January/February 1996

Plan Ahead

January 1, 1996

Indianapolis is a nice city. No. It's a great city for a convention. The facilities and the city are modern, clean and bright. The Convention Center is easy to get to by either car or plane, and its central location in the heart of town and the enclosed skyway system between it and major hotels put visitors close to amenities like restaurants, shopping and entertainment. The people are friendly and go out of their way to make visitors feel welcome.

Watch This Space

January 1, 1996

The Internet. Big deal. Now that you've dialed up weird politics.com, http://www.Elvis sightings and alt.naughty bits, what's online that's useful? Anything that would make your job easier, answer important questions, solve tough design problems? Information about, say, gearing? Is there anything out there in cyberspace worth the expense and hassle of going after?

New Views A different way to spec and shop for parts

January 1, 1996

Information is the name of the game in the 90s. We need more of it; we need it faster; and we need it in infinitely manipulatable and user-friendly form. In many cases, getting it that way is still something of a Holy Grail, somewhere off on the distant horizon. But thanks to computer technology, bit by byte, we're getting there.

The SERCOS Interface Standard

January 1, 1996

Today motion control systems are migrating from analog to digital technology at an ever increasing rate because digital technology at an ever-increasing rate because digital drives provide performance equal to or exceeding that of analog drives, plus information to run your machine more effectively and manage your quality program and your business. Most of this data is simply not available from analog drives.

Gear Expo 95 Best Ever

January 1, 1996

Gear Expo '95, held in Indianapolis, November 12-15, 1995, closed to rave reviews from both the attenders and the exhibitors. Traffic for the show was well up from 1993, with a total of about 4,000 visitors during the 3 1/2 day exhibition. One hundred thirty-two companies from all over the U.S. and as far away as India and The People's Republic of China displayed their wares.

Rebuilding a Metrology Infrastructure

January 1, 1996

The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) announced at Gear Expo '95 that a national service for the calibration of involute artifacts is now available at the Department of Energy's Y-12 Plant in Oak Ridge, TN.

Measurement Error Induced by Measuring over Pins Instead of Balls

January 1, 1996

The purpose of this article is to clarify some terms and methods used in measuring the size of gears. There is also an explanation given of the error induced and how to correct for it in certain cases when the measurement is made using pins instead of balls.

The Next Step in Bevel Gear Metrology

January 1, 1996

Dr. Hermann J. Stadtfeld

In recent years, gear inspection requirements have changed considerably, but inspection methods have barely kept pace. The gap is especially noticeable in bevel gears, whose geometry has always made testing them a complicated, expensive and time-consuming process. Present roll test methods for determining flank form and quality of gear sets are hardly applicable to bevel gears at all, and the time, expense and sophistication required for coordinate measurement has limited its use to gear development, with only sampling occurring during production.

Avoiding Interference In Shaper-Cut Gears

January 1, 1996

In the process of developing gear trains, it occasionally occurs that the tip of one gear will drag in the fillet of the mating gear. The first reaction may be to assume that the outside diameter of the gear is too large. This article is intended to show that although the gear dimensions follow AGMA guidelines, if the gear is cut with a shaper, the cutting process may not provide sufficient relief in the fillet area and be the cause of the interference.

No Time Like The Present

January 1, 1996

There's nothing like a new year - with the possible exception of birthdays ending in zero - to remind one of the passage of time. Keeping track of time has always been part of the brief of the gear engineer. One of the earliest gear assemblies is the remains of the Antikythera machine, a calendar/calculator dating from the first century B.C. Until the industrial revolution, clock makers and gear designers were usually the same people.

The Next Generation of Gear Specialists

January 1, 1996

AGMA has an excellent Training School for Gear Manufacturing. It's a great product providing a great service to the gear industry. Thus far we've educated 117 employees from 71 companies; students range from new hires with no experience to company presidents. Essentially every class since December, 1992, has been sold out.