Influence of Ring Gear Rim Thickness on Planetary Gear Set Behavior

In this study, results of an experimental and theoretical study on the influence of rim thickness of the ring gear on rim deflections and stresses and planet load sharing of a planetary gear set are presented. The experimental study consists of measurement of ring gear deflections and strains for gear sets having various numbers of planets, different ring gear rim thicknesses, as well as various carrier pinhole position errors. Root and hoop strain gauges and displacement probes are placed at various locations so that the variations due to external splines of the stationary ring gear can also be quantified. A family of quasistatic deformable-body models of the test planetary gear sets is developed to simulate the experiments. The predictions and measurements are compared with the assessment of the accuracy of the models within wide ranges of parameters. The influence of rim thickness on ring gear stresses and deflections and planet load sharing are quantified together with the interactions between the rim flexibility and the spline conditions. The results from this study confirm that the ring gear deflections and the ring gear support conditions must be included in the design process as one of the major factors.