Gears have become very common in our machine and technology-driven lives. A gear is basically a wheel that has cogs or teeth that interconnects with another such wheel or a rack. During motion, the speed and direction may be manipulated because of the combination of toothed wheels. In a boat, for instance, the steering mechanism helps control the speed and direction of movement.
Considering the hundreds and thousands of applications of the gear principle, Gear manufacturers in India have assumed tremendous importance. Not only do they run the country with several kinds of gears but also export them to many countries. One manufacturer advertises high speed gears and gearboxes with many uses. They are used in compressors and pumps, steam and gas turbines etc. Low speed gearboxes apply to steel, cement and sugar mills, thermal plants, plastics and mini-hydel turbines, among others.
Another gear manufacturer mentions that their products are used in Power Transmission, Motion Control and Automation. Gears apply to Industrial Automation, Agricultural and Defence purposes, Material Handling and Lifting Platforms.
While gears come in several designs, the Gear manufacturers in India stress on the worm gear that has a toothed wheel along with a revolving cylinder called the worm that contains a screw thread. Worm gears are used in tuning instruments like guitars and other stringed musical instruments. The gear system works up and down and you can maintain the string’s tightness. Most worm gears move in a single direction.
- Elevators use worm gears with a compact size and the non-reversible system. Speed can be controlled and the load cannot free fall.
- Torsen Differentials like on large trucks need to supply a different torque to each wheel like while turning at a crossing. The worm gears achieve that by regulating each wheel separately.
- Gates and Conveyor Belts may need two worm gears to work in either direction.