Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR PRECISION GEAR
FINISHING DY CONTROLLED DEFORMATION
HACKGROUN~ OF TILE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention:
This invention relates to a process and apparatus
lU for metallurgically treating high performance steel
gears by thermomechanical means to produce high
strength and accur:~te contact. surfaces using
controlled deformation net. shape finishing
techniques. '
2. Discussion of the Prior Art:
Highly loaded precision gears are normally
manufactured by carburizing the surface layers of
low carbon low alloyed steel gears, and
reaustenitizing the entire gear and hardening by,
rapid quenching to below the temperature at which
diffusivnless transformations occur that result in
the hardened martens i t i r- structures . : ;E ha: ~.~Y~ed
gears are then finished to net shape by hard
finishing operations. A method was proposed in
U.S. Patent 4,73,975 in which a carburized gear is
reaustenitized and quenched to above the MS
temperature, roll finished, and then quenched~~to
3p martensite prior to diffusional decomposition of
the metastable austenite. However, no specific
_ process details or apparatus are described in that
patent which can accomplish e,his process.
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In reducing the concept of U.S. Pat. No. 4,373,973
to practice, several inventions were necessary in
both process control and apparatus to produce the
metallurgical and dimensional accuracy requirements
of precision gears. These inventions have been
disclosed in a separate invention disclosure,
commonly assigned United States Patent No.
5,221,513, filed January 31, 1992, if M. Amateau et
al., entitled "Apparatus and Method For Net Shape
Finishing of Gears". However, for ultra-high
precision gears, an even closer control of the
deformation process is required of the material flow
pattern, degree and depth of deformation, and the
metallurgical conditions of the gear tooth surface
and subsurface layers. For instance, the gear
finishing process as described in the disclosure of
5,221, 513 utilizes in-feed and through-feed motions
of the workpiece in relation to a single gear
rolling die. The deformation mechanism related to
such a rolling process with a single rolling die
results in different material flow patterns on
either side of the workpiece teeth, which can
adversely effect the behavior of high performance
gears. Further, gear roll finishing using a single
rolling die can result in excessive deflections in
the workpiece support spindle, which must be
compensated for by prior machine settings.
By use of two rolling dies positioned on
diametrically opposing sides of the workpiece
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material flow patterns as well as the high in-feed
rolling forces can be balanced, resulting in a -
better control of the deformation process. Our.
invention is different from the conventional gear
roll finishing equipment using two rolling dies, in
that, for the latter, the first rolling die is
typically held with a fixed axis and the second
rolling die is moved, thereby applying the in-feed
force and rolling action on the workpiece, and
moving the workpiece towards the fixed rolling die
at preset speeds. The required amount of
deformation iewcontrolled by setting a dead stop at
a predetermined location, where the in-feed motion
ends. Such a gear finishing process using two
rolling dies, one fixed and the other moving for
the in-feed motion, is generally -used for cold
rolling of uncarburized steels only, and is. further
limited to helical gears only.
To achieve the ausform-strengthening of surface
layers of carburized parallel axis gear teeth for
high performance applications,- both in-feed and
through-feed motions are required between the
workpiece and the two rolling dies in a coordinated
and controlled manner, and such a controlled
deformation must be achieved with surface layers of
the workpiece maintained in the metastable
austenitic condition. The large in-feed and
through-feed forces necessary to roll finish~spur
and helical gears to the high dimensional accuracy
- require a rigid through-feed mechanism holding the
workpiece on a fixed axis, and coordinated and
controlled in-feed motion of the two rolling dies
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towards the fixed axis workpiece. The degree of
deformation must be controlled to very close
tolerances by precise monitoring and control of the
movements of each of the two rolling dies with
respect to the workpiece. Further, the workpiece
axis as well as the axes of the two rolling dies
must be precisely aligned to achieve the high lead
and profile accuracy specified for ultra-high
precision gears. In addition, as the
thermomechanical processing of the workpiece must be
performed in a thermally stable bath to maintain the
workpiece gear surfaces in the desired metastable
austenitic condition during the forming process, any
adjustments to the alignments between the workpiece
and the rolling die axes must be made with the
rolling apparatus maintained at the forming
temperature. Moreover, the degree of deformation and
metallurgical structures of the gear surface layers
must all be maintained in a precisely controlled
manner. The surface reaustenitization, the
transformation to metastable austenitic condition,
and the subsequent transformation to martensite,
must be performed in a timely and controlled manner
to achieve the optimum metallurgical condition at
each stage of the thermomechanical processing.
SUN~IARY OF INVENTION
In accordance with an aspect of the present
invention, there is provided an apparatus for
precision gear finishing by controlled deformation
using a fixed axis
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through-feed and coordinated and controlled moving
axes in-feed of two rolling dies positioned on -
diametrically opposing sides of the workpiece. The
.. invention also-- includes r~aans for achieving
5 controlled deformation, means for providing precise
,. adjustment of the axes of the two rolling dies from
a remote location while the rolling apparatus is
thermally stabilized and maintained at the forming
temperature and under an inert atmosphere, and
means for performing a timely transfer of the
workpiece to achieve the optimum metallurgical - ---
condition at each stage of the thermomechanical
gear finishing process.
The essence of the invention is the apparatus for
thermomechanical finishing of precision gears by
controlled deformation using two rolling dies, and
process control methods ana architecture for
accomplishing precision motions, thermal control,
and environmental control with a combination of
sensors, mechanisms and a software controlled
sequence of operations. The control architecture
allows precise mechanical movements of the
through-feed motion of the workpiece and the
in-feed motions of the two rolling dies in-either
the load control or position control mode of
operation. Appropriate transducers and sensors are
used to monitor each of these motions and loads,
and are used to generate feedback signals, and
thereby, the error signals used to drive the
servo-controlled actuators for the in-feed and
through-feed motions.
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An integral material transfer mechanism comprised
of an in-chute, a gear loader, a swivel robot, a
transfer system to move the workpiece from the
surface austenitization station to the rolling .
station, and another such system for transfer of
the workpiece from the rolling station to the final .
quench station, has been devised for the timely and , --
automatic positioning of the workpiece for surface
austenitization, quenching to forming temperature
and thermal stabilization, roll forming action
using the through-feed and in-feed motions, and the
final quenching to form the martensitic structures
in the surface layers, all under an inert
environment.
A spin/scan mechanism is integrated with the
apparatus to spin as well as locate the workpiece
in first an MF coil, and then an RF coil, and
finally to stop spinning and then quench the
workpiece rapidly into the -forming medium
maintained at the selected temperature. The power
levels and heating times in the MF and RF induction
heating cycles are suitably adjusted and preset to
achieve the desired thermal gradients and depths of
heating for contoured austenit:.zation of the g,~~.:
tooth surtaoe,, A high resolution -optioal
pyrometer is used to monitor the temperature of the
gear tooth surface as it is being induction heated
for austenitization. The induction heating process
can be controlled by either of two means: (1) by
maintaining the preset .MF and RF power levels for _.
preselected respective times, or (2) until the
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measured surface temperatures for the MF and RF
cycles reach their respective preset values.
.. After tt~.e gear surfaces have been austenitized,
quenched and thermally stabilized to achieve the
,_ metastable austenitic_condition, the gear is moved
to the rolling station, and gripped by a remotely
operated precision gear holding arbor mounted on
the through-feed mechanism. An appropriate
sequence of processing steps can then be performed
depending on the type of gear, such steps to
include engagement of the rolling dies with the
workpiece, in-feeding of Lhe rolling dies to final
positions, through-feeding of the workpiece and the
roll finishing operations, to achieve the
controlled deformation using integrated and
coordinated in-feed and through-feed motions. The
finished wurkpiece is then transferred to the final
quench station to transform the metastable
austenite to martensite.
The process control architecture also allows
programmed execution of predetermined processing
steps, and is capable steps in
of performing such
the parallel processing mode in which one workpiece
is thermally processed
while another workpiece
is
being roll finished at the same time. A unique
combination of mechanisms to transfer the workpiece
between the various processing stations, software
controlled process sequencing and control
equipment, techniques to achieve surface
austenitizat ion and controlled deformation
using
coordinated and controlled through-feed of the
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workpiece and in-feed of the two rolling gear dies
are all used to precisely deform the surface layers
of the gear teeth, and hence perform the
metallurgical operation required to
thermomechanically finish precision gears.
In accordance with one aspect of the present
invention there is provided, a method of net shaping
gear teeth of a high performance gear comprising the
steps of: (a) in a controlled metastable austenitic.
environment, rotating respectively on first and
second generally parallel spaced axes, first and
second rolling gear dies, each having an outer
peripheral profiled surface extending between spaced
lateral surfaces; (b) rotatably supporting on a
third axis generally parallel to the first and
second axes within the controlled metastable
austenitie environment a workpiece in the form of a
near net shaped gear blank having an outer
peripheral profiled surface extending between spaced
lateral surfaces; (c) advancing the workpiece along
the third axis in a through-feed direction such that
the outer peripheral surface of the workpiece
slidably engages the first and second rolling gear
dies and continues to advance until the workpiece is
positioned substantially coextensive with the first
and second rolling gear dies in the through-feed
direction; and (d) simultaneously with step (c),
after the workpiece and the first and second rolling
gear dies are substantially enmeshed, advancing the
first and second rolling gear dies, within a common
plane generally containing the first, second, and
third axes, in respectively opposite in-feed
directions substantially perpendicular to the third
axis until the outer peripheral surfaces,
respectively, of the first and second rolling gear
dies engage the workpiece at diametrically opposed
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locations and at near net shaped center distances
establishing initial center distances between the
first and third axes and between the second and
third axes, respectively, when the workpiece and the
rolling gear dies are initially-engaged; and (e)
continuing to advance the first and second rolling
gear dies in the in-feed direction each by an
additional increment of center distance thereby
deforming the profile surfaces of each gear tooth
resulting in final net shape of the gear teeth.
In accordance with another aspect of the present
invention, there is provided an apparatus for net
shaping gear teeth of a high performance gear from a
workpiece in the form of a near net shaped gear
blank having carburized gear teeth surfaces
initially heated above its critical temperature to
obtain an austenitic structure throughout its
carburized case, said apparatus comprising: a vessel
containing a thermally controlled liquid working
medium for maintaining the workpiece at a uniform
metastable austenitic temperature just above the
martensitic transformation temperature; first and
second rolling gear dies, each having an outer
peripheral profiled surface meshingly engageable
with the outer peripheral profiled surface of the
workpiece; a support frame mounting said first and
second rolling gear dies for rotation on first and
second spaced, generally parallel axes; means for
supporting the workpiece in said liquid working
medium for rotation on a third axis which is
generally parallel to and intermediate said first
and second axes; and rotary actuator means for
rotating said first and second
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rolling gear dies on the first and second axes,
respectively.
In accordance with another aspect of the present
invention, there is provided a method of net shaping
gear teeth of a high performance gear comprising the
steps of: (a) in a controlled metastable austenitic
environment, rotatably supporting on a die axis a
rolling gear die having an outer peripheral profiled
surface extending between spaced lateral surfaces;
(b) rotatably supporting on a workpiece axis
generally parallel to the die axis within the
controlled metastable austenitic environment a
workpiece in the form of a near net shaped gear
blank having an outer peripheral profiled surface
extending between spaced lateral surfaces such that
the outer peripheral profiled surface of the
workpiece is capable of meshing engagement with the
outer peripheral profiled surface of the rolling
gear die; and including at least one of the steps
of: (c) selectively adjusting the rolling gear die
along the die axis to assume a desired orientation
relative to the workpiece: (d) selectively adjusting
the rolling die within a common plane containing the
die and workpiece axes to assume a desired
orientation relative to the workpiece; and (e)
selectively adjusting the rolling gear die out of
the common plane to assume a desired orientation
relative to the workpiece.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the present
invention, there is provided an apparatus for net
shaping gear teeth of a high performance
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gear from a workpiece in the form of a near net
shaped gear blank having carburized gear teeth
surfaces heated above its critical temperature to
obtain an austenitic structure throughout its
carburized case, said apparatus comprising: a vessel
containing a thermally controlled liquid working
medium for maintaining the workpiece at a uniform
metastable austenitic temperature just above the
martensitic transformation temperature; at least one
rolling gear die having an outer peripheral profiled
surface meshingly engageable with the outer
peripheral profiled surface of the workpiece; a
housing mounting said rolling gear die for rotation
on a die axis; and attitude adjustment means having
at least two degrees of freedom for selectively
adjusting the rolling gear die relative to the
workpiece.
Apparatus for net shaping gear teeth of a high
performance gear comprising: means providing a
controlled metastable austenitic environment; first
in-feed assembly means within said controlled
metastable austenitic environment for rotatably
supporting on a first axis a first rolling gear die
having an outer peripheral profiled surface
extending between spaced lateral surfaces; second
in-feed assembly means within said controlled
metastable austenitic environment for rotatably
supporting on a second axis, generally parallel to
the first axis, a second rolling gear die having an
outer peripheral profiled surface extending between
spaced lateral surfaces; through-feed means within
said controlled metastable austenitic environment
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rotatably supporting on a third axis generally
parallel to the first and second axes a workpiece in
the form of a near net shaped gear blank having an
outer peripheral profiled surface extending between
spaced lateral surfaces, said through-feed means
being operable for positioning the workpiece along
the third axis such that the outer peripheral
surface of the workpiece meshingly engages said
first and second rolling gear dies and is positioned
substantially coextensive with said first and second
roiling gear dies in the through-feed direction; and
in-feed actuator means operable for advancing said
first and second in-feed assembly means and said
first and second rolling gear dies, respectively,
thereon within a common plane generally containing
the first, second, and third axes, in respectively
opposite in-feed directions substantially
perpendicular to the third axis until the outer
peripheral surfaces, respectively, of the first and
second rolling gear dies engage the workpiece at
diametrically opposed locations and at near net
shaped center distances establishing initial center
distances between the first and third axes and
between the second and third axes, respectively,
when the workpiece and the rolling gear dies are
initially engaged, then after the workpiece and the
first and second rolling gear dies are substantially
enmeshed, for continuing to advance said first and
second rolling gear dies in the in-feed direction,
each by an additional increment for net shaping
engagement with the workpiece.
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Apparatus for net shaping gear teeth of a high
performance gear comprising: first in-feed assembly
means for rotatably supporting on a first axis a
first rolling gear die having an outer peripheral
profiled surface extending between spaced lateral
surfaces; second in-feed assembly means for
rotatably supporting on a second axis, generally
parallel to the first axis, a second rolling gear
die having an outer peripheral profiled surface
extending between spaced lateral surfaces; through-
feed means rotatably supporting on a third axis
generally parallel to the first and second axes a
workpiece in the form of a near net shaped gear
blank having an outer peripheral profiled surface
extending between spaced lateral surfaces, said
through-feed means being operable for positioning
the workpiece along the third axis such that the
outer peripheral surface of the workpiece meshingly
engages said first and second rolling gear dies and
is positioned substantially coextensive with said
first and second rolling gear dies in the through-
feed direction; and in-feed actuator means for
advancing said first and second in-feed assembly
means and said first and second rolling gear dies,
respectively, thereon within a common plane
generally containing the first, second, and third
axes, in respectively opposite in-feed directions
substantially perpendicular to the third axis until
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the outer peripheral surfaces, respectively, of said
first and second rolling gear dies engage the
workpiece at diametrically opposed locations and at
near net shaped center distances establishing
initial center distances between the first and third
axes and between the second and third axes,
respectively, when the workpiece and said rolling
gear dies are initially engaged, then after the
workpiece and the first and second rolling gear dies
are substantially enmeshed, for continuing to
advance said first and second rolling gear dies in
the in-feed direction, each by an additional
increment for net shaping engagement with the
workpiece.
Apparatus for operating on a workpiece comprising:
first tool means movable in a common plane between a
retracted position withdrawn from a workpiece
generally lying in the common plane and an advanced
position engaged with one side of the workpiece;
second tool means movable in the common plane
between a retracted position withdrawn from the
workpiece and an advanced position engaged with an
opposite side of the workpiece; a single in-feed
actuator means for simultaneously advancing said
first and second tool means within the common plane
in respectively opposite in-feed directions until
the first and second tool means, respectively,
engage the workpiece at opposed locations.
A method of net shaping gear teeth of a high
performance gear comprising the steps of: (a) in a
controlled metastable austenitic environment,
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rotatably supporting on first and second axes,
respectively, first and second rolling gear dies,
each having an outer peripheral profiled surface
extending between spaced lateral surfaces;(b)
rotatably supporting on a third axis generally
parallel to the first and second die axes within the
controlled metastable austenitic environment a
workpiece in the form of a near net shaped gear
blank having an outer peripheral profiled surface
extending between spaced lateral surfaces such that
the outer peripheral profiled surface of the
workpiece is capable of meshing engagement with the
outer peripheral profiled surfaces of the first and
second rolling gear dies; and including at least one
of the steps of: (c) selectively adjusting the first
and second rolling gear dies along the first and
second die axes, respectively, to assume a desired
orientation relative to the workpiece; (d)
selectively adjusting the first and second rolling
dies within a common plane containing the first,
second, and third axes to assume desired
orientations, respectively, relative to the
workpiece; and (e) selectively adjusting said first
and second rolling gear dies, respectively, out of
the common plane to assume desired orientations
relative to the workpiece.
A method of net shaping gear teeth of high
performance gear comprising the steps of: (a) in a
controlled metastable austenitic environment,
rotating respectively on first and second generally
parallel spaced axes, first and second rolling gear
dies, each having an outer peripheral profiled
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surface extending between spaced lateral surfaces;
(b) rotatably supporting on a third axis generally
parallel to the first and second axes within the
controlled metastable austenitic environment a
workpiece in the form of a near net shaped gear
blank having an outer peripheral profiled surface
extending between spaced lateral surfaces; (c)
advancing the workpiece along the third axis in a
through-feed direction such that the outer
peripheral surface of the workpiece slidably engages
the first and second rolling gear dies and continues
to advance until the workpiece is positioned
substantially coextensive with the first and second
rolling gear dies in the through-feed direction; and
(d) while holding fixed the relative spacing between
the first and second axes, simultaneously with step
(c), after the workpiece and the first and second
rolling gear dies are substantially enmeshed,
advancing the second rolling gear die, within a
common plane generally containing the first, second,
and third axes, in an in-feed direction
substantially perpendicular to the third axis until
the outer peripheral surfaces, respectively, of the
first and second rolling gear dies engage the
workpiece at diametrically opposed locations and at
near net shaped center distances establishing
initial center distances between the first and third
axes and between the second and third axes,
respectively, when the workpiece and the rolling
gear dies are initially engaged; and (e) continuing
to advance the second rolling gear die in the in-
feed direction by an additional increment of center
distance thereby deforming the profile surfaces of
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each gear tooth resulting in final net shape of the
gear teeth.
Apparatus for net shaping gear teeth of a high
performance gear comprising: means providing a
controlled metastable austenitic environment;
support means within said controlled metastable
austenitic environment for rotatably supporting on a
first fixed axis a first rolling gear die having an
outer peripheral profiled surface extending between
spaced lateral surfaces; in-feed assembly means
within said controlled metastable austenitic
environment for rotatably supporting on a second
axis, generally parallel to the first axis, a second
rolling gear die having an outer peripheral profiled
surface extending between spaced lateral surfaces;
through-feed means within said controlled metastable
austenitic environment rotatably supporting on a
third axis generally parallel to the first and
second axes a workpiece in the form of a near net
shaped gear blank having an outer peripheral
profiled surface extending between spaced lateral
surfaces, said through-feed means being operable for
positioning the workpiece along the third axis such
that the outer peripheral surface of the workpiece
meshingly engages said first and second rolling gear
dies and is positioned substantially coextensive
with said first and second rolling gear dies in the
through-feed direction; and in-feed actuator means
operable for advancing said in-feed assembly means
and said second rolling gear die thereon within a
common plane generally containing the first, second,
and third axes, in an in-feed direction
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substantially perpendicular to the third axis until
the outer peripheral surfaces of said first and
second rolling gear dies engage the workpiece at
diametrically opposed locations and at near net
shaped center distances establishing initial center
distances between the first and third axes and
between the second and third axes, respectively,
when the workpiece and said rolling gear dies are
initially engaged, then after the workpiece and said
l0 first and second rolling gear dies are substantially
enmeshed, for continuing to advance said second
rolling gear die in the in-feed direction by an
additional increment for net shaping engagement with
the workpiece.
The accompanying drawings which are incorporated in
and constitute a part of this invention, illustrate
one of the embodiments of the invention, and,
together with the description, serve to explain the
principles of the invention in general terms. Like
numerals refer to like parts throughout the
disclosure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Fig. 1 is a side elevation view diagramatically
illustrating apparatus, according-to the invention,
for performing precision gear finishing by
controlled deformation;
Fig. 2 is a front elevation diagramatic view
illustrating a part of the system illustrated in
Fig. 1;
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Fig. 3 is a front elevation diagramatic view
similar to Fig. 2 but illustrating another
embodiment thereof.
~ Fig. 4 is a schematic representation of control
.. architecture for.performing the invention:
Fig. 5 is a detail side elevation view, partially
cut away and shown in section, depicting part of a
subsystem illustrated i1~ Fig, l:
Fig. 5A is a further datail side elevation view,
partially in section, illustrating in greater
detail a part of Fig. 5:
Fig. 6 is a cross-section view.. taken generally
along line 6--6 in Fig. 5:
Fig. 7 is a detail top plan view illustrating a
2o part of the apparatus illustrated in Fig. 5:
Fig. 8 is a detail top plan view of a component
illustrated in Fig. 1 and depicting two positions
thereof:
Fig. 9 is a detail side elevation view, partly cut
away and in section, of a component illustrated in
Fig. 1:
Fig. 10 is a side elevation diagramatic view, '
similar to Fig. 1, illustrating in greater detail
pertinent components of the system of the
invention:
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FIG. l0A is a top plan diagramatic view illustrating
specific components depicted in FIG. 1 and different
positions of those components;
FIG. 11 is a detail side elevation view of an
5 induction coil heater employed by the invention;
FIG. 12 is a front elevation view of the induction
coil heater illustrated in FIG. 11;
FIG. 13 is a front elevation view, partly cut away
and shown in section, of a transfer mechanism
10 utilized by the invention;
FIG. 13A is a cross-section view taken generally
along line 13A--13A in FIG. 13;
FIG. 13B is a cross-section view taken generally
along line 13B-13B in FIG. 13B;
FIG. 14 is a top plan view of the transfer mechanism
illustrated in FIG. 13 and depicting different
positions thereof;
FIG. 15 is a front elevation view of the transfer
mechanism illustrated in FIG. 13;
FIG. 15A is a detail side elevation view, certain
parts being cut away and shown in section,
illustrating a part of the transfer mechanism of
FIGS. 13, 14, and 15;
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Fig. 15B is a cross-section view taken generally
along line 15H--15D in Fig. 15:
Fig. 16 is a diagramatic perspective view
illustrating the gear roll finishing mechanism of
the invention:
Fig. 17 is a detail perspective view of an
individual tooth of an indexing gear utilized for
purposes of the invention:
Fig. 17A is a detail side elevatiz~n view of the
gear tooth illustrated in Fig. 17;
Fig. 178 is a detail top plan view of the gear
tooth illustrated in Fig. 17; -
Fig. 18 is a detail perspective diagramatic view
illustrating one set of adjustment mechanisms for
an in-feed assembly of the apparatus of the
invention:
Fig. 19 is a perspective exploded view of the
adjustment mechanisms illustrated in Fig. 18;
Z5
Fig. 20 is a top plan view of the adjustment
mechanisms illustrated in Fig. 18:
Fig. 21 is a side elevation view, certain parts
being cut away and being shown in section, of a
part of the adjustment mechanisms illustrated in
Fig. 18:
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Fig. 21A is a top plan view of the adjustment
mechanism .illustrated.in Fig. 21;
Fig. 22 is a cross-section view of one of the
adjustment mechanisms illustrated in Fig. 18:
Fig. 23 is a side elevation view of Fig. 18,
certain parts being cut away and shown in section,
for clarity;
Fig. 23A is a detail cross-section view of parts
generally depicted in Fig. 2~;
Figs. 24 and 25 are detailed cross-section views of
other adjustment mechanisms illustrated in Fig. 18;
Fig. 26 is a view taken generally along the line
26--26 in Fig. 20:
Fig. 27'is a top plan view, certain parts being cut
away and shown in section, of Fig. 26;
Fig. 28 is a view taken generally along line 28--28
in Fig. 20: '
Figs. 28A and 28a are detail top plan and side
elevation views, respectively, of parts illustrated
in Fig. 28;
Fig. 29 is a detail cross-section view of
components illustrated in Fig. 18; -.
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Figs. 30 and 30A are top plan views illustrating
two positions, respectively, of a coordinating
mechanism utilized by the invention;..
Fig. 31 is a front elevation view of the
coordinating mechanism illustrated in Figs. 30 and
30A:
Fig. 32 is a detail side elevation view, certain
parts being cut away and shown in section for
clarity, of a part of the coordinating mechanism
illustrating in Figs. 30, 30A, and 31:
Fig. 32A is a cross-section view taken generally
along line 32A--32A in Fig. 32: and
Fig. 33 is a side elevation view illustrating in
greater detail upper regions of an in-feed
assembly.
Turn now to the drawings and initially to Fig. 1.
. Fig. 1 illustrates a preferred embodiment of a
system 40 according to the invention devised for
precision gear finishing by controlled deformation
using a fixed axis through-feed of a workpiece 42
and in-feed of two rolling gear dies 44, 46 on
moving axes. With continued reference to Fig. l, a
brief overview of the'operation of system 40 will
be provided, after which a more detailed
description of the components of the system 40 will
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is
be related. The system 40 provides for the timely
and automatic transfer. of each workpiece 42 to a
plurality of processing stations.
For purposes of the present disclosure, the
workpiece 42 is referred to initially as a "near
net shaped gear.blank" and when all processes of
the invention have been completed, it is referred
to as a "net shaped gear". As a near net shaped
gear blank, it may have been hobbed or otherwise
fonaed using conventional techniques. As such, for
purposes of the invention, the workpiece 42 is
formed with its gear te~ah approximately 0.001 to
0.002 inches oversized in tooth thickness relative
to the final or desired size so that the gear can
meet the dimensional tolerances of AGMA required
for high performance gears without the necessity of
grinding. The displacement of the metal during the
deforming operations performed in accordance with
the invention serves to remove the excess tooth
thickness while assuring the proper profile.
Grinding is eliminated, and for this reason alone,
there can be as much as a 70~ increase in surface
durability at any given contact stress level.
At the entrance to the system 40, a workpiece
in-chute 48 holds the workpieces to be processed
and, upon command from a suitable software driven
process controller, releases a workpiece to a gear
loader 50 for subsequent transfer to a spin/scan
induction heating station 52 by means of a swivel
robot 54. The spin/scan station 52 includes a
support spindle 56 to accept the workpiece from the
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swivel robot and servo-drives to impart linear and
rotary motions to the workpiece. At appropriate -
times, the support spindle 56_ positions the
workpiece and drives it at appropriate linear and
rotational speeds with respect to - MF and RF
induction coils 60, 62 respectively, in order for
the surface a'ustenitization to be performed then
advances it into processing or quench media 64 in a
processing tank 6G. Contour austenitization of the
gear tooth surfaces of each workpiece is achieved
by energizing either or both of the MF and RF
induction coils using their ,respective power
supplies (not shown) and for appropriate periods of
time. The complete surface austenitization cycle
is controlled by a dedicated induction heating
process controller (not shown), which in turn is
supervised by a software driven process controller
(not shown). After the induction austenitization
of the gear tooth surfaces of the workpiece and the
z0 rapid quenching thereof to the metastable
austenitic condition, a gear transfer mechanism 68
transfers the workpiece to a through-feed gear
holding spindle 70 for the roll finishing process,
as supervised by a process controller 100.
A through-feed actuator 72 is mounted on a rigid
machine frame 74 of the system 40 and is connected
to the through-feed spindle 70, allowing the
workpiece both the translatory and rotary motions
required for the rolling action. The processing
tank 66 is designed to contain the processing or
quench media 64 maintained at a temperature of up
to 500°F. The dank is anchored to the rigid main
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1G
frame 74 with suitable seals designed to contain
the hot media. Ilousings for the rolling gear dies
and the adjustment mechanisms to align the axes of
the rolling gear dies in the in-plane, out-o~-plane
and axial direction (all to be subsequently
described) are all contained in the processing or -'
quench media 64 to maintain the rolling hardware at
a thermally stable forming temperature.
The adjustments to the axes of the rolling gear
dies are performed by remotely operated actuators,
all as will be fully described below. The rolling
gear dies 44, 4G are power driven through constant
velocity joints 7G which allow in-feed motion of
the rolling gear dies 44, 4G towards and away from
the workpiece 42. This arrangement is particularly
well seen in Fig. 2. The drive to at least one of
the rolling gear dies is capable of phase
adjustment so as to precisely align the rotational
phase of one rolling gear die with respect to .the
other and thereby insure accurate engagement with
the workpiece. Both complete in-feed assemblies
78, 80, including rolling gear die housings 82 and
adjustment mechanisms 84 are guided on precision
linear bearing elements 85 which, in turn, are
suspended from bridge 8G of the rigid main frame
74. The in-feed forcca and motions are provided by
the two in-feed actuators 88 mounted on spaced
columns 90, 92 of the rigid frame. The connections
between the in-feed actuators 88 and the in-feed
assemblies 78, 80 pass through the walls of the
processing tank 66, and are properly sealed to
prevent drainage of the. processing or quench. media
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64 while allowing the linear in-feed motions. In an
alternate_embodiment shown.diagrammatically in.Fig.
3, a single in-feed actuator is used to provide the
in-feed motion uniformly to both of the in-feed
assemblies by means of a self-centering mechanism
94.
After the gear roll finishing cycle is completed, a
gear transfer system 96, similar to transfer
to mechanism 68, then accepts the processed workpiece
42 and transfers it to an indexing quench station
98 (Fig. 1) for final transformation to mart~2nsite.
The processed gear is finally unloaded from the
indexing quench station for subsequent operations.
Throughout the thermomechanical processing cycle
including surface austenitization, rapid quench to
metastable austenitic condition, roll finishing,
and the final quench to martensite, an enclosure 99
contains and maintains an inert environment of
nitrogen or argon, for example, to protect the gear
tooth surfaces from oxidation, the recirculating
inert gas being continuously monitored for oxygen
level, and refurbished as required.
Fig. 4 is a schematic representation of the control
architecture for the thermomechanical net shape
finishing system 40 and shows the interfacing and
interconnections among the various hardware items __
comprising the system. As depicted in Fig. 4, a
controller 100 acts as the overall processing
system manager, controlling every operation of the
components of the system in a software-driven,
coordinated and-controlled manner. The controller
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comprises a microprocessor based system 100 and
real time-system and communications hardware 102
including electronic interfacing and signal
conditioning equipment. The control actions are
achieved by digital interfacing 104, analog
interfacing and signal conditioning 106, and serial __
interfacing 108 for intelligent servo-driver and
sensors via digital/analog/serial input/output
communications between the process controller and
l0 the thermomechanical net shape finishing system 40.
The major functions of the process controller are -
(a) control of the gear roll finishing machine 110,
(b) control 'of the induction heating system 112,
(c) control of the ancillary: equipment 114 which
includes several units such as the processing media
heating and recirculating unit, the quench media
heating and recirculating unit, and the inert gas
environment control system, and (d) control of the
material transfer mechanism 11G for timely transfer
of the ~workpiece for each of the processing steps
involved, which have been described in earlier
sections.
For programmed execution of the process sequence,
the process controller operates the various
material transfer mechanisms 116 which include
modules such as the in-chute 48, gear loader 50,
swivel robot 54, the transfer mechanisms 68 and 96,
respectively, and the indexing quench station 98.
Each of these modules performs one or more of the
following functions: gripping of the workpiece 42,
vertical (up/down) translation, rotation, extension
and retraction of a gripping arm (to be described).
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Before the process~controller 100 sends a command
to any component of the system 40 for any
operation, the process controller confirms by means
of digital sensors whether the desired previous
operation has indeed occurred, and insures that it
is safe to perform thE.desired next operation. The
control of the gear roll finishing machine 110
involves the coordinated operation of the
servo-controlled actuators for- the through-feed of
the workpiece and the in-feed of the two- rolling
gear dies, the drive from the prime movers to the
rolling dies, and the operation of the workpiece
holding chuck on the through-feed spindle 70. The
control of the induction heating system 112 for the
contour gear tooth surfaces austenitiaation process
involves the operation of the servo-controlled
drives of the spin/scan station 52, .and the
energizing/deenergizing of the MF/RF power at -
inouction coils 60, G2 supplied in a programmed
sequence. The power supplies have built-in
dedicated power levels and on-time controllers for
precise monitoring and control of the induction
heating process. Finally, the controller 100
communicates with the ancillary equipment 114 fox
Proper operation, again by means of the software
driven process control architecture previously
mentioned.
Wfth particular reference now to Figs. 5-7, it is
seen that a plurality of workpieces 42 are advanced
toward the system 40 (Fig. 1) by means of the
in-chute mechanism 48. The in-chute mechanism 48
~~mprises an elongated magazine 130 (Figs. 5 and 6)
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_ which comprises a base 132 and spaced apart
upstanding sidewalls 1~4 integral with and
upstanding from the.base 132. The workpieces 42
are supported on a plurality of longitudinally
spaced rollers 136 which are rotatably supported on
studs 138, which are fixed to the sidewalls 134 and
extend transversely of the width of the magazine
130.
to A stop mechanism is employed for selectively
preventing the advance of the workpieces 42 on the
rollers 136. The stop mechanism comprises a
plurality of pawls 140 positioned at longitudinally
spaced locations along the magazine 134 having a
15 Pitch such that a workpiece 42 can be positioned
between immediately successive pawls. ~ Each pawl
140 is pivotally mounted on an axle 142 extending
transversely of the sidewalls 134 and mounted
thereto. When it is desired to advance the next
20 workpiece 42 into position on the gear loader 50,
all of pawls 140, in unison, may be pivoted on
their associated axles 142 to a release position to
allow forward movement of the workpieces on the
rollers 136.. When the foremost workpiece 42
becomes positioned on a platform 144 of the gear
loader 50, as seen in Fig. 5A, the pawls 140 then
return to their stop positions as indicated in Fig.
5.
As seen in Fig. 7, a pair of barrier members 146
are mounted on the gear loader 50 in mutually
angularly disposed relationship and surfaces 148
which are engageable by each workpiece 42 as it
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proceeds onto the platform 144. A centering member
150 is integral with the platform 144 and, having a
bevelled upper surface, is of a size slightly
smaller in diameter than an inner cylindrical
surface 152 of the workpiece. ~ In this manner, the
workpiece 42 is properly positioned on the platform
144. An actuator 154 is then effective to raise
the platform 144 with the workpiece 142 thereon
from a lowered solid line position to a raised
dashed line position as seen in Fig. 5.
When the platform 144 ij raised to the dashed line
position, as illustrated in Fig. 5, the workpiece
42 assumes the same elevation of that of a transfer
arm 15G of the swivel robot 54 (Figs. 1 and 8). As
seen in those figures, the transfer arm 156 can
pivot through at least 180°. That is, it can move
from a solid line position such that workpiece
engaging finger members 158 (Fig. 8) are generally
aligned with the platform 144 of the gear loader 50
to a dashed line position generally aligned with
associated components of the heating station 52.
As seen in Fig. 8, the finger members 158 of the
transfer arm 156 are relatively moveable between
open, dashed line, positions and closed, solid line
positions engaging the outer peripheral surface of
the workpiece 42. lience, when the actuator 154
raises the platform 144 with the workpiece 42
positioned thereon to an elevated position
generally coplanar with the transfer arm 156, the
finger members 158 which may be pneumatically
operated, for example, are moved from a withdrawn
position to a gripping position to firmly hold the
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workpiece 42. The transfer arm 156 is then swing
from the solid line,' or pick-up, position to a
delivery or dashed line position generally aligned
with the induction coils 60, 62 at the heating
station 52. It will be appreciated that as the
transfer arm 156 is swung from the gear loader 50
to the heating station 52, it passes through an
opening 160 in a wall of the enclosure 99. The
opening 160 is of a suitable construction to allow
passage of the transfer arm 15G while retaining the
inert environment provided by the enclosure.
When the transfer arm 15G is moved to the dashed
line position illustrated in Fig. 1, the upper
actuator mechanism 58 is operable to withdraw the
support spindle 56 to an initial fully retracted
position as indicated by solid lines. As seen 'in
Fig. 9, a terminal end iG2 of the support spindle
56 has an expansible chuck 164 which may, for
example, be pneumatically operated. With this
construction, the chuck 1G4 can retract to gain
entry into the inner cylindrical surface 152 of the
workpiece 42, then be caused to expand into
engagement therewith. Thus, when a transfer arm
156 has been moved to the dashed line position
indicated in Fig. 1, the upper actuator mechanism
58 can be operated to advance the support spindle
56 until the expansible chuck 164 is positioned so
as to be generally coextensive with the inner
cylindrical surface 152 of the workpiece 42. The
chuck 164 is then expanded so as to engage the
inner cylindrical surface 152 and the finger
members 158 of the transfer arm 15G are caused to
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release their engagement with the outer peripheral
surfaces of the workpiece. Again, the support
spindle 56 is caused to be raised and, with it, the
workpiece 42. ~:iith the workpiece now out of
alignment with the transfer arm 156, the latter is
returned to its solid line position (Fig. 1) and in
position to receive a subsequent workpiece at the
gear loader 50.
The upper actuator mecfianism 58 includes a linear
actuator 166 (Fig. 10) which operates a plurality
of lead screws 168 having upper and lower limits.
A rotary actuator 170 includes integral- follower
nuts 172 threadedly engaged with the lead screws
168. With rotation of the lead screws i68 in a
first direction, the rotary actuator 170 and its
associated support spindle 56 are raised while
rotation of lead screws 168 in a second, opposite,
direction causes lowering of the support spindle
56.
Induction coils GO and G2 are suitably mounted on
the frame 74 in a manner not illustrated. Viewing
Fig. 1, the induction coil 60 defines a first
heating none 174 and the induction coil 162 defines
a second heating zone 176. A suitable source of
electrical energy serves to energize the first
induction heater at a medium frequency (MF) in the
range of 2-20 Khz which is effective to impart
adequate heat to the first heating zone 174 to
thereby heat the workpiece 42 to a predetermined
surface temperature and to a predetermined thermal
gradient through the carburized case of the
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workpiece. Thus, the heat provided by the
induction-coil 60 is such as to heat the carburized
case of the workpiece to a desired surface
temperature and the_sub case regions to a desired
thenaal gradient therethrough. The source for
energizing .the induction coil 62 and thereby --
heating the second heating zone 176 is operable at
a radio frequency (RF) in the range of 100-450 IQZz
which is effective to impart adequate heat to the
l0 second heating zone 176 to thereby heat the
carburized case of the workpiece 42 above its - ww
critical temperature to maintain the austenitic
structure in the carburized case of the workpiece.
In this instance, the frequency used is effective
to austenitize the carburized case.
The upper actuator mechanism 58 is thus selectively
operable to move the support spindle 56 from a
fully withdrawn position within the rotary actuator
170 to a first position capable"of receiving a
workpiece 42 from the transfer arm 156 then to a
second advanced position aligned within the first
heating zone 174, and then to a third advanced
position aligned within the second heating zone
176. _.
When the workpiece 42 supported on the support
spindle 56 is positioned within the. first heating
zone 174, a rotary actuator mechanism within the
housing 170 is operated to rotate the support
spindle 56 on its longitudinal axis and, thereby
the workpiece 42. The induction coil 60 is
simultaneously energized by an electrical source
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which is provided at a frequency effective,' as
mentioned above, to impart adequate heat to the
heating zone 174 to thereby heat the.~rvrkpiece to a
predetermined surface temperature and to a
5 predetermined thermal gradient through the
carburized case of the workpiece. After a
predetermined time, the rotary actuator mechanism
operates to stop rotation of the support spindle 56
and the linear actuator 166 is operated to advance _
l0 the workpiece 42 to a second heating- zone 176
within the induction coil G2. Again, the rotary
actuator mechanism is effective to rotate the
support spindle 56 on its longitudinal axis and,
thereby, the workpiece 42 at a predetermined
15 rotational speed. As in the instance of the
induction coil 60, the induction coil 62 is then
energized at a frequency effective to impart
adequate heat to the second heating zone 176 to
thereby heat the carburized case of the workpiece
20 42 above its critical temperature to maintain the
austenitic structure throughout its carburized
cash.
As heating proceeds within each of the induction
25 coils 60, 62, the temperature of the workpiece is
monitored by means of an associated IR detector,
178, 180 respectively (Fig. 1). Temperature
information is provided continuously to the process
controller 100 which is equipped with software
driven --algorithms to monitor and control the
lengths of the respective heating cycles. To this
end, heat radiation from the peripheral surface of
the workpiece is received through a radially
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_ directed sighting.bore 182 formed in each coil and
in a sighting member 184 attached to each coil and
extending radially therebeyond. Thus, as to each
induction coil 60, 62, the associated IR detector
180, 182 is able to view meaningful regions of the
outer peripheral surface of the workp_ece along a
line of sight extending through its associated
induction coil and generally in a plane of the axis
of the coil and the workpiece when it is properly
Positioned for heating.
Upon the inclusion of operations at the heating
station 52 as just described, the linear actuator
166 (Fig. 10) then rapidly advances the. support
spindle 56 and the workpiece 42 it is holding
beyond the coils 60, G2 and into the quench media
64 contained within the processing tank or vessel
66. The quench media 64 may be a. commercially
available marquenching oil which is thermally
controlled to maintain the workpiece at a uniform
metastable austenitic temperature just above the
martensitic transformation temperature. The
workpiece 42 remains submerged in the quench media
64 for the duration of all net shaped forming
operations, as will be described.
With particular reference now to Figs. 13, 14, and
15, the gear transfer mechanism 68 is powered by a
linear actuator 190 which is suitably mounted' on
the main frame 74 which serves to extend and
retract an actuator .rod 192 which is generally
vertically disposed. A pair of spaced, parallel,
guide Dars 194 are also suitably fixed on the main
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frame 74 and are generally vertically disposed. A
yoke 196 is vertically movable on the guide bars
194 by reason of journal bearings 19a and such
movement is effected by the actuator rod 192
operating through a drive plate 200 representing a
fixed connection between the actuator rod 192 and
the yoke 196. A transfer arm 202 is fixed to a
lower extremity of a support shaft 204 which, in
turn, is suspended from the yoke 196. Hy means of
the linear actuator 190 operating through the
actuator rod 192 at the yoke 196, the transfer arm
202 is vertically movable between a raised, dashed
Line, position indicated in Fig. 15 and a lowered,
solid line, position indicated in the same figure.
In Fig. 1, the transfer arm 202 is diagrammatically
depicted by solid lines to indicate a raised
position and by dashed lines to indicate a lowered
position.
In.the raised position, as best seen in phantom in
Fig. 14, the transfer arm. 202 is positioned to
receive a workpiece 42 from the support spindle 56
immediately after the workpiece has been deposited
in the quench media G4 from the heating system 112.
Transfer arm 202 is similar in construction and
operation to transfer arm 156. Thus, when the
support spindle 56 is in its fully extended
condition holding the workpiece 42 submerged in the
Quench media 64 just beneath an upper surface 206
thereof (Figs. 1 and 10j, the linear actuator 190
is operated so as to raise the transfer arm 202 to
the level of the workpiece while holding opposed
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jaws 208 in an open position generally encircling
the workpiece 42 but not engaging it. Thereupon,
as seen particularly well in Figs. 13A and~l3B, a
jaw actuator 210 is operable in a suitable manner
to move an upper jaw rack 212 between a fixed stop
214 and an adjustable stop 216. A first upper
pinion 218 on a vertical adjustment shaft 220 is in
meshing engagement with the rack 212 and, further,
with a second upper pinion 222 fixed on another
adjustment shaft 224 whose longitudinal- axis is
substantially parallel to that of shaft 220.
As seen especially well in Fig. 13B, a pair of
lower pinions 22G, 228 are fixed to the lower ends,
respectively, of the adjustment shafts 216, 220.
The pinions 22G, 22~~. are mutually engaged and the
former is enmeshed with a lower jaw rack 230 while
the latter is enmeshed with a lower jaw rack 232.
At locations distant from the support arm 202, the
racks 230, 232 are pivotally attached to the jaws
208. Furthermore, all of the components
illustrated in Fig. 13B are so supported on an
extension 234 (Figs. 13 and lSAj of the support
shaft, 204 that movement of the upper jaw rack.212
in one direction will cause opening of the jaws
208, that is, movement to the dashed line position
illustrated in Fig. 14 and movement of the upper
jaw rack 212 in an opposite direction will cause
closure_.of the jaws into firm engagement with the
workpiece 42.
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When the jaws 20a are firmly engaged with the
workpiece-as it is being held by the chuck 164 just
beneath the upper surface 206 of the quench media
64, the chuck 164 is deflated and the support
spindle 156 withdraws the chuck by elevating it
- away from the region of the workpiece. __
Thereupon, the linear actuator 190, viewing Fig.
13, operates to cause the yoke 196 to descend from
a raised, dashed line position to a lowered solid
line position. -
When the yoke 19G is in the lowered solid line
position depicted in Fig. 13, the transfer arm 202
lies generally in a plane for the reception of the
workpiece by the through-feed spindle 70. However,
in order for that to occur viewing Fig.. 14, the
transfer arm 202 must be moved from the dashed line
position to the solid line position. In order to
accomplish this operation, a pivot actuator 236
mounted on the yoke 196 serves to move a pivot rack
238 to and fro along its longitudinal axis. A
pivot pinion 240, fixed to the transfer arm 202 at
its inboard end, is in meshing engagement with the
pivot rack 238. With this construction,
longitudinal movements of the pivot rack 238
effected by the pivot actuator 236 serve to swing
the transfer arm 202, viewing Fig. 14, from the
dashed line position aligned with the heating
system 112 to the solid line position aligned with __
the gear roll finishing machine li0 and,
specifically, with the through-feed spindle 70.
. .. ...~.~.. v...... ..,n
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The through-feed spindle 70. is of a construction
similar to spindle 5G in that it has an expansible
chuck which is engageable with the inner
cylindrical surface 152 of a worxpiece 42. Thus,
when the jaws 208 of the transfer arm 202 have
moved to a position such that the workpiece 42 ._
overlies the through-feed spindle 70, operation of
the through-feed actuator 72 causes elevation of
the spindle 70 and its associated chuck until the
10 chuck enters and engages the workpiece. Thereupon,
the jaws 208 are opened, the actuator 72 is w -w---
operated to temporarily lowered the workFiece out
of the plane of the transfer arm 202, and the
latter is swung once again, under operation of the
15 pivot actuator 236 back to the dashed line position
of Fig. 14. The through-feed actuator then
operates to elevate the - workpiece 42 into a
generally coextensive or coplanar relationship with
the rolling gear dies 44, 46 as indicated in Figs.
20 1'3~ 10, and I6. .
The gear roll finishing machine 110 includes a pair
of opposed in-feed assemblies 78, 80 which are
substantially similar in construction but
25 positioned on diametrically opposite sides-~~f .the
workpiece 42 when the latter is in the rolling
position as illustrated in Fig. 1G. Each in-feed
assembly 78, 80 includes a rolling gear die housing
82 for rotatably supporting on a drive shaft 24G a
30 rolling. gear die, 44, 4G, respectively, each of
which has an outer peripheral profiled surface for
rolling the gear teeth surfaces of the workpiece 42
to a desired outer peripheral profiled shape. Of
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course,_as previously noted, this is achieved while
holding the temperature of the workpiece in a
uniform metastable ~austenitic temperature range.
It was also previously mentioned that the workpiece
42 has previously been formed as a near net shaped
gear blank with oversized gear teeth. During the
operations about to be described, the excess tooth
thickness is removed and the proper, or desired,
tooth profile achieved.
A rotary drive actuator 248 (see Figs. 2 and 3)
operates the drive sha:ts 24t for k~oth of the
rolling gear dies 44, 4G in a synchronous manner
through a coupling transmission 250, connecting
' 15 shafts 252, and constant velocity joints 76. It
will be appreciated that the longitudinal axes of
the through-feed spindle 70 and the axes of rolling
gear dies 44, 4G are nominally parallel. However,
this relationship may be altered by reason of the
adjustment mechanisms 84 in order to achieve a
properly profiled gear from the workpiece 42.
These adjustment mechanisms 84 will be described in
detail below. As the through-feed spindle 70 is
elevated by the through-feed actuator r 72 into
operating position, it is necessary to synchronize
or coordinate the rotation of the workpiece 42 with
that of the rolling gear dies 44, 46. Such
synchronization may be achieved by means of an
indexing gear 254 supported for rotation on the
drive shaft 246 adjacent the rolling gear die 44.
To this end, viewing Figs. 17, 17A, and 17B, the
indexing gear 254 may be a spur of helical gear
having a modified teeth 256. In Fig. 17, the
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- outline of an original tooth is indicated by a
combination of solid and dashed lines. As
modified, indica~~d solely by solid lines, each
tooth extends from a root 258 to a top land 260 and
has been tapered on its lead side in a manner
extending from a line of departure 262 from a flank
264 across a crest 2GG- to an opposite line of
departure 268 from an opposite flank 270. This
construction results in opposed tapered surfaces
272, 274 on the entry side of the teeth 256 which
operate as cams to slightly rotate the workpiece 42
into synchronization with the rolling gear dies 44,
46. Since the rolling gear dies 44, 46 are already
rotatingly synchroni2ed by reason of the coupling
Z5 transmission 250, only a single indexing gear 254
is required and,. in the construction illustrated,
it has arbitrarily been placed on the drive shaft
associated with the rolling gear die 44. However,
it is within the scope of the invention, if
desired, to position the indexing gear 254 instead
adjacent the rolling gear die 246. While other
mechanisms could be used to move the workpiece 242
into alignment with the rolling gear dies 44, 46
prior to their placement into a meshing
relationship, the construction disclosed is a most
economical one and is preferred.
It was earlier mentioned that the degree of
deformation of the tooth surfaces of the workpiece
42 must be controlled to very close tolerances by
precise monitoring and control of the movements of
each of the two rolling gear dies 44, 46 with
respect to the workpiece 42. It was furtt:er
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- mentioned that the workpiece axis as well as the
axes of the two rolling gear dies must be precisely
aligned to achieve the I:igh iea;~ and profile
_, accuracy specified for ultra-high precision gears.
The adjustment mechanisms a4 which have been
w broadly mentioned previously provide the _
adjustments for the rolling gear dies 44, 4G which
are necessary to achieve the high dimensional
accuracy being sought.
l0
It was earlier mentioned that the spindle 70
carrying the workpiece 42 is elevated, that is,
moved in a through-feed direction, into an
operating position which is generally coextensive
with the opposed rolling gear dies 44, 46. With
the aid of the indexing gearw 254, or other
appropriate mechanism, the workpiece is caused to
meshingly engage the rolling gear dies.
Thereafter, the rolling gear dies 44 and 4G are
each simultaneously advanced in an in-feed
direction within a common plane which generally
contains the axes of the spindle 70 and of both
drive shafts 24G. The rolling gear dies 44, 46
advance, respectively, in opposite in-feed
directions which are substantially perpendicular to
the axis of the workpiece at diametrically opposed
locations and at near net shaped center distances -
which establish initial center distances between
the longitudinal axis of each drive shaft Z4G and
of the spindle 70. The -assemblies 242, 244
continue to advance their associated rolling gear
dies 44, 46, respectively, in the in-feed direction
each by an additional incre~r.ent of center distance
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thereby deforming the profile services of each gear
tooth of the workpiece 42 and thereby resulting in
final net shape of the gear teeth. - '
At the conclusion of an initial fonaing operation
on a workpiece 42, the resulting net shaped gear is
dimensionally studied. It is common practice for
it to be determined as a result of that dimensional
analysis that changes are to be made to the profile
of the tooth surfaces before a finally acceptable
gear is achieved. It is for this reason that
adjustments are made to the r::lative positioning
between the rolling gear dies 44, 46 and the
workpiece 42.
The individual components for each of the in-feed
assemblies 78, 80 are substantially similar.
Therefore, the description will be substantially
limited to in-feed assembly 78, but it will be
understood that such description also pertains to
in-feed assembly 80, unless otherwise noted. A
trolley 276 (Figs. 2 and 3) is laterally movable on
the bearing elements 85 as generally indicated by
double arrowhead 278. In turn, an in-feed assembly
frame 280 is fixed to the trolley 276 and depends
therefrom. A support block.282 is mounted on the
. in-feed assembly frame 280, then a helical
adjustment plate 284 is mounted on the support
block 282, then a parallel adjustment plate 286 is
mountedwon the plate 284. Finally, the bifurcated
rolling gear. die housing 82 is mounted on the
adjustment plate 286. The mounting construction
between each successive pair of the components is
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different so as to_provide~for a different type of
movement of the rolling gear die 44 with respect to
the workpiece 42. More specifically,, viewing Fig.
16, the helical- adjustment plate 284 is movable
5 relative to the assembly frame 280 (and support
block 282) in a manner indicated by arcuate double
arrowhead 288. Movement of this nature is
effective to adjust the rolling gear die 44 out of
a.common plane nominally defined by the axes of the
10 drive shafts 24G and-of the through-feed spindle
70. Support block 282 is suitably fixed tv the
in-feed assembly f=ame 2E0 as by fasteners 285.
In a similar fashion, a parallel adjustment plate
15 28G is mounted on the helical adjustment plate 284
for relative motion as generally--indicated by an
arcuate double arrowhead--290. Adjustment of the
rolling gear die 44 is thereby achieved within a
common plane containing the longitudinal axes of
20 the drive shaft 24G and of the. through-feed spindle
70.
Finally, the rolling gear die housing 82 is movable
relative to the parallel adjustment plate 286 in
25 directions represented by a double arrowhead'29Z,
by reason of which the rolling gear die 44 is
movable along its own axis of rotation relative to
the workpiece 42.
The structure enabling these various motions of the
rolling gear die 44 relative to the workpiece 42
will now be described in greater detail.
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Turn now to Figs. 1G and 18-22 for a description of
the helical adjustment and locking mechanism. It
was previously mentioned that s~!pport block ' 282 is
mounted on the in-feed assembly frame 280 and is
substantially fixed against movement in directions
parallel to the axis of rotation of the rolling __.
gear die 44. The support block 282 has a
substantially planar block surface 294 (see
especially Fig. 19) which generally faces the
ZO rolling gear die housing 82. For its part, the
helical adjustment plate 284 has a substantially
planar pivot surface 296 which is generally
coextensive and slidably engaged with the~planar
block surface 294.
A centrally located pivot spindle 298 which is
integral with the helical adjustment plate 284 and
projects from the pivot surface 29G is slidably
received in. a mating pivot bore 300 which is
recessed from the block surface 294. In this
manner, the support block 282 and the helical
adjustment plate 284 are interconnected for defined
pivotal movement of the pivot surface 29G on the
planar block surface 294 about an out-of-plane
axis, thereby allowing the adjustment of the axis
of the rolling die 44 in a vertical plane which is
perpendicular to the plane containing the rolling
dies 44, 46 and the workpiece 42.
A helical adjustment rod 302 interconnects the
support block 282 and the helical adjustment plate
286 and is operable for selectively moving the
helical adjustment plate on the supFort block. The
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support block is formed-with a central cavity 304
(Fig. 22) which is offset from a geometric center
thereof. as defined by the pivot _bore 300, p
through bore 306 extends between an outer surface
308 of the support block and the central cavity 304
and serves to rotatably receive the adjustment rod
302.
The helical adjustment plate 284 is formed with a
transverse through bore 310 (Fig. 22) which
communicates with the central cavity 304 in the
support block 282. An adjustment pin 312 is
fittingly received- in the_ through bore 310 and
projects into the central cavity 304 where it is
matingly engaged with a dowel member 314. More
specifically, the adjustment pin 312 is fittingly
engaged with a transverse bore 316 formed in the
dowel member 314. The upper end of the dowel
member 314 is threaded as at 318 and is threadedly
engaged with a tapped bore 320 formed in a lower
end of the helical adjustment rod 302.
By means -of this construction, rotation of the
helical adjustment rvd 302 in either direction as
indicated by a circular double arrowhead 322. is
effective to rotate the helical adjustment plate
284 and, eventually, the rolling gear die 44
thereon about an axis whose center is defined by
the pivot spindle 298 and lies in a plane defined
bY the -axes of a rolling gear die 44 and of the
workpiece 42.
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- Once the helical adjustment plate 284 has been
moved to a desired position relative to the support
block 282, upon operation of the helical adjustment
_. rod 302, two pairs of helical locking rods 324,
326, are operated to secure the helical adjustment
plate in its selected orientation. Each of the
locking rods 324, 326 is rotatably journaled in an
associated throughbore 328 in the support block 28Z
and in other associated journal bearing blocks 330
l0 integral with the support block 282 and projecting
into a central cavity 332 of the support block at
spaced, locations. It can be Seen that the locking
rods 324 are longer than the locking rods 326, the
former being associated with locking nuts 334 (Fig.
23) and the latter being associated with locking
nuts 336 (Fig. 23A). The support block 2a2 is
formed with four substantially parallel spaced
locking bores 338 adjacent the corners thereof.
The locking bores 338 are perpendicular to the axis
defined by the through bore 328 and journal bearing
blocks 330 and are aligned with a like number of
associated locking bores 340 formed in the helical
adjustment plate 284. The locking bores 340
extend through locking ledges 342 which are a part
of the helical adjustment plate 284 and,
specifically,. between the pivot surface 296 and a
locking ledge surface 344. Bevel gears 346 are
-fixed to the extremities of the locking rods 324,
326 and are meshingly engaged with bevel gears 348
fixed to one end of the stud members 350 whose
other end is threadedly engaged with one of the
associated locking nuts 334.
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By reason of this construction,. rotation in vne
direction of each of the locking rods 324, 326
about its longitudinal axis as represented by
circular double arrowheads 352 i~s effective to move
the locking nuts into locking engagement with their.
associated locking ledge surfaces 344 and rotation
in the opposite direction is effective to move the
nuts out of locking engagement with the surfaces
344. As seen in Fig. 21, the locking bores 338,
340 are somewhat elongated to accommodate the-,
pivotal movement of the helical adjustment plate
284 on the support block 282.
Consider now the mechanism for selectively
adjusting the rolling gear die housing 82 and with
it the rolling gear die 44 within--a common plane
containing the die and workpiece axes to enable the
rolling gear die to assume a desired orientation
relative to the workpiece. For this purpose, turn
now to Figs. iG, 18, '19, 20, and 24. As will be
understood from the preceding description, the
helical adjustment plate 284 is mounted on the
in-feed assembly frame 280, via support block 282,
and fixed against movement in the .direction of the
axis of the rolling gear die 44. The helical
adjustment plate 284 has a concave cylindrical
surface 354 which generally faces the rolling gear
die housing 82. The surface 354 has a
- longitudinal, in-plane, horizontal- axis which is
generally perpendicular to the plane of the axes of
the die 44 and the workpiece 42. A parallel
adjustment plate 28G has a convex cylindrical
- surface 356 coextensive and slidably engaged with
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the concave cylindrical surface 354. A keyed
interconnection is provided between th.~ parallel
adjustment plate and the helical adjustment plate
for defined sliding movement of I the convex
5 cylindrical surface 356 on the concave cylindrical
surface 354. As seen particularly well pn Figs. I9
and 24, a pair of keys 358 on the parallel
adjustment plate 286 and projecting outwardly
toward the helical adjustment plate 284 from the
10 surface 356 are engaged with the arcuate grooves
360, respectively, recessed from the surface 354 in
the plate 284. The grooves 360 and their mating
keys 358 lie generally in a plane containing the
rotational axis of the rolling gear die 44 and of
15 the workpiece 42. An adjustment rod 362
interconnects the parallel adjustment plate 286 and
the helical adjustment plate 284 and is operable
for selectively moving the former relative to the
latter. The helical adjustment plate 284 is
20 provided with a central cavity 364 (Fig: 24) and a
throughbore 365 extending between an outer surface
366 and the central cavity.
An adjustment pin 368 (Fig. 24) is fixed on the
25 parallel adjustment plate 286 as by means of a
force fit within a throughbore 370. The adjustment
pin 368 projects from the convex cylindrical
surface 356 into the central cavity 364 of the
helical adjustment plate. A dowel member 372 has
30 a transverse bore 374 which fittingly receives the
end of the adjustment pin 368 projecting from the
surface 356. The dowel member 372 also has a
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tapped bore 376 for engagement with a lowermost -.
threaded. end of the adjustment rod 362.
ny reason of this construction, rotation of the
adjustment rod 362 about its longitudinal axis as
indicated by circular double arrowhead 378 is
effective to move the parallel adjustment plate 286
relative to the helical adjustment plate 284 about
the in-plane axis as previously defined.
_. __ ._
As-in the instance oaf the helical adjustment plate
284, a locking mechanism is provided
interconnecting the parallel adjustment plate 286
and the helical adjustment plate 284 for
selectively securing the parallel adjustment plate
in a desired in-plane orientation. To this end,
and viewing especially Fig. 25, a pair of parallel
throughbores 380 extend betwean the outer surface
366 and the central cavity 364. Aligned with each
of the throughbores 380 is a pair of pillow blocks
382 which extend into the cavity 364 and serve to
rotatably receive an elongated locking rod 384.
The helical adjustment plate 284 is also--firmed
with two pairs of substantially parallel spaced
locking bores which extend between the central
cavity 364 and the concave cylindrical surface 354.
A parallel adjustment plate 28G has a substantially
flat surface 388 opposite the convex cylindrical
surface 35G and two pairs of axially aligned
counterbores 39o and crossbores 392, each
associated countsrbore and crossbore defining an
annular shoulder 394 at their intersection. The
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. 42
counterbores 390 are in. communication with the flat
surface 388 and the crossbones are in communication
with the ccnvexw cylindrical surface 356 and each
proximate pair of counterbores 390 and crossbones
392 are generally aligned with an associated
locking bore 386. A stud member 396 having a --
longitudinal axis generally~perpendicular to the
axis of the rolling gear die 44 fs rotatably
received, or journaled, in each of the locking
bores 386 and is threaded as at 398 on an end _ ___
distant from the helical adjustment plate 284 and
generally coextensive with the counterbore 390. A
pair of longitudinally spaced bevel gears 100 are
rotatably mounted on each of the pillow blocks 382
so as to ,be axially. aligned with each of the
locking rod receiving throughbores 380. Each of
the bevel gears 400 is integral with a hollow stud
shaft 402 which is internally splined. Each of the
stud members 396 has a bevel gear fixed thereto at
an end opposite the threaded end 398 and is
me~hingly engaged with an associated one of the
bevel gears 400. Each of the locking rods 384 has
external splines 406 at spaced locations within the
central cavity 364. -__
A nut 408 is threadedly engaged with the threaded
end 398 of each stud member 396 and is, in turn,
engaged with a washer bearing 410 having a flat -
surface engaged with the annular shoulder 394 and a
concave spherical bearing surface engaged with the
convex spherical bearing surface of the nut.
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43
The locking rod 384 is both longitudinally movable
as represented by a double arrowhead 412 and is
rotatable as indicated by a circular do~rbl-e
arrowhead 414 (Fig. 25).
The nuts 408 are either tightened down or loosened,
one at a time, by first moving the locking rod X84
longitudinally to position vone of the externally
splined regions 406 into meshing engagement with
l0 the internal splines with one of the stub shafts
402. Then, the locking rod 384 is rotated in the
appropriate direction to either tighten or loosen
the associated nut 408. A similar procedure is
performed to either tighten or loosen each of the
15 other nuts.
The spherical bearing surfaces between each nut 408
and its associated washer bearing 410 is .provided
to accommodate the relative movement between the
20 parallel adjustment plate 286 and the helical
adjustment plate 284 which results by operation of
the~adjustment rod 762.
The attitude adjustment mechanism of the invention
25 also includes an axial adjustment mechanism .for
selectively moving the rolling gear die housing 82
along the die axis to enable the rolling gear die
44 to assume a desired orientation relative to the
workpiece 42. From the preceding description, it
30 will be apparent that the adjustment plate 286 is
mounted on the in-feed assembly frame 280 via the
support block 282, the helical adjustment plate
284, and the parallel adjustment plate 286 in ~u~r.
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_ a manner that it is fixed against movement in the
direction of the axis of the rolling gear die 44.
For a detailed description of the axial adjustment
mecrranism, turn now primarily to Figs. 16, 18-20,
' 28, and 29.
A key mechanism interconnects the rolling gear die
housing 82 and the parallel adjustment plate 286 to
restrain relative movsmsnt between them to a
l0 direction parallel to the axis of the rolling gear
die. To this end, a key slot 416 is formed in the
flat surface 388 of the parallel adjustment plate
286 whose axis is parallel to that of the rolling
gear die 44. Key members 418 are integral with the
housing 82 and project outwardly from a planar
surface 420 (Fig. 29) and are aligned with the axis
of rotation of the rolling gear die 44. The .key
members 418 are of a size such that,_ with minimal
clearance, they are slidable along the key slot
416. A yoke 422 is integral with the rolling gear
die housing 82 and projects outwardly therefrom in
a direction toward the in-feed assembly frame_280
so as to be generally coextensive with the parallel
adjustment plate 28G. As~seen particularly well in
Figs. 28, 28A and 28D, the yoke 422 has three
parallel bores 424, 426, and 428 therethrough and
an engagement surface 430 lying in a plane
xransverse of the axes of the bores. The axes.>of
the bores 424, 426, 428 are generally parallel with
the axis of the rolling gear, die 44 and the bore
426 has a coaxial annular recess 432.
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- An elongated adjustment rod 434 extends in a
slidable manner through the bore 426 and has a
threaded terminal end 436 which is threadedly
engaged with a tapped bore in the upper regions of
the parallel adjustment plate Z86. An annular boss
438 on the adjustment rod 434 is freely received in _
the annular recess 432. By reason of the
construction just described, rotation of the
adjustment rod 434 about its longitudinal axis as
depicted by a circular double arrowhead 440 is
effective to raise ~or lower the rolling gear die
housing 82 and with it the die 44 in directions
parallel to the die axis.
A pair of locking rods 442, 444, similar to the
adjustment rod 434, slidably extend through the
bores 424, 428 respectively, in the yoke~422, also
in directions generally parallel to -the die axis.
Each of the locking rods 442, 444 includes a
threaded terminal end 446 which is threadedly
engaged with an associated tapped bore 448 in the
upper regions of the parallel adjustment plate 286.
Each of the locking rods 442, 444 has an annular
shoulder member 450 at a location spaced from the
threaded terminal end 446. When the housing 82. has
obtained a desired position relative to the
parallel adjustment plate 286, the locking rods
442, 444 are rotated about their longitudinal axes
until the shoulder members 450 engage the
engagement surface 430 of the yoke 422. Such
engagement serves to lock the housing 8a against
further movement until such a future time at which
such~movement is desired. Thereupon, the locking
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rods 442, 444 can be w rotated in the opposite
directions to disengage the annular shoulder
members 450 from the engagement surface 430 thereby
freeing the housing 82 for desired movement
relative to the parallel adjustment plate 286.
As was previously explained, each in-feed assembly
78, 80 may be advanced into operating relationship
with the workpiece 42 by a separate in-feed
actuator 88. such a construction is illustrated in
Fig. 2 and requires that the controller 100
properly monitor the operation of both actuators to
assure that_they operate in a coordinated manner.
An alternative to such a construction is
illustrated in Fig. 3. In this latter instance,
only one in-feed actuator 88 is utilized for
operating both in-feed assemblies 78, 80. This is
desirable in order to reduce the initial expense of
hardware and its subsequent maintenance as well as
simplifying the system. A coordinating mechanism
452 for achieving this goal will now be described.
Turning initially to Fig. 3, the single in-feed
actuator 88 is mounted on a cross-frame member 454
which is an integral part of the main frame 74,.for
in-feed and out-of-feed movement as indicated by a
double arrowhead 456. This is achieved in a
substantially friction free manner as provided by a
suitable bearing package 458 interposed between the
actuator and the cross-frame member.
As more clearly. seen in 'Figs. 30 and 31,~ which
diagramatically depict the construction and
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operation of the coordinating mechanism 452, the
actuator 88 includes a cylinder 460, a piston 462
and an actuator rod 464 which extends slidably
ttarough a actuator plate 466 to which the, cylinder
460 is mounted. The actuator rod 464 also extends,
slidably through the sidewall of the processing
tank 66, but sealingly in a manner which insures
the integrity of the processing tank. An end of
the actuator rod 464 distant from the piston 462 is
mounted as by bolts 468 to the in-feed assembly
frame 280 associated with in-feed assembly 80.
A pair of elongated, spaced apart,- parallel,
synchronizing rods are mounted, as by nuts 472 to
the in-feed assembly frame 280 of the in-feed
assembly 78. Their opposite ends are similarly
mounted as by nuts 474 to--the support number 466.
The in-feed assembly frame 280 associated with the
in-feed assembly 80 is slidably mounted on the
synchronizing rods 470. Specifically, the rods 470
extend in a slidable manner through bores 476
formed therein. Upon operation of the in-feed
actuator 88, whereby a piston 462 moves from the
position indicated in Fia. 30 t-.c~ that indicated in
Fig. 30A, the actuator rod 464 moves likewise to
the left and carries with it frame 280 of in-feed
assembly 80. Simultaneously, and in reaction
thereto, the actuator plate 466 moves to the right
(see Fig. 30A as compared to Fig. 30), and, by
reason of the synchronizing rods 470 also moves
frame 280 of the in-feed assembly 78 to the right.
Indeed, the opposite incremental movements of the
opposed frames 280 are equalized such that the
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in-feed movement of the rolling gear dies 44, 46 is
also equalized.
As further assurance for equalizing the incremental
in-feed movements of the in-feed assemblies 78, 80,
a pair of rack and pinion devices 476, 478, may be
interposed between the opposed rolling gear die
housings 82. Specifically, each rack and pinion
device 476, 47~ includes a pair of spaced parallel
elongated racks 480, 482 with an intermediate
pinion 484 meshingly engaged with the racks. The
rack 480 is fixed, as by fasteners 486, to one of
the housings 82 and its opposite end is journaled
as at 488 to the opposite housing 82. The rack 482
is mounted in the same manner but its fastened and
journaled ends are opposite from that of the rack
480. A similar construction is provided with
respect to the rack and pinion device 478. The
meshing engagement between the pinions 484 and
their associated racks 480, 482 provides positive
assurance that the incremental in-feed movement
imparted to in-feed assembly 78 will likewise be
imparted to in-feed assembly 80. In this manner,
all operations performed on the workpiece 42-at the _ -
diametrically opposed locations are assured. of
uniformity .
As seen in Fig. 33, all of the adjustment and _
actuating rods are connected at their upper ends
via universal joints 490 to remote operating rods ._
492. In this manner, all of the positioning and
locking operations can be performed by an operator
at a remote, centralized, location. As also seen
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in Fig. 33, a gimbled mounting strut 49_.4 is
desirably positioned between each rolling gear die
hoLSing 82 and the main frame 74 to provide
additional support against the through-feed roller.
Throughout operation of the gear roll finishing
mechanism 110, various measurements are
continuously taken under direction of controller
100. Appropriate operations are then performed.
For example, viewing Fig. 2, with operation of the
through-feed actuator 72, a suitable through-feed
p ressure sensor 520 is provided for sensing the
force resisting entry of -the workpiece 42 in the
through-feed direction. When the force thereby
being measured exceeds a predetermined value,
operation of the actuator 72 is interrupted
enabling an operator to determine the cause of the
problem and correct it. In similar fashion, a
suitable load cell 522 (Fig. 2) may be provided for-
sensing the force resisting entry of the workpiece
in the in-feed direction. Again, the controller
100 is operable to interrupt operation of the
in-feed actuator 8a for a desired length of time to
~.ooate and correct the problem. Additionally, a
z5 torque or current monitor 524 is appropriately
provided for sensing the torque resisting rotation
of the rolling gear dies 44, 4G while meshingly
engaged with the workpiece 42. Once again, the
controller 100 is operable to interrupt operation
of the rotary drive actuator 24a for a sufficient
period of time to locate and correct the
difficulty.
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- Upon conclusion of the net shaping operations
performed by the gear roll finishing mechanism 110,
a gear transfer mechanism 4G which is substantially
_.. similar in construction to the gear transfer
5 mechanism 68 is operated to retrieve the workpiece,
42 from the through-feed spindle 70, then to
deliver it to the indexing quench station 98. The
indexing quench station 98 includes a tank or
vessel 496 which contains a thermally controlled
10 liquid working medium 498 which may be similar to
the quench media G4 utilized in the processing tank
66. In this instance, the working medium 498 is
maintained at a substantially unifona temperature
in the range of approximately 50F to 150F which
15 is broadly considered to be "room temperature".
The vessel 496 is so positioned in relation to the
system that the gear transfer mechanism 96 always
remains in the inert atmosphere provided by the
enclosure 99. As seen in Figs. l, 10, and 10A, a
20 transfer arm 500 of the gear transfer mechanism 96
is elevated until it overlies an upper rim 502 of
the processing tank GG positioning jaw 504 holding
the workpiece 42 above and in line with a suitable
spindle 506 of a gear receiving carousei_ 508. The
25 jaws 504 are then operated to release the workpiece
which is, at this stage of the operation, a net
shaped gear, onto the spindle 506. In time, the
completed workpiece descends through the working
medium 498 until it comes to rest on the carousel
30 508 or on a preceding net shaped gear 42.
Preferably, the carousel 508 is caused to rotate
about a hub 510. This motion causes some measure
of agitation of the working medium 498 and also
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presents the completed workpieces to an exit
location 512 outside of the enclosure 99.
While preferred embodiments of the invention have
been disclosed in detail, it should be understood
by those skilled in the art that various other
modifications -may be made to the illustrated
embodiments without departing from the scope of the
invention as described in the specification and
defined in the appended claims.
_ ._
20
30
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