Classroom &

Non-classroom

Gear Examples
Mr. Muhammad's PLTW Gateway Class

Simple Gear Train-VEX

Example B

Example A

Simple Gear Train - example

In a watch

Picture Source: http://blog.symprise.net/2009/03/revisiting-fowlers-video-store-02-making-implicit-concepts-explicit/

Simple Gear Train with Idler - VEX

Simple Gear Train with Idler - example

A toy train

Picture Source: http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/blog/87/entry-5242-chipping-a-brawa-kof-ii/

Bevel Gear - VEX

Bevel Gear - example

On a roller door

Picture Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bevel_gear

Differential Gear - VEX

Differential Gear - example

In the axles of
cars and
trucks

Picture Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Differential_gear

Worm and Wheel - VEX

Worm and Wheel - example

Controlling a gate

or in a music box

Picture Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worm_drive and taken by Mrs. Straczek

Leadscrew - VEX

Leadscrew - example
In a DVD drive

or the front door of a Boeing

747-8F freighter aircraft

Picture Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_screw

Rack and Pinion - VEX

Rack and Pinion - example

A household scale

Picture Source: http://www.howstuffworks.com/transport/engines-equipment/gear6.htm

Universal Joint - VEX

Double U-joints allow an

offset up to 30 degrees.
This is used when drive
shafts are not collinear.

Single U-joint ranges up to

15 degrees from the axle
until either speed or vibration
affects the motion.

Universal Joint - example

In the drive shaft of a car (shown here, next to the differential gear)

Picture Source: Picture taken by Mrs. Straczek

Chain Drive - VEX

Chain Drive - examples

On a bicycle

or a garage door opener

Picture Sources: http://hipcycle.com/bike-chain-bottle-opener.html and http://glassslidingdoors.org/highest-qualitysystem-of-chamberlain-garage-door-openers/

Belt Drive - VEX

A real belt, shown to the right, does not have
as much elasticity (stretchiness) as a rubber
band, like we use in class.

Belt Drive - examples

In a threshing machine

Picture Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belt_drive

or an air compressor

Crank and Slider - VEX

Crank and Slider - examples

The engine of a car or an antique Roman sawmill

Picture Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crankshaft

Cam and Follower - VEX

We use a snail shaped cam,

which is not reversible.
There are different shape
cams, some of which are
reversible.

Cam and Follower - examples

We use a snail shaped cam, not the egg shaped cam shown in these examples.

In children's toys and the fuel injection system

in a car's engine(the green parts)

Picture Sources: http://www.lizarum.com/assignments/physical_computing/2008/mechanisms/cams.html and

http://educypedia.karadimov.info/library/engineclr.gif