Mathematical model to determine the surface stress acting on the tooth of gear

Surface stress on the surface contact of gear tooth calculated by the Buckingham equation constitutes the basis for The American Gear Manufacturers Association (AGMA) pitting resistance formula, which is based on a normal stress that does not cause failure since the yielding in contact problems is caused by shear stresses. An alternative expression based on the maximum-shear-stress is proposed in this paper. The new expression is obtained by using the maximum-shear-stress distribution and the Tresca failure criteria in order to know the maximum-shear-stress value and its location beneath the contact surface. Remarkable differences between the results using the proposed equation and those when the AGMA equation is applied are found.