ME3180

ME 3180: Machine Design

Helical Torsion Springs

Lecture Notes

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ME3180

Helical Torsion Springs

Can be loaded in torsion instead of compression or
tension
Ends are extended tangentially to provide lever arms
on which to apply moment load
Ends come in variety of shapes to suit application
Coils are close wound like extension springs (but do
not have any initial tension), but in few cases are wound
with spacing like compression spring (this will avoid
friction between coils)
Applied moment should always be arranged to close
coils rather than open them because residual stresses
from coil-winding are favorable against a closing
moment (i.e., residual stresses oppose working
stresses).
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ME3180

Helical Torsion Springs

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Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Dynamic loading should be repeated or fluctuating with stress ratio R 0
Applied moment should never be reversed in service
Normal stresses are produced in torsion springs
Load should be defined at angle between tangent ends in loaded
position rather than at deflection from free position
Rectangular wire is more efficient (because load is in bending) in terms of
stiffness per unit volume (larger I for same dimension)
However, most helical torsion springs are made from round wire
because of its lower cost and larger variety of available sizes and materials
Torsion springs are used in door hinges, rat traps, automobile starters,
finger exercisers, garage doors and etc
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Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Number of Coils in Torsion Springs

For straight ends, the contribution to equation 13.26b can be expressed as
an equivalent number of coils Ne:
Active coils:

L L2
Ne 1
3D

(13.26a)

N a Nb Ne

(13.26b)

Where Nb is number of coils in spring body

Deflection
Angular deflections of coil-end is normally expressed in radians, but is
often converted to revolutions. Revolutions will be used.

rev

1
1 MLw

rad
2
2 EI

(13.27a)

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Where: M is applied moment

Lw is length of wire
E is Youngs modulus
I is second moment of area for wire cross section about neutral axis

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ME3180

Helical Torsion Springs Contd

In specifying torsion spring, ends must be located relative to each

other. Commercial tolerances on these relative positions are listed
in Table 10-9.
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Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Simplest scheme for expressing initial unloaded location of one end

with respect to the other is in terms of angle

defining partial turn
/ 360
present in coilNbody
, as shown in Fig. 10-10. For
P as
analysis purpose nomenclature of Fig. 10-10 can be used.
in terms of the backCommunication with spring-maker is often
angle .
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Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Number of body turns
count.

Nis
b number of turns in free spring body by

Body-turn count is related to the initial position angle

by

N b integer
integer N p
360
where

N pis number of partial turns.

The above equation means that N btakes on non-integer, discrete

values such as 5.3, 6.3, 7.3,, with successive differences of 1 as
possibilities in designing a specific spring. This consideration will be
discussed later.

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Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Bending Stress
Torsion spring has bending induced in coils, rather than torsion.
Means that residual stresses built in during winding are in same
direction but of opposite sign to working stresses that occur during
use.
Strain-strengthening locks in residual stresses opposing working
stresses provided load is always applied in winding sense.
Torsion springs can operate at bending stresses exceeding yield
strength of wire from which it was wound.
Bending stress can be obtained from curved-beam theory expressed in
Mc
form shown below:
K

where K is stress-correction factor.

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ME3180

Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Value of K depends on shape of wire cross section and whether stress is

sought at inner or outer fiber. Wahl analytically determined values of K
to be, for round wire,

4C 2 C 1
Ki
4C (C 1)

4C 2 C 1
Ko
4C (C 1)

(10-43)

where C is spring index and subscript i and o refer to inner and outer
fibers, respectively.
In view of fact that Ko is always less than unity, we shall use K i to
estimate the stresses. When bending moment is M = Fr and section
modulus
, we express bending equations as
I / C d 3 / 32

Ki

32 Fr
d3

(10-44)

which gives the bending stress for a round-wire torsion spring.

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Helical Torsion Springs Contd

ME3180

Note: Next two slides are from Norton

Maximum compressive bending stress at inside coil diameter of round

wire helical torsion spring, loaded to close its coils is:

max

K bi

M max c
32 M max
K bi
I
d 3

(13.32a)

Tensile bending stresses at the outside of the coil:

32M min
omin K bo
;
3
d
omax omin
omean
;
2

32 M max
omax K bo
d 3
omax omin
oalt
2

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(13.32b)
(13.32c)

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ME3180

Helical Torsion Spring - Contd

For static failure (yielding) of torsion spring loaded to close its coils,
compressive stress imax at inside of coil is of most concern
For fatigue failure, which is a tensile-state phenomenon omax at outside
of coils is of concern
Alternating and mean stresses are calculated at outside of coil
Since closely spaced coils prevent shot from impacting inside diameter
of coil, shot peening may not be effective in torsion springs

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ME3180

Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Deflection and Spring Rate
For torsion springs, angular deflection can be expressed in radians
or revolutions (turns). If term contains revolution units, term will
be expressed with a prime sign.
The spring rate K is expressed in units of torque/revolution (lbf.
in/rev or N. mm/rev) and moment is proportional to angle ,
expressed in turns rather than radians.
Spring rate, if linear, can be expressed as

M1 M 2 M 2 M1
k

1 2
2 1
where the moment M can be expressed as

Fl

(10-45)

or

Fr .

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ME3180

Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Total angular deflection in radian is:

64 MDN b 64 ML1 64 ML2 64MD

L1 L2

(
N

)
b
4
4
4
4
d E
3d E 3d E
d E
3D

(10-47)

Equivalent number of active turns Na is expressed as

L1 L2
N a Nb
3D

(10-48)

Spring rate k in torque per radian is

Fr

d 4E

64 DN a

(10-49)

Spring rate may also be expressed as torque per

turn. Expression for
2
this is obtained
rad/turn. Thus
k ' by multiplying Eq. (10-49) by
spring rate
(units
is d 4 E
2torque/turn)
d 4E

k'

64 DN a

(10-50)

10.2 DN a

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ME3180

Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Tests show that effect of friction between coils and arbor is such that
constant 10.2 should be increased to 10.8. The equation above
becomes
d 4E
k'
(10-51)
10.8 DN a
(unit torque per turn). Equation(10-51)gives better results. Also Eq.
(10-47) becomes

t'

10.8MD
l1 l2
(
N

)
b
4
d E
3D

(10-52)

Torsion springs are frequently used over round bar or pin. When load
is applied to torsion spring, spring winds up, causing decrease in
inside diameter of coil body.
It is necessary to ensure that inside diameter of coil never becomes
equal to or less than diameter of pin, in which case loss of spring
function would ensure.
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ME3180

Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Helix diameter of coil D' becomes

Nb D
D'
N b c'

(10-53)

where c is angular deflection of body of coil in number of turns,

given by
10.8MDN b
'
(10-54)
c
'

d 4E

'
'
New inside diameter Di D d makes diametral clearance
between body coil and pin of diameter D p equal to

Nb D
D d Dp
d Dp
'
Nb c
'

(10-55)

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Helical Torsion Springs Contd

ME3180

Equation(10-55) solved for N b is

Nb

c' ( d D p )
D d Dp

(10-56)

which gives the number of body turns corresponding to a specified

diametral clearance of arbor.
This angle may not be in agreement with necessary partial-turn
reminder. Thus, diametral clearance may be exceeded but not equaled
Static Strength
First column entries in Table 10-6 can be divided by 0.577 (from
distortion-energy theory) to give
0.78S ut

S y 0.87 S ut
0.61S
ut

Music wire and cold-drawn carbon steels (10-57)

QQ&T (hardened & tempered) carbon and low-alloy steels
Austenitic stainless steel and nonferrous alloys

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ME3180

Helical Torsion Springs Contd

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ME3180

Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Fatigue Strength
Since spring wire is in bending, Sines equation is not applicable. The
Sines model is in the presence of pure torsion. Since Zimmerlis
results were for compression springs (wire in pure torsion), we will
use the repeated bending stress (R = 0) values provided by
Associated Spring in Table 10-10.
As in Eq. (10-40) we will use the Gerber fatigue-failure criterion
incorporating the Associated Spring R = 0 fatigue strength S :r

Sr / 2
Se
S /2
1 ( r )2
S ut

(10-58)

Value of S r (and S e ) has been corrected for size, surface condition,

and type of loading, but not for temperature or miscellaneous effects.
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ME3180

Helical Torsion Springs Contd

Gerber fatigue criterion is now defined. Strength-amplitude
component is given by Table 6-7, p. 307, as
2
r 2 S ut
Sa
[ 1
2S e

1 (

2Se 2
) ] (10-59)
rS ut

where slope of load line is r M a / M m . Load line is radial through

origin of designers fatigue diagram. Factor of safety guarding against
fatigue failure is
S
nf a
(10-60)

Alternatively, we can find n f directly by using Table 6-7, p. 307:

m Se 2
1 a Sut 2
nf
( ) [1 1 (2
) ]
2 Se m
Sut a

(10-61)

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