Hobbing is one of the processes involved in the gear cutting process. It is one of the important machine processes. It is a special kind of milling machine. It can also be used for cutting splines and sprockets on the hobbing machine and is most commonly and widely used for spur and helical gears. It makes the use of a tool called a hob. These are automated machines that come in various sizes and for different uses. There are various types of gear hob cutters including worm wheel hobs, roller chain sprocket hobs, spline hobs, spur and helical gear hobs, involute spline hobs, straight spline gear hobs, chamfer hobs and serration hobs. Each one of it has its use and significance. In this article, we will discuss the benefits of gear hobbing.
- Speed: The very first benefit that gear hobbing offers is the speed. Some machine processes may take a lot of time but machine hobbing is relatively fast. The machine is not much complicated and very easy to operate. A large number of hobs can be used to cut at the same time. This increases the total productivity of the machine. It, therefore, has a lower production cycle time and faster production cycle rate.
- Precision: When used in the best manner and with the proper guidance of experts, hobbing can give precise result and output. This ultimately leads to the production and manufacturing of high-quality gears.
- Flexibility: Hobbing is a flexible process. It can be used for meeting different needs and specifications. As already discussed, there are different types of hobs and machines. Thus, this can help to cater to numerous types of specifications of the customers.
- Use and application: While the hobbing is mainly used for spur gears, its process can be used for a variety of options including cycloid, helical, worm gears and splines and sprockets. These could be applied in various places.
- Diversified process: Hobbing process is classified into different types depending upon the directions in which the gear for hob is fed. It could be hobbing with an axial feed, hobbing with radial feed and hobbing with tangential feed.
- Exclusively for herringbone gear: The production of this particular gear is restricted to hobbing only. Those who need such gear need to undergo the hobbing process.
- Versatility: The hobbing process is very versatile. It helps in the manufacturing of different types of gears with ease and also contributes to the overall cost-cutting of the manufacturers.
Therefore, hobbing is a very beneficial process if followed with utmost care and expertise. Gear hobs have multiple purposes and manufacturers try their best to produce the best quality. Also, improvement and advancement in the field of technology have further contributed to it. The automated process and machines help in overall cost-cutting and save a lot of time. These are also designed specifically to meet the different needs and specifications of the customers. What matters the most in this field is experience and expertise. Manufacturers who have both aspects are highly successful in this field with numerous customers depending upon them.
