Abstract
Due to the merits, for example, silent operation, self-lubrication, and light weight, etc., the demand for plastic gears increases tremendously. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the interaction between the dynamic contact loads and the sliding wear depths of a meshing plastic gear pair. Parameters, such as time-varying mesh stiffness, damping ratio, tooth errors, etc., are included in the gear dynamic model presented. As to the mesh stiffness, finite element results will be used to curve fit the flexible stiffnesses at different contact points. The values of the damping ratio and the friction coefficient are referenced to the experimental results in the papers cited. In addition to the studies of the parameters involved in the dynamic model, the wear equation proposed by Archard is used to calculate the wear depths of the running gear pair. With the gear dynamic model and the wear model developed, a computation algorithm is designed to simulate the interaction of the sliding wears and the dynamic contact loads.