ME 373

Mechanical Design I

Outline

09/26/16

Context
Course Objectives
Expectations
Resources
Term Project

Robert L. Norton, WPI

The Principal Objectives of the

Course:

To develop your understanding of the

design of machine elements for fatigue
and different loading.
Give you practice in solving real-life,
unstructured engineering design
problems.
To improve your ability to communicate
your understanding of the subject through
preparation of professional quality
technical reports.

What is expected of you in this

course?

Download all handouts from MyWPI and check it frequently.

Attend all lectures. Absences will be noted.
Attend all section meetings which will be project design
reviews.
Read and study the assigned portions of the book!

(The lectures are not a substitute for reading the book!)

Do all homework on time (no late homework is accepted).

Submit project progress reports in the form defined in the
handout Progress Report Specifications. (on myWPI)
Submit final project reports in the form defined in the
handout Project Report Specifications. (on myWPI)
You must start the project now - you cannot throw it together
at the last minute and have a good result!
ALL your work must be your own or your groups!

BFI
BruteForceandIgnorance
Willnotbeallowedinthiscourse!
Ifyouinsist,thenthiscareerawaitsyou!

You are expected to approach this course with the WPI

philosophy of education in mind, as described in the
undergraduate catalog, ...WPI educated people should be
able to cope with change, to learn by themselves, to think
for themselves, to analyze and deal with problems in a
confidentandrealisticmanner.
Designforfatigueisacomplicatedtopic.Itisnotpossible
tocoverallofitsvariedaspectsinonlysevenweeksof
lectures.Therefore,thereadings,quizzes,andprojectsmay
dealwithtopicsNOTspecificallycoveredinclasslectures.
Nevertheless,youareexpected,inthespiritoftheWPI
Plan,toextendyourself,learnonyourown,andriseto
thechallengesofthecourseobjectives.

Resources

Resources
Machine Design An Integrated Approach,
4ed
Strunk & White, The Elements of Style
Design Notebook highly recommended
Software

Dynacam
TKSolver, Mathcad, Matlab, Excel
Books CD contains all examples and case studies
in:

TKSolver, Mathcad, Matlab, and Excel take your pick

MyWPI
Reserve materials are at Gordon Library
The World Wide Web

Evaluations

Project

One, term-long project in 6 phases with written weekly

progress reports and weekly design reviews.
Arrange yourselves in project groups of 3 to 4 by
tomorrow.

Quizzes

Quiz every Thursday on previous weeks topics.

Six quizzes plus an optional makeup at end (7 possible
marks)

Only the highest 5 quiz grades are recorded

Homework

If not in a group by that date you will be assigned to one.

Due weekly on Thursdays at end of quiz. No late

submittals.

Grading algorithm is defined on syllabus.

Review Topics

Design Process see Chapter 1 of the ME3320

text
Material Properties see Chapter 2
Free Body Diagrams see Chapter 3
Moments, Torques, and Forces. Couple, Moment
of a Couple see Chapter 3
Beam Theory see Chapters 3 and 4

Note that I use a more advanced method for

calculating shear, moment, slope, and deflection
diagrams for beams than you were introduced to in
your earlier courses. You will need to study the
section on singularity functions in Chapters 3 and 4 to
understand this technique.

Review Topics

Stress Analysis

Stresses due to

Normal and shear stress

Principal stress
Mohrs circle
Bending
Shear

If you are unclear on any of these review topics, get

out your textbooks and refresh your memory. You are
going to need them.
There are also several nice websites listed on myWPI
with info on these topics.
Our lectures will begin at Chapter 4 with a brief review
of stress analysis fundamentals. You are assumed to
have a solid grasp of statics, dynamics, and material
science at a fundamental level.

Units are
the Bane
of an
Engineers
Existence

Term Project
1.
In camshaft driven
machinery, torsional deflections
and vibrations of the camshaft
due to the time-varying torque of
the cams can cause
synchronization problems
between the various stations on
the machine. We need to design a
testing machine that will measure
the torsional vibration effects of
dynamic torque loading on a
camshaft. This machine will
accommodate two cams, each of
which will drive its own spring-

2.
These cams will be designed to give
opposite torque-time functions to one another.
They can then be used singly or in pairs to
investigate the effectiveness of the addition to a
production machine of a torque-balancing cam
that drives a dummy load. The cams will be split
(see sample cam) to allow removal and
installation without disassembling the shaft.
Program DYNACAM can be used to design the
two cams and obtain the dynamic torque loads
and forces on shaft and followers. Data on the
primary cam program is as follows: mod sine rise
1 in 50 deg, dwell for 40 deg, cycloidal fall 1 in
50 deg, dwell for 40 deg, 345 poly rise 1 in 50
deg, dwell for 40 deg, 4-5-6-7 poly fall 1 in 50
deg, dwell for remainder. The secondary cam

3
The camshaft in this test
fixture must be designed to have
torsional deflections that are large
enough to be measured by 5000count-per-revolution, optical shaft
encoders attached at each end of
the camshaft, but not so large as
to fatigue-fail the shaft. At the
same time, we want the camshaft
to be stiff in bending and have a
bending natural frequency at least
10 times its torsional natural
frequency to minimize any
coupling effects between bending
and torsional modes. Stated
another way: what should the
shaft diameter and length be to
give sufficient torsional

4.
Plain bearings must be used to avoid
vibrations that would come from rolling element
bearings. The test machine will be driven by a
speed-controlled, permanent magnet, DC motor
through a gear reduction unit of your design.
Motor selection is also your responsibility. (See
Design of Machinery Chap 2) Entire assembly
must fit on a standard lab bench.

5
What is required is a detailed design of a
camshaft torsional-vibration test machine
including the cams, keys, follower trains,
camshaft, bearings, couplings, gearbox, frame,
and mounting hardware. Infinite life is desired.
The dynamic loads on the cam and follower will
depend on the mass of the follower train and the
spring constants. Once an estimate of the
moving mass is available from your preliminary
design, program Dynacam can be used to quickly
calculate the dynamic forces at the cam-follower
interface. The stresses in the various parts of
the assembly can then be estimated based on the
level of dynamic forces present. Design is an
iterative process!

6
See Chapter 8 in the text Design of
Machinery, for information on cam design and
program Dynacam. Examples in that chapter are
similar to this problem. Other analysis can best
be done using a program such as TKSolver or
MathCad, or with a spreadsheet. Note that it is
necessary that a computer be used to solve this
problem and TKSolver is recommended for the
stress and design calculations. A TKSolver file
(Student.TK) is supplied on the books CD-ROM
for use as a starter file. Please use it! Catalog
information on motors, bearings, springs, etc. is
available on the web.

We will attack this design project in six

phases as defined below. Each phase will be
allowed approximately one week of effort
beginning IMMEDIATELY if not sooner! This
will be a group project. Weekly oral design
reviews and written progress reports are
required from each group. You will arrange
your own groups of 3 or 4 students.

I need a list of your group members and its

name (mandatory) by 1/18. Anyone not in a
group by that date must let me know and we
will put you in a group.

Weekly progress reports will be required in a

format defined in the Progress Report
Specifications handout supplied on the class
website. A final Project Report will also be

Tasks by Week
1.

2.

3.
4.

5.

6.

Define the problem in detail. Sketch a design concept.

Understand and bound the problem. Design the cam, create the
cam profile and choose a spring constant and preload to prevent
jump with program Dynacam. Research purchased sliders.
Design the cam-follower train. Model the mechanism
dynamically with free-body diagrams. Do calculations to
determine its approximate forces, torques, power levels, etc.
Determine the stresses in the follower links and estimate their
static safety factors.
Determine the dynamic stresses in the follower links and
estimate their fatigue safety factors.
Design the camshaft, keys, and flywheel for fatigue loading.
Determine camshaft deflections and natural frequencies in
torsion and bending.
Design a gear train of suitable ratio and size to transfer power
from the motor to the camshaft. Determine its fatigue life in
bending and surface fatigue.
Design a suitable follower spring for the cam and determine the
surface stresses and lubrication condition of the cam-follower
interface.
Design and specify the bearings and fasteners for the system.
Final Project report due

Questions?

Let the Ride

Begin!