Hi,
So I am still a bit confused about these "cone things" you are referring to. Also I said
that a Rack and Pinion is ONE method you could use. A Worm Gear system would also
work. In terms of learning about gears a very good place to start is Wikipedia (where
90% of what you read MIGHT be true, but in this case it is quite comprehensive and
a good place to start). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gear
In term of modeling you have a couple of work flows. You can do what most designers
do and download what you want from the McMaster-Carr cattledog and scale it and
insert it. Or, you can re-invent the Wheel and design one yourself. The former is easy
and the latter is a learning process. It depends on how much time you want to spend
on this Project. As a student Mechanical Engineer I know the Basics of Gears and various
Systems and I can design my own if I need to but in many designs you really want to
use the cheapest method which is Off The Shelf components. Designing your own may
be an accomplishment but will be very expensive in time spent and custom fabrication.
Even if I was designing my own I would still try to use OTS components where I could to
keep costs down.
Ok, so we are going on a Learning Exercise. I would still use the various Tools like the
Gear Plug-ins. If designing a gear was easy then everybody would do it. As @TheCADWhisperer
has already alluded to in his diagrams - a "simple" gear is actually got quite a lot of
physics and mechanics under the hood. The correct terms describe very specific things
that exist for a reason.
So this learning exercise - how far are we taking it? Do you actually have a problem to
solve or is it just a theoretical? A problem to solve will involve what is going to provide
motive power to this system? What Gear Ratios do you need and why? Torque v Speed.
How much power do you have available? Do you want the gear system to move fast or
slow? What are the mass limits of the load? What materials are we thinking of using?
Will we need to lubricate and maintain the system or is it one off? What efficiency do
you need? These are a few simple questions that come to mind just thinking about the
basic design parameters, let alone what the design might actually look like. What I am
trying to say is don't start modeling anything until you have a Goal and a Plan how to
achieve the Goal. Once you have these then you can tackle the design and the workflow
should simply - flow.
I am not sure where you are in your learning journey but there are some very good free
books about machines and mechanisms. I like machines and engines and so just simply
seeing how problems were solved historically can give you ideas on how to solve various
problems. I saw a diagram of a Scotch Yoke in a book and was impressed and fascinated
at the same time. If you don't know what that is - Wiki is your friend.
Start of defining your Goal.
Make a Plan.
Think about what limitations you might have - small spaces etc.
Decide what materials you might use.
Consider the limitations of the materials - 3D Printed PLA works
great but I wouldn't trust my life with it.
Ask a friend to look at your design and discuss it in case you forgot something.
Take a Deep Breath.
Decide if you are ready to start actually Modeling.
Cheers
Andrew
