FACE GEAR FINITE ELEMENT STRESS ANALYSIS TOOL DEVELOPMENT

Classical analysis of gears is available for a full range of traditional gear types using empirically corrected classical hand calculation methods for bending and surface fatigue analyses. The application of such methods to face gears poses analytical problems because there are no standard, hand calculation methods available. Standard gear equations can be adapted for use, but the stress and contact ratio errors associated with the solutions are not fully known. Without adequate analytical methods available, testing is required for each unique set of face gear teeth. The use of testing for design verification is expensive and time consuming. Finite element analysis (FEA) is a useful tool in understanding stresses in gear teeth. This paper documents the evolution of Boeing application of FEA to face gear stress analysis including the achievement of the capability to predict tooth contact stress in addition to root bending stress.