What is a Planetary Gearbox: Benefits&Maintenance

A planetary gearbox is a widely used industrial product that offers performance comparable to other military-grade gearboxes but at an industrial-grade price. Planetary gearboxes are extensively used in various industrial applications in the East and North China regions. They are also used as auxiliary components in industries such as lifting, excavation, transportation, and construction.

01 The Stages of  Planetary Gearbox

Refers to the number of sets of planetary gears. In some cases, one set of planetary gears may not meet the requirements for a large transmission ratio, so two or three sets may be needed. Increasing the number of planetary gears results in longer lengths and reduced efficiency for two or three-stage gearboxes. Backlash: When the output end is fixed and the input end is rotated clockwise and counterclockwise, a small angular displacement occurs at the input end when the input torque reaches ±2% of the rated torque. This angular displacement is known as backlash, measured in "minutes," which is one-sixtieth of a degree. It is also referred to as clearance.

With the continuous development of the gearbox industry, more and more companies are utilizing gearboxes. Planetary gearboxes are industrial products and transmission mechanisms. Their structure consists of an internally toothed ring tightly coupled to the gearbox housing. There is a sun gear driven by external power between the internally toothed ring and a set of planetary gears evenly distributed on a carrier. The planetary gears are supported and float between the output shaft, internally toothed ring, and sun gear.

When the input side drives the sun gear, the planetary gears rotate and follow the trajectory of the internally toothed ring, resulting in the rotation of the carrier and the output of power through the output shaft.By utilizing the speed conversion mechanism of gears, the gearbox reduces the rotational speed of the motor to the desired speed and provides a mechanism with increased torque. Among the gearbox mechanisms used for power transmission and motion, planetary gearboxes are considered precision gearboxes, with a precision ratio accurate to 0.1-0.5 revolutions per minute.

02 Operating Principle

an inner gear ring (a) is tightly coupled to the gearbox housing, with a sun gear (B) driven from outside at the center of the ring gear, in between, there is a set of planetary gears (c) which is composed of three gears on the pallet. The planetary gears are supported by the output shaft, inner gear ring and solar teeth during the period When the sun teeth are driven by the input power, the planetary gear can be driven to rotate along the orbit of the inner gear ring. The rotation of the planet drives the output power of the output shaft connected to the pallet.

03 Structure Analysis

The main transmission structure of planetary reducer is: Planet Wheel, Sun Wheel, inner ring gear.

04 Important Advantages

The internal gears of the planetary reducer are carburized and hardened by 20CrMnTi. They are small in size, light in weight, high in bearing capacity, long in service life, stable in operation, low in noise and high in output torque, the speed ratio is big, the efficiency is high, the performance safe characteristic. The utility model has the characteristics of power shunting and multi-tooth meshing. It is a kind of new type reducer which has extensive generality. The maximum input power can reach 104KW. It is suitable for the new planetary series of industrial departments such as lifting transportation, engineering machinery, metallurgy, mining, petrochemical industry, construction machinery, light industry textile, medical apparatus, instrument, automobile, ship, weapon and aerospace etc.

05 Lubrication and Maintenance

Install the recommended type and value of grease in the planetary reducer. The planetary reducer is lubricated by lubricating oil. For vertically mounted planetary reducers, additional lubrication is used in view of the fact that the oil may not guarantee reliable lubrication of the uppermost bearings.

Before running, fill the planetary reducer with an appropriate amount of oil. The viscosity of the oil is selected according to the following list. Planetary reducer is usually equipped with oil injection hole and drain plug. Therefore, when ordering planetary gear reducer must specify the installation location.