The present invention relates to a planetary gear system.
A transmission is known which converts a rotation speed or torque of an output shaft of a motor into a necessary rotation speed or torque. A planetary gear system is often employed as a transmission in a machine tool and transportation means such as a car and a helicopter.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,807,202 and U.S. Pat. No. 7,201,699 respectively disclose planetary gear systems with face gears. Those planetary gear systems are applied to helicopters.
In a helicopter, although a rotation speed of a gas turbine engine is several tens of thousands rpm, a rotation speed of a main rotor is several hundreds rpm. As for a planetary gear system for the helicopter, it is especially important to attain a large reduction gear ratio while suppressing the increase in weight.
An object of the present invention is to provide a planetary gear system that can attain a large reduction gear ratio while suppressing the increase in weight.
A planetary gear system of the present invention contains: a sun gear as an input; a fixed ring gear; a planetary career as an output; and a planetary gear unit supported by the planetary career. The planetary gear unit includes: a shaft; a first planetary gear coupled to the shaft and engaging the sun gear; and a second planetary gear coupled to the shaft and engaging the ring gear. The planetary gear unit rotates around a first rotation axis with respect to the planetary career. The planetary career rotates around a second rotation axis. The first rotation axis intersects the second rotation axis.
A pitch circle diameter of the second planetary gear is preferred to be smaller than a pitch circle diameter of the first planetary gear.
The shaft is preferred to extend from the first planetary gear in a first direction to be coupled to the second gear. The first direction is a direction of departing from the second rotation axis.
The first rotation axis is preferred to be inclined from a state of intersecting the second rotation axis at right angle in a direction in which an opposite side of the first planetary gear departs from the second rotation axis. The opposite side is opposite to an engaging side of the first planetary gear with respect to the first rotation axis. The engaging side engages the sun gear. The sun gear and the ring gear are preferred to be face gears.
It is preferred that torque is transmitted to the sun gear from an engine of a helicopter and torque is outputted from the planetary career to a main rotor of the helicopter.
According to the present invention, a planetary gear system that can attain a large reduction gear ratio while suppressing the increase in weight is provided.
The above object, other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will be more apparent from the descriptions of embodiments in conjunction with the attached drawings in which:
A planetary gear system according to embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the attached drawings.
(First Embodiment)
With reference to
With reference to
The sun gear 11 gives a driving force to the planetary gear 15 to cause the planetary gear unit 14 to spin. At this time, since the planetary gear 16 kicks the ring gear 12, the planetary gear 16 receives a reaction force from the ring gear 12. As a result, the planetary carrier 13 rotates in the same direction as that of the sun gear 11, and the planetary gear unit 14 rotates (revolves) together with the planetary carrier 13.
Since the planetary gears 15 and 16 are coupled by the shaft 17, they integrally rotate. Thus, a direction of torque applied to the planetary carrier 13 through the planetary gear 15 from the sun gear 11 is the same as a direction of torque applied to the planetary carrier 13 through the planetary gear 16 from the ring gear 12. Hence, a reduction gear ratio in the planetary gear system 10 is large. Here, the torque applied to the planetary carrier 13 through the planetary gear 16 from the ring gear 12 is based on the above-mentioned reaction force.
Advantages of the present embodiment will be described below with reference to
On the other hand, since a pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 107 is required to match with a clearance between the sun gear 105 and the ring gear 106, the planetary gear 107 is required to be large. As a result, the number of the planetary gears 107 that can be contained by the planetary gear system 104 is smaller than the number of the planetary gears 103 that can be contained by the planetary gear system 100. When the total number of the planetary gears 107 is small, a tangential force applied to one planetary gear 107 is strong. Thus, a common face width W2 of the sun gear 105 and the planetary gear 107, which is shown in
the planetary gear system 10, the planetary gear 15 engaging the sun gear 11 and the planetary gear 16 engaging the ring gear 12 are different. Thus, when the diameter ratio (the pitch circle diameter of the ring gear 12/the pitch circle diameter of the sun gear 11) between the sun gear 11 and the ring gear 12 is increased in order to increase the reduction gear ratio, only required is to adjust a length of the shaft 17 and the pitch circle diameter D15 and the pitch circle diameter D16 are not required to match with a clearance between the sun gear 11 and the ring gear 12.
The pitch circle diameter D15 and the pitch circle diameter D16 can be freely selected. Thus, it is possible to easily increase the number of the planetary gear units 14 contained by the planetary gear system 10 by decreasing the pitch circle diameter D15 and the pitch circle diameter D16. The larger the number of the planetary gear units 14 is, the weaker is the force applied to the teeth of each of the sun gear 11, the ring gear 12, the planetary gear 15 and the planetary gear 16, and thus, it is possible to reduce the face widths of the planetary gears 15 and 16. Each of the small pitch circle diameter and the small face width means that the planetary gears 15 and 16 are light.
Furthermore, since torque is transmitted from the planetary gear 15 through the shaft 17 to the planetary gear 16 and the planetary gears 15 and 16 do not directly engage each other, the planetary gears 15 and 16 are not required to math each other in modules (e.g. tooth shape and tooth dimensions). Hence, the modules of the planetary gears 15 and 16 can be selected such that the weight of the planetary gear system 10 is saved.
Thus, according to the present embodiment, the planetary gear system 10 that can attain the large reduction gear ratio while suppressing the increase in weight is provided.
In the, present embodiment, the pitch circle diameter D16 of the planetary gear 16 is preferred to be smaller than the pitch circle diameter D15 of the planetary gear 15. When the sun gear 11 is in a steady-state rotation, from the balance between torques applied to the planetary gear unit 14, it is apparent that a tangential force of the planetary gear 16, which is applied to the planetary gear 16 from the ring gear 12, is stronger than a tangential force of the planetary gear 15, which is applied to the planetary gear 15 from the sun gear 11. Thus, a reduction gear ratio of the planetary gear system 10 is large.
(Second Embodiment)
With reference to
Since the rotation axis 24x intersects the rotation axis 13x, the planetary gear 26 is arranged more remote from the rotation axis 13x than the planetary gear 25. The rotation axes 24x and 13x intersect at right angle. Each of the sun gear 21, the ring gear 22, the planetary gear 25 and the planetary gear 26 is a bevel gear.
There are cases in which a pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 26 is smaller than, larger than, and equal to a pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 25. The pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 26 is preferred to be smaller than the pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 25.
(Third Embodiment)
With reference to
Since the rotation axis 34x intersects the rotation axis 13x, the planetary gear 36 is arranged more remote from the rotation axis 13x than the planetary gear 35. The rotation axes 34x and 13x intersect at right angle. The sun gear 31 is a cylindrical gear and is an external gear. The ring gear 32 is a cylindrical gear and is an internal gear. Each of the planetary gears 35 and 36 is a face gear.
There are cases in which a pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 36 is smaller than, larger than, and equal to a pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 35. The pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 36 is preferred to be smaller than the pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 35.
(Fourth Embodiment)
With reference to
Since the rotation axis 44x intersects the rotation axis 13x, the planetary gear 46 is arranged more remote from the rotation axis 13x than the planetary gear 45. The rotation axes 44x and 13x intersect at right angle. Each of the sun gear 41 and the planetary gear 46 is a cylindrical gear and is an external gear. Each of the ring gear 42 and the planetary gear 45 is a face gear.
There are cases in which a pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 46 is smaller than, larger than, and equal to a pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 45. The pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 46 is preferred to be smaller than the pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 45.
(Fifth Embodiment)
With reference to
Since the rotation axis 54x intersects the rotation axis 13x, the planetary gear 56 is arranged more remote from the rotation axis 13x than the planetary gear 55. The rotation axes 54x and 13x intersect at right angle. Each of the sun gear 51 and the planetary gear 56 is a face gear. The planetary gear 55 is a cylindrical gear and is an external gear. The ring gear 52 is a cylindrical gear and is an internal gear.
There are cases in which a pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 56 is smaller than, larger than, and equal to a pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 55. The pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 56 is preferred to be smaller than. the pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 55.
(Sixth Embodiment)
With reference to
Since the rotation axis 64x intersects the rotation axis 13x, the planetary gear 66 is arranged more remote from the rotation axis 13x than the planetary gear 65. The rotation axes 64x and 13x obliquely intersect. Each of the sun gear 61 and the ring gear 62 is a face gear. Each of the planetary gear 65 and the planetary gear 66 is a cylindrical gear and is an external gear.
There are cases in which a pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 66 is smaller than, larger than, and equal to a pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 65. The pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 66 is preferred to be smaller than the pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear 65.
Similarly, the rotation axis 24x may obliquely intersect the rotation axis 13x in the planetary gear system 20, the rotation axis 34x may obliquely intersect the rotation axis 13x in the planetary gear system 30, the rotation axis 44x may obliquely intersect the rotation axis 13x in the planetary gear system 40, and the rotation axis 54x may obliquely intersect the rotation axis 13x in the planetary gear system 50.
Moreover, by inclining the rotation axis 84x from the state of intersecting the rotation axis 13x at right angle in a direction in which an opposite side 85b of the planetary gear 85 departs from the rotation axis 13x, a large number of planetary gear units 84 are easily arranged such that they do not interfere with each other. Here, the opposite side 85b is opposite to an engaging side 85a of the planetary gear 85 with respect to the rotation axis 84x, and the engaging side 85a engages the sun gear 81.
The helicopter may contain any of the above-mentioned planetary gear systems 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60, instead of the planetary gear system 10.
Since the planetary gear systems 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 are light in weight and large in reduction gear ratio, they are especially preferable for the transporting means such as helicopter . The configurations of the planetary gear systems 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 can be modified.
As common advantages of the planetary gear systems according to the above-mentioned embodiments, the following points are provided. Since a role to engage the sun gear and a role to engage the ring gear are shared between the different planetary gears, the pitch circle diameter of the planetary gear can be made smaller, and thus, the planetary gear system can contain the large number of gear units. Hence, it is possible to attain a large reduction gear ratio while suppressing the increase in weight of the planetary gear system. Moreover, since torque is transmitted from the planetary gear engaging the sun gear through the shaft to the planetary gear engaging the ring gear, the planetary gear engaging the sun gear and the planetary gear engaging the ring gear are not required to match with each other in modules. This point also contributes to the suppression of increase in weight.
As mentioned above, the present invention has been described by referring to the embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments. Various modifications can be applied to the above-mentioned embodiments.
This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from Japanese Patent Application NO. 2008-37848, filed on Feb. 19, 2008, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein its entirely by reference.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2008-037848 | Feb 2008 | JP | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/JP2009/051850 | 2/4/2009 | WO | 00 | 7/9/2010 |