
Sandeep V. Thube is R&D Engineering Manager at Sumitomo Machinery Corp. of America (Chesapeake, VA), a leading gear reducer/control products manufacturer. He holds an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering (product design/simulation) and has 15 years of gear industry experience, authoring ASME and AGMA conference papers.
For years, the cycloidal reducer (Figure 1) has proven its performance in a variety of applications, from robotics to wastewater treatment. Along with involute gearing, the cycloidal mechanism has its place in the mechanical power transmission world. It is well known for its high torque density, high integer ratio per stage, and shock load handling capabilities. Its poke-yoke assembly refrains from introducing any errors during assembly and allows the unit to operate with low maintenance. Despite these advantages, the reducer may have a variable angular speed at its output shaft, in large part due to manufacturing imperfections.