In the minimal weight/volume design of multistage gear drives, both the dimensional and layout parameters of gear pairs have a direct effect on the design result. A new optimization model that can carry out both dimensional- and layout-constrained optimization design for any number of stages of cylindrical gear drives simultaneously is proposed. The optimization design of a three-stage cylindrical gear drive is conducted as a design example to test the application of this model. In the attempt to solve this constrained optimization problem using an elitist genetic algorithm (GA), different constraint handling methods have a crucial effect on the optimal results. Thus, the results obtained by applying three typical constraint handling methods in GA one by one are analyzed and compared to figure out which one performs the best and find the optimal solution. Moreover, a more precise projection center distance (PCD) method to calculate the degree of interference constraint violation is proposed and compared with the usually used (0, 1) method. The results show that the proposed PCD method is a better one.
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