Load distribution analysis considering corner contact effects to predict the mechanical efficiency of spur gears

High efficiency is the basic design objective of any gear transmission system. Thus, it is necessary to predict the mechanical efficiency of gear pairs. The purpose of this study was to construct and demonstrate a prediction method based on a frictional loaded tooth contact analysis, which computes the load distribution between tooth surfaces by considering corner contact effects for the mechanical efficiency of spur gears. The load distribution and mechanical efficiency derived by the proposed method were verified against those obtained by using the finite element method. The corner contact effects were found to influence the load distribution and mechanical efficiency. A parametric analysis, to determine the influence of the input angular velocity, load torque, gear surface roughness, and lubricating oil viscosity on the load distribution and mechanical efficiency was performed. The results of the proposed method can be used to effectively improve the prediction accuracy and efficiency of gear transmission system efficiency.