Study on development of polyamide gears for improvement of load-carrying capacity

In polyamide based gears, thermal damage of the gear tooth surfaces occurs during gear meshing due to accumulated heat in the tooth body. In the experimental study reported in this paper, polyamide gear teeth have been modified in order to distribute the generated heat on the tooth surface by means of drilled cooling holes at different locations on the gear tooth body. The main aims of this paper were to study the effect of cooling holes on the accumulated heat on the tooth surface and on the measured wear. It was shown that the drilled cooling holes on the tooth body decreased the tooth surface temperature and led to an increase in the load carry capacity and improved wear resistance. Geometrically modified gears have showed an improved service life and a decreased surface temperature.