Rotational capacity requirements for modern applications are higher than ever, especially in electric motors, gearboxes, and automotive transmissions. As the market leader for innovative retaining ring solutions, Smalley’s latest retaining ring innovation, the revolutionary Revolox Self-Locking Ring, features a ‘dimple and slot’ design that safely and efficiently secures your application at high speeds. The […]
Mechanical PT
What are electromagnetic power-off brakes and where are they used?
Power-off brakes are commonly used in motion control applications for stopping or holding a load (or both), especially on vertical axes or for emergency stop functionality in servo applications. Power-off brakes are so named because the brake is engaged when power is removed from the system — either intentionally or accidentally. (Power-off brakes are also […]
New cam followers address axial loading, provide maintenance-free operation
IKO International has introduced the CR…BSE Series of imperial cam followers, offering machine designers a versatile, reliable way to convert rotary motion to linear motion. Designed to resolve the main factors that can cause bearing failure, these heavy-duty cam followers feature two IKO innovations: A ThrustDisk seal – This special seal slides into the outer […]
What’s the current status of AGMA and ISO gear quality standards (and why are they so confusing)?
Gear quality standards developed and published by the American Gear Manufacturers Association (AGMA), have dominated gear manufacturing in the U.S. market since the 1960s. But in the 1990s, AGMA began working with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) to update and harmonize gear quality standards, with several versions of both AGMA and ISO standards published […]
NORD adds new gear units with thermally optimized housings
NORD’s new MAXXDRIVE XT series features right-angle gear units with thermally optimized housings, output torques from 132,800 to 663,800 lb-in, ratios from 6.14 to 22.91:1, and 30 to 2,825 hp across seven sizes. The MAXXDRIVE portfolio offers parallel and right-angle industrial gear units with high output torques from 132,800 to 2,301,200 lb-in, ratios from 5.54 […]
Gearbox buyers’ guide from Ondrives
After many years of discussing gearboxes with engineers, we have developed a questionnaire we use to ensure that we have found all the necessary details of an application. We use this even if the engineer specifies our standard part number. The correct gearbox may have been chosen, but: 1.Are there any lower-cost alternatives to consider […]
What are different ways to express a gear ratio?
In motion control systems, gears are used to change the torque and speed delivered by a motor to a driven component. Depending on how the gears are arranged, they can either increase the delivered torque and decrease the output speed (the most common arrangement in motion control applications) or decrease the delivered torque and increase […]
What are multi-stage gearboxes and when are they used?
Gearboxes are commonly used in motion control applications to change the output speed and torque from a motor to a driven component. By using a smaller gear with fewer teeth (commonly referred to as a pinion) to drive a larger gear with a higher number of teeth, the torque delivered to the load is increased while […]
Screw trends — better performance, new applications
A number of trends continue to drive developments in screw actuators. For instance, developments in screw materials and manufacturing methods have boosted ball screw performance, leading to greater load densities with higher load capacities. On the design front, more designers/engineers are looking for customized designs, but screw manufacturers are also offering more integrated designs, which […]
Gears and gearmotor trends — more customized designs
Gearing and mechanical power transmission, in its fundamentals, remains virtually unchanged. However, innovative variations are becoming increasingly common and include more custom gearing, compact designs, and better gearboxes and servo-gear sets. Manufacturers are offering designers more customized solutions via more in-house engineering resources, simplifying the design process. More custom solutions also means greater integration with […]