ME 3670: Design And Analysis Of Machine Elements 1:

Part I: Kinematics and mechanisms

Lecture 16-19
Cam motion program and profile design
Read 8.1-8.10, Kinzel
Cam Design Stages -- Recall
Stage 1: Synthesis of follower motion programs
Whole cycle required (stitch pattern cams in sewing
machines)
Or only part of profile really important (valve train in IC
engine)

Stage 2: Generation of cam profile
Generation of cam profile will use inversion with cam
fixed and frame and follower moving about the cam
Methods: Graphical, analytical
Generation of CAM Profile: Design Procedure
Determine follower displacement
Separate displacement into increments of u
Determine y for each u and put in a table
Invert motion by fixing cam
Rotate follower about cam using u y values
Follower motion will form an envelope of the
cam profile
Interpolate between follower positions as
needed
Follower Faces/Shapes
Knife edge
High stresses
Can only be used in low loads
Cylindrical faced
Kinematically the same as roller but
more wear
Roller
Relatively low stress
Flat faced
Lower stress than cylindrical follower
Needs larger cam
Definitions
Pitch curve: curve of
center of roller
follower
b
r
p
r
radius circle prime :
radius, follower roller :
radius circle base :
r r r
r
r
b p
b
+ =
r
0 = r
r
r
= r
Chose Base Circle Radius
Base circle radius, r
b

Radius of the cam when follower has zero displacement/lift
Too small - hollows have r < r
b

Too big- size concerns
Usually 2-3 times max lift
b
r
p
r
r
Cam Profile Design with Cylindrical Follower
Given: motion program, cam CW rotation
Step 1: Draw base circle (radius= r
b
) and prime circle
(radius= r
b
+ r)
Step 2: Divide follower profile into segments, e.g 10
Step 3: Draw radial lines at 10 intervals (label with angle,
direction opposite to cam rotation direction)
Step 4: Mark center of follower at (r
b
+ r + y(u)) along
radial lines
Step 5: Draw follower circle (radius r) from each center
Step 6: Draw Cam surface = tangent to follower circles
0 = r
r
r
Step 1: Draw Base and Prime Circles
Pick base circle radius r
b

Determines size of cam
Pick cylinder radius, r, for
follower
Compute prime circle radius
(r
p
= r + r
b
)
Determine direction of cam
rotation (Assume CW)

CW
Step 2: Divide follower profile into segment
Divide follower profile into segments
Use 10- too coarse for an accurate cam, ok for
initial design and visualization
Determine follower displacement for each angle
Step 3 - Draw radial lines at 10 intervals
Draw ray lines at
10 increments
around the prime
circle
Label ray lines in
CCW direction
If cam rotates CW,
follower appears to
rotate CCW
relative to cam
Step 4: Mark center of follower along radial
lines
On each ray line, lay off the displacement of
the follower from the PRIME circle
Step 5: Draw follower circle from each center
On each ray, draw circle of roller radius, r
Step 6: Draw Cam surface
Draw cam surface tangent to roller surfaces
Green curve
Pressure Angle
Angle between contact normal and velocity of
contact point in the follower
Small pressure angle
Reduces load/wear between stem and stem bearing
Promotes smoother operation

Pressure Angle Considerations
Pressure angle, o
Ideal pressure angle = 0
Only occurs during dwell

Acceptable range:
-30 < o< 30

If o too large, increase
size of circle base
Larger base circle leads
smaller pressure angles
Pressure Angle Considerations
The largest pressure angle occurs at pitch points
Pitch points correspond to the inflection points in the motion
program
Pressure Angle Consideration in Cam Design
Note pressure angle and dwell regions
Inflection points, at 90, 270 for this example
Radius of Curvature Considerations
Cam radius of curvature cannot be smaller than roller
radius
If too small, must increase base circle radius
Rule of thumb: r
b
= 2 to 3* (max y(u))
min
> r
min

Cam Radius of Curvature

Assume that we have parametric expressions
for x and y in terms of u (x=x(u), y=y(u))
Radius of curvature as a function of u is:






(+) convex, (-) concave
Can also analyze 3 successive follower positions
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(
(

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+
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=
2
2
2
2
3
2 2
u u u u
u u

d
x d
d
dy
d
y d
d
dx
d
dy
d
dx
Determining Graphically
Definition of Curvature (Wiki)
the center of curvature C is the intersection point of
two infinitely close normals to the curve
Straight line
Practically: use 3 successive points on the curve to
determine radius of curvature
Draw a circle through these 3 points
The center of the circle gives the
center of curvature
The radius of the circle gives

k
1
=
=

Cam profile
Cam Radius of Curvature

Summary of Cylindrical/Roller Follower
Stage 1: synthesis of motion program
Stage 2: design CAM profile using the graphical
approach
Chose base circle radius r
b
, roller radius r
Rule of thumb: r
b
= 2 to 3* (max y(u))
Stage 3: check pressure angle, -30 < o< 30
maximum o occurs at pitch/inflection points
Increase r
b
to reduce o
Stage 4: check radius of curvature

min
> r required
Increase r
b
if
min
too small
Cam Profile Design with Flat-Faced follower
Need excessive lubrication on the contact surface
Definition of Offset
Perpendicular distance from center of translating
follower path to fixed pivot of the cam

Offset
Cam Profile Design: Flat-Faced Followers
Given: motion program, cam CW rotation
Step 1: Draw base circle (radius= r
b
)
Step 2: Divide follower profile into segments, e.g 10
Step 3: Draw radial lines at 10 intervals (label with angle,
direction opposite to cam rotation direction)
Step 4: Mark center of follower at (r
b
+ y(u)) along radial
lines
Step 5: Construct lines parallel to radial lines at distance
equal to offset
Step 6: Draw line perpendicular to offset line (flat faces)
Step 7: Draw curve tangent to these lines at the specified
points

Flat-Faced Follower Step 5

Flat-Faced Follower Step 6

I
n
Cam Profile Design for Flat-Faced Followers
Cams with flat faced followers are typically
larger than with round face followers
Entire cam profile must be convex
Radius of base circle is typically large
Exercise Problem: Roller Follower
Example 8.3, p. 381
Design a cam profile given the
harmonic, translating, rolling follower
displacement (table to the right):
Dwell at zero lift for 1
st
120
Dwell at 0.8 in lift from 180- 210
Rolling follower radius (r) = 0.5in
Cam rotates CW
Use 30 increments (in interest of time)
Assume base circle radius (r
b
) = 1.5in
Approximately equal to 2 x L
u y
0 0
30 0
60 0
90 0
120 0
150 0.4
180 0.8
210 0.8
240 0.724
270 0.524
300 0.276
330 0.076
Example 8.2, p. 374
Use harmonic function for rise and return
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=
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=
60
) 120 (
cos 1 4 . 0 cos 1
2
u t
|
tu L
y
Synthesis of Motion Program
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+ =
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\
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+ =
150
) 210 (
cos 1 4 . 0 cos 1
2
u t
|
tu L
y
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 240 260 280 300 320 340 360
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
Cam Displacement
F
o
l
l
o
w
e
r

D
i
s
p
l
a
c
e
m
e
n
t
Construction of Cam Profile
Use blackboard
Rolling follower radius (r) = 0.5in
Cam rotates CW so
follower rotates CCW
Use 30 increments (in interest of time)
Assume base circle radius (r
b
) = 1.5in
Approximately equal to 2 x L
Exercise Problem: Flat-Faced Follower
Example 8.4, p. 383
Same follower motion program
Cam rotates CW
Use flat-face follower with an
offset=0.2in
Assume base circle radius (r
b
) = 5.5in
Make sure the cam profile is always convex
u y
0 0
30 0
60 0
90 0
120 0
150 0.4
180 0.8
210 0.8
240 0.724
270 0.524
300 0.276
330 0.076
Construction of Cam Profile
Use blackboard
Cam rotates CW so
follower rotates CCW
Use 30 increments (in interest of time)
Assume base circle radius (rb) = 5.5in
Make sure the cam profile is always
convex
The Final Cam Profiles
Flat-faced follower
Roller follower
Lecture Problem 4): Cam profile design
Q: Lay out a cam profile using the follower displacements given in
the table below. The cam has a translating, radial, roller follower
with a roller diameter of 1 inch. Use a base circle radius of 1.5
inches. Assume that the cam will rotate clockwise.
u (degrees) Displacement (in) u (degrees) Displacement (in)
0 0 200 1
20 0 220 0.989
40 0 240 0.905
60 0 260 0.750
80 0.25 280 0.552
100 0.75 300 0.345
120 1 320 0.165
140 1 340 0.043
160 1 360 0
180 1