Cam Design

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 Cam Design
• What you will know after this presentation:
▪ What are advantages and disadvantages of using cams?
▪ What are the cam design parameters?
▪ How are cams manufactured?

• Main reference used: Design of Machinery, Norton, R. L.,

4th edition, McGraw-Hill, 2011.

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 Cams application
• Engine strokes
1. Intake
2. Compression
3. Power
4. Exhaust

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 Classification of Cams and Followers
• Type of Follower Motion:
1. Translating

2. Rotating (oscillating)

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 Classification of Cams and Followers
• Type of Joint Closure :
1. Force closure

2. Form closure

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 Classification of Cams and Followers
• Type of Follower:
1. Roller 2. Mushroom 3. Flat-faced
follower follower follower

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 Classification of Cams and Followers
• Type of Cam:
1. Radial cam 2. Axial cam

3. Wedge cam

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 Follower Motion
• Main Components:
1. Rise
2. Dwell
3. Fall
4. Lift

 = t
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 Notation used
t = time, seconds
θ = camshaft angle, degrees or radians (rad)
ω = camshaft angular velocity, rad/sec
β = total angle of any segment, rise, fall, or dwell, degrees or rad
h = total lift (rise or fall) of any one segment, length units
s or S = follower displacement, length units
v = ds/dθ = follower velocity, length/rad dS ds d
V= = = v
V = dS/dt = follower velocity, length/sec dt d dt

a = dv/dθ = follower acceleration, length/rad2 dV dV d

A= =
2 dt d dt
A = dV/dt = follower acceleration, length/sec  dv d 
=   + v  = a  2

j = da/dθ = follower jerk, length/rad3  d d 

J = j 3
J = dA/dt = follower jerk, length/sec3
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Naive Cam Design—A Bad Cam

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 The Fundamental Law of Cam Design
• Any cam designed for operation at other than very
low speeds must be 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)
– Then: The jerk function must be finite across the entire
interval (360 degrees).

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 S V A J Functions
• Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM)
h    
s = 1 − cos  
2   
 h   
v= sin  
 2   

 2 h   
a = 2 cos 
 2   

 3 h   
j = − 3 sin  
 2   

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 S V A J Functions
• Cycloidal Motion
 1  2  

s = h − sin   
  2   
h  2  
v= 1 − cos  

   

2h  2 
a= sin  
 2
  

4 2 h  2 
j= cos 
3   

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 S V A J Functions
• Difference between Cycloidal Motion and SH Motion

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 S V A J Functions
• Fall functions
• To convert rise equations to fall equations, subtract the rise
displacement function s from the maximum lift h and to negate the
higher derivatives, v, a, and j.
SH motion Cycloidal Motion
h      1  2  
s = h − 1 − cos   s = h − h − sin   
2      2   
 h    h  2  
v=− sin   v=− 1 − cos  


 2      
 2 h    2h  2 
a = − 2 cos  a=− sin  
 2    2   
 3 h   
j = 3 sin   4 2 h  2 
 2    j=− cos 
3    15
 Cam manufacturing
• The cam surface contour is swept out by the envelope of
follower positions just as the cutter will create the cam in
metal.

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 Sizing the Cam
• There are two major factors that affect cam size, the
pressure angle and the radius of curvature.
• The size is determined by either:
• Base circle radius (Rb) when using flat-faced followers
– Base circle: the smallest circle that can be drawn tangent
to the physical cam surface.
– All radial cams will have a base circle.
• Prime circle radius (RP) when using roller or curved
followers
– Prime circle: the smallest circle that can be drawn
tangent to the locus of the centerline of the follower.
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 Sizing the Cam
• Representation of Base circle and Prime circle

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 Translating Roller Followers
• The pressure angle ϕ is shown in
the opposite graph.
• When ϕ = 0, all the transmitted
force goes into motion of
the follower and none into
slip velocity.
• When ϕ becomes 90° there
will be no motion of the follower.
• For translating followers to
avoid excessive side load
on the sliding follower.

0    30
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 Translating Roller Followers
• The eccentricity ε is shown in
the opposite graph.
• Often this eccentricity ε
will be zero, making
it an aligned follower.

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 Translating Roller Followers
• The minimum allowed prime circle radius is calculated by
the relation.
 v − 
 = tan 
−1 
 s + R 2 − 2 
 P 

• The velocity v in this expression is in units of length/rad,

and all other quantities are in compatible length units.

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 Translating Roller Followers
• The radius of curvature of the cam must be greater than
zero.

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 Translating Roller Followers
• In order to avoid undercutting in cams with roller followers.
The absolute value of the minimum radius of curvature of
the cam pitch curve has to be large as the radius of the roller
follower. (At least 2 to 3 times bigger)

 Pitchmin
 R f

• The curvature of the cam profile is found by the relation.

 Pitch =  + R f
• where
 pitch =
(RP + s) + v
2

2 3/ 2

(RP + s ) + 2v 2 − a(RP + s )
2

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 Translating Roller Followers
• Cam contour


r =  Rb −  2 + s  sin  +  cos  + R f sin ( −  )
2

 
q =  Rb −  2 + s  cos  −  sin  − R f cos ( −  )
2

 

• Can be used to draw the cam profile instead of using the

envelope

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 Translating Flat-Faced Followers
• The face width calculations:
Face width = vmax − vmin

• The minimum allowed

base circle radius
Rbmin   min − (s + a )min

• Cam contour
r = (Rb + s )sin  + v cos 
q = (Rb + s ) cos  − v sin  25
 Translating Flat-Faced Followers
• Eccentricity will affect
the average value of
the overturning
moment.

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 Eccentric circular cams

 
e e

 
e e
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