Design and manufacture of the novel drum worm pair

Although a significant amount of research on robot joint reducer was conducted, there are few systematic investigations on a novel joint reducer adopting inner worm-gear plane enveloping drum worm drive. To satisfy the development of modular robot joint, the primary objective of this paper was to systematically investigate the drum worm drive adopted in the novel joint reducer with integrated structure of drive, transmission, and support in the following aspects: meshing theory, design, analysis, and manufacture. According to the gear meshing theory, mechanical design method, classical mechanics, finite element method, and machining principle of virtual center distance, the systematic investigations around the drum worm pair applied in the novel joint reducer were conducted including the macro and micro meshing theory, structure design, mechanical and contact properties analyses, and manufacturing method. The novel joint reducer’s integrated structure was designed, and the drum worm pair’s mechanical and contact properties analyses were conducted, which showed: (1) the worm’s bending stress and deflection, worm-gear teeth’s shear stress and bending stress as well as the maximum contact stresses were all below their corresponding allowable values; (2) the maximum contact stresses appeared at the engage-in position of the worm pair opposing to the engaging-out position where the largest contact areas appeared. Then the manufacturing of drum worm’s spiral tooth was conducted via the modified 4-axis linkage CNC grinder according to the conjugate motion. Finally the novel joint reducer’s industrial prototype was assembled. The novel joint reducer with integrated structure of drive, transmission and support was designed and manufactured for the first time. The flowchart of design and manufacture of the reducer’s drum worm pair in this process was formulated, which provides a new insight on the research of joint reducers as well as other fields.