Practical application 1: design and verification of a L-shaped lug wrench

A lug wrench is the name for a type of socket wrench used to loosen and tighten lug nuts
on automobile wheels. In the United Kingdom and Australia it is commonly known as a
wheel brace. Lug wrenches may be L-shaped, or X-shaped.
A lug nut is a nut fastener with one rounded or conical (tapered) end, used on steel and
most aluminium wheels. The taper is designed to centre the wheel accurately on the axle,
and to reduce the tendency for the nut to loosen, due to fretting induced precession, as
the car is driven.

Product design specification (PDS)

Specification Value Symbol

1 Geometry
1.1 Working distance from vehicle ≥ 200 mm amin
1.2 Weight ≤ 1 kg mmax
2 Loads
2.1 Preload torque 120 Nm T
2.2 User nominal force 300 N Fnom
2.3 User maximum force 1000 N Fmax
3 Deflections
3.1 Maximum deflection under nominal load ≤ 14 mm max
4 Material
Corrosion resistant Medium
Cost Low
Yield strength High Y

1
Preliminary concept design

A L-shaped beam is designed to apply a torque T to wheel's lug nuts using the operator force F
and the arm of length b.

𝑇=𝐹𝑏
𝑇
⇒ 𝑏 = = 400mm
𝐹

The force F has eccentricity a with respect to the nut axis, thus produces a bending moment:

𝑀𝑏 = 𝐹 𝑎

To reduce this spurious action as much as possible, we will take the minimum allowable value
of a:

a = amin = 200 mm

We need now to design and verify the beam cross-section for strength and stiffness. For this
purpose, we will use the beam theory of stresses and deflections.

The principal design steps are summarised as follows:

0) External loads and reference system

1) Free body diagrams and support reactions
2) Internal loading diagrams
3) Stresses and deflections
4) Cross-sections design and verification

2
1) Free body diagrams and support reactions

We assume the contact wrench-nut to be perfect. This means that the wrench is assumed to be
fixed-constrained at the end in contact with the nut.

Equilibrium equations:

3
2) Internal loading diagrams

If the beam is cut at some section located at 𝑥 = 𝑥1 and the left hand portion is removed as a free
body, an internal shear force 𝑉 and bending moment 𝑀 must act on the cut surface to ensure
equilibrium. The shear force is obtained by summing the forces on the isolated section. The
bending moment is the sum of the moments of the forces to the left of the section taken about an
axis through the isolated section. The sign convention is shown below. Given this convention
𝑑𝑀
𝑉 = 𝑑𝑥 .

The shear is assumed to be positive if the shearing force is directed in the positive direction of
the axes of the Cartesian reference frame. Since the shear represents, the first derivative (viz. the
slope) of the moment, we will consider the bending moment increasing if it is associated to a
positive shear diagram.
The following sign convention is adopted for the six components of internal loading.

4
The analysis of the internal loading diagram will be conducted separately for segments AB and
BC.

Segment AB

Fa Mz(x) ∑ 𝐹𝑦 = 0 𝑉𝑦 (𝑥) = 𝐹
y
∑ 𝑀𝑧 = 0 𝑀𝑧 (𝑥) = 𝐹(𝑥 − 𝑎)
Fb A x
Mx(x) ∑ 𝑀𝑥 = 0 𝑀𝑥 (𝑥) = 𝐹𝑏

z Vy(x)
F
Vy(x) Shear

F
x
A B
Mz(x) Bending
A B x
-Fa

Mx(x) Torque

Fb
x
A B

5
Segment BC

Fb Mz(x1)
y1 ∑ 𝐹𝑦 = 0 𝑉𝑦 (𝑥1 ) = 𝐹

B x1 ∑ 𝑀𝑧 = 0 𝑀𝑧 (𝑥1 ) = 𝐹(𝑥1 − 𝑏)

z1 Vy(x1)
F
Vy(x1) Shear

F
x1
B C
Mz(x1) Bending
B C x1
-Fb

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3) Stresses and deflection

Each internal loading component produces a specific stress distribution.

a) Normal stress for beams in bending

Mz
s xx = - y
I zz
1
I zz = wh 3
12
6M z
s xx,max = s zz ( -h / 2 ) =
wh 2

Mz
s zz = - y
I zz
p
I zz = D4
64
32M x
s xx,max = s xx ( -D / 2 ) =
p D3

b) Shear stress for beams in bending

𝑉𝑦 𝑄𝑧
𝜏𝑥𝑦 =
𝐼𝑧𝑧 𝑏
𝑄𝑧 first moment of area 𝐴′:
𝑐
𝑄𝑧 = ∫𝑦 𝑦 d𝐴 = 𝑦̅′𝐴′
1
𝑏 width of the section at
𝑦 = 𝑦1

3𝑉
Rectangular section: 𝜏𝑥𝑦,𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 2𝐴
4𝑉
Circular section: 𝜏𝑥𝑦,𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 3𝐴
2𝑉
Hollow, thin-walled round section: 𝜏𝑥𝑦,𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 𝐴
𝑉
Structural I beam (thin-walled): 𝜏𝑥𝑦,𝑚𝑎𝑥 ≈ 𝐴
𝑤𝑒𝑏

7
 NB: The transverse shear stress is maximum on the neutral axis and zero on the outer
surfaces. Since this is exactly the opposite of where bending and torsional stresses have
their maximum values, the transverse shear stress is often not critical from a design
perspective.
As a rule of thumb, we will neglect transverse shear stress when the beam length 𝐿 to
height ℎ ratio is greater than 10.
𝐿
≥ 10 Transverse shear stress negligible
ℎ

c) Shear stresses for beams in torsion

Circular cross-section

Mz
t zs = r
Jp
p
Jp = D4 Polar second moment of Area 𝐽𝑝 = ∫𝐴 𝑟 2 d𝐴
32
16Mz
t zs,max = t zs ( r = D / 2 ) =
p D3

Closed thin-walled tube of thickness 𝑡

Mx
t xs = Bredt's formula
2Wt
W : Area enclosed by the section median line

8
 Rectangular cross-section

The maximum shear stress occurs in the middle of

the longest side ℎ and is of amplitude:

Mz æ 1.8 ö
t xy,max = 2 ç
3+ ÷
hw è h / wø

d) Plane stress state

Neglecting transverse shear stress, we observe that segment AB is subject to bi-axial

(plane) stress state composed of normal stress xx and shear stress xy, while segment BC
is subject to uni-axial stress state xx.
We can use Mohr’s circle construction to represent the plane stress state in segment AB.

We use Mohr’s circle diagram to represent the variation of normal stress  and shear
stress  as a function of angle  of inclination of a generic plane.

æs æs ö
2
ö
C º ç xx ,0÷ R = ç xx ÷ + t xy2
è 2 ø è 2 ø
s xx s xx2
s 1,2 = ± + t xy2 Principal stress
2 4
s xx2
t max = R = + t xy2 Maximum shear stress
4
s eq,VM = s xx2 + 3t xy2 Equivalent Von Mises stress

9
 e) Deflection: Castigliano’s theorem

A powerful and often simple approach to deflection analysis is approached by an energy

method called Castigliano’s theorem. It is even useful for finding the reactions of
indeterminate structures.
It states that when forces act on elastic systems subject to small displacements, the
displacement corresponding to any force, in the direction of the force, is equal to the
partial derivative of the total strain energy with respect to that force.

¶U
di =
¶Fi
U = U bending + Utorsion + U shear
U shear : usually negligible
𝑀2 (𝑥)
𝑈𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 = ∫ d𝑥
2𝐸𝐼(𝑥)
𝐿

𝑇 2 (𝑥)
𝑈𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 = ∫ d𝑥
2𝐺𝐽𝑃 (𝑥)
𝐿

4) Cross-section design and verification

a) Segment AB

Segment AB is subject to torsion. Therefore a circular (solid or hollow) is more suitable

than other cross-section shapes.
If we take a solid section of diameter D, we can design and verify it for strength. In this
case, we want the maximum equivalent stress to be less than the material’s yield strength
when the wrench is loaded with the highest design force Fmax (see 2.3 of PDS).

32
𝜎𝑥𝑥 = 𝐹 𝑎
𝜋𝐷3 𝑚𝑎𝑥
16
𝜏𝑥𝑦 = 𝐹 𝑏
𝜋𝐷3 𝑚𝑎𝑥
2 + 3𝜏 2 =
𝐹𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝜎
2 + 3(16𝑏)2 ≤ 𝑌
𝜎𝑒𝑞,𝑉𝑀 = √𝜎𝑥𝑥 𝑥𝑦 √(32𝑎)
𝜋𝐷3 𝑓
3 𝑓 𝐹𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝐷≥√ √(32𝑎)2 + 3(16𝑏)2
𝜋𝜎𝑌

where f is the safety factor. Usually, for static verifications, a value f=1.5 is taken.
In PDS, Section 4, a low-cost, high-strength and corrosion resistant material is required.
51CrV4 is a steel commonly used for springs and tools. The mechanical properties are:

E ν σY UTS ρ
205 GPa 0.3 800 MPa 1000 MPa 7850 kg/m3

10
 It follows that:

𝐷 ≥ 19.7 mm

In the following we will take D = 20 mm.

Another solution (here not developed) is using a hollow circular cross-section.

b) Segment BC

We consider two possible cross-section:

i) Same circular cross-section as segment AB: the whole lug wrench is fabricated
by bending a bar of diameter D.
ii) Rectangular cross-section, taking advantage of the absence of torsional loading
in segment BC. Segment AB and BC are joined through a weld joint.

i) Circular cross-section

M z = Fmaxb
M x D 32 Fmaxb s (~533MPa)
s xx,max = = = 510 MPa £ Y
I xx 2 p D 3
f

NB. We neglected curvature effects in the vicinity of point B, where the stress
state deviates from the nominal one.

ii) Rectangular cross-section

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 𝑀𝑧 ℎ 6𝐹𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑏 𝜎𝑌
𝜎𝑥𝑥,𝑚𝑎𝑥 = = ≤
𝐼𝑧𝑧 2 𝑤ℎ2 𝑓
ℎ ≥ 𝐷 = 20 mm for proper mounting
3𝐷
We take ℎ = = 30 mm
2
6𝐹𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑏
𝑤≥ 𝑓 = 5 mm
ℎ2 𝜎𝑌
We take 𝑤 = 5 mm and ℎ = 30 mm

NB The weld joint at point B must be verified!

iii) Tapered rectangular cross-section

We could improve the design by considering the fact that Mx and zz scales
linearly with the coordinate z.
We will obtain a constant bending stress beam (better material usage) if h2 scales
linearly with the coordinate z, in other words:

æ xö x
h 2 = h02 ç 1- 1 ÷ Þ h ( x1 ) = h0 1- 1
è bø b

The beam height ℎ is zero at the end C (𝑧 = 𝑏). This is obviously undesired since
the wrench must be grasped in the terminal part. For this purpose, we could
approximate the previous function with a terminal segment of constant height
ℎ𝑚𝑖𝑛 = 2/3ℎ0 and the first segment with a height linearly decreasing from ℎ0 to
ℎ𝑚𝑖𝑛 .
A reasonable value of ℎ𝑚𝑖𝑛 that facilitates the handling of the wrench could be
ℎ𝑚𝑖𝑛 = 20 mm in the terminal segment of length 100 mm.

h(x1)
h0
Real

hmin Handle
=
2/3h0 Theoretical

x1
B D C
b0 (300 mm) 100 mm

12
 ì æ x ö
ï h0 ç 1- 1 ÷ 0 £ x1 £ b0
ï è 3b0 ø
h ( x1 ) = í
ï 2
ï h0 b0 < x1 £ b
î 3

c) Stiffness verification

We will use the Castigliano’s theorem to determine the vertical displacement of point C
of load application.
The total strain energy is given by:

𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔

𝑈 = 𝑈𝐴𝐵 + 𝑈𝐴𝐵 + 𝑈𝐵𝐶
𝑎 𝑎 𝑎
𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑀𝑧 (𝑥)2 1 2 (𝑥
2
𝐹𝑛𝑜𝑚 (𝑥 − 𝑎)3
𝑈𝐴𝐵 =∫ 𝑑𝑥 = ∫ 𝐹𝑛𝑜𝑚 − 𝑎)2 𝑑𝑥 = |
0 2𝐸𝐼𝐴𝐵 2𝐸𝐼𝐴𝐵 0 2𝐸𝐼𝐴𝐵 3 0
2
1 𝐹𝑛𝑜𝑚 𝑎3
=
2𝐸𝐼𝐴𝐵 3
𝑎 𝑎
𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛
𝑀𝑥 (𝑥)2 1 2
1
𝑈𝐴𝐵 =∫ 𝑑𝑥 = ∫ 𝐹𝑛𝑜𝑚 𝑏 2 𝑑𝑥 = 𝐹2 𝑏2 𝑎
0 2𝐺𝐽𝐴𝐵 2𝐺𝐽𝐴𝐵 0 2𝐺𝐽𝐴𝐵 𝑛𝑜𝑚
𝑏 𝑎 2 (𝑥
𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑀𝑧 (𝑥1 )2 𝐹𝑛𝑜𝑚 1 − 𝑏)2
𝑈𝐵𝐶 =∫ 𝑑𝑥1 = ∫ 𝑑𝑥1
0 2𝐸𝐼𝐵𝐶 0 2𝐸𝐼𝐵𝐶

In solution (i) and (ii) the cross-section of the segment BC is uniform, therefore:
𝑎 2
𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 1 2 (𝑥 2
1 𝐹𝑛𝑜𝑚 𝑏3
𝑈𝐵𝐶 = ∫ 𝐹 − 𝑏) 𝑑𝑥1 =
2𝐸𝐼𝐵𝐶 0 𝑛𝑜𝑚 1 2𝐸𝐼𝐵𝐶 3

In solution (iii) the moment of inertia is a function of the coordinate x1. In this case we
can express the bending strain energy by correcting the preceding expression with a
correction factor 𝑓𝑐𝑜𝑟𝑟 :

1 Fnom
2
b3
bending
U BC,iii = fcorr
2EI BC 3

¶U æ a3 ab 2 b3 ö
d= = Fnom ç + + fcorr ÷
¶Fnom è 3EI AB GJ AB 3EI BC ø

where

ì 1 solution (i) and (ii)

ï
fcorr = í 9 ( 3b - 4b b0 + 3bb 0 + 6b0 ( -5 + arc coth 5 ))
3 2 2 3

ï 3
solution (iii)
î 8b

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 Solution (i)
p p
I AB = I BC = D 4 ; J AB = D4
64 32
d = 12.2 mm £ d max = 14 mm

Solution (ii)
p p 1
I AB = D 4 ; J AB = D 4 ; I BC = wh 3
64 32 12
d = 11.0 mm £ d max = 14 mm

Solution (iii)
p 4 p 1
I AB = D ; J AB = D 4 ; I BC = wh3
64 32 12
d = 12.5 mm £ d max = 14 mm

d) Mass verification

According to PDS, Section 1.2

m = rV £ mmax
m = mAB + mBC = r (VAB + VBC )
p
VAB = D2a
4
ì p 2
ï Db (i)
ïï 4
VBC = í whb (ii)
ï é2 5 ù
ï wh ê ( b - b0 ) + b0 ú (iii)
ïî ë3 6 û
ì 1.48 kg > mmax (i)
ï
m = í 0.96 kg < mmax (ii)
ï 0.87 kg < m (iii)
î max

Solutions (ii) and (iii) fulfil all the requirements contained in the PDS, while solution (i)
violates the condition on the maximum allowable mass.
Other considerations can be invoked to choose between the latter two solutions:
productive, economical, aesthetics, etc.
Another option to reduce the mass is to shorten the segment AB and take an angle
between AB and BC larger than 90°.

14