Gear honing is known as an extremely fine machining process which is nowadays employed frequently, and which favourably influences the noise characteristics of gears in gear drive units. Honing is performed with gear-shaped honing tools both with internal and external teeth which on engagement produce machining marks on the workpiece tooth flanks, that are beneficial for the generating action of the gears in mesh. The honing tools engage with the workpiece teeth at a certain crossed axes angle, producing between the honing tool and the workpiece surface a relative motion that is utilized as a cutting action.
With regard to the dynamic stabiliy, however, the honing process poses problems. Vibrations arise which are intrinsic to the process, and thus hardly avoidable. In general the vibrations are only slight. In the case of certain unsuitable constellations of tooth geometry, workpiece dimensions, E-modules of tool and workpiece etc., however, these vibrations can attain inacceptably high amplitudes, which has a negative influence on the surface quality of the workpieces. The honing tools are thereby heavily stressed, which leads to damage to, or even fracture of their teeth. In the event of a destruction of the honing tool, the vibrations also cause overloading of bearings etc., which is detrimental to the life of the machine. It has been shown that by an increase in the stiffness the vibration response of the machine with respect to the problematics described is only negligibly altered; on the contrary: the load peaks on the honing tool during the process lead to a rapid deterioration in the form of the tool tooth flanks, which in turn demands frequent profile re-dressing. From the U.S. Pat. No. 4,354,328, a worm-shaped honing tool is known which is attached to a spindle, firmly fixed against rotation, but axially and radially spring-loaded via O-rings. This honing tool produces more unfavourable machining marks on the gear, because these run largely in the lengthwise direction of the teeth. The device has the disadvantage that the angular position of the honing tool during honing is undefined. If the angular position of the honing tool changes, e.g. due to non-uniform elasticity of the two radially supporting O-rings, this leads to an irregular machining of the tooth flanks over their depth. Depending on the consistence of the O-rings, the pressure of contact varies with the angle of rotation. Moreover the high frequency alternating load on the O-rings leads to a rapid ageing and to elevated temperatures of the O-rings during honing, which alters their elastic properties and the pressure of contact as honing proceeds.