Planetary and precision right-angle gearboxes from Neugart with pinion mounted – Flexibility and efficiency for rack drives

Rack and pinion drives, as used in many applications, require gearboxes with mounted pinion. The Neugart portfolio thereforeincludes planetary  and precision right-angle gearboxes with this additional option specifically for this area of application. A total of eight gearbox series with integrated pinions allow a wide range of sizes and gear ratios.

When the rotary motion of the electric drive motor is converted into a linear thrust in a rack-and-pinion drive, high radial and axial forces act on the driven pinion. Integrated gear-pinion combinations tolerate these specific forces particularly well due to their high mechanical load capacity. The planetary and precision right-angle gearboxes developed by Neugart especially for such pinion-rack applications use pinions from our own production.

This ensures the best technical match between pinion and gear. In addition, the gear units also feature high-performance tapered and angular contact roller bearings in the output shaft bearing arrangement. These are very rigid, so that even heavy weights can be moved dynamically despite the radial and axial forces that occur. A wide range of gear unit models, sizes and gear ratios is available in order to precisely map the optimization of speed and transmittable torques in combination with the pinion.

Two pinions + eight gears = numerous combination options

Specifically, two pinion types are available for planetary gear units: The PK1 pinion is mounted on the toothed output shaft of the gear unit, with internal teeth in accordance with DIN 5480 ensuring the necessary connection reliability. The PM1 pinion, on the other hand, is designed for gear units with a flanged output shaft and is equipped with a mechanical interface standardized to EN ISO 9409-1. Both types are available with helical teeth, and the PK1 is also available with spur teeth. In addition, the pinions are available in four different modules and with different numbers of teeth.

The pinion option can be combined with a total of eight planetary gear unit series: These include one coaxial planetary gearhead with output shaft (PLHE) and one with output flange (PFHE) from the Economy Line, which comprises durable and powerful standard gearheads with an excellent price/performance ratio. In the Precision Line, which stands for the high accuracy of precision gear units, there are two coaxial planetary gear units with output shaft (PSN and PLN) or output flange (PSFN and PLFN) and one angular planetary gear unit each (WPLN and WPSFN).

The gear units with pinion can absorb feed forces of up to 30,000 N and achieve a maximum feed speed of 650 m/min. The feed force and feed speed depend on the gear unit size and gear ratio.

Precision right angle gear with mounted pinion

Hypoid-toothed precision right-angle gear units shorten the drive train and are therefore the ideal solution for confined spaces. These are special bevel gear units whose bevel gears have spiral arc teeth. The axes cross on two parallel, different planes. This requires a special type of gearing: hypoid gearing. The resulting angle means that the driving motor is offset by 90° to the output shaft, which significantly reduces the overall length of the drive train. Right-angle gear units are therefore the ideal solution for applications in confined spaces.

Part of Neugart's current angular gearbox portfolio also includes two variants with factory-preassembled pinion: For the WPLN series, a splined output shaft with pre-assembled pinion is available, whereby splining in accordance with DIN 5480 ensures the necessary connection reliability. The WPSFN series, on the other hand, comprises a flanged output shaft with preassembled pinion, which - like all models in the series - is equipped with an interface in accordance with EN ISO 9409-1.

Solutions for the most diverse requirements

These numerous possible combinations of pinion and gear unit types ensure that there is not only one solution for a wide range of requirements, but usually several: For example, the torsional stiffness of flanged gear units is higher than that of gear units with an output shaft. If, for example, the installation space situation is the decisive criterion, the designer can use the short gear units with output flange or use the angular precision gear units. If precision is the decisive factor, he can opt for the higher accuracy and torsional stiffness of the precision gear units. For standard applications, on the other hand, economy gear units are a more economically attractive solution.

Applications

The Neugart gear units with pinion are specially designed for rack and pinion applications. Pinions and racks can be used in many areas of mechanical engineering. In particular, corresponding drive systems make it possible to move larger machines over distances of several meters using a precise but relatively inexpensive design element. If several racks are mounted one behind the other, even larger gantries can be realized without any problems, since the length is not limited. Another field of application is the application with a gear rim. Here, the gear unit with pinion drives a rotary axis, for example.

Typical applications for rack and pinion drives thus include machine tools including feed systems, laser and plasma machines, woodworking and sheet metal processing machines, linear travel axes for robots, and lifting systems. What these applications have in common is that very high accuracy and rigidity can be achieved even over a large operating range thanks to the rack and pinion.

Neugart's gear-pinion combinations can be used with almost all racks on the market, provided they have the same module and the same type of gearing (helical or spur) as the pinion. In addition, the high toothing quality of the pinion is a great advantage for the compatibility of the corresponding rack.

Configure gearbox-pinion-motor combinations easily

Last but not least, the pinion gearboxes are integrated into Neugart's powerful and intuitive configuration tools: In the Tec Data Finder (TDF), for example, not only can the appropriate components be selected easily and in a time-saving manner, but technical data sheets and CAD models can also be sent automatically. The models can then be transferred directly to the CAD model of the machine or application.

The design required for this can be carried out in the Neugart Calculation Program (NCP), in which designers can calculate complex load curves in the drive train and determine the optimum application-specific motor-gear-pinion combination on this basis. The application parameters of the pinion-rack system can be quickly entered into the predefined application mask. This enables convenient comparison of similar gear and pinion combinations - and thus quickly leads to the optimum solution.

Author: Sven Borho, Teamleiter Produktmanagement, Neugart GmbH