:

mF = F x pd x tan/3.14 = 0.190 x 151.63 x

0.28/3.14 =2.57
px = pt cot  = 0.0207 x cot 15.67 = 0.0737 m

87
Step-12: Normal pressure angle and
helix angle:

n = 200 , b = 14.70

88
Step-13: Minimum length of the lines of contact
for mesh:
nrpg = Fractional part of mppg = 0.6

na=Fractional part of mF = 0.57

Lmin pg = {mp pg F – (1-na)(1-nr pg) px}/ cos b

={1.6 x 0.19 - (1- 0.57) (1- 0.6) x 0.0737}/cos 14.7

= 0.301 m
m N pg = F/ Lmin pg = .190/.301 = 0.63
89
Step-14:

Radii of curvature of teeth:

p = {{ 0.5 [(rp+ap)+(Cpg-rg-ag)]}2 -(rp cos )2}0.5

={0.00435 - .003805} 0.5 = 0.0233 m

g = Cpg sin  - p = 0.432 sin (20.7)- 0.0233

= 0.129 m

90
Step-15: Pitting geometry factor:

Ipg = cos /{ (1/p +1/g) dp mN pg}

= .935/(50.67 x .1319 x 0.63)

= 0.222

91
Step-16: The elastic coefficient:

Cp = {3.14 x [(1-2p)/ Ep +(1-2g)/ Eg]}-0.5

= 191.63

Material of pinion and gear is same.

92
Step-17: Surface stress at mesh:

c p = Cp { (Wt Ca Cm Cs Cf)/ (F Ipg dp Cv)}0.5

= 191.63 {(52050 x1.25 x1.8x1.0x1.0)/

(0.19x.222x0.1319x.65)}0.5

=1090.5 MPa

93
Step-18: Corrected bending-fatigue strength:

Sfb’ = 6235 + 174 HB – 0.126 HB2

=6235 + 174 x 600 – 0.126 x (600) 2
= 65275 x 6890= 450 MPa

This value needs to be corrected for certain

factors. Service life = 20 years continuous
run.

94
Operating temperature= 700C

No. of cycles during service =8350 x 20 x 365 x 24 x60

=8.77 x1010

Life factor KL= 1.3558 (8.77 x1010) -0.0178 = 0.86

Temperature factor KT= 1.0
Reliability factor KR = 1.0

Corrected bending fatigue strength:

Sfb = (KLx Sfb’)/ (KTx KR)
=(0.86 x 450)/(1x1) =387 MPa
95
Step-19: Corrected surface-fatigue strength:

Sfc’ = 27 000 + 364 x HB= 27000 + 364 x

600 =245400x6890= 1690 MPa
CL = Life factor = 1.44(8.77 x1010) -0.023 =0.81
CT=1.0
CR=1.0
CH=1.0
Sfc = CL x CH x Sfc’ /(CTxCR) = 0.81 x 1690
= 1369 MPa
96
Step-20:

Safety factor against bending failure:

Nb pinion = 387/335.95= 1.15 O.K.

Nb gear = 387/ 235.71 = 1.64 O.K.

97
Step-21:

Safety factor against surface failure:

Nc Pinion = (1369/ 1090.5) 2 = 1.57

O.K.

98
Thank you for
your kind
attention

Dr. R. K. Pandey, Dept. of Mech. Engg., IIT Delhi

99