APPLICATION OF TRANSIENT ELASTOHYDRODYNAMIC LUBRICATION ANALYSIS FOR GEAR TRANSMISSIONS

Transient elastohydrodynamic lubrication theory which deals with the lubrication of gear transmission is presented. A numerical procedure was developed to solve the governing equations for the transient EHL with variable load, curvature, and rolling velocity along the line of action. The compressibility of the fluid is taken into consideration. Results are presented for the pressure distribution and the film thickness successively along the line of action as a function of time. A parametric study was conducted to investigate the effects of geometry factors on the lubrication behavior of a gear transmission. Parameters of interest are gear ratio, central distance, gear tooth module, and profile shift of gear tooth. The results of extensive simulations for gear tooth lubrication show that the equivalent curvature radius of gear teeth plays an important role on the EHL film formation.