Gear Ratio Calculator
Calculate the gear ratio of a set of gears.
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Understanding Mechanical Advantage
This calculator determines the gear ratio between two meshing gears. The gear ratio is a fundamental concept in mechanical engineering for understanding how speed and torque are transferred in a system. It's crucial for designing everything from bicycle gears to automotive transmissions.
The Gear Ratio Formula Explained
Gear Ratio = Teeth on Driven Gear / Teeth on Driving Gear
- Driving Gear: The gear that is providing the input power.
- Driven Gear: The gear that is being turned by the driving gear.
How to Use the Calculator
- Driving Gear Teeth: Enter the number of teeth on the input gear.
- Driven Gear Teeth: Enter the number of teeth on the output gear.
- Calculate: The tool will display the gear ratio.
Real-World Example
On a bicycle, the front gear (driving) that you pedal has 48 teeth, and the rear gear (driven) you've selected has 16 teeth.
- Driving Gear: 48
- Driven Gear: 16
- Calculation:
Ratio = 16 / 48 = 1/3. This is typically written as a 3:1 ratio (by inverting it and relating input to output).- Interpretation: For every 3 rotations of the pedals (driving gear), the rear wheel (driven gear) rotates 1 time. This is a high-torque, low-speed 'climbing' gear.
If you switch to a rear gear with 12 teeth:
- Calculation:
Ratio = 12 / 48 = 1/4. This is a 4:1 ratio.- Interpretation: One rotation of the pedals now produces 4 rotations of the wheel. This is a low-torque, high-speed 'sprinting' gear.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- How does gear ratio affect speed and torque?
- A high gear ratio (e.g., 4:1) means the output turns much faster than the input. This results in high speed but low torque.
- A low gear ratio (e.g., 1:1 or less) means the output turns slower than or at the same speed as the input. This results in low speed but high torque (more turning force).
- What about compound gear trains? For a system with multiple gears, the total gear ratio is the product of the individual gear ratios of each pair.
- Does the size of the teeth matter? For two gears to mesh, their teeth must be the same size and shape (this is called the 'module' or 'pitch'). However, the size of the teeth does not affect the gear ratio calculation, only the number of teeth does.