Gearboxes made of plastic: reliable and maintenance-free

What you will find on this page

The gearbox technology

Gearboxes are used to adapt the speed and torque of motors so that they are suitable for the specific requirements of machines and processes.

Our drygear® gearboxes made of high-performance plastic: lubrication-free, lightweight and impact-resistant

All igus® plastic gearboxes are modular; they can be extended as required and integrated into existing systems.
The drygear® gearboxes are especially popular for robot arms used in quality control or sorting. Gearboxes also come into play with rotary axes or sliding applications, pusher applications or format adjustments.
Our gearboxes are the ideal solution for various automation processes.

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Gearbox solutions at a glance

Versatile and flexible applications with modular gearboxes

Strain wave gear

Compact, quiet and efficient
Areas of application: precise motion transmission, low torques
Suitable for: small robot arms

Buy strain wave gear

Worm gear

Robust and durable
Areas of application: high torques, slow movement, secure position holding
Suitable for: conveyor technology, robotics, lifting systems, part-turn actuators

Buy worm gears

Rotary axis with motor

Compact and easy to install
Areas of application: 360° movement
Suitable for: turntables for assembly applications, camera panning in photography

Buy rotary axis & motor

Apiro® the modular gearbox system

Modular lightweight design
Areas of application: wide range of requirements, flexibility in design
Suitable for: automation, robotics, industry, manual and motorised drives

Further information

Buy Apiro® gearbox

Planetary gearbox

High transmission ratios
Areas of application: high torques in a compact design
Suitable for: CNC machines, robotics, packaging machines

Buy planetary gearbox

Other gearboxes and drive components
Discover our wide range of high-quality solutions for industrial systems and robotics applications. Optimise the performance of your application with our gearbox technology!

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Information material
Would you like digital information material for format adjustment in the beverage and packaging industry?

Request it now

Download checklist
Do you have a specific application and would like some advice? Fill in the checklist now!

Download checklist here

Telephone feedback
Would you like to get in touch with an expert and receive a telephone response within 24 hours?

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New drygear® products 2024

Our new products for your requirements

Our new products include

Evoloid and planetary gearboxes,
large machined gears
customised solutions for FDA-compliant gears

Our motto "Tech up, cost down" stands for technological progress and sustainability .

We also offer special sizes and customised special solutions. Find out more about our new drygear® products!

To the new drygear® products

Advantages of the drygear® gearbox technology

Cost-effective

Manufacturing with injection moulding or 3D printing guarantees cost efficiency and creates the geometrical freedom to optimise use of installation space. The flexible modular system allows the gearboxes to be expanded as desired and integrated into existing systems.

Ideas for automation systems

Lubrication and maintenance-free

drygear® gearbox technology uses plastic gears made of high-performance polymers. The gearboxes require no external lubricants, so they are resistant to dirt. No maintenance is necessary, so associated costs are eliminated.

More about our lubrication-free products

Sustainable

Our gearboxes require not a single drop of lubricating oil. This benefits not only our users, but also the environment. Our tribologically optimised materials also generate less abrasion, which means less energy is needed.

More about the sustainability of plastics

Quiet

Thanks to motion plastics®, drygear® plastic gearboxes impress with ultra-light materials. This results in much less noise and vibration. For you as an operator, plastic gears - for example in robots - lead to an application that is up to four times quieter.

Temperature-resistant

Gearboxes that function reliably in either particularly warm or cold environments? The drygear® gearbox technology products can withstand almost all conditions. We also have gearboxes and motors in our product range that are suitable for extreme temperatures from -30°C to +180°C.

Tested and proven

Around 50 in-house drygear® test stations are available for individual customer tests. We also test our gearboxes daily for active research and development.

Apiro® configurator

Customised kinematics according to your needs

With the online configurator for the Apiro® modular gearbox system, you will receive an overview of your application after entering your requirements. The input can be requested as a quotation or you can conveniently download your configuration as a CAD file.

Quick and easy configuration
Optional accessories such as motors & motor controls
Fast delivery (ready to ship from 24hrs)

To the Apiro® configurator

Application examples for gearbox technology

VW Golf production at a 1:18 scale for trainees

In their vocational training at Volkswagen AG in Wolfsburg, Germany, trainees from various departments work on simulating VW Golf delivery at a 1:18 scale.
The smart factory consists of twelve individual stations that, when pushed together, form two parallel production lines.

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Format adjustment in the packaging industry

Successful use of the conveyor belt with drygear® Apiro® gearboxes

How innovative technology handles the challenges of transporting food packaging and allows flexible format adjustment for product channelling with igus® drygear® Apiro® gearboxes.

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Low-cost components for astrophotography

Strong, precise 3D-printed gearbox.
vhw Digitalart has developed a device that compensates for the Earth's rotation in order to image celestial bodies in their real form. The requirements for the plastic gearbox were a rotation of 360 degrees in exactly 24 hours, enough load capacity to support the camera and its lens, and high individual component strength and abrasion resistance.

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low-maintenance gearbox solution and energy supply systems in an ice cream vending machine

The sec°mat IC One, made by Bochum-based Seco Manufaktur, turns the sales process into an event. The next-generation ice cream vending machine features our Apiro robot kinematics, not only for durable, low-maintenance operation, but also for user experience.

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More application examples

Here you will find many more application examples from our customers from all industries. Discover applications in which igus® plastic gearbox solutions have already been used.

Go to application examples

Automated format adjustment for the packaging and beverage industry

Simple operation - manual or automated
Perform format adjustments simply, quickly and easily. With the modular Apiro® gearbox system, you can set up your own lane adjustment with different gear ratios, but also different lengths.

Learn more

Assembly in minutes and simple replacement of gearboxes

Format adjustment with Apiro gearboxes
Would you like an Apiro sample with information material? Request a sample order for the packaging industry now!

Order now!

Apiro® iDeas
Ideas for automation solutions.
Select automation solution - download parts lists and CAD data!

Start your own Apiro® project now

Low cost automation applications
More than 8,000 customised solutions per year!
Select your industry or application and find out more about our customers' success stories.

LCA in practical application