Electric drives in conveyor systems, lifting equipment, and forklifts are the motors that drive modern, efficient, and reliable intralogistics. ABM Drives Inc. develops and manufactures platform-based systems for stationary and mobile applications. ABM works closely with customers to build drive solutions, including motors, gearboxes, brakes, and frequency inverters tailored for specific applications.

In an urgent assignment, a gear has to be designed, with the engineer already knowing the required reduction ratio, torque and speed. On the manufacturing side, the preferred materials, possible qualities and the reference profiles are specified. This initial situation represents an everyday task.

The earliest example of a gear train dates to at least 2,000 B.C. when Chinese engineers built a chariot that used a complex planetary mechanism made of wooden gears to let a dragon head continuously point south when driven around (Ref. 1). In Greece, a surprisingly advanced Antikythera gearbox mechanism, incorporating at least 37 precisely crafted bronze gears, was built years later, between 205–60 B.C. (Ref. 2).