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What determines the quality of a low backlash gearbox? Low backlash gearbox manufacturing is a very challenging discipline and success depends on several factors. We discuss those factors in this article, going into detail about the effect of these elements on the final quality of the low backlash gearbox.
The main factors that determine the quality of low-play gearboxes are: know-how, machinery, facilities, volume, experience, delivery time and investment. Of course, we are happy to explain why.
This is also immediately a tricky one because it cannot be expressed in terms of money. It is also not for sale in this sense, but it is the most important thing. The know-how translates in the direction of the application and the servomotor; how do you produce such a thing economically? What materials, hardness, machining do you use and what applications is the low backlash gearbox designed for? A low backlash gearbox is not a further development of "normal" gearboxes! If a low-backlash gearbox supplier also produces "normal" gearboxes, things often go wrong in practice.
Making such low-backlash products requires very precise (gearing) machines, and the most precise gearing machines come from Germany, Switzerland or Austria. You also need CNC centers - preferably turning and milling in one setup - and high-precision grinding machines. Since you don't want to outsource hardening, you also need a hardening line, if possible with different hardening principles. And before you send components on to assembly you want to have measured - at least every batch - for dimensional accuracy and hardness. Toothing can only be measured with a probe in a surface, contour and form measuring machine. Here, too, German-made machines are leading the way. A typical delivery time of such a machine is one year.
If you search the Internet for manufacturers of low clearance gearboxes you will find very many, and more than 90% of the hits are from China. On Alibaba, for example, the question is whether they are all manufacturers, resellers are quite common there. These can also be quickly identified by the specifications: this is often a 1 to 1 copy of the data sheet of Apex Dynamics' gearboxes. Components (bearings, seals, lubricant) from reputable manufacturers are also often mentioned, but they are not used in the gearboxes. But only three to five manufacturers meet the above criteria, making them global players. And Apex Dynamics is one of them, still rising strongly in market share and we are particularly proud of that!
