How Can One Motor Drive Two Gears Sequentially?

Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the mechanical design of a system where a single electrical motor drives two spur gears sequentially. The first gear is intended to stop upon encountering resistance, at which point the motor should engage the second gear. The conversation explores potential mechanical solutions and the feasibility of the proposed design.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant suggests using electromagnetic clutches to switch the drive from the first gear to the second upon resistance.
  • Another participant expresses uncertainty about the initial premise, questioning the functionality of the first gear if it stops at the first sign of resistance.
  • A participant clarifies their intent to create a simple robotic gripper, indicating a preference for a jointed design without complex mechanics.
  • There is a suggestion that air pressure might be a better alternative to electromagnetic clutches, particularly given the small scale of the application.
  • Participants express varying levels of understanding and engagement with the technical details, with one noting the need for further exploration of the linked example of the BarrettHand.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree that clutches could be a viable solution, but there is no consensus on the best approach or the overall feasibility of the design. Multiple competing views on the mechanism and its functionality remain unresolved.

Contextual Notes

The discussion highlights limitations related to the vague description of the application and the challenges posed by the small scale of the project, which may affect the choice of technology.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals interested in mechanical design, robotics, or those exploring solutions for sequential gear engagement in small-scale applications may find this discussion relevant.

YeeHaa
Messages
28
Reaction score
4
Hi,

In a small mechanical application i have, i want an electrical motor to drive a spur gear, and from the moment the spur gear encounters resistance (it stops completely), i want the same shaft from the motor to drive a second spur gear (which was NOT spinning at first, it starts spinning from the moment the first gear stops).

Is there a way to do this mechanically? I just want to use one motor.

Thanks!
 
Engineering news on Phys.org
The only way that immediately comes to mind is to use a couple of clutches. Electromagnetic ones would probably be the easiest to implement.

edit: By the bye, I have a lot of questions about what exactly you are trying to achieve, because the premise sounds just a tad squirrelly.
 
Last edited:
I don't know exactly what you mean by "the premise being squirrelly", but I'm trying to create a simple robotic gripper for a project I'm going to start at home. But since all robotic grippers without joints have limited capabilities, I'm leaning towards a jointed one, but preferably without using tendons or complicated mechanics...

An example of a system that uses the same principle (but is already too hard for me to implement), is the system in the BarrettHand:

http://support.barrett.com:8080/wiki/Hand/262/KinematicsJointRangesConversionFactors
 
Ah...
Okay, then. That looks cool, but I frankly am too tired to read the whole thing right now. It's 07:30 my time, I've been up for 26 hours, and I've got 5 of my 20-pack left to go. My apologies, therefore, for being a little less than at full attention.
I have no idea where you live or what your native culture is, so I hasten to point out that I didn't mean the term "squirrelly" to imply insanity, in which context it has sometimes been used. I merely meant "unusual" or "enigmatic". The primary reason for that was your mention that the #1 spur bails out at the first sign of resistance. If that's the case, why is it there in the first place? It can't perform any function whatsoever without overcoming resistance. Also, your use of the description "small mechanical application" was a bit vague. Now that I know what you're up to, that is no longer a concern. It does raise a bit of bother, though, in that the smallness limits what sort of tech can be applied.
I still think that clutches are the proper approach, but the scale is causing me to rethink the operation thereof. Perhaps air pressure would be better than electromagnetics.

edit: I've had a chance to sleep a bit and check out the link. I'll have to go over it a lot more, though, as it puzzles me in a couple of different regards.
 
Last edited:

Similar threads

Replies
2
Views
3K
Replies
1
Views
1K
Replies
2
Views
3K
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
2K
Replies
2
Views
4K
Replies
58
Views
8K
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
3K
  • · Replies 10 ·
Replies
10
Views
6K
  • · Replies 12 ·
Replies
12
Views
3K
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
3K