From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Future gearbox improvements, including the application of synchro-mesh and helical gears.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 15\5\ Scan243 | |
| Date | 27th February 1932 | |
| 87310. To Sg.{Arthur F. Sidgreaves - MD} From Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} c. to Wor.{Arthur Wormald - General Works Manager} c. to E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair}3/MJ.27.2.32. X5310. GEARBOXES. Referring to your note on easy change gearboxes, it is time now that we considered what is to be the next move on gearboxes. Our present synchro-mesh box only goes a part of the way. The Americans are now using Helical gears for all three speeds in their gearbox, which means they have silence on all gears. With the three speed box the synchro em mesh third and top practically gives them everything that is required, because the only change on which a noise can be made is going into first speed and that is hardly ever used except when the car is stationary therefore it presents no difficulties. In our case with the four speed box we have the difficulty of getting into first, and into second speed. e also have the fact that our second speed is ordinary straight gears which does not give us the degree of silence we could obtain if we were using helical gears. Our recommendation is that we should look into the questic of applying the synchro mesh to the second speed. This would then give us complete easy changeexcept for going into first speed which is very seldom used. This means that we should have three pairs of constant mesh gears always going round, with the recent success we have had in quietening gears we should not be frightened of this. Where one is concerned is on the new models J.III and Peregrine. It would be a pity to start those cars off and do all the work on the gear box which we thought wouldlast very long It has already been agreed that the Peregrine box needs modifica- tion, and we suggest the question of applying synchro mesh on the second speed should be considered. We feel that if this matter is put up to R.{Sir Henry Royce} he may be inclined to hold it up for his new scheme of epicyclic gear box. We do not know whether we could wait for that to materialise. We think it would be a good thingif E.{Mr Elliott - Chief Engineer} looked into the question of what it means in design so that the scheme could be put up as a definite proposal and not as a mere suggestion. Hs.{Lord Ernest Hives - Chair} | ||