Modelling and analysis of a spur gear pair with the effect of bearing clearances

In the previous dynamic models of spur gear transmission systems, the effect of bearing clearance on gear backlash and mesh stiffness was ignored. In fact, bearing clearance has an effect on gear backlash and mesh stiffness, and the effect of which is related to vibration displacement. In this study, a nonlinear dynamic model of a spur gear pair with six degrees of freedom was developed, which took into account the surface friction, gear backlash, bearing clearance, transmission error and meshing stiffness. The variation of initial gear backlash and rotational speed was analyzed comprehensively according to the effect of bearing clearance on the meshing stiffness and dynamic gear backlash. After that, the dynamic characteristics under different excitation parameters were obtained. The results indicate that the vibration of the gear system is more violent when the effect of bearing clearance is taken into account. This study can provide a better understanding of the dynamic design of gears under practical conditions.