The gearbox is a mechanical method of transferring energy from one device to another and it is mainly used to increase torque while at the same time reducing speed. Speaking of it, torque is the power that is produced through the twisting or bending of a solid material. The gearbox is located at the junction point of a power shaft and is commonly used to create a right angle change in direction. Every part of it was created with a specific purpose in mind and the gear ratio used is designed to provide the required level of force. This gear ratio is fixed and it can be no longer changed once the box has been constructed. The only modification that is possible is an adjustment which allows the shaft speed to increase together with a corresponding reduction in torque.
On the market today there is a variety of different types of gearboxes, however, the most common ones are planetary gearboxes. They are constructed of three gears only – a sun gear, a ring gear and planet gears. These gears got their name due to their resemblance to the solar system. The centre of the ring gear revolves around the centre of the sun gear. The planetary gear revolves around the sun gear which is fixed. The teeth of the ring gears interlink with the inward teeth of the sun gear, in this way providing smooth transmission.
One of the most well-known brands of gearboxes today is certainly Vogel. The Vogel planetary gearbox combines maximum flexibility with a high-power density. It is perfect for servo applications that have high rotation speed ranges. These planetary gear boxes are most commonly used in automatic transmission vehicles and can use any of their three elements as the output or input. Consequently, they are widely used in applications which require transmission of high torque-to-weight ratios, such as lifting machines, cranes as well as other machine tools for the construction, agriculture and marine industry.
The Vogel planetary gear box is ideal for intermittent, continuous and reversing operations as its torque ranges from 1000 nm to over a million of nm. The thing with the torque is that it is as high as the size and the design of the gear box. These gear boxes can be installed in any mounting position so they can accommodate high axial and radial loads. One of the best things about them is that they make a minimal noise while operating, and that is exactly why these gearboxes are among the favourite choices for a variety of applications. Finally, of their other great benefits are the following:
- compact arrangement;
- very convenient
- easy to use;
- easy to maintain;
- highly efficient power transmission.
