Large Curvic Coupling Gear for Ultraprecision Angle Division Using FEM

Curvic coupling is an important component used for ultraprecision machine tools in the machinery and aerospace industry. It plays an important role in accurate positioning of materials on the turret so that they can be precisely machined. However, all ultraprecision-360 T cube couplings used in Korea are imported from Japan. This study aims to examine how to use the FEM (Finite Element Method) for large curvic coupling gears for ultraprecision angle division. Commercial software CATIA is used for design, and ANSYS is used to analyze the large curvic coupling gear. In this study, a new type of large curvic coupling gear combining a large gear with curvic coupling is designed on the basis of the fitting equation as the allowable weight depends on the component size. Stress and friction were analyzed in consideration of external forces of the multi-purpose precision angle division gear of the machine tool, and the maximum allowable external forces of the large curvic coupling gear for ultraprecision angle division were inspected. In general, numerical simulation can significantly reduce the time and cost for pilot production, and be used for various applications, as well as curvic coupling