Combination gear hobber, chamfer/debur and shaver apparatus and method
AssigneeNew Venture Gear, Inc.
InventorsBrian M. Fitzgerald, Jeffrey A. Rynders
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus is provided for manufacturing a gear component. The apparatus includes a plurality of tooling stocks movable relative to a base. The tooling stocks function to retain a component, as well as operably driving a combination hob/shaver tool and a combination chamfer/debur tool. The apparatus reduces the number of machines required to complete the gear component as well as reducing the cycle time for complete component manufacture. In this way, a more efficient manufacturing system is provided, whereby capital investment and operational costs are reduced.
Claims12
A gear production apparatus for producing a gear from a blank, comprising:
- a base;
- a first stock slidable along a longitudinal axis of said base and including a tool retainer rotatably supported thereon;
- a second stock slidable along a lateral axis of said base and including a component holder supported thereon for holding the blank, and
- a combination hob and shave tool drivably supported within said tool retainer, wherein in a first operation said hob and shave tool rotates about a first axis for hobbing a gear form into the blank and in a second operation said hob and shave tool rotates about a second axis generally perpendicular to said first axis for shaving said gear form of the blank.
A method of producing a gear from a blank, comprising the steps of:
- providing a rotatably supported combination hob and shave tool;
- providing a retainer for retaining the blank;
- driving said combination hob and shave tool into the blank in a first hobbing operation, whereby said combination hob and shave tool rotates about a first axis;
- and
- engaging said combination hob and shave tool with the blank in a second hobbing operation, whereby said combination hob and shave tool rotates about a second axis generally perpendicular to said first axis.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.