Bevel Gearing Explained: How a Bevel Gear Motor Changes Drive Direction

What is bevel gearing?

A bevel gear is a gear with teeth cut on a cone-shaped, mushroom-like face rather than on a flat rim. Two bevel gears meshing together let a drive shaft change direction, most commonly turning it through a right angle so that, for example, a horizontal input drives a vertical output. That change of direction is the main reason a machine uses a bevel gear motor.

A bevel gear motor combines three things in one unit: the electric motor, the gear reduction that sets the output speed and torque, and the bevel gearing that turns the drive through the angle the machine needs.

Why change the drive shaft direction

Machines are not always laid out in a straight line. The motor may sit horizontally while the part it drives needs to turn on a vertical axis, or the layout calls for compact mounting of the gearmotor. A bevel gear motor solves this by combining the motor, the gear reduction and the change of direction in one unit, so there is no need for extra shafts or joints to route the drive.

Because the direction change happens inside the gearbox, the unit takes up less room than a motor plus a separate right-angle arrangement, and there are fewer parts to align when the machine is built.

What a bevel gear motor does

Like any gear motor, a bevel unit does two jobs at once:

• Reduces speed and increases torque. The gear train brings the motor's speed down to what the driven machine needs, and the turning force rises in proportion.
• Turns the drive shaft through an angle. The bevel stage sets the output shaft at an angle to the motor, most often 90 degrees.

This is why a bevel gear motor is specified as one unit rather than assembled from parts: the reduction and the change of direction are already matched inside it.

Where bevel gear motors are used

Bevel gear motors are used wherever a drive shaft has to turn a corner: mixing and agitating equipment, cooling and ventilation drives, and general machinery where the motor and the driven shaft sit at an angle to each other. The unit handles both the speed reduction and the change of direction in one compact package.

They are also chosen where floor space or headroom is tight, because the motor can be tucked alongside the machine instead of sitting in line with the driven shaft.

What to check when choosing a bevel gear motor

When specifying a bevel gear motor, the main points are:

• The angle the drive shaft needs to turn through, most often a right angle.
• The reduction and the output speed the machine needs.
• The torque the driven load requires at that output speed.
• The mounting. Flange mounted or foot mounted; with the drive shaft pointing up, down, left or right.

Getting the layout and the duty clear from the start makes it straightforward to match the right unit to the machine. The mounting in particular is worth settling early, because it decides how the unit sits in the machine and which way the output shaft faces.

To see the bevel geared motors AVM supplies, visit the bevel geared motor category.

Frequently asked questions

What is bevel gearing?

It is gearing with teeth cut on a cone-shaped face, so that two meshing gears turn a drive shaft through an angle, most often a right angle.

What is a bevel gear used for?

It changes the direction of a drive shaft, most often through a right angle, for example turning a horizontal input into a vertical output.

Does a bevel gear motor also reduce speed?

Yes. Like other gear motors it reduces speed and increases turning force, while also changing the direction of the drive shaft.

How is a bevel gear motor mounted?

Flange mounted or foot mounted, with the drive shaft pointing up, down, left or right, depending on how the unit sits in the machine.

Where would I use a bevel gear motor?

Wherever the motor and the driven shaft sit at an angle to each other, such as mixing and agitating equipment, cooling and ventilation drives, and general machinery in tight spaces.