A New Technique of Gear Mesh Stiffness Measurement Using Experimental Modal Analysis

Accurately measured mesh stiffness (MS) of gear pair is used in the mathematical model of the gearbox for doing the vibration analysis. Mesh stiffness measurement by experimental techniques is an import aspect for measuring the MS accurately of the physical structure of gear pair. Analytical methods (AMs) of MS require large mathematical equations and modifications in these equations for different gear geometries and cracks. Finite element method (FEM) requires huge computational time. In this paper, a new experimental technique based on the experimental modal analysis (EMA) is proposed to measure the MS of spur gear pairs. EMA technique is also used in the paper for measuring the MS of cracked gear tooth pairs and found a significant difference in the MS of healthy and cracked tooth pair. In the last, the experimental MS results are compared with the MS results obtained by the AM and digital image correlation (DIC) experimental technique and found a good agreement. This shows the usefulness of the EMA for measuring the MS. So, it can be used as an alternative method of MS measurement or to validate the analytical and FEM MS results.