Multibody Modeling Of A High Precision Gear Test Rig And Correlation To Experiments

This paper shows the modeling in a multibody environment and the correlation with experimental data of a high precision gear test rig. This work aims to present the different choices made to reproduce the physical behavior of a power-recirculating gear test bench in a simulation tool, with particular focus on the most challenging components to model, namely its non-linear components (flexible couplings, bearings and the contact between the gears). A step-by-step approach was used to understand how the different parameters can affect the response of the entire structure, in order to be able to perform a model updating to better fit the correct behavior. Furthermore, several experimental campaigns, such as Experimental Modal Analysis (EMA) and Operational Modal Analysis (OMA), with different set-ups (varying preload torque and speed) were performed on the physical gear test rig to characterize its static and dynamic behavior, in order to correlate and validate the selected modeling solutions.