Cam Design Cam Design

l Cam-Follower systems are used in all kinds of machine y

l A cam is used to drive a follower through a specified
displacement by direct contact
ll d d d l Virtually any output function can be specified and a curved
surface on the cam can be created that will generate that
function.
Plate cam with translating roller follower g
CAMS
A b d fi d hi l h i d li d hi h A cam may be defined as a machine element having a curved outline or a curved groove, which,
by its oscillation or rotation motion, gives a predetermined specified motion to another element
called the follower
C f ll t b l ifi d i l Cam-follower systems can be classified in several ways
1) Type of follower motion, either translating or rotating (oscillating):
These are analogous to the crank-rocker four bar
Slider crank four bar linkages
The l iti d l ti f th f ll t b The velocities and accelerations of the cam follower system can be
found by analyzing the behavior of the effective linkage for any position.
The effective links change length as the cam-follower moves giving it an The effective links change length as the cam follower moves giving it an
advantage over a pure linkage as this allows more flexibility in meeting
the desired motion constraints
If f If true rectilinear translation is required, then the translating follower is state.
If pure rotation output is needed, then the oscillator is the obvious choice.
2) Type of Joint Closure
F l Force closure
Requires an external force be applied to the joint in order to keep the two links,
cam and follower, physically in contact.
This force is usually provided by a spring. This force defined as positive in a This force is usually provided by a spring. This force defined as positive in a
direction that closes the joint, cannot be allowed to become negative.
Form closure. closes the joint by geometry. No external force is
required. There are really two cam surfaces in this arrangement, one
surface on each side of the follower. Each surface pushes, in its turn to
drive the follower in both directions.
3) Type of Follower
Knife follower
Types of Follower Motion Types of Follower Motion
Translating
flat-face
Translating
roller
Translating
point
(knife)
O ill i
Oscillating
Oscillating
flat-face
Osc at g
roller
Type of Motion Constraints
DROP CAM. As the drop cam rotates the
follower stays level for a short time. It then
rises slowly and suddenly drops rises slowly and suddenly drops
ECCENTRIC CAM. The follower moves
up and down in a vertical direction. Its
movement is very smooth.
PEAR SHAPED CAM A th PEAR SHAPED CAM. As the cam
rotates, the follower stays level for
a revolution, then it rises and
falls following the cam profile.
A) critical extreme position (CEP: or endpoint specification)
The design specifications define the The design specifications define the
start and finish positions of the
follower (extreme positions) but do
not specify any constraints on the
path motion between the extreme
positions. p
B) critical path motion (CPM).
The path motion, and/or one or more of its derivatives are defined over e pat ot o , a d/o o e o o e o ts de at es a e de ed o e
all or part of the interval of motion. This is analogous to function
generation in the linkage design case except that with a cam we can
achieve a continuous output function for the follower.
Specify
Position, Velocity, Acceleration along the pathe
Type of Motion Program
Refer mainly to the critical extreme e e a y to t e c t ca e t e e
position (CEP) case of motion constraint
rise-fall (RF).
rise-fall-dwell (RFD)
rise-dwell-fall-dwell (RDFD)
D ll d fi d t t ti / ifi d i d f i t ti Dwells: defined as no output motion/or a specified period of input motion
The cam-follower is the design type of choice whenever exact dwell is
required required.
Rise-fall (RF) CEP motion. with no dwell, use crank-rocker linkage rather than
a cam-follower linkage's advantages : reliability ease of construction and a cam follower . linkage s advantages : reliability, ease of construction, and
lower cost
For compactness outweigh using a cam-follower in the RF case.
In CPM design, the motion or its derivatives are defined over the interval. Use a
cam-follower system in the RF case.
Jerk: Rate of acceleration: Third derivative of position with respect to time
Since acceleration is directly proportional to force jerk is associated with the time rate
Dislpacement, velosity, acceleration, jerk (S V A J )DIAGRAMS
Since acceleration is directly proportional to force, jerk is associated with the time rate
of change of force. Jerk is therefore important to cam designers because of its effect in
terms of wear, noise, and stress.
In Cam Design first select the mathematical functions to be used to define the In Cam Design first select the mathematical functions to be used to define the
motion of the follower. To do this easily
"linearize the cam, i.e., "unwrap it" from its circular shape and consider it as a
function plotted on Cartesian axes.
Plot the displacement , first derivative velocity, second derivative acceleration
third derivative jerk;
all on aligned axes as function of cam shaft angle
DOUBLE- DWEllS CAM DESIGN-CHOOSING S V A J FUNCTIONS
The double-dwell case is quite common.
Example: Part of a feeding Station on a production machine that makes toothpaste Example: Part of a feeding Station on a production machine that makes toothpaste.
1) Fed an empty toothpaste tube (during the low dwell)
2) Moves the empty tube into a loading station (during the rise)
3) Holds the tube absolutely still in a critical extreme position (CEP) to be field by
t th t i (d i th hi h d ll) toothpaste is (during the high dwell).
4) Retracts the filled tube back to the starting (zero) position and holds it in this critical
extreme position. At this point. another mechanism (during the low dwell) picks the
tube up and carries it to the next operation tube up a d ca es t to t e e t ope at o
This example is a critical
extreme position (CEP) case,
Nothing is specified Nothing is specified
from the low dwell position
(one extreme) to the high dwell
position (other extreme).
The designer is free to choose
any function that will do the
job.
when we wrap this s diagram when we wrap this s diagram
around a circle to create the
actual cam. it will look quite
smooth despite the sharp
corners on the s diagram
A very simple but impractical follower motion is uniform motion, during which the
follower is given a constant rate of rise or return; in other words, the follower has g
constant velocity. This, of course, means that the acceleration is zero.
Figure shows the displacement diagram for a follower undergoing uniform motion. In
this example, the full motion cycle of the follower consists of a dwell during 90 of cam
rotation, followed by a uniform motion rise during the next 90, then a second dwell for
90, and a uniform motion return during the final 90 of the cam cycle. During a dwell,
the follower is at rest. This is an extremely useful capability of cams. The displacement
di h th t th f ll i d t f ll t i ht li th Thi t f diagram shows that the follower rise and return follow a straight-line path. This type of
motion is the simplest of the follower motions.
For uniform motion, the velocity goes from zero to its maximum (constant) velocity in
zero time To accomplish this the acceleration would have to be infinite While the zero time. To accomplish this, the acceleration would have to be infinite. While the
physical conditions in a cam system prevent infinite accelerations, the values for the
acceleration are high. The jerk will also theoretically approach infinity. Conditions of
high acceleration arid jerk result in a large amount of shock. Uniform motion is g j g
therefore seldom, if ever, used in cam design
Problem:
Consider the following cam design CEP specializations:
Dwell : at zero displacement for 90 degrees (low dwell)
Rise : 1 in (25 mm) in 90 degrees
Dwell : 1 in (25 mm) for 90 degrees (high dwell) Dwell : 1 in (25 mm) for 90 degrees (high dwell)
Fall :1 in (25 mm) in 90 degrees
cam : 2 rad/sec = 1 rev/sec
1) h t f th ( i f ll d ll) i t t d t tit i 1) each segment of the cam (rise. fall. dwell) is treated as a separate entity in
developing mathematical functions for the cam.
Taking the rise segment (#2) first. the displacement function in during this
portion is a straight line, first-degree polynomial. p g , g p y
S = K
v
+ b
low dwell position typically is taken
as zero displacement (b=0)
The rise segment, S intercept at h
K
v
: slope of displacement
is the velocity constant = h/ is the velocity constant = h/
S = K
v

Differentiating with respect to gives a function for velocity during the rise.
v = K
v
= constant
Differentiating again with respect to gives a function for acceleration during the rise.
a = 0
Zero acceleration means zero dynamic force.
This cam appears to have no dynamic forces or stresses in it This cam appears to have no dynamic forces or stresses in it
The Fundamental Law of Cam Design
Any cam designed for operation at other than very low speeds must be
designed with the following constraints: designed with the following constraints:
The cam function must be continuous through the first and second
derivatives of displacement across the entire interval (360 degrees). p ( g )
The jerk function must be finite across the entire interval (360 degrees).
The cam motion program cannot be defined by a single mathematical
expression, but rather must be defined by several separate functions.
each of which defines the follower behavior over one segment or piece of
th the cam .
called piecewise function.
Simple Harmonic Motion
(eccentric circular cam) (eccentric circular cam)
Y = c a cos ()
Y= R-e at = 0 , R+e at =
Y = R e cos () = (R-e) + (e e cos ())
S = 0 at = 0 (low dwell position is taken as zero displacement ) S = 0 at = 0 (low dwell position is taken as zero displacement )
S= e e cos()
h h
e = h/2 : Disk eccentricity
h : the follower rise
( ) u cos
2 2
h h
s =
| |
( )
|
.
|

\
|
= =
dt
d h
dt
ds
v
u
u sin
2
| |
h
( ) u esin
2
|
.
|

\
|
=
h
v
2
| |
h d
( ) u
e
cos
2
2
|
|
.
|

\
|
= =
h
dt
dv
a
e
3
| |
h da
( ) u
e
sin
2
|
|
.
|

\
|
= =
h
dt
da
j
| cos
h h
s = | cos
2 2
s
Figure 5.17 Simple harmonic motion. Point S, the projection of point P, moves up and down the vertical diameter
ith i l h i ti P t t b t i l f di h/2 with simple harmonic motion as P rotates about a circle of radius h/2.
200
300
V w=30 rad/s
15
20
0
100
10
15
-200
-100
0
5
S (h=20 cm)
0 60 120 180 240 300 360
-300
0 60 120 180 240 300 360
0
3000
8000
10000
1000
2000
J cm/s3
2000
4000
6000
8000
A cm/s2
-1000
0
-6000
-4000
-2000
0
0 60 120 180 240 300 360
-3000
-2000
0 60 120 180 240 300 360
-10000
-8000
Cam Nomenclature
Translating roller
P
V
follower
|
Pressure
angle offset
Cam surface
Follower
Cam surface
Pitch curve
Base circle
Trace point: A theoretical point on the follower, corresponding to the point of a fictitious knife-edge
follower. It is used to generate the pitch curve. In the case of a roller follower, the trace point is at the center
of the roller of the roller.
Pitch curve: The path generated by the trace point at the follower is rotated about a stationary cam.
Working curve (cam profile): The working surface of a cam in contact with the follower. For the
knife-edge follower of the plate cam, the pitch curve and the working curves coincide. In a close or grooved cam
there is an inner profile and an outer working curve.
Pitch circle: A circle from the cam center through the pitch point. The pitch circle radius is used to
calculate a cam of minimum size for a given pressure angle.
Prime circle (reference circle): The smallest circle from the cam center through the pitch curve. Prime circle (reference circle): The smallest circle from the cam center through the pitch curve.
Base circle: The smallest circle from the cam center through the cam profile curve.
Stroke or throw: The greatest distance or angle through which the follower moves or rotates.
Follower displacement: The position of the follower from a specific zero or rest position (usually Follower displacement: The position of the follower from a specific zero or rest position (usually
its the position when the follower contacts with the base circle of the cam) in relation to time or the
rotary angle of the cam.
Pressure angle: The angle at any point between the common normal to the pitch curve (the line of
action) and the instantaneous direction of the follower motion. This angle is important in cam design
because it represents the steepness of the cam profile.
45
50
30
35
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
130 40
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 240 260 280 300 320 340 360
30
10
20
30
40 140
150
160
170
30
20
10
0
10 170
180
190 350
40 30 20
10
10 0
200
210
220 320
330
340
230
240
250
260
270
280
290
300
310
Cam Design Steps for knife-edge in-line follower:
1) Specify the displacement diagram, and chose the proper follower type.
The cam profile can be constructed to provide the desired output
motion.
2) Use the principle of inversion to construct the cam profile, i.e. hold the
cam fixed and rotate the follower and the frame in a direction opposite
to cam.
3) D th b i l ith di Rb (f ll f ll dd th ll 3) Draw the base circle with radius Rb. (for roller follower add the roller
radius to it)
4) Divide the displacement diagram and the cam into equal number of
divisions divisions
5) At an angular position measure the value of rise in the displacement
diagram, add to it Rb and place it in the corresponding angular position
on the cam. This is done to all points in the displacement diagram. on the cam. This is done to all points in the displacement diagram.
6) If the cam motion is a clockwise, then the points are placed counter
clockwise.
7) Connect all points by smooth curve, this will form the cam profile. ) p y p
DISK CAM WITH RADIAL FLAT-FACE FOLLOWER (GRAPHICAL DESIGN)
F Fl F For Flat-Face
Do all previous steps but in
step # 5 at the specified point
draw a perpendicular line to draw a perpendicular line to
the radial one
The cam profile is tangent to
these lines
Eccentric cam force analysis (preload value)
s : spring constant N/m
P = mf *g + s*
: initial spring
deflection
Power = T* =F*V
s : spring constant N/m
P = mf *g + s*
: initial spring
deflection