Abstract
This study has proposed a method of friction reduction and lubricity improvement for meshed gears, which is based on ultrasonic oscillation. In recent years, the gear is used in ultimate environments as in a vacuum chamber. Thus, a new method of the friction reduction and the lubricity improvement is required instead of the lubricating oil. This paper reports experiments with meshed gears oscillated by ultrasonic actuator fixed on an end surface of the gear shaft. Strain gauges put on the fillet between the dedendum flank and the bottomland measured stress conditions in forward and reverse rotations when a deadweight gives a constant load to the tooth flank and the friction on the tooth flank was estimated from the difference of stress values between the forward and reverse rotations. The ultrasonic oscillation reduced the friction between tooth flanks by approximately 40% compared to no oscillation in the unlubricated condition.
