Kinematics of Meshing Surfaces Using Geometric Algebra

Abstract

As is well known, analysis of two surfaces in mesh plays a fundamental role in gear theory. In the past, special coordinate systems, vector algebra, or screw theory was used to analyze the kinematics of meshing. The approach here instead relies on geometric algebra, an extension of conventional vector algebra. The elegance of geometric algebra for theoretical developments is demonstrated by examining the so-called “equation of meshing,” which requires that the relative velocity of two bodies at a point of contact be perpendicular to the common surface normal vector. With surprisingly little effort, several alternative forms of the equation of meshing are generated and, subsequently, interpreted geometrically. Via straightforward algebraic manipulations, the results of screw theory and vector algebra are unified. Due to the simplicity with which complex geometric concepts are expressed and manipulated, the effort required to grasp the general three-dimensional meshing of surfaces is minimized.