EC) PRODUCT FOCUS: GEARING
How to analyze gear failures
[OES SPT
By following a step-by-step procedure, engineers can diagnose gear
failures and develop solutions. Here's how to conduct a failure
analysis, what to look for, and how to recognize common failures.
Wier an important goa taitate o-
‘curs, someone becomes responsible for
analyzing the failure, determining its
‘cause, and recommending a solution. A
‘company ean select its own engineer, an
outside consultant, or both, Ifa consul:
tant is called in, this should be done as
‘early in the process as possible,
‘Though similar procedures apply to
any failure analysis, the specific ap-
proach can vary depending on when and
here the inspection is made, the nature
ofthe failure, and time constraint.
‘When and where. Ideally, the engi-
reer conducting the analysis should in-
spect the failed components as soon after
failure as possible. Ifan early inspection
isnot possible, someone at the site must
preserve the evidence based on instruc:
tons from the analyst.
Ifa suitable facility for disassembling
and inspecting the gearbox is not avail-
able on-site, it may be necessary to find
‘analternate location or bring the neces-
sary equipment to the site
Nature of failure. The failure condi
tions can determine when and how to
‘conduct an analysis, For example, if the
sears are damaged but still able to func-
tion, the company may decide to con-
inue their operation and monitor the
Robert I. Brrichello is president of Gear-
tech, a gear research, analysis, and design
consullant firm in Albany, Cali. Jane
Muller isa consultant and goarfaitureana-
lyst with the company,
rate at which damage progresses. In this,
‘ease, samples of the lubricant should be
collected for analysis, the reservoir
drained and flushed, and the lubricant
replaced,
If gearbox reliability is erucial to the
application, the gears should be exam-
ined by magnetic particle inspection to
‘ensure that they have no cracks. The
‘monitoring phase will consist of period
cally checking the gears for damage by vi
sual inspection and by measuring sound
and vibration.
‘Time constraints. In some situations,
the high cost of shutting down equipment
limits the time available for inspection,
Such eases call for eareful planning, For
‘example, dividing tasks between two oF
‘more analysts reduces the time required.
Preparing for inspection
Before visiting the failure si
view a contact per-
son located at the
site and explain
hat you need to in-
spect the gearbox
including person-
rel, equipment, and
working conditions.
fatigue fracture
surfaces of gear
teeth. Upper tooth
has muitipe origins
‘ol failure,
CZ
Figure 1 — Typical year tooth contact
patterns: (a), aligned, and (8) misaligned.Request a skilled technician aged. Examine closely the
to disassemble the equipment functional surfaces of gear
under your direction, But, make teeth and bearings and record
sure that no work is done on their condition. Before clean-
the gearbar nti yow arrive y ing the pats, look for signs of
means no disassembly or corrosion, contamination, and
Clearing Othernise, well. | - overheating
‘meaning technician could inad- After the initial inspection,
vertently destroy evidence. wash the components with sol
Verify thatthe gearbox draw- | “ vents and re-examine them,
ings, disassembly tools, and ad- ; ‘This examination should be as
‘equate inspection facilities are thorough as possible because
available. itis offen the most important
‘Ask for as much background 1 phase of the investigation and
information as possible, includ ‘may yield valuable clues. low
ing manufacturer's part num- Z power magnifying glass and
‘bers, gear and bearing runtime Docket microscope are helpful
(tr)! service history, and lubricant type. Figure 3—Fatigue crackin a gear tooth tools for this examination,
Now, it's time to assemble your inspec- root fillet. It is important to inspect the bearings
tion equipment, including tems such asa because they often provide clues as tothe
‘magnifying glass, measuring tools, felt tip ‘cause of gear failure, For example:
‘markers, lubricant sampling equipment, wise be lost once disassembly begins. For Bearing wear can cause excessive
and photographic equipment. Avellde’ example, the condition of seals and key. radial clearance or end play that mis-
signed set of inspection forms for the ways must be recorded before disassem- align the gears.
‘gearbox, gears, and bearings shouldbe at bly, Otherwise it willbe impossible to de-_» Bearing damage may indicate corro-
the top of your priority is. termine when any damage may have sion, contamination, electrical dis-
‘ecurred to these parts. Gear tooth con charge, or lack of lubrication.
‘dure inspecti tact patterns should be taken before» Plastic deformation between rollers
Failure inspection completely disassembling the gearbox and raceways may indicate overloads
Before stating the inspection, review — (See nex section), * Gear failure often follows bearing
the background information and service After the external examination, disas- failure.
history with the contact person. Then in- semble the gearbox and inspect allinter- Gear tooth contaet patterns. (Com
terviow those involved inthe design, in- nal components, both filed and undam- plete this step before disassembling gear:
stallation, operation, box components for in-
maintenance, and failure spection). The way in
ofthe gearbox. Bneourage z ‘which mating gear teeth
thom to tell everything contact indicates how
they know about the gear wel they ae aligned, Fig
box even ifthey feel itis : = ure 1 I practical, record
‘not important. c =~ tooth contact patterns
“Atte completing the in- ? under either loaded or
terviews, explain your ob- unloaded conditions. For
jectives to the technician 7 no-load tests, paint the
‘who will be working with teeth of one gear with
you, Review the gearbox marking compound,
assembly drawings with mar Then, Toll the teeth
the technician, checking through mesh so the com:
{or potential disassembly pound transfers the con-
problems tact pattern to the un-
Visual examination. painted gear. Lift the
Before disassembling the gearbox, thor- Figure 4—Fatigue failure (piting)in the pattern from the gear with scotch tape
‘oughly inspect isexterior. Usean inspec- gontact surface ota geartooth. and mount it on paper to form a perma-
tion form as a guide to ensure that yon Beach marks are visible in some of nent record.
record important data that would other the larger its. For loaded tests paint several teeth on
a POWER TRANSMISSION DESIGN m MARCH 1994‘one or both gears with ma-
chinist’s layout lacquer. Run
the gears under load fora suf-
ficient time to wear off the
lacquer and establish the
contact patterns. Photograph
the patterns to obtain a per
manent record,
Document observations.
Describe all important obser
vations in writing, using
sketches and photographs
where needed, Identify and
‘mark each component (in-
cluding gear teeth and bear
ing rollers), so it is clearly
identified in the written de-
scription, sketches, and pho:
tographs. It is especially im
portant to mark all bearings,
ineluding inboard and out
board sides, so their location
and position in the gearbox
‘ean be determined later.
Deseribe components in a
consistent way. For example,
always start with the same
part ofa bearing and progress
‘through the parts in the same
sequence. This helps to avoid
overlooking any evidence.
Concentrate on collecting
‘evidence, not on determining
the cause of failure, Regard
less of how obvious the cause
may appear, do not form con-
‘clusions until all the evidence
is considered,
Gear geometry. The load
capacity of the gearset will
need to be ealeulated later.
For this purpose, obtain the
following geometry data, ei
ther from the gears and gear
housing or their drawings:
‘ Number of teeth.
Outside diameter.
«# Face with,
# Gear housing center distance for
each gearset,
‘© Whole depth of teeth
# Tooth thickness (both span and top
land measurement),
Specimens for laboratory tests. Dur
cook
ene
Class Generalmode _| Specific mode
‘Bending faigue | Low-cyce fatigue
High-