Power Screws

Source: NPTEL, IIT KGP, Lecture Notes

Introduction:
A power screw is a drive used in machinery to convert a rotary motion into a linear motion for
power transmission. It produces uniform motion and the design of the power screw may be
such that
(a) Either the screw or the nut is held at rest and the other member rotates as it moves axially.
A typical example of this is a screw clamp.
(b) Either the screw or the nut rotates but does not move axially. A typical example for this is
a press.
Other applications of power screws are jack screws, lead screws of a lathe, screws for vices,
presses etc.
Power screw normally uses square threads but ACME or Buttress threads may also be used.
Power screws should be designed for smooth and noiseless transmission of power with an
ability to carry heavy loads with high efficiency. We first consider the different thread forms
and their proportions:
Square threads-
The thread form is shown in figure-1. These threads have high efficiency but they are difficult
to manufacture and are expensive. The proportions in terms of pitch are:
ℎ = 0.5 p ; ℎ = 0.5𝑝 − 𝑏 ; 𝐻 = 0.5𝑝 + 𝑎 ; 𝑒 = 0.5𝑝
Where, a and b are different for different series of threads (see table-1).

Figure-1: Some details of square thread form

There are different series of this thread form and some nominal diameters, corresponding pitch
and dimensions a and b are shown in table-1 as per I.S. 4694-1968.

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 Table-1: Dimensions of three different series of square thread form.

According to IS-4694-1968, a square thread is designated by its nominal diameter and pitch,
as for example, SQ 10×2 designates a thread form of nominal diameter 10 mm and pitch 2 mm.

Acme or Trapezoidal threads

The Acme thread form is shown in figure-2. These threads may be used in applications such as
lead screw of a lathe where loss of motion cannot be tolerated. The included angle 2φ = 29o
and other proportions are 𝑎 = . and ℎ = 0.25𝑝 + 0.25 𝑚𝑚

Figure-2: Some details of Acme or Trapezoidal thread forms.

A metric trapezoidal thread form is shown in figure-3 and different proportions of the thread
form in terms of the pitch are as follows:

Included angle = 30o; H1= 0.5p; z = 0.25p + ; H = h = H + a = 0.5p + a

ac is different for different pitch, for example

ac = 0.15 mm for p = 1.5 mm;
ac = 0.25 mm for p = 2 to 5 mm;
ac = 0.5 mm for p = 6 to 12 mm;
ac = 1 mm for p = 14 to 44 mm.

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 Figure-3: Some details of a metric Trapezoidal thread form.
Some standard dimensions for a trapezoidal thread form are given in table-2 as per IS 7008
(Part II and III) - 1973:
Table-2: Dimensions of a trapezoidal thread form.

According to IS7008-1973 trapezoidal threads may be designated as, for example, Tr 50×8
which indicates a nominal diameter of 50 mm and a pitch of 8 mm.

Buttress thread
This thread form can also be used for power screws but they can transmit power only in one
direction. Typical applications are screw jack, vices etc. A Buttress thread form is shown in
figure-4. and the proportions are shown in the figure in terms of the pitch. On the whole the
square threads have the highest efficiency as compared to other thread forms but they are less
sturdy than the trapezoidal thread forms and the adjustment for wear is difficult for square
threads.
When a large linear motion of a power screw is required two or more parallel threads are used.
These are called multiple start power drives.

Figure-4: Some details of a Buttress thread form

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Efficiency of a power screw
A square thread power screw with a single start is shown in figure-5. Here p is the pitch, α the
helix angle, dm the mean diameter of thread and F is the axial load. A developed single thread
is shown in figure-6 where L = n×p for a multi-start drive, n being the number of starts. In order
to analyse the mechanics of the power screw we need to consider two cases:
(a) Raising the load (b) Lowering the load.

Figure-5: A square thread power screw Figure-6: Development of a single thread

Raising the load This requires an axial force P as shown in figure-7. Here N is the normal
reaction and μN is the frictional force.

Figure-7: Forces at the contact surface for raising the load.

Source: NPTEL, IIT KGP, Lecture Notes

For equilibrium:
𝑃 − 𝜇𝑁 cos 𝛼 − 𝑁 sin 𝛼 = 0
𝐹 − 𝜇𝑁 sin 𝛼 − 𝑁 cos 𝛼 = 0
This gives
𝐹
𝑁=
(cos 𝛼 − 𝜇 sin 𝛼)
𝐹(𝜇 cos 𝛼 + sin 𝛼)
𝑃=
(cos 𝛼 − 𝜇 sin 𝛼)
Torque transmitted during raising the load is then given by
𝑑 𝑑 (𝜇 cos 𝛼 + sin 𝛼)
𝑇 =𝑃 =𝐹
2 2 (cos 𝛼 − 𝜇 sin 𝛼)
𝑳
Since 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝜶 = 𝝅𝒅 we have
𝒎

𝑑 (𝜇𝜋𝑑 + 𝐿)
𝑇 =𝐹
2 (𝜋𝑑 − 𝜇𝐿)

Figure-8: Forces at the contact surface for lowering the load.

The force system at the thread during lowering the load is shown in figure-8. For equilibrium
𝑃 − 𝜇𝑁 cos 𝛼 + 𝑁 sin 𝛼 = 0
𝐹 − 𝜇𝑁 sin 𝛼 − 𝑁 cos 𝛼 = 0
This gives
𝐹
𝑁=
(cos 𝛼 + 𝜇 sin 𝛼)
𝐹(𝜇 cos 𝛼 − sin 𝛼)
𝑃=
(cos 𝛼 + 𝜇 sin 𝛼)
Torque required to lower the load is given by
𝑑 𝑑 (𝜇 cos 𝛼 − sin 𝛼)
𝑇 =𝑃 =𝐹
2 2 (cos 𝛼 + 𝜇 sin 𝛼)

Source: NPTEL, IIT KGP, Lecture Notes

 𝑳
And again taking 𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝜶 = 𝝅𝒅 we have
𝒎

𝑑 (𝜇𝜋𝑑 − 𝐿)
𝑇 =𝐹
2 (𝜋𝑑 + 𝜇𝐿)

Condition for self-locking

The load would lower itself without any external force if μπdm < L and some external force is
required to lower the load if μπdm ≥ L. This is therefore the condition for self-locking.

Efficiency of the power screw:

𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘 𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡
𝜂=
𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘 𝑖𝑛𝑝𝑢𝑡
Where, work output = F. L; Work input = p. πdm
This gives
𝐹
𝜂= tan 𝛼
𝑃
The above analysis is for square thread and for trapezoidal thread some modification is
required. Because of the thread angle the force normal to the thread surface is increased as
shown in figure-9. The torque is therefore given by
𝑑 (𝜇𝜋𝑑 sec 𝜙 + 𝐿)
𝑇=𝐹
2 (𝜋𝑑 − 𝜇𝐿 sec 𝜙)
This considers the increased friction due to the wedging action. The trapezoidal threads are not
preferred because of high friction but often used due to their ease of machining.

Figure-9: Normal force on a trapezoidal thread surface

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Bursting effect on the nut
Bursting effect on the nut is caused by the horizontal component of the axial load F on the
screw and this is given by (see figure-9)
Fx = F tan φ
For an ISO metric nut 2φ = 60o and Fx = 0.5777 F.

Collar friction
If collar friction μc is considered then another term must be added to torque expression.
Here dc is the effective friction diameter of the collar. Therefore, we may write the torque
required to raise the load as
𝑑 (𝜇𝜋𝑑 + 𝐿) 𝑑
𝑇=𝐹 +𝜇 𝐹
2 (𝜋𝑑 − 𝜇𝐿) 2

Source: NPTEL, IIT KGP, Lecture Notes

Stresses in power screws
Design of a power screw must be based on the stresses developed in the constituent parts. A
power screw is subjected to an axial load and a turning moment. The following stresses would
be developed due to the loading:
a) Compressive stress is developed in a power screw due to axial load. Depending on the
slenderness ratio it may be necessary to analyse for buckling. The compressive stress σc is
given by 𝜎 = . Where, dc is the core diameter and if slenderness ratio λ is more than
100 or so buckling criterion must be used. λ is defined as λ = . Where, I=Ak2 and L is
the length of the screw. Buckling analysis yields a critical load Pc and if both ends are
assumed to be hinged critical load is given by 𝑃 = 𝜋 . In general, the equation may be
written as 𝑃 = 𝑛𝜋 . Where, n is a constant that depends on end conditions.
b) Torsional shear stress is developed in the screw due to the turning moment and this is given
by τ = . Where T is the torque applied.
c) Bending stresses are developed in the screw thread and this is illustrated in figure-10. The
bending moment 𝑀 = and the bending stress on a single thread is given by 𝜎 = .
Here 𝑦 = , 𝐼 = and F′ is the load on a single thread. Figure-11 shows a developed
thread and figure-12 shows a nut and screw assembly. This gives the bending stress at the
thread root to be 𝜎 = . This is clearly the most probable place for failure.
Assuming that the load is equally shared by the nut threads

d) Bearing stress σbr at the threads is given by 𝜎 =

e) Again, on similar assumption shear stress τ at the root diameter is given by 𝜏 =

Here n/ is the number of threads in the nut. Since the screw is subjected to torsional shear
stress in addition to direct or transverse stress combined effect of bending, torsion and
tension or compression should be considered in the design criterion.

Source: NPTEL, IIT KGP, Lecture Notes

Figure-10: Loading and bending stresses in screw threads Figure-11: Dimensions of a developed thread

Figure-12: A screw and nut assembly

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 Figure-13: A typical screw jack

Design procedure of a Screw Jack

A typical screw jack is shown in figure-13. It is probably more informative to consider the
design of a jack for a given load and lift. We consider a reasonable value of the load to be
100KN and lifting height to be 500mm. The design will be considered in the following steps:

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 Figure-14: The screw with the provision for tommy bar attachment
Design of the screw
A typical screw for this purpose is shown in figure-14.
Let us consider a mild steel screw for which the tensile and shear strengths may be taken to be
approximately 448 MPa and 224 MPa respectively. Mild steel being a ductile material we may
take the compressive yield strength to be also close to 448 MPa. Taking a very high factor of

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safety of 10 due to the nature of the application and considering the axial compression the core
×
diameter of the screw dc is given by 𝑑 = ×
. Which gives 𝑑 ≈ 54 mm.

From the chart of normal series square threads in table-1 the nearest standard nominal diameter
of 70 mm is chosen, with pitch p = 10 mm.
Therefore, core diameter dc = 60 mm, Major diameter dmaj = 70mm, Mean diameter dm = 65
mm, Nominal diameter dn = 70mm.
The torque required to raise the load is given by
Where, l = np, n being the number of starts. Here we have a single start screw and hence l = p
=10mm, dm = 65mm, F = 100×103N
Taking a safe value of μ for this purpose to be 0.26 and substituting the values we get T = 1027
Nm.
Check for combined stress
The screw is subjected to a direct compressive stress σc and a torsional shear stress τ. The
stresses are given by
4𝐹 4 × 100 × 10
𝜎 = = = 35.3𝑀𝑃𝑎
𝜋𝑑 𝜋 × (0.06)
16𝑇 16 × 1027
𝜏= = = 24.22𝑀𝑃𝑎
𝜋𝑑 𝜋 × (0.06)
The principal stress can be given by

. .
𝜎 , = ± + (24.22) = 47.6MPa and – 12.31 MPa and maximum shear stress
τmax = 29.96 MPa.

The factor of safety in compression = .

= 36.4 and in shear = .
=7.48. Therefore, the screw
dimensions are safe. Check for buckling and thread stress are also necessary. However, this
can be done after designing the nut whose height and number of threads in contact is needed to
determine the free length of the screw.

Source: NPTEL, IIT KGP, Lecture Notes

 Figure-15: A phosphor bronze nut for the screw jack
Design of the nut
A suitable material for the nut, as shown in figure-15, is phosphor bronze which is a Cu-Zn
alloy with small percentage of Pb and the yield stresses may be taken as
Yield stress in tension σty = 125MPa
Yield stress in compression σcy = 150MPa
Yield stress in shear τy = 105MPa
Safe bearing pressure Pb = 15MPa.
Considering that the load is shared equally by all threads bearing failure may be avoided if
𝜋
𝐹= 𝑑 −𝑑 𝑃 𝑛
4
where n/ is the number of threads in contact. Substituting values in the above equation we have
n/ = 6.52. Let n/ =8. Therefore H = n/p = 8×10 = 80mm.
The nut threads are also subjected to crushing and shear. Considering crushing failure, we have
𝜋
𝐹= 𝑑 −𝑑 𝜎 𝑛
4

Source: NPTEL, IIT KGP, Lecture Notes

This gives σc = 12.24 MPa which is adequately safe since σcy = 150 MPa and therefore crushing
is not expected. To avoid shearing of the threads on the nut we may write F = πdmaj t n/ τ where,
t is the thread thickness which for the square thread is i.e. 5. This gives τ =11.37 MPa and
since τy= 105MPa shear failure of teeth is not expected. Due to the screw loading the nut needs
to be checked for tension also and we may write
𝜋
𝐶𝐹 = (𝐷 − 𝑑 )𝜎
4
A correlation factor C for the load is used to account for the twisting moment. With C=1.3 and
on substitution of values in the equation D1 works out to be 70mm. But D1 needs to be larger
than dmaj and we take D1 = 100mm.
We may also consider crushing of the collar of the nut and to avoid this we may write
𝜋
𝐹 = (𝐷 − 𝐷 )𝜎
4
Substituting values, we have D2 = 110 mm. To allow for the collar margin we take D2 =120mm.
Considering shearing of the nut collar πD1aτy = F. Substituting values we have a = 4mm. Let a
= 15mm
Buckling of the Screw
Length L of the screw = Lifting height + H.
This gives L= 500+80 = 580 mm

( . )
With the nominal screw diameter of 70mm, 𝐼 = = 1.178 × 10 and 𝐾 = =
. ×
=0.0175mm.
( . )

.
The slenderness ratio 𝜆 = = .
≈ 33

This value of slenderness ratio is small (< 40) and the screw may be treated as a short column.
No buckling of the screw is therefore expected.
Tommy bar
A typical tommy bar for the purpose is shown in figure-16. a. Total torsional moment without
the collar friction is calculated in section ‘Design of the screw’ and T = 1027 Nm. The collar
friction in this case (see figure-13) occurs at the interface I. However, in order to avoid rotation
of the load when the screw rotates a loose fitting of the cup is maintained.
Length l/ of the tommy bar = l1 +D3 and we may write the torque T as T= F1l/ Where F1 is the
maximum force applied at the tommy bar end and this may be taken as approximately 400 N.
This gives l/= = 2.56m. This length of the tommy bar is too large and one alternative is to
place the tommy bar centrally and apply force at both the ends. This alternative design of the
tommy bar is also shown in figure-16. b. The bar is subjected to a bending moment and its
maximum value may be taken as1027 Nm. This means to avoid bending we may write
𝑑 𝜎 = 1027 where d1 is the tommy bar diameter as shown in figure- 16. b. If we choose

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a M.S bar of σty = 448MPa the tommy bar diameter d1 works out to be d1 = 0.0285m. Let d1 =
30 mm and we choose d2 = 40mm.
Other dimensions
D3 = (1.5 to 1.7) d Let, D3 = 112 mm

D4 = = 56 mm

Let L1 = 100 mm and t4 = 10 mm

Frame

𝑡 = 0.24𝑑 ≈ 18𝑚𝑚, 𝐷 = 2.25𝐷 ≈ 270𝑚𝑚, 𝐷 = 1.75𝐷 = 473𝑚𝑚, 𝑡 = = 9𝑚𝑚

Figure-16. a: A typical tommy bar with a holding end.

Figure-16. b: A typical centrally located tommy bar

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