Sound, tone, noise - Sounds complicated?

• What exactly are low-noise gears?

  Low-noise gears from IMS Gear are planetary gears that are characterized by their smooth and low-noise operation achieved by an acoustically optimized gearing. This results in a sound that leaves a pleasant, haromonious impression. Thus, low-noise gears are particularly suitable for applications in which a very smooth running of the gear together with an accordingly low noise development is essential.

• What distinguishes low-noise gears from “normal” planetary gears?

  Compared to normal planetary gears, low-noise gears feature an acoustically optimized gearing. Both the toothing form and the materials used are adapted accordingly to achieve a high-quality noise image. Likewise, both the housing materials used and the housing design are noise-optimized.

• Since when and why have low-noise gears been in place?

  Low-noise planetary gears have been on the market for more than 10 years. Starting with the untypical field of fork-lift truck steerings, low-noise gears have become indispensable in many areas. With our low-noise gears we from IMS Gear have developed great expertise, thus ranking among the most important manufacturers of low-noise planetary gears.

  Low-noise gears are used in areas in which customers draw a connection between the product quality and the impression of high-quality sound or in which the environment and application require a low noise contribution of the gear. You can find examples in numerous success stories with convincing low-noise planetary gears from IMS Gear.

• What is the technological challenge to reduce the noise of a gear?

  The acoustic optimization of a gearing often conflicts with the design that is focussed on the service life and power density of a gear. In simple terms, an improved acoustic behavior is often accompanied by a shorter service life and load bearing capacity. Often, the major technological challenge consists in solving this contracdiction for the respective application. In doing so, we from IMS Gear rely on many years of experience and thoroughtechnological expertise with respect to the development and manufacturing of low-noise planetary gears.

• Are there differnent degrees of “low-noise”?

  The sound pressure level and the sound power have been established as objective noise indicators. In particular the sound pressure level, a value measured in decibel (dB), is used as the indicator for noise. 0 dB are equivalent to the human hearing threshold, 40 dB to a pleasant, quiet surrounding, appr. 100 dB to a plane taking off, and 140 dB to the pain threshold.

  Beyond this, the subjectively perceived noise impression of a planetary gear depends on its sound distribution across the frequency and its temporal regularity. In this way, noises that strongly vary in terms of time are perceived as low-quality or unpleasant. This may ultimately evoke the impression that the planetary gear is defective. In contrast, constant noise in combination with low frequencies is perceived as high-quality.

• What kind of technological competence with respect to the development of low-noise gears has IMS Gear got?

  Based on its decades of experience, IMS Gear has gained profound knowledge and all technological competences required to design low-noise planetary gears and distribute them around the world. From the theoretical toothing design of which the acoustic behavior is evaluated at an early stage by means of simulation to the low-noise design of all components and the production and acoustic final check of our products.

  To give an example, IMS Gear has developed special simulation models and processes. These allow to virtually assess the toothing noise at an early stage of development. Once the first components are produced, we can objectively determine the first noise impression by our acoustic measurement systems in the acoustic chamber, compare it to the simulation results and deduct potentials for optimization. In production, we apply self-developed test stations to objectively measure and assess the noise of each of our low-noise planetary gears before they are dispatched.<o:p></o:p>

• Which applications and industries require low-noise gears?

  The applications for low-noise gears are manifold. Our low-noise planetary gears are often used in areas in which the customer draws a connection between the product quality and the impression of high-quality sound or in which the environment and application require a low-noise contribution of the gear. Examples are drives for:

  • E-bikes
  • Tailgate drives of vehicles
  • Blind and shutter drives
  • Locks and gates
  • Various kinds of appliances
  • Gears for fork-lift truck steerings

• Are all planetary gears from IMS Gear also available as low-noise variants?

  Almost all planetary gears from our three product lines IMS.Eco, IMS.Pro, and IMS.Drive are also available as low-noise variants. They feature a helical gearing in the first stage. Only our planetary gears with larger outer diameters (e.g. our IMS.120 Pro) are not available as low-noise gears.

  An application-oriented special case is our IMS.Drive series: In order to meet the special requirements in the area of wheel drives, our IMS.Drive gears are by default designed as low-noise planetary gears.

  Please check our overview of planetary gears for detailed information if a desired product is also available as a low-noise variant or configure your suitable product in our Solution Finder. if you have any further questions, our technical sales department will be happy to assist.