Gear Conformity and Load Capacity

A measure, M, of the conformity or closeness of fit of gears is proposed and it is shown that there is a limit on its value; this limit is a function of the material properties and is about 2.5 times the value for involutes for gears of case hardened steel.It is shown that no very large improvement in M can be had above that obtainable in known non-involute forms, specifically Wildhaber-Novikov gears.