Some Deep Thinking on Gear Grinding

We stumbled across a paper online, titled "Optimization of the Gear Profile Grinding Process Utilizing an Analogy Process," by Christof Gorgels, Heiko Schlattmeier, and Fritz Klocke. The paper goes into the novel problems posed by the improving gearing materials and the need by gear manufacturers to cut costs in gear grinding.

In order to grind gears burn-free and as productively as possible, a better understanding of the process is required. This is especially important for gear profile grinding, due to the complex contact conditions between workpiece and grinding wheel. In this article, an analogy process and a process model will be presented in order to gain a closer look into the process. Finally, different process strategies will be analyzed using the presented process model in order to give examples for the use of the described calculations.

The paper goes into reasonably great detail in explaining and describing the process model in order to increase gear grinding efficiency and effectiveness. You can find the .pdf of the paper here.

Are You A Fan of 'How It's Made?'

If you are, then you should check out this video, from Machine Tool Systems. It's about CNC gear grinding. It even sports a cheesy/retro soundtrack to keep you enthused. It's definitely worth checking out.

How do they make wind turbines?

There is a nice article in American Machinist this week about the production of wind turbines for wind-power machines. It goes into detail about all the work that goes into creating a wind machine, from fabrication to milling.

Many wind turbine component shops process such parts as gear case assemblies, planetary carriers and hubs on horizontal boring mills. These machines, with contouring heads and programmable boring bars, can reduce the number of tools, and tool changes, required to complete parts.

One tool can bore multiple diameters and produce complex part geometries. A contouring head combined with a programmable boring bar can perform as many as nine to ten different operations – atypical for a boring mill. Operations include threading, grooving, turning, contouring, taper turning and more, internally and externally, and rightangle heads and precision rotary tables add capabilities for five-sided part processing in single setups.

The whole article is worth checking out if you're interested in the process of industrial design, fabrication, and milling.