The effect of tooth wear on the vibration spectrum of a spur gear pair

In this paper, the effect of tooth wear on the vibration spectrum variation of a rotating spur gear pair is studied. In order to approximate the dynamic characteristics of an engaging spur gear pair, the load sharing alternation, position dependent mesh stiffness, damping factor and friction coefficient are considered in the mathematical model. The wear prediction model proposed by Flodin et al. is used to simulate the tooth profile wear process. The variation of the vibration spectra introduced from the interaction between the sliding wear and the dynamic load is simulated and analyzed. Numerical results indicate that the dynamic load histogram of an engaging spur gear pair may change greatly with the tooth wear. This finding implies that the variation of the gear vibration spectrum might be used to monitor the tooth wear of an engaging spur gear pair.