Cam Design

Introduction
SVAJ Diagrams
Double Dwell CAM Design
Sizing CAM
Sizing Follower Spring
Practical Design Considerations

1
 Introduction
• Many applications, automotive, automated
manufacturing processes
• Easier to design than a linkage for the same
task but more expensive to make
– Cams are a form of four-bar mechanism
• Design can be very compact
• Requires lubrication for long life

2
 Two Types of Followers Force and Form Closure

A forced closed joint can only push With form closure external force is not required
Spring must be sized to supply return force But more complex to make

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 3

 Type of follower

• Lowest friction • Custom manufactured

• Most common • More compact
• Followers are available from • May be cheaper for mass production
bearing manufacturers • Better lubrication required
Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 4
 Types of Cams

Radial or plate cam

Wedge cam

Barrel or axial cam

Face cam

5
 Cam Design Process
• Design profile
• Size cam and follower
• Size spring

6
Cam Development

rise dwell return dwell

Displacement diagram

Design profile
Wrap it around cam

7
 Types of CAM Profiles
• Rise-fall
• Rise-fall-dwell
• Rise-dwell-fall-dwell (double dwell)
• Critical path motion
– Follow exact path
– Constant velocity

8
S V A J Diagrams
S-Displacement
V-Velocity
A-Acceleration
J-Jerk

9
 Example: Double Dwell
• 0-90 degrees – dwell at 0 mm
• 90-180 degrees – rise to 25 mm
• 180-270 degrees- dwell at 25 mm
• 270-0 degrees – return to 0 mm

25

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 10

 Bad Design 1: Connect the Dots
Displacement K 2
K1

Velocity

Acceleration

Jerk

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 11

 The Fundamental Law of Cam Design
• The cam function must be continuous through
the first and second derivatives of
displacement around the entire profile.
Corollary
• The jerk function must be finite around the
entire profile
• Third order continuity is require for a good
cam design

12
 Design 2: Simple Harmonic Motion
(still a bad choice)
h   
s  1  cos    
2   
 h  
v sin   
 2   High
dwell
2 h   section
a  2 cos   
 2  
∞
3 h   
j   3 sin   
 2   90
∞
Rise section of cam

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 13

 An acceptable Design: Cyclodal Displacement
 
a=Csin  2  , 0    
 
Integrating
  
v  C cos  2   k1
2  
Solving for integration constant, k1
v  0 at   0
Basic Process
• Start at acceleration

k1  C • Integrate
2
• Solve for integration constants
Therefore
    
vC 1  cos  2  
2    
 2  
sC   C 2 sin  2   k2
2 2  
Solving for integration constant, k2 and lift constant C
s  0 at   0  k2  0
h
s  0 at     C  2
2 14
Summary of a Cyclodal Displacement Example
Rise section of cam

 1   
s  h  sin  2  
  2   

h   
v 1  cos  2   High
   
dwell
section
h  
a=2 sin  2 
2  

h  
j=4 2 cos  2  90
 3
 

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 15

 Example
• Cyclodal rise of 25 mm in 90 degrees
• Calculate position, velocity, acceleration at
θ=45 degrees

16
 Example
h  25mm,   90 ,   45

 1   
s  h  sin  2  
  2   

h   
v 1  cos  2  
   

h  
a=2 sin  2 
2  

h  
j=4 2 cos  2 
3  
17
18
Converting from Angular to Linear Motion
Motion profiles expressed in terms of cam rotation
s  s   , v  v   , a  a   , j  j  

d
if  =
dt
  t
s  t   s  t 

Therefore
ds ds d
v t      v  t 
dt d dt

Similarly
a  t    2 a  t 
j  t    3 j  t 
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Motion Profiles in Terms of Cam Angle Motion Profiles in Terms of Time ω2=10 rad/sec

s  t   s  t 

v  t    v  t 

a  t    2 a  t 

j  t    3 j  t 

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 Beyond Cyclodal Displacement Functions
• Cyclodal displacement functions meet the continuity
requirements for cam design but still have discontinuous
jerk functions and may produce higher accelerations and
velocity than necessary
• Cam designers have come up with many different
displacement functions that trade-off between peak
velocity, acceleration and jerk
• It is important to optimize these quantities in your design
by examining your SVAJ diagram in the context of your
design requirements
• Polynomial spline functions offer greatest design flexibility
• Not required for this course

21
 Comparison
Max Max Max
Function Comments
Vel. Accel. Jerk
Constant Infinite jerk not
2.0h/β 4.0h/β2 infinite
accel. acceptable
Harmonic Infinite jerk not
1.6h/β 4.9h/β2 infinite
disp. acceptable
Cycloidal Smooth accel. cont.
2.0h/β 6.3h/β2 40h/β3
disp. jerk
Trap.
2.0h/β 5.3h/β2 44h/β3 Low accel, rough jerk
accel.
Mod.
Low vel
Trap. 2.0h/β 4.9h/β2 61h/β3
Good accel, rough jerk
accel.
3-4-5
poly. 1.9h/β 5.8h/β2 60h/β3 Good compromise
disp.
4-5-6-7
poly. 2.2h/β 7.5h/β2 52h/β3 Smooth jerk high accel
disp.

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 22

 Sizing Cams
• Once the displacement curve is determined
the overall size of the cam can be found
• The pressure angle and radius of curvature are
the major factors in this process
• We will consider translating roller followers
only

23
 Some Definitions

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 24

  
  tan 1 
v   Pressure Angle
 s  R p2   2 
 

Force tending to apply load to follower bearings

tan  
Force tending to cause motion of follower

Smaller pressure angles are better

High pressure angle cause:
Chatter
Jamming
Broken followers

Rule of thumb
  35 roller follower
Offset is sometimes used to reduce pressure angle

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 25

 Radius of Curvature

3/2
 R  s  2  v 2 
 p  Rule of thumb
 pitch 
 Rp  s   2v 2  a  Rp  s   min at least 2-3 times roller radius
2

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 26

• Path of follower center is not the same as CAM Profile
cam profile
• Construction of cam profile best done on a
computer
• Determine prime circle radius
• Add lift to prime circle (Excel, MatLab)
• Use offset command in CAD package to
find cam profile
• Cam profile = pitch curve – roller
follower
• Prime circle radius determine by pressure
angle and curvature requirements

d R 2p 2

RAO2 iˆ d s ˆj

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 27

 Follower Size
• The minimum size of the roller is determined
the same way a roller bearing is.
• Roller radius must be large enough to support
load
• However, an oversized roller may cause an
undesirable cusp on the cam
• Check radius of curvature!

28
Cusp or Undercut Due to Oversized Roller
Pitch curve

Roller radius = 5 mm Roller radius = 10 mm Roller radius = 15 mm

29
 Example
• Cyclodal rise of 25 mm in 90 degrees
• Calculate position, velocity, acceleration at θ=45 degrees
• Find prime circle and offset such that pressure angle at
θ=45 degrees is less than 30 degrees
• Calculate curvature at θ=45 degrees

 v   3/2
 R  s  2  v 2 
  tan 1  
 pitch 
 p 
 s  R p2   2 
 Rp  s   2v 2  a  Rp  s 
2
 

30
  v  
  tan  1 
 s  R p2   2 
 

3/2
 R  s  2  v 2 
 pitch   p 
 Rp  s   2v 2  a  Rp  s 
2

31
 CAM Example
• Low dwell
– beta1 = 60.0 deg
– h1 = 0.0 mm
• Rise
– beta2 = 180.0 deg
– h2 = 9 mm
• High dwell
– beta3 = 20.0 deg
– h3 = 9mm
• Fall
– beta4 = 90.0 deg
– h4 = - 9 mm
 SVAJ Diagram
SVAJ Plots SVAJ Plots in Time Domain
10 0.01

8 0.008

6 0.006
S (mm)

S (m)
4 0.004

2 0.002

0 0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
 (rad)  (rad)

10 0.1

5
0.05
V (mm/rad)

V (m/s)
0
-5
-0.05
-10

-15 -0.1
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
 (rad)  (rad)

40 1

20 0.5
A (mm/rad2)

A (m/s 2)
0 0

-20 -0.5

-40 -1
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
 (rad)  (rad)

100 40

50 20
J (mm/rad3)

J (m/s3)

0 0

-50 -20

-100 -40
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
 (rad)  (rad)

Angular domain Time domain

Length units are mm! Length units are m!
 Rp = 10 mm, e = 0 mm;
Pressure Angle
30

20

10
Pressure Angle (deg)

Pitch Curve
0

-10
15
-20

10
-30

-40 5
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
 (rad)

mm
Radius of Curvature 0
100

80
-5
60

40
Radius of Curvature (mm)

-10
20

0
-15
-20

-40
-15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15
-60 mm
-80

-100
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
 (rad)
 Rp = 15 mm, e = 0 mm;
Pressure Angle
20

10

0 Pitch Curve
Pressure Angle (deg)

-10 20

-20 15

-30
10

5
-40
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
 (rad)

mm
Radius of Curvature 0
150

-5
100

-10
Radius of Curvature (mm)

50
-15
0
-20

-50
-20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 20
mm
-100

-150
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
 (rad)
 Rp = 20 mm, e = 0 mm;
Pressure Angle
15

10

5
Pitch Curve
0
Pressure Angle (deg)

-5
25

-10 20

-15 15
-20
10
-25
5
-30

mm
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 0
 (rad)

-5
Radius of Curvature
200 -10

150 -15

100 -20
Radius of Curvature (mm)

50 -25

0 -20 -10 0 10 20
mm
-50

-100

-150

-200
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
 (rad)
 Sizing Follower Spring

To keep follower on the cam

Avoid resonance
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0I7
ooq9y4dQ

37
 Modeling Follower as a 1DOF Spring Mass System

• Mass, m, includes all mass attached to the follower including a portion of the spring
• Stiffness, k, is the stiffness of the spring. The cam shaft and frame are assumed to be
infinitely stiff.
• Damping, C, is generally not deliberately added and is typically small.

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 38

 Equation of Motion

mx  cx  kx  Fc  t 

Design of Machinery, Robert L. Norton, McGraw Hill 39

 Steady State Response
Required Inputs Calculations

k
Natural Frequency (rad/sec) n 
m
Spring stiffness (N/m) k Damping (N/m/s) c  2mn
Mass (kg) m Steady state response x  X f sin  f  
Damping ratio (0.05-0.1) 
Forcing frequency (rad/sec) f Xf 1
Amplitude ratio 
F0 2 2
k   f    f 

2

1     2
  n    n 
 
  
 2 f 
 n 
Most important! Phase angle   tan 1  2
1    f  
  n  

40
Amplitude Ratio and Phase Angle

f
Ideally  0.1
n
41
 Kineostatic Approach for Selecting
Spring Constant
Pre-load

mx  cx  k  x  x0   Fc  t 
m determined via follower selection
c estimated based on damping coeficent
x, x, x from motion profile
k , x0 selected so that Fc  t  positive

f
check  0.1
n

42
 Example
• Cyclodal rise of 25 mm over 90 degrees
• Cam speed = 100 rad/sec
• Damping ratio = 0.06
• Mass = 0.5 kg
• Find spring stiffness and preload

43
 Solution
 1    s  t   s t 
s  h  sin  2  
  2    Find

h    v  t    v t  Fc  t   ma  cv  k  s  s0 
v 1  cos  2  
   

a=2
h   a  t    2 a t  Constraints
sin  2 
 2


Fc  t   0.0
f
 0.1
j=4 2
h
cos
 
 2  j  t    3 j t  n
3  

44
Too small!
Iteration 1

45
Marginal
Iteration 2

46
 Practical Considerations
Translating vs Pivoting Follower
• Provides true straight line motion
• More difficult and expensive to design slider
• More friction
Force vs Form-Closed
• Force closed less expensive since there is one not
two cam surfaces to design and manufacture
• Form-closed suffer from crossover shock when
follower moves from one side of groove to the
other
• Force closed must have properly designed spring

47
 Practical Considerations
Roller vs Flat-faced Follower
• Rollers are readily available, inexpensive and require
less lubrication
• Rollers can accommodate concave profiles
• Flat faced followers must be custom made and require
copious lubrication but are more compact.
To Grind or Not to Grind
• Cams are first milled and then often ground
• Milling produces inferior surface finish and can only be
used on steels with low to medium hardness
• Grinding produces a smoother surface and can be used
on steels that have been harden

48
Learning Outcomes for Cam Design
• Design cyclodal cam profile in angular and
time domain
• Awareness of other cam profiles
• Size cam and follower
• Size spring and preload

49