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Completed TRL 3 (started at 2, targeting 4)
Gears are machine components that allow speed and torque to be scaled. In spacecraft, roving vehicles, and aircraft, they are commonly used to connect a small, efficient motor to a load that requires slower speed and higher torque (e.g. a propeller, wheel, or drill). Contact between mating gear teeth causes several problems, including energy loss, noise generation, tooth wear, and tooth cracking. Lubricant is also required to reduce friction, but it tends to evaporate in low atmosphere or solidify at low temperature. This poses engineering challenges for Space systems, where gearing often needs to be protected in an atmospheric chamber. It was recognized over 100 years ago that magnets could be used to prevent gear tooth contact, thereby eliminating all of the aforementioned issues. Magnetic gearing technology evolved slowly, because magnets were relatively weak and their magnetic energy was not efficiently utilized. In the last 10 years, however, this technology has advanced exponentially. Although wind turbines have been the primary application, the lightest weight designs have been developed for automotive and robotic applications. The overarching goal for this project is to establish competency in magnetic gearing technology for US aerospace applications.
In aeronautics, one of the first applications for magnetic gearing could be in propulsion systems for on-demand-mobility (ODM) aircrafts. Currently most ODM aircraft designs use direct drive electric motors to turn their propellers. Geared motors could provide efficiency and weight benefits over direct drive motors as they allow the motor to operate at higher speed. However, geared motors are avoided in current designs due to mechanical gearing's added maintenance costs and potential noise. Unlike mechanical gearing, magnetic gearing has neither of these disadvantages and could be the enabling technology for geared motor's use in electric aircraft.
In Space, magnetic gearing could be an enabling technology for missions in harsh environments. Lubricating traditional gearing in the vacuum of Space and other harsh planetary environments can be a difficult or impossible problem to solve. Magnetic gearing requires no lubrication and in theory can operate indefinitely without wear.
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