Model-based condition index for tracking gear wear and fatigue damage

This paper describes a method that utilizes linear dynamic modeling to trac k the development of gear wear and tooth fatigue crack. A model is created from the gear meshing vibration signal when the gear is new and then the mo del is applied to vibration data taken over the gear's lifetime to calculat e the prediction error. This error is expected to increase over the lifetim e as the evolvement of the faults alters meshing stiffness. The method is e valuated by experimental data collected in two tests where gear wear and ge ar tooth fatigue cracks grew over time. It was found that the method gave m ore consistent trend when compared with state-of-the-art. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.