Multiple Speed Gearbox With Constant Engagement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing multiple speed gearboxes require repeated disengagement and reengagement of gears, leading to gear misalignment, wear, noise, and reduced useful life, as well as the risk of contamination and misalignment during speed changes.
Innovation Solution
A gearbox design with multiple gear sets having identical diametral pitch, where each gear set is constantly engaged, and output speed is changed by disconnecting and reconnecting driven devices to different output drivers without disengaging or changing gears, using a common input shaft to drive multiple output drivers concurrently, and employing differentiated couplings to ensure correct engagement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If gears are disengaged and reengaged to change output speed, then the output speed can be changed, but gear misalignment, wear, noise, and reduced useful life occur
Solution Approach 1:
The gearbox is segmented into multiple independent gear sets, each providing a different output speed. By having separate gear sets instead of relying on engagement/disengagement of single gears, the system can switch between speeds without causing misalignment or wear to the gear teeth themselves.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple gear sets are designed with universal compatibility features including identical diametral pitch and standardized mounting interfaces. This allows any gear set to potentially work with any driver, creating a multi-functional system where speed changes occur by switching active gear sets rather than modifying existing gear engagements.
2Adaptability or versatility
If gears are disengaged and reengaged to change output speed, then the output speed can be changed, but noise and wear increase
Solution Approach 1:
All gear sets are pre-positioned and constantly engaged within the housing before speed changes are needed. The desired gear set is already in place and ready to engage with the output driver, eliminating the need for noisy and wear-inducing disengagement/reengagement actions during operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The gear sets maintain continuous engagement with their respective drivers throughout operation. Instead of intermittently engaging and disengaging gears to change speed, the system continuously maintains all gear sets in engagement state, switching speeds by redirecting the output driver to a different gear set.
3Adaptability or versatility
If gear sets are opened for speed changes, then the output speed can be changed, but contamination and misalignment risk increase
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple gear sets are merged into a single enclosed housing, sharing common mounting structures and spatial arrangement. This integration allows all gear sets to be serviced and positioned simultaneously during manufacturing, ensuring proper alignment is established once before final assembly, and the sealed housing prevents contamination during operation.
Data Source
AI summary
A gear box includes an output shaft defining multiple output drivers and includes a plurality of gear sets having the same diametral pitch. A common input shaft is operatively attached to each of the plurality of gear sets such that the gear sets rotate continuously and concurrently with rotation of the input shaft. Each of the output drivers is operatively attached to the output shaft and rotatably driven by a respective one of the plurality of gear sets. The multiple output drivers share a common axis of rotation with the output shaft. The output speed of the gear box may be changed by disconnecting one of the output drivers from a driven device and reconnecting another one of the output drivers to the driven device. The output speed of the gear box may be changed without having to disengage and/or change out any of the gears in the gear box.