A new approach to gear skiving, a specialized machining technique for producing internal gears, could improve the speed and accuracy with which gear teeth are formed. The work, described in the International Journal of Abrasive Technology, could be useful to industries reliant on high-precision gears, such as automotive and aerospace engineering.
Traditionally, manufacturing internal gears, whether spur gears, which have straight teeth, or helical gears, which have angled teeth, has been a complex, time-consuming process. Gear skiving, an advanced technique that uses a specialized cutting tool called a skiving cutter, has emerged as an effective solution.
Hiroki Yonezawa, Jun’ichi Kaneko, and Takeyuki Abe of Saitama University, and Naruhiro Irino, Yuta Shinba, and Yasuhiro Imabeppu of DMG MORI Co, Ltd., Japan, explain that unlike conventional machining methods, which often struggle with the precise geometry of gear teeth, gear skiving synchronizes the rotation of the workpiece with the motion of the cutter. This allows for a continuous and efficient cutting action. However, predicting the exact geometry of the tooth flanks, the surfaces that form the teeth of the gear, has long been a major challenge.
The new research introduces an innovative method for predicting the tooth profile after the skiving process is complete. The team analyses the shape of the material removed during machining, projecting the removal area from the perspective of the workpiece’s “tooth lead” direction. The term “tooth lead” refers to the angle at which the teeth of the gear are shaped. This projection-based approach simplifies the analytical process, significantly reducing the computational resources needed to do the calculations when compared to conventional methods. The new approach focuses on the projection of the removal area, factoring in the rotation of the workpiece around its axis to estimate the final tooth profile more quickly and accurately than was previously possible.
The team explains that by providing more accurate and faster predictions of how gear teeth will form after the skiving process, manufacturers can improve the design of specialized tools such as profile crowning tools and chamfering tools. These tools are critical in ensuring the final gear has the desired geometry and performance characteristics for high-tech engineering applications. In addition, the same method can be used to assess the effects of tool wear or mounting errors on the gear’s final tooth profile, allowing for better control over the production process.
Yonezawa, H., Kaneko, J., Abe, T., Irino, N., Shinba, Y. and Imabeppu, Y. (2024) ‘Development of precision analysis method of tooth profile in gear skiving process with shape projection of removal area’, Int. J. Abrasive Technology, Vol. 12, No. 5, pp.1–14.