Geared motor units are often classified by their output shaft orientation, which is to say the place from which they power the application. The two most common output shaft orientations are parallel and right-angle gear-motors so we will discuss them in a little more detail below.
Differences Between Parallel and Right-Angle Gear-Motors
Usually, right-angle geared motor units tend to be less efficient than the parallel gearmotor types, but they have other advantages that make them the preferred option in many cases.
A right-angle variety will typically include a worm gear assembly which will take the motor’s rotary motion and redirect it by 90 degrees. Parallel gear motors are more versatile and can come with a variety of configurations including spiral gears, helical gears, spur gears, or even complicated planetary gear systems (more on these below). The most efficient gear in a parallel gearmotor is usually a spiral bevel gear, although the helical and spur gear types are not far behind.
Though less efficient, right-angle gearmotors are particularly popular for applications where space is at a premium, allowing the operator to fix the geared motor unit without redesigning the whole machine.
Gearmotor Types: Planetary Gears
Other aspects also define what type of gear motor it is, particularly the type of gears within the motor that ultimately determine its performance. We’ve mentioned the spiral, helical and spur gears, but let’s take a closer look at the complex planetary gears.
Planetary gear-motors are one of the more common types, especially when installed in applications using a dc motor. The structure of a planetary gear system consists of a central ‘sun’ gear, orbiting ‘planetary’ gears and the enclosing internal gear. The central sun gear sits on the central axis surrounded by the planetary gears that mesh together with it, with all the planetary gears and the sun gear safely enclosed within the larger internal tooth gear.
There are several key advantages gained by using a planetary gearmotor instead of the other types, with the main two being its high power density and its compactness both with regards to its size and its weight. In addition to these advantages, the efficiency levels and accuracy of a planetary gear is typically pretty high. Because of the complex design and construction of a planetary gearmotor configuration, they can usually cope with higher load requirements because the load is being distributed across several gears instead of one or two. As a bonus, they also produce hardly any backlash.
Surely there’s a downside to these amazing gears, I hear you cry. Well yes, they tend to be more expensive than other types of gear configurations, though this should really be expected due to their much more complex design.
If you require any geared motor units such as parallel or right-angle gearmotors, then contact YB Components who are the UK’s leading gear-motors suppliers who keep local stocks ready to ship out fast and free all over the UK and the rest of the world.