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Strain Wave Gear Production in the Age of Humanoid Robots

Humanoid robots need precise strain wave gears in their joints, and building and inspecting those gears at scale will call for equally advanced production technology

“The time has come for robots,” Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang proclaimed at his company’s annual GPU Technology Conference in March 2026. “Everyone, pay attention. This could very well be the largest industry of all.”

Perceive, Understand & Perform

AICA and Schaeffler demonstrate the role Physical AI can play in the manufacturing environment

The Near Future of Mechanical Drive for Humanoid Robots

AI has moved humanoid robots forward, but safety, reliability and cost in the actuator drivetrain still stand in the way of commercial deployment

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Technical Articles

Twenty Years of Pulsator Tests on Helicopter Gears

Leonardo Helicopters’ 20-year, 650+ test campaign characterizing tooth-root bending fatigue strength across gear materials, heat treatments, and finishing processes (notably shot peening and superfinishing) to support aerospace gear design.

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Analytical Calculation of the Gear Body Stiffness of Face Gears

This paper presents a new analytical method using plate and disk mechanical models to calculate the gear body stiffness of face gear wheels, showing that stiffness decreases toward the outer radius—a behavior that conventional cylindrical gear approaches fail to capture.

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Smart Alloying Eliminates Manufacturing Steps in Automotive Gears

20NiMo9-7 alloy achieves up to 48 percent higher fatigue strength than conventional carburizing steels in the as-carburized condition, eliminating the need for shot peening and grinding in automotive gear applications.

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Design Principles of Bevel Gears: Rationale for Zero Sum Profile Shifts and Generating Gear Choices

This article demonstrates why bevel gears are designed with a zero sum of profile shifts—showing that independent shifts merely replicate what a modified pressure angle already achieves—and explains the practical benefits of using conical generating gears for tooth profile crowning.

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Design

The aim of this report is to investigate the potential of using surrogate models within the gear design process.

Grinding

For the transmissions of electric vehicles to develop the desired high torque under all driving conditions, a very large gear ratio is needed, which requires high speeds. And to ensure sufficient momentum at all speeds and enable the driver to accelerate without shifting gears, the electric drive must achieve up to 15,000 rpm, which is about three times that of a typical combustion engine. This puts a lot of strain on the rotor shaft. The manufacturers of rotor shafts are thus facing new challenges, such as the significantly lower shape and position tolerances and the need for greater machining precision.

Inspection

For precision measuring, skilled machinists, toolmakers, and inspectors must have accurate tools and gages, produced from quality materials, carefully manufactured, and rigidly inspected, to ensure lasting dependability. Gages have evolved throughout the years beginning with mechanical, then electronic models, and now convenient wireless electronic versions have come on the scene. Each type has an important place in today’s quality control and inspection processes.

Heat Treating

Quality control, EV components, energy consumption and material influences are just a handful of topics being discussed in heat treating today. New heat treat methods and global trends will be the topic of conversation later this year at Heat Treat 2023. Here’s a round-up of some stories circulating across key market segments.

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Videos

Marposs Control 2025

Marposs presents its latest innovations in precision measurement and quality at Control 2025. Marposs technologies support advanced manufacturing processes and ensure the highest standards of accuracy and reliability.

Industry News

The countdown is officially on, and this one comes with a milestone attached. In just one year, the gear and bearing industries return to Detroit for the Motion + Power Technology Expo (MPT Expo), and 2027 marks the show’s 40th anniversary. It started in 1985 as Gear Expo, back when exhibitors worked out of tabletop displays rather than full booths. Four decades later, it’s still the one event where gear and bearing manufacturers, suppliers, and the OEMs who depend on them show up in the same room, at the same time.

Product News

CloudNC, the manufacturing technology company, launched Quote Agent, an AI-powered solution that helps manufacturers assess new jobs and prepare customer quotes in minutes instead of hours.

Calendar

AIoT World Expo

Feb 9, 2027 - Feb 11, 2027

The AIoT World Expo (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) explores the potential of intelligent machines, prescriptive analytics, sensor driven analytics and block chain solutions. Attendees learn about IoT technologies that are driving the transformation in manufacturing, supply chain and operations.

Additive Manufacturing Strategies 2027

Feb 23, 2027 - Feb 25, 2027

CES 2027

Jan 6, 2027 - Jan 9, 2027

PowerGen 2027

Jan 18, 2027 - Jan 21, 2027

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