Effect of process factors on the rabbit ear based on numerical simulation and experimental study in gear rolling

Abstract

The “rabbit ear” defect, which is the protrusion on the tooth top of the blank, is a typical deformation characteristic in gear rolling and severely influences the forming quality of the formed gear. The main factors affecting the rabbit ear formation, including rolling feed of the gear roller, friction condition, and number of teeth on the gear roller, are demonstrated through analyzing the gear rolling process condition. In order to quantitatively describe the rabbit ear volume, a quantitative evaluation index of the rabbit ear volume was given. The effects of rolling feed of the gear roller, friction condition, and number of teeth on the gear roller on the rabbit ear volume were numerically simulated by Deform software. The effect of different rolling feeds of the gear roller on the rabbit ear volume was studied experimentally, which verified the reliability of the finite element simulation. The results can provide scientific evidences for establishing reasonable process parameters, and improving the forming quality in gear rolling.