Four-Square Gear Rig (FSG) Equipment Capabilities

Author(s):

Kyle Olchewsky, Mark Riggs, and Adrian Hood

Abstract:

ARL is home to the Four-Square Gear Rig (FSG), a high-speed spur gear rig designed for component-level gear and transmission research. The FSG enables U.S. Army, academic, and industry partners to engage and explore new gear technologies to increase power density, survivability, and reliability for geared systems. The Army will use the FSG to characterize gear and transmission technologies such as materials, coatings, additive manufacturing methods, diagnostic sensors, machine-learning–based diagnostic algorithms, and improved lubrication methods. The FSG’s four-square gear arrangement mechanically recirculates power though the test gears, which have a 3.5-inch pitch diameter and 1:1 ratio, to provide a shaft power of up to 790 hp at the test gear mesh with a maximum speed of 12,500 rpm. The FSG is an Army-unique testbed because it is designed for highly controlled loss-of-lubrication experiments and debris injection within the gear mesh. The purpose of this report is to record the FSG’s equipment capabilities to inform current and future gear technology research collaborations.