Shigleys Mechanical Engineering Design

9th Edition in SI units

Richard G. Budynas and J. Keith Nisbett

Chapter 17
Flexible Mechanical Elements

Copyright 2011 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display.

17 Flexible Mechanical Elements

Chapter
Outline

17-1

Belts

17-2

Flat- and Round-Belt Drives

17-3

V Belts

17-4

Timing Belts

17-5

Roller Chain

17-6

Wire Rope

17-7

Flexible Shafts

Belts
Most flexible elements do not have an infinite life.
Characteristics of belts include
They may be used for long center distances.
Except for timing belts, there is some slip and creep, and so the angular-velocity
ratio between the driving and driven shafts is neither constant nor exactly equal
to the ratio of the pulley diameters.
In some cases an idler or tension pulley can be used to avoid adjustments in
center distance that are ordinarily necessitated by age or the installation of new
belts.

Belts
Flat-belt geometry.

Belts (Cont.)
Belt drives are either reversing or nonreversing.
The shafts need not be at right angles as in a flat-belt drive with outof-plane pulleys.
In contrast with flat belts, V belts are used with similar sheaves and
at shorter center distances.
For timing belts, no initial tension is necessary, so that fixed-center
drives may be used. The restriction on speeds has also been
eliminated.

Belts (Cont.)

Non-reversing
open belt

Reversing
crossed belt

Reversing
open belt

Flat-Belt Drivers

When an open-belt drive is used, the contact angles are found to be

The length of the belt is found by summing the two arc lengths with twice
the distance between the beginning and end of contact.

For crossed belt, the angle of wrap is the same for both pulleys and is

The belt length for crossed belts is found to be

Mechanics of Flat-Belt Drives

A change in belt tension due to friction forces between
the belt and pulley will cause the belt to elongate or
contract and move relative to the surface of the pulley.
Assuming that the friction force on the belt is proportional to the
normal pressure along the arc of contact, a relationship between
the tight side tension and slack side tension, follows
Fc is found as
The tight side tension F1 and the loose side tension F2 on a pulley
have the following additive components:

Mechanics of Flat-Belt Drives

Velocity:
Weight:
Fc is found as
The tight side tension F1 and the loose side tension F2 on a pulley
have the following additive components:

Mechanics of Flat-Belt Drives (Cont.)

Solving for the initial tension, we have
The initial tension needs to be sufficient so
that the difference between the F1 and F2
curve is 2T/D.
Initial tension is the key to the functioning
of the flat belt as intended.
The weight of the belt itself can also
provide the initial tension resulting in a dip.
where d = dip, in
L = center-to-center distance, ft
w = weight per foot of the belt, lbf/ft
Fi = initial tension, lbf

Analysis of Flat-Belt Drives

Flat-Metal Belts
Thin metal belts exhibit
High strength-to-weight ratio
Dimensional stability
Accurate timing
Usefulness to temperatures up to 700F
Good electrical and thermal conduction properties

The selection of a metal flat belt can consist of the following steps:

Flat-Metal Belts

Flat-Metal Belts

Flat-Metal Belts

Flat-Metal Belts

Flat-Metal Belts

Flat-Metal Belts

Flat-Metal Belts

V Belts
The cross-sectional dimensions of V belts have been standardized
by manufacturers, with each section designated by a letter of the
alphabet for sizes in inch dimensions.
To specify a V belt, give the belt-section letter, followed by the inside
circumference in inches.
The pitch length is obtained by adding a quantity to the inside
circumference.
For best results, a V belt should be run quite fast: 20 m/s is a good
speed. Trouble may be encountered if the belt runs much faster than
25 m/s or much slower than 5 m/s .

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Analysis of V Belts
The analysis of a V-belt drive can consist of the following steps:
Find V, Lp, C, , and exp(0.5123)
Find Hd , Ha , and Nb from Hd /Ha and round up
Find Fc, F, F1, F2, and Fi , and nf s
Find belt life in number of passes, or hours, if possible

Pitch length :

Allowable Power :

where Ha = allowable power, per belt, Table 1712

K1 = angle-of-wrap correction factor, Table 1713
K2 = belt length correction factor, Table 1714

Design Power :

where Hnom is the nominal power, Ks is the service factor given in Table 1715, and nd is
the design factor.

Lifetime in hours :

Timing Belts
A timing belt does not stretch appreciably or slip and consequently
transmits power at a constant angular-velocity ratio.
Timing belts can operate over a very wide range of speeds, have
efficiencies in the range of 97 to 99 percent, require no lubrication,
and are quieter than chain drives.
The five standard inch-series pitches available are listed in Table
1718 with their letter designations.
The design and selection process for timing belts is similar to that for
V belts.

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Roller Chain
Basic features of chain drives include a constant ratio,
since no slippage or creep is involved; long life; and
the ability to drive a number of shafts from a single
source of power.
The pitch diameter of the sprocket by D can be written
The chain velocity V is defined as the number of feet
coming off the sprocket per unit time.
where N = number of sprocket teeth, p = chain pitch, in ,n =
sprocket speed, rev/min

The maximum exit velocity of the chain is

and the minimum exit velocity is

Analysis of Roller Chains

The chordal speed variation is

For smooth operation at moderate and high speeds it is considered

good practice to use a driving sprocket with at least 17 teeth and no
more than 12 teeth.
The maximum speed (rev/min) for a chain drive is limited by galling
between the pin and the bushing.

where F is the chain tension in pounds.

Lubrication of roller chains is essential in order to obtain a long and
trouble-free life.

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Wire Rope

Wire Rope
(Strands)

13

Wire Rope
Wire rope is made with two types of winding, the regular lay and the
lang-lay.
A wire rope tension giving the same tensile stress as the sheave
bending is called the equivalent bending load Fb, given by
A wire rope may fail because the static load exceeds the ultimate
strength of the rope. For an average operation, use a factor of safety
of 5. Factors of safety up to 8 or 9 are used if there is danger to
human life and for very critical situations.

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Wire Rope (Cont.)

The fatigue tensile strength in pounds for a specified life Ff is

where (p /Su) = specified life, from Fig. 1721

Su = ultimate tensile strength of the wires, psi
D = sheave or winch drum diameter, in
d = nominal wire rope size, in

The equivalent bending load Fb is

where Er = Youngs modulus for the wire rope, Table 1724 or 1727, psi
dw = diameter of the wires, in
Am = metal cross-sectional area, Table 1724 or 1728, in2
D = sheave or winch drum diameter, in

The static factor of safety ns is

and the fatigue factor of safety nf is

References

[1] Budynas, Nusbett, Shigleys Mechanical

Engineering Design, 9th Edition, Chapter 17.
[2] Hamrock, Schmid, Jacobson, Fundamentals
of Machine Elements, 2nd Edition, Chapter 19.

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