= Gears

Gears are a fundamental part of modern technology. Since their inception, they have been used to great effect, being used in tools from the smallest bikes to the largest cars. But, how do they work?

Gears, in their most basic form, are wheels with "teeth" that can interconnect with other gears. The gear that is powered is called the driver, and interconnected gears are called follower gears. The two primary functions of gears are to transfer motion, and amplify force.

Transferal of Motion is simple: the gear moves, and the teeth, interconnected, move the other gears as well. The basic principle of moving power is simple, and the more complex principles follow easily.

The direction of the gears is important as well. When there is simply a driver and a follower gear together, they will always move in opposite directions. However, when there is an idler gear between them, they will move in the same direction. Essentially, the gear next to a gear will move in the opposite direction.

Now, we understand transferal of motion. However, the amplification of force is more complex. It involves two principles: gearing up and gearing down.

Gearing down involves driving a large gear with a small gear. When gearing down, you rotate the larger gear slower than you do the smaller gear. BUT, you get more torque. You exchange speed for power.

Gearing up involves driving a small gear with a large gear. When gearing up, you rotate the smaller gear faster than you do the large gear. BUT, you have less torque. You exchange power for speed.

Special Types of Gears:

Some types of gears are different than others, either by being shaped different, acting different, or serving different purposes. 

The worm gear is a type of gear that can transfer direction not only horizontally, but vertically.

  

Essentially, its teeth are shaped sort of like a screw, and when the gear teeth interconnect with them, it rotates in place and the gear rotates, being pushed by the screw-like motion. This allows you to place a gear on top of the worm gear and transfer the motion in a way not possible with traditional gears.

The differential gear is a type of gear system that allows two gears to be driven from the same power source, but also allows them to rotate at different speeds.

Essentially, the differential gear contains two follower gears connected to a driver gear, but it also has two external gears each connected to the same axle as their corresponding follower gear. So, when one wheel needs to go faster than the other, the second gear takes action and allows the wheel to move faster. This has many uses, a primary one being in automobiles. When a car makes a turn, one wheel moves a shorter distance(the one on the inside of the turn) than the other wheel(the one on the outside of the turn). But, they have to cover the distance in the same time! So, the outer wheel moves faster than the inner wheel.

The rack and pinion is a type of gear that allows for linear, rather than rotary movement and transferal of force.

It is essentially a linear bar of teeth that can interconnect with traditional gears, allowing for the transferal of rotary to linear or linear to rotary motion. It is extremely useful for many differing applications, like in steering wheels and other vehicular systems.

If you want to learn more about gears, contact us at twinsonskk@gmail.com for information regarding online classes!