Industrial Gears
An industrial gear is a round mechanical component that has a "teethed" circumference.
Its teeth connect with complementary teethed gear wheels or parts. The combination
of industrial gears or similarly teethed devices functions to transfer rotational
motion or speed. Industrial gears can simply be used to transfer rotational
motion, or the interlocking of gears with unequal diameters can produce an
increase in rotational speed and rotational force (torque).
In industrial gear combinations, the smaller gear is called the pinion and
the larger is the gear, or wheel. A pinion may also be combined with a rack,
which can be thought of as a toothed shaft, and as the pinion rotates between
the rack's teeth, the rack moves in the straight line. This type of industrial
gearing is used, for example, in the automotive industry for the steering wheel
to move the tire rods, hence, "rack-and-pinion" steering.
Industrial gears can also be used to reverse motion direction, decrease rotation
speed or synchronize axes. Any machinery or mechanical equipment that has revolving
parts includes gears: car engines and transmissions, wind-up, grandfather and
pendulum clocks, power meters and any other engine or motor that generates
rotary motion.