Author: Samantha Hambleton

A Multi-process Machine Concept for Internal Gear Finishing

Posted on by Samantha Hambleton
NIDEC gear finishing Adrianos GeorgoussisDownload

The Origin of Hobbing: From Craft to Scalable Precision

Posted on by Samantha Hambleton

Before hobbing, cutting precise gear teeth was closer to an art than a repeatable process. Output depended on time, cost, and the operator’s touch. That began to change as innovators pursued a different idea: generate the tooth form through controlled motion rather than copy it one space at a time.

Three milestones set the trajectory:

  • In 1835, Joseph Whitworth patented hobbing for spiral gears.
  • In 1856, Christian Schiele patented an early hobbing machine, helping establish the generating approach that would define modern practice.
  • In 1897, Robert Hermann Pfauter patented hobbing for spur and helical gears, cementing the method as the backbone of production gear cutting.

Why hobbing changed everything

At its core, hobbing synchronizes a helical cutter with the rotating blank so the correct tooth geometry emerges from their relative motion. That shift delivered durable advantages:

  • Accurate involute profiles at speed, improving mesh quality and efficiency.
  • Much higher throughput at lower cost per part, enabling true volume production.

How it reshaped manufacturing

Hobbing didn’t remove the need for expertise; it codified it. Predictable kinematics lowered the skill barrier and made high quality teachable and repeatable. That predictability supported the rise of transmissions, differentials, timing drives, and industrial gearboxes across sectors, from automotive and energy to automation and robotics. Over time, hobbing helped drive standardization and rigorous inspection practices, while integrating naturally with heat treatment and finishing.

A line that leads to the future

Expectations keep rising: tighter tolerances, faster iteration, and greater sustainability. The principle Whitworth and his successors helped establish still underpins modern manufacturing, but today’s tools must scale precision and agility together.

This is where NIDEC’s hobbing machines fit. NIDEC machines are built around what matters most now:

  • Repeatable quality across programs and volumes.
  • Agile production that adapts to new designs and shifting demand.
  • Cohesive workflows so teams can move from prototype to production with confidence.

Hobbing turned gear cutting into a scalable science. The next chapter belongs to manufacturers who keep elevating the process. NIDEC machines are built for that future, helping engineers deliver the next generation of drivetrains, robotics, and industrial systems.

Check out NIDEC hobbing machines here: https://www.nidec-machinetoolamerica.com/products/gear-machines/#hobbing-machines

Monozukuri: Craft, Quality, and Continuous Improvement Powered by 80+ Years of NIDEC Precision

Posted on by Samantha Hambleton

In a world where manufacturers can’t afford slowdowns, reliability isn’t a nice-to-have, it’s the core advantage. At NIDEC MACHINE TOOL AMERICA, reliability is not an outcome by chance. It’s the result of monozukuri: the Japanese, comprehensive approach to manufacturing that unites creativity with quality across design, process control, and people.

Monozukuri is how we think, how we work, and how we support our customers worldwide. It’s why gear manufacturers count on us for stable microns, higher uptime, and predictable throughput, backed by applications and service teams behind every machine.

What is Monozukuri?

Monozukuri literally means ‘making things,” but in practice it goes far deeper. It’s a culture of disciplined creativity: designing smarter, assembling with intent, and continually improving every link in the chain. It integrates:

  • Design excellence: Innovating with purpose, prioritizing precision in form and function.
  • Process control: Engineering repeatability into every step of manufacturing.
  • People and craftsmanship: Empowering skilled teams to solve hard problems and elevate quality with pride.
  • Continuous improvement: Iterating relentlessly to reduce variability and elevate performance.

At NIDEC, monozukuri is the connective tissue that ties product development, machining performance, and field support into a single, customer-focused system.

80+ Years of Momentum and Shifting Into A New Gear

We are already a global leader in machine tools, and we’re accelerating. Grounded in over 81 years of history yet driven by a tradition of entirely new thought, NIDEC is leveraging our global network to bring advances never before seen in the gear market. The result: even greater accuracy, productivity, and reliability for our customers’ most demanding applications.

From Philosophy to Performance: What Manufacturers Gain

  • Stable microns: Precision that stays in tolerance, shift after shift, part after part.
  • Higher uptime: Machines built to run, supported by proactive service and preventative maintenance strategies.
  • Predictable throughput: Process capability you can plan around, reducing scrap, rework, and surprises.
  • End-to-end support: Engineers and service teams aligned to your production goals.

This integrated approach translates directly to lower total cost of ownership and higher confidence in delivery schedules.

Global Presence, Local Commitment: Precision, Performance, Partnership

With a worldwide network and deep regional expertise, NIDEC MACHINE TOOL AMERICA combines global innovation with local responsiveness. Whether you’re launching a new program, scaling production, or tightening tolerances, our teams meet you where you are, supporting process development, turnkey integration, and service.

Gear manufacturing is evolving: tighter tolerances, new materials, and smarter automation. In these exciting times, we continue to focus on our customers. Monozukuri ensures we don’t just keep up; we lead with solutions that raise the ceiling on precision, performance, and partnership.

Explore our Products: https://www.nidec-machinetoolamerica.com/products/

Are Metal LPBF Parts Overpriced? Cost Analysis of DED vs M-LPBF Parts Exceeding 300mm

Posted on by Samantha Hambleton
Are Metal LPBF Parts Overpriced Cost Analysis of DED vs M-LPBF Parts Exceeding 300mmDownload

Circle Gear + NIDEC a success story

Posted on by Samantha Hambleton

GE25CF Hobbing and Cut Chamfer

Posted on by Samantha Hambleton

Todd Hughes Returns to NIDEC MACHINE TOOL AMERICA as West Coast Sales Manager

Posted on by Samantha Hambleton
Todd Hughes Returns to NIDEC MACHINE TOOL AMERICA as West Coast Sales ManagerDownload

Gear History: From Shipwreck to Shop Floor–What the Antikythera Mechanism Teaches Modern Gear Engineers

Posted on by Samantha Hambleton

Around 2,100 years ago, long before CNC and CMMs, Greek craftsmen built a compact, hand-cranked computer of bronze gears: the Antikythera Mechanism. Recovered from a Mediterranean shipwreck in 1901, it has been reconstructed from fragments and inscriptions; recent work proposes a coherent design that models the motions of the Sun, Moon, and planets according to ancient Greek astronomical theory. Beyond its historical significance, it offers practical lessons for anyone designing drivetrains, automation platforms, or precision instrumentation today.

A Compact Astronomical Computer

The Antikythera Mechanism is a densely layered assembly of bronze gears housed in a wooden case with engraved dials. Turn a hand crank and pointers sweep across scales that predict eclipses, track lunar phases, and represent planetary positions. Its gear trains encode astronomical periods such as the Metonic cycle (about 19 years) and the Saros cycle (about 18 years and 11 days), combining them into legible displays.

Engineering Ideas, 2,100 Years Early

  1. Differential thinking, ancient style
    • The challenge: The Moon’s apparent velocity varies because of its orbital anomaly.
    • The solution: Epicyclic trains with a pin-and-slot mechanism produce a modulated output from a uniform input—an analog “differential” that synthesizes non-uniform motion.
    • Today’s echo: The same logic underpins differentials, harmonic drives, and cam-like modulation in robotics and precision stages, where uniform motor input is transformed into time-varying motion at the load.

  1. Ratios as models, not just reductions
    • Tooth counts were not arbitrary; they encoded astronomical ratios. Preserving those integer relationships across multiple stages maintained phase fidelity.
    • Today’s echo: Start with a high-fidelity model to define ratio architecture. Whether mapping encoder counts to motion profiles or matching gear stages to spectral requirements, ratio selection should be driven by physics and output specifications.

How Well Did It Work?

Reconstruction studies show a kinematically consistent mechanism that aligns with surviving fragments and inscriptions and can demonstrate and predict astronomical cycles.

Why It Still Inspires

The Antikythera Mechanism compresses theory, design, fabrication, and communication into a unified product. It foreshadows differentials, compound reductions, and cam-like motion synthesis in today’s transmissions, robots, and metrology instruments. For modern engineers, it’s a reminder that lasting engineering couples precise internal models with trustworthy external displays.

If you build drivetrains, automation, or instrumentation, the lesson is timeless: let high-fidelity models drive your gear-ratio architecture, and let clear displays earn operator trust.

Sources:
Nature: A model of the Cosmos in the ancient Greek Antikythera Mechanism

New Federal Broach MVRT Broach Machine

Posted on by Samantha Hambleton

NIDEC CF26A Gear Chamfer Machine

Posted on by Samantha Hambleton