Involute gear cutter

Gear cutting apparatus for cutting involute gears comprising:

• means for rotating a gear blank about a blank axis at an angular velocity .omega.;
• means for rotating a rack cutter blade about a cutter axis displaced from and transverse to the blank axis;
• means for pssing the cutter blade axially along the cutter axis past the rotating blank at a velocity equal to .omega.R where R is the pitch radius of the gear being cut by the rack cutter blade;
• and
• means for oscillating the gear blank along the blank axis with each pass of the cutter blade past the gear blank.

Gear cutting apparatus comprising:

• means for rotating a cutter blade about a cutter axis;
• a rotating timing shaft;
• cutter drive means including a cam on the timing shaft and a first set of change gears for periodically passing the cutter blade axially along the cutter axis past the rotating blank at a predetermined velocity to cut between the gear teeth with each pass of the cutter blade;
• a carriage for mounting a gear blank for rotation about a blank axis displaced from and transverse to the cutter axis;
• blank drive means including a second set of change gears driven by the timing shaft for rotating a gear blank at an angular velocity relative to the cutter blade duty cycle such that the blank rotates a number of tooth positions greater than one for each cutter blade cycle, which number is prime to the total number of teeth to be cut;
• retracting means including a cam on the timing shaft for pivoting the blank carriage to retract the gear blank away from the cutter axis after each cutting pass of the cutter blade;
• and
• means for reciprocating the blank carriage such that the gear blank oscillates along the blank axis as the blank is rotated.

Gear cutting apparatus for cutting involute gears comprising:

• means for continuously rotating a gear blank about a blank axis at an angular velocity;
• means for rotating a cutter blade about a cutter axis displaced from and transverse to the blank axis;
• means for periodically, in a predetermined timed relation to the blank angular velocity, passing the cutter blade axially along the cutter axis past the rotating blank to cut between gear teeth with each pass of the cutter blade past the continuously rotating gear blank;
• and
• means for oscillating the gear blank along the blank axis as the blank is rotated.

Gear cutting apparatus for cutting involute gears comprising:

• means for continuously rotating a gear blank about a blank axis at an angular velocity;
• means for rotating a cutter blade about a cutter axis displaced from and transverse to the blank axis;
• means for peroidically, in a predetermined timed relation to the blank angular velocity, passing the cutter blade axially along the cutter axis past the rotating blank to cut between gear teeth with each pass of the cutter blade past the continuously rotating gear blank;
• and
• a common timing shaft for driving the cutter blade along the cutter axis, for periodically retracting the gear blank as the cutter blade is returned to an initial position and for driving the gear blank.

Gear cutting apparatus for cutting involute gear comprising:

• means for continuously rotating a gear blank about a blank axis at an angular velocity;
• means for rotating a cutter blade about a cutter axis displaced from and transverse to the blank axis;
• and
• means for periodically, in a predetermined timed relation to the blank angular velocity, causing relative movement between the cutter blank and the rotating blank to cut between gear teeth with each relative pass of the cutter blade past the continuously rotating gear blank, the gear blank rotating continuously through successive passes of the cutter blade at different tooth locations about the gear blank.