GEAR MECHANISM DESIGN ANALYSIS The gear mechanism in the printer is used to move the paper (that is stuck

to the vacuum gripping cylinders) into the printer, through the inking process, and out of the printer. Consequently, any damage to one of the gears ruins the entire gear mechanism which defects the printer completely. It is most likely that this is the reason for the metal plate riveted over the plastic gear system. This ultimately shows the lack of design for disassembly at least for this section of the printer which stems from the vulnerability of the printers functionality due to any damage to the gears. The material use in the creation of the printers gear mechanism consists of plastic gears and a metal plate riveted over the gears. These decisions are due to the properties of these materials in use. Any deformations in the gears can cause a breakdown of the entire system. Thus metal gears are not a sound option for the gears as they tend to deform under heat which is a typical condition on the inside of a printer. Metals are also generally more expensive and cannot cost effectively be provided in large amounts for the gears needed in the mechanism used by the printer. While plastic also deforms under heat, it tends to be less malleable and much cheaper. In this case, the durability of metal can be recreated in the plastic gears through the metal covering that protects the gears from any outside damage. Where this covering is much cheaper than recreating the entire gear system out of metal, it still provides adequate protection for the gears. The choice in gear types varies among the different gears contained in the turning mechanism. Where several of the gears are helical, many of the gears that connect to the internal parts of the printer are spur gears. These straighttoothed gears are generally more efficient and easier to manufacture and assemble but do not make up the majority of the given gears. However, helical gears are known for providing higher strength, lower noise operation which is important in a printer. Larger, unpredictable loads are common in a printer as paper jams occur and the printer attempts to move an object that can no longer be moved. Additionally, the already loud operation of the printer is made quieter by the use of helical gears instead of spur gears which adds to the overall user experience of the product. However, these benefits of the helical gear come at a cost to the efficiency of the printer as well as the production

costs. In this printer, which so far implies that it is designed largely for manufacturability and not usability, this is a contradictory design decision. This can most easily be explained as a decision based on the efficient functionality of the design of the printer caused by the ability of the different gears to move different amounts of loads. Turning of a smaller helical gear causes the movement of the entire system, up to and including the spur gear at the end of the system. However, attempting to turn the upper spur gear in the system is met with too much resistance in that doing so bends the other spur gears out of place instead of causing them to rotate. This shows the ability of the turning system to handle different amounts of load in different areas. While much of the gear system can rotate large amounts of load, this load amount becomes smaller as the system nears its end where it is presumably not needed and so smaller, cheaper spur gears replace helical gears. Thus increasing the manufacturability of the design without compromising its functionality.