Face gear and gear device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9239094-B2
Application number	US-201314369900-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 21, 2013
Priority date	Jan 30, 2012
Publication date	Jan 19, 2016
Grant date	Jan 19, 2016

Abstract

This face gear has a plurality of annularly arranged gear teeth. A recess for holding grease or another lubricant is formed in the tooth surface of each gear tooth. A recess forming area, which is the area in which the recess is formed, is provided between the tooth bottom and the pitch point in each gear tooth. In other words, a recess is not formed in the part of the tooth surface that is located between the tooth tip and the pitch point. As a result, the gear teeth can be effectively lubricated while minimizing instability in the meshing state between gears.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A face gear comprising a plurality of annularly arranged gear teeth, wherein
each gear tooth has a tooth surface, tooth bottom, and a tooth tip,
the tooth surface has a recess for retaining lubricant, and
a recess forming area, in which the recess is formed, is located between the tooth bottom and a pitch point of the gear tooth,
wherein the recess has a shape that narrows toward the tooth tip.

2. The face gear according to claim 1 , wherein the recess forming area is separated from the pitch point toward the tooth bottom by a distance greater than half a module.

3. The face gear according to claim 1 , wherein, in each gear tooth, a position at which meshing with an associated gear starts is located in the vicinity of the tooth bottom and at an end in a tooth widthwise direction.

4. The face gear according to claim 3 , wherein the recess forming area is located in a range between the end in the tooth widthwise direction, at which the meshing starts, and a position separated from the end by a quarter to half a tooth width.

5. The face gear according to claim 1 , wherein the recess is a single recess formed in the recess forming area.

6. A gear device comprising the face gear according to claim 1 .

7. The gear device according to claim 6 , further comprising an associated gear that meshes with the face gear,
wherein the associated gear is a helical gear.

Assignees

• Aisin Seiki

Inventors

• Okabe Yuki

Classifications

• F16H57/0495

  with fixed gear ratio · CPC title

• F16H57/0431 Primary

  Means for guiding lubricant directly onto a tooth surface or to foot areas of a gear, e.g. by holes or grooves in a tooth flank · CPC title

• F16H57/0464

  Grease lubrication · CPC title

• Y10T74/19642

  Directly cooperating gears · CPC title

• F16H1/125

  comprising spiral gears only · CPC title