Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

2013 Winter Term

Instructor: Dr. Il Yong Kim

Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Queens University

Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

1. Introduction
The goal of this project is to design a gearbox assembly that will allow a motor to lift a load as
quickly as possible. In short, your gearbox will be reducing the angular speed of the motor while
increasing the torque. The output of your gearbox will be connected to a pulley and lift a load.
When the design has been finished, the gearboxes will be 3D printed, and physically tested.
During testing, marks will be awarded based on lifting speed, as well as overall design quality.
This is an open-ended design task, and there can be multiple valid design solutions. The design
project has two aspects: Design and Analysis. The first aspect is a general conceptual design of a
gearbox with some fundamental calculations. The second aspect is fatigue analysis using the gear
and shaft designs you created. You are required to design a gearbox to increase the torque from
an electrical motor (McMaster-carr Part #6142K73) to drive a pulley in order to raise a load.

Figure 1: Picture of the electric motor

The input shaft of your gearbox will be connected to the motor shaft and the output shaft of your
gearbox will be connected to a pulley. The pulley has five possible diameters: 20 mm, 30 mm, 40
mm, 50 mm and 60 mm. You can select any diameter, and this is one of your design decisions.
When the pulley is driven by the gearbox, it must be able to lift a load of 50 kg. The schematic
setup layout is provided in Figure 2.
Pulley

Gearbox
Design Domain

Motor

Hex
Coupler

Input Shaft

Output Shaft
50Kg

Figure 2: Schematic diagram of the testing setup

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Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

Figure 3: Picture of the testing setup

Figure 3 shows the testing setup. The sample gearbox is a plastic rapid prototype that was
designed and built by a MECH323 group in 2011, and it is connected to the motor and fivediameter pulley.
This project is to be done in groups, and each group will have five students. Groups will be
assigned by the instructor before Phase 1 of the project begins. The design project is demanding
and it is important that your Group functions effectively.

2. Problem Statement
2.1 Objective:

The goal of this project is to design a gearbox assembly that will allow a motor to lift a
load of 50 kg. As one of your design decisions, you can select the pulley diameter from
5 choices: 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60mm. Motor torque is specified in Figure 4.

2.2 Functional Requirements:

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Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

The output shaft must produce a torque that is large enough that it can lift a 50 kg weight
via the chosen pulley.
The lifting time of the weight should be minimized.
The rapid prototyping time for printing all parts (gears, shafts, and housing) should not
exceed 8 hours.

2.3 Design Constraints:

See Section 3 for detailed description of design constraints and specifications.

Your gearbox MUST conform to all of the design specifications in Section 3 to be printed.

2.3 Motor specifications

For a given torque, the motor will move at a specific RPM as shown in Figure 4
Motor power is calculated at each point on the curve as torque multiplied by angular
velocity.
Motor torque (blue line) is read on the left axis in Nm, and power (green line) is read on
the right axis in Horsepower.
Do not select a torque at or above the stall torque (red line). The motor will not move
if you choose this torque

Figure 4: Motor torque curve

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Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

3. Design Specifications
3.1 Gearbox Dimensions

Figure 5: Gearbox design dimensions

The height from the wood base to the centre of the input and output shafts (A) must be
41.27 mm (1.625 inches)
The shafts must leave a minimum of 15 mm (B) exposed shaft for couplers to mount
The distance from the end of the input shaft to the end of the output shaft (C) must be 66
mm
The horizontal distance from the axis of the input shaft to the axis of the output shaft (D)
must not exceed 65 mm
The total length of the gearbox (including housing) along dimension E must not exceed
132 mm
A = 41.27 mm (1.625 inches)
B > 15 mm
C = 66 mm
D < 65 mm
E < 132 mm
Note: Some of the above dimensions are Inequalities. These represent maximum or
minimum allowed dimensions.

Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Queens University

Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

Parts of your gearbox may protrude below the shafts (e.g. tabs for mounting) provided
that enough room is left for couplers, as shown in Figure 6. However, your gearbox may
not extend beyond the wooden mounting board.
No part of your gearbox may extend beyond dimension E. This is to leave room for
clamps to hold the gearbox to the testing rig.
All dimensions that are not specified above are unrestricted.
Your gearbox must print within 8 hours of less. Additional marks will be awarded based
on printing time. (The smaller the printing time, the better.) However, the stiffness and
strength of your housing structure (a fixture structure that holds all shafts) must not be
compromised.
Your gearbox will be mounted on a wooden base of 180 mm 66 mm.

Figure 6: Small protrusion from the plastic gearbox is acceptable (e.g. mounting tabs as shown
in this figure), so long as they do not interfere with the couplers. Nothing can extend beyond the
wooden mounting board.

3.3 Gear Attachment

Generally, the pinion and gear may be fixed and located on the shafts by use of shoulders,
spacers, splines, etc.
For your project in MECH323, do the following:
(1) In Phases 1, 2, 3 and 5, keys will be used to fix and locate the pinion and gear on the
shafts.
(2) In Phase 4 (in preparation for 3D printing), your design will change to incorporate splines.
Further information will be given in Phase 4 Instruction.
(3) Shafts and gears should be captive, which means that it is impossible for them to come
apart accidentally.

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Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

3.4 Shaft Installation Considerations

When deciding how to arrange the shaft assemblies, some things to consider with regard to how
the assembly will be installed are:
(1) Can each part be placed on the shaft (i.e. no shoulders in the way)?
(2) Are parts able to move around, or are they located on the shaft?
(3) Can the shafts and their accessories be installed into the housing?

4. Design Procedure

Figure 7: Design procedure and deliverable summary

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Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

This project is composed of 5 phases. For each phase, a separate instruction document (e.g. Phase
1 Instruction document) will be given that contains detailed information.

5. Requirements of Project Deliverables

This design project is comprised of five phases with five sets of deliverables. Each of the
deliverable submissions that your Group will produce should be concise, well organized, easy to
understand, and easy to follow. This section describes, in general terms, the required format for
the deliverables associated with each of these phases.

Provide clear headings to indicate the purpose of each task or calculation.

Clearly explain the objective(s) of each task or calculation. (What it is that you are trying to
achieve?)
Clearly state your key assumptions and discuss their validity.
Define all notations, and provide sketches, if needed, to ensure the reader knows
unequivocally what you mean.
Clearly highlight key design decisions and key analysis results.
In all calculations and for all variables, specify the unit explicitly.

5.1 Manual calculations

In some of the project phases, you will be requested to submit manual calculations. These are
calculations for the chosen design that you are presenting, not every iteration. It is recommended
that you perform your calculations in Excel first, and present the final values with calculations in
the report. The purpose of engineering design calculations is not only to verify that a design is
acceptable but also to provide clear documentation so that an engineer, not familiar with this
project, could reproduce and verify your design calculations. Take note of the following in
preparing your calculations:

Present your calculations clearly. It is recommended that you use Equation Editor in
Word
Write out the full equation before writing it with values, and always show units as shown
below:

Provide all key equations and provide references for them, such as the lecture number
and/or equations number in the text book. References are not needed for equations that are
obviously commonplace (e.g. F = m a need not be referenced).
Provide clear free body diagrams, as needed.
Always present units in all calculations

5.2 Design drawings

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Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

It is recommended that drawings be done using Solid Edge. All drawings are to be in millimeters
(mm), and the scale is to be noted. Label all key components using a part number (in a circle)
connected by a leader to the part. A bill of materials on a separate sheet should be included in you
report that provides the component names, part numbers, drawing number (if applicable),
materials/model number (company), and any other comments.

5.3 Units of measure:

(1) All calculations and all equations must use SI units (m, kg, s), and all variables must be
represented in SI units (m, kg, s).
(2) There may be a small number of exceptions to (1). As an example, the use of mm (instead
of m) is the standard practice for the representation of module of the gear, In this case,
you must use mm, but it is recommended that you include the standard SI unit (m) in a
parenthesis.
Example: Module for the Pinion: 2 mm (0.002 m)
(3) All drawings are to be done in mm.
(4) For all calculations, all equations, and all variables and constants, you must explicitly
show units.
(5) If you are unsure of which unit to use, or if you are using an equation or variable that
must be done in other units, specify the value in both units.
Example: Module for the Pinion: 2 mm (0.002 m)

5.4 Phase report formatting requirements:

The submission that your group makes at the end of each phase MUST comply with the
following format:

The MECH323 title page (in .doc) must be downloaded from the course website,
completed, and included in all your reports.
The report must be prepared using a word processor (such as MS Word). All equations
must be typed using an equation editor or similar programs. Submitting a printout of an
excel sheet is not acceptable.
A table of contents must be included.
All pages of the report must be numbered.
All pages (including the title page) must be printed and stapled together on the top left.
The report must be submitted no later than the specified deadlinelate submissions will
receive a mark penalty.

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Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

All submission requirements must be followed explicitly. Failure to comply will result in mark
deduction.

6. Marking Scheme
Note that the quality of documentation is an explicit and important factor for marking (on top of
the quality of the design and calculations). Your report must be very clearly written and well
organized, and it must be easy to understand and easy to follow for an engineer who is not
familiar with this project. Poorly written reports will receive a significant mark deduction.
Phase 1

20%

Phase 2

20%

Phase 3

20%

Phase 4

20%

Phase 5

20%

Total

100%

Penalties on late submissions

1 minute 59 minutes:
1 hour 24 hours:
More than 24 hours:

5 % deduction
20 % deduction
No mark

7. Course Assistance
Due to the large number of students and various course activities in MECH323, the following
system has been implemented for obtaining assistance in the course.

[STEP 1]
Category 1: Questions regarding project work, group activities, and project marking
Ask questions and discuss with your Lab TA during your lab session.
Visit the Group Work TA (David Adams) during his office hours.
Category 2: Questions regarding tutorial material and quiz questions
Ask questions and discuss with the Tutorial TA (Brian Rasquinha) during
tutorial.
Visit the Tutorial TA (Brian Rasquinha) during his office hours.
Category 3: Instructor's presentation material and administration questions,
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Design Project General Instruction

MECH 323 Machine Design

Visit the Lead TA (Jeremy Bakker) during his office hours.

Category 4: All other questions

Directly to go to STEP2

[STEP 2]
If you have a question or issue that you have been unable to resolve by the methods in
STEP 1, send an inquiry email to the Lead TA (Jeremy Bakker
mech323@me.queensu.ca). In your e-mail, include your student information, clearly
identify the category and your question or problem, and refer to the correspondence that
you have had in STEP 1 procedures.
Your email must explicitly include the following four headings:

Your name and student number:

Category number:
Questions or Issues still remaining after STEP 1:
Summary of STEP 1 correspondence:

Note that the Lead TA will actively communicate with the Instructor, and therefore
almost all questions or issues will be resolved in this stage. The Lead TA will provide a
response to your inquiry email within 2 business days. All inquiry emails will be treated
confidentially.

[STEP 3]
If your questions or issues are not resolved in STEP 2, forward your original inquiry
email (in STEP 2) and the Lead TAs response (in STEP 2) to the Instructor, along with a
clear explanation on why you think your problem has not been resolved yet.

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