Custom Gears for Sliding, Swing & Industrial Doors | DD Gear

Features & Benefits

• Quiet, low-vibration operation
  Tooth geometry, surface finish and runout are controlled to support low-noise, smooth motion—important for automatic doors in hotels, hospitals, offices, retail spaces and residential buildings.

• High starting torque and long life
  Gear sets are sized and heat-treated to withstand frequent start/stop cycles, door weight and wind loads, ensuring stable performance over many open/close cycles.

• Support for multiple door types and layouts
  DD Gear can supply gears and shafts for sliding, swing, revolving, sectional and rolling doors, including belt/chain-driven operators, wheel-side drives and compact header-mounted gearboxes.

• Worm, spur, helical and bevel gear capability
  Worm gears and worm wheels for self-locking and high reduction ratios; spur and helical gears for efficient, quiet intermediate stages; bevel gears where right-angle transmission is required.

• Material and protection options for entrance environments
  Case-hardening steels and nitriding steels provide wear resistance and fatigue strength; optional surface treatments and corrosion protection help handle humidity, temperature changes and outdoor exposure at loading docks and industrial doors.

• Prototype-to-series production support
  From early prototypes for new door operator concepts to stabilized series production with agreed control plans, DD Gear supports long-term supply for residential, commercial and industrial door platforms.

Technical Specifications

Final data will be defined according to the customer’s drawing and sample.

Applications

Automatic Door Gears from DD Gear can be configured for many types of door systems, for example:

• Commercial sliding doors – Gears and gear shafts in header-mounted operators driving belts or chains for glass sliding doors in retail, office and healthcare buildings.

• Swing door operators – Spur/helical or worm gear stages for low-noise swing door actuators used in corridors, hotel entrances and accessibility upgrades.

• Revolving door drives – Compact gear trains that connect motors to revolving drums, with smooth, low-noise torque delivery for continuous rotation.

• Industrial sectional and rolling doors – High-torque gears in shaft-mounted gear units for warehouse and loading dock doors, including emergency manual operation interfaces.

• High-speed and cleanroom doors – Precision gears in high-speed roll-up doors or specialty doors where cycle rates are high and noise control is important.

Gear Manufacturing Process

Every automatic door gear is produced under a controlled gear manufacturing route designed for precision and durability. A typical process flow is:

1. Forging or bar cutting of shaft blanks

2. Lathe machining of shaft diameters and reference surfaces

3. Hobbing or shaping of gear teeth

4. Drilling, milling, and other CNC machining operations

5. Heat treatment (such as carburizing, quenching, tempering, nitriding)

6. Shot blasting and stress relief as required

7. Finish machining and grinding of journals and critical surfaces

8. Gear grinding (profile or worm grinding) where accuracy demands it

9. Cleaning and rust prevention treatment

10. Final inspection and packaging for shipment

Precision Gear Customization Process

To support custom automatic door gear projects, DD Gear follows a clear, eight-step customization process:

Step 1 – Requirement Collection
Customers provide design requirements, 2D drawings, 3D models, or physical samples, together with basic duty cycle information (torque, speed, life, installation).

Step 2 – Drawing Design & Optimization
Based on the provided drawings or samples, DD Gear prepares or optimizes detailed manufacturing drawings and shares them with the customer for confirmation.

Step 3 – Quotation
After the drawings and technical points are confirmed, we issue a precise quotation covering tooling, piece price, lead time, and quality requirements.

Step 4 – Tooling & Fixture Preparation
Once the price is confirmed, we arrange tooling and fixture production. Any tooling cost is agreed with the customer in advance and can be offset or refunded after mass orders, according to the commercial agreement.

Step 5 – First Sample Approval
After tooling and fixtures are ready, we manufacture the first sample batch—typically within about 30 days—and ship it to the customer for testing.The customer inspects and validates the samples in their gearbox or test bench and provides feedback on dimensions, performance, and any required adjustments.

Step 6 – Mass Production
When the sample is approved, we start mass production according to the agreed production plan and quality standards.

Step 7 – Finished Product Inspection
After production, we inspect hardness, dimensions, runout, tooth accuracy, and other critical characteristics to ensure full compliance with the drawing and standards.

Step 8 – Shipping Arrangement
Once inspection is passed and shipment is approved by the customer, we arrange booking, packaging, and delivery to the specified destination.

Quality Assurance & Inspection

DD Gear applies the same quality philosophy to automatic door gear and all precision gears:

• Quality management systems based on ISO 9001 and IATF 16949

• Process control from incoming material to final inspection, including:

  • Material certification and chemical composition checks

  • Hardness and case depth verification after heat treatment

  • Gear measurement for profile, lead, pitch, and runout

  • Surface roughness testing on gear flanks and journals

  • Dimensional inspection with calibrated gauges and CMMs

• Traceability for each batch with inspection records and reports

• Optional documentation such as PPAP/FAIR packs on request

Packaging

Usage & Installation Notes

• Ensure housings, shafts and bearings are assembled according to drawing tolerances; misalignment increases noise, wear and energy consumption.

• Respect specified fits and mounting procedures for gears and gear shafts; avoid forcing components beyond tolerance limits, particularly in small-module designs.

• Use the lubricant type, viscosity and fill level defined by the door-operator design, and maintain cleanliness during filling and service.

• Periodically check noise, backlash and temperature during maintenance; unusual changes should trigger inspection of tooth contact, lubrication condition and bearing health.

• Protect gears from corrosion and contamination during storage and assembly, especially for operators installed in outdoor or semi-outdoor environments such as loading docks and car parks.

Company Strength – DD Gear

• Specialized in small module, high-precision gears and shafts for EVs, humanoid robots, AGVs, and intelligent automation.

• Integrated manufacturing from forging and machining to heat treatment and gear grinding.

• Quality systems aligned with automotive standards, with experience supporting OEM and Tier 1 projects.

• Engineering support covering concept feasibility, DFM reviews, and failure analysis feedback.

• Global export capability with experience serving customers in multiple countries.

Q1: What information do you need to quote Automatic Door Gears?
We normally require: door type and operator layout (sliding, swing, revolving, sectional, rolling, high-speed), 2D drawings and preferably 3D models, gear types (spur/helical/worm/bevel/gear shaft), materials and heat-treatment requirements, motor power and speed, door weight and size, duty cycle (cycles per day), lubrication concept and expected annual volume.

Q2: Do you supply complete automatic door operators or only gears?
DD Gear is a precision gear and shaft supplier. We manufacture gears, gear shafts and related components according to your drawings. Complete operators, controls, sensors and certification are designed and provided by door OEMs and system integrators.

Q3: Should we use worm gears, helical gears or a combination?
Worm gears offer high reduction ratios and potential self-locking behavior, which can help hold doors in place when powered off; however, efficiency is lower. Spur and helical gears provide higher efficiency and, in the case of helical gears, quieter operation, but may require separate braking or holding mechanisms. Many operators combine worm and spur/helical stages to balance safety, efficiency and noise.

Q4: Can DD Gear help reduce noise in our door operator?
Within the scope of your design, we can make suggestions regarding tooth geometry, accuracy classes, surface finish and heat treatment that influence noise and vibration. Final noise performance must be validated on the complete door system, including housing, mounting and building structure.

Q5: How do you address corrosion and outdoor exposure?
On the component level, we can recommend suitable materials and surface treatments to improve resistance to humidity, condensation and moderate outdoor exposure. Overall environmental protection – including sealing, drainage and lubricant choice – must be managed at operator and door-system level by the OEM