Chapter 17

Flexible
Mechanical
Elements

ME 1
17–1 Belts
17–2 Flat- and Round-Belt Drives

17–3 V Belts
17–4 Timing Belts
17–5 Roller Chain
17–6 Wire Rope
17–7 Flexible Shafts

ME Contents
55
The cross-sectional dimensions of V belts have been standardized by manufacturers,
with each section designated by a letter of the alphabet for sizes in inch dimensions.
Metric sizes are designated in numbers. Though these have not been included here,
the procedure for analyzing and designing them is the same as presented here.
Dimensions, minimum sheave diameters, and the horsepower range for each of the
lettered sections are listed in Table 17–9.

Table 17–9 Standard V-Belt Sections

ME 17–3 V Belts
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To specify a V belt, give the belt-section letter, followed by the inside circumference
in inches (standard circumferences are listed in Table 17–10). For example, B75 is a
B-section belt having an inside circumference of 75 in.
Table 17–10 Inside Circumferences of Standard V Belts

Table 17–11 Length Conversion

Dimensions (Add the Listed
Quantity to the Inside
Circumference to Obtain the
Pitch Length in Inches)

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Calculations involving the belt length are usually based on the pitch length. For any
given belt section, the pitch length is obtained by adding a quantity to the inside
circumference (Tables 17–10 and 17–11). For example, a B75 belt has a pitch length
of 76.8 in. Similarly, calculations of the velocity ratios are made using the pitch
diameters of the sheaves, and for this reason the stated diameters are usually
understood to be the pitch diameters even though they are not always so specified.

The groove angle of a sheave is made somewhat smaller than the belt-section angle.
This causes the belt to wedge itself into the groove, thus increasing friction. The
exact value of this angle depends on the belt section, the sheave diameter, and the
angle of contact. If it is made too much smaller than the belt, the force required to
pull the belt out of the groove as the belt leaves the pulley will be excessive.
Optimum values are given in the commercial literature.

The minimum sheave diameters have been listed in Table 17–9. For best results, a V
belt should be run quite fast: 4,000 ft/min is a good speed. Trouble may be
encountered if the belt runs much faster than 5,000 ft/min or much slower than 1,000
ft/min.

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The pitch length Lp and the center-to-center distance C are

where D = pitch diameter of the large sheave and d = pitch diameter of the small
sheave.

In the case of flat belts, there is virtually no limit to the center-to-center distance.
Long center-to-center distances are not recommended for V belts because the
excessive vibration of the slack side will shorten the belt life materially. In general,
the center-to-center distance should be no greater than 3 times the sum of the sheave
diameters and no less than the diameter of the larger sheave. Link-type V belts
have less vibration, because of better balance, and hence may be used with longer
center tocenter distances.

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The basis for power ratings of V belts depends somewhat on the manufacturer; it is
not often mentioned quantitatively in vendors’ literature but is available from
vendors. The basis may be a number of hours, 24,000, for example, or a life of 108 or
109 belt passes. Since the number of belts must be an integer, an undersized belt set
that is augmented by one belt can be substantially oversized. Table 17–12 gives
power ratings of standard V belts.

Table 17–12
Horsepower
Ratings of
Standard V Belts

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Table 17–12
(Continued)

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The rating, whether in terms of hours or belt passes, is for a belt running on equal-
diameter sheaves (180o of wrap), of moderate length, and transmitting a steady load.

Deviations from these laboratory test conditions are acknowledged by multiplicative

adjustments. If the tabulated power of a belt for a C-section belt is 9.46 hp for a 12-
in-diameter sheave at a peripheral speed of 3,000 ft/min (Table 17–12), then, when
the belt is used under other conditions, the tabulated value Htab is adjusted as follows:

H a  K1K2 H tab
where Ha = allowable power, per belt, Table 17–12
K1 = angle-of-wrap correction factor, Table 17–13
K2 = belt length correction factor, Table 17–14

The allowable power can be near to Htab, depending upon circumstances.

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Table 17–13 Angle of Contact Correction
Factor K1 for VV* and V-Flat Drives

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 Table 17–14 Belt-Length Correction Factor K2*

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In a V belt the effective coefficient of friction f ′ is f/sin(/2), which amounts to an
augmentation by a factor of about 3 due to the grooves. The effective coefficient of
friction f ′ is sometimes tabulated against sheave groove angles of 30◦, 34◦, and
38◦, the tabulated values being 0.50, 0.45, and 0.40, respectively, revealing a belt
material-on-metal coefficient of friction of 0.13 for each case. The Gates Rubber
Company declares its effective coefficient of friction to be 0.5123 for grooves. Thus
F1  Fc
F2  Fc  exp0.5123
The design power is given by

Hd
 H nom K s n d
where Hnom is the nominal power, Ks is the service factor given in Table 17–15, and
nd is the design factor. The number of belts, Nb, is usually the next higher integer to
Hd/Ha.
N b  Hd
H Nb  1, 2,
a 3,...
Designers work on a per-belt basis.

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The flat-belt tensions shown in Fig. 17–12 ignored the tension induced by bending
the belt about the pulleys. This is more pronounced withV belts, as shown in Fig. 17
14. The centrifugal tension Fc is given by

where Kc is from Table 17–16.

Figure 17–14 V-belt

tensions.

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 Table 17–15 Suggested Service Factors KS for V-Belt Drives

Table 17–16 Some V-Belt Parameters*

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The power that is transmitted per belt is based on ∆F = F1 − F2, where

63, 025Hd Nb
F 
n d
then from Eq. (17–8) the largest tension F1 is given by
2
From the definition of ∆F, the least tension F2 is F2  F1 F
F1  F2

From Eq. ( j) in Sec. 17–2 Fi  Fc
2
H a Nb

The factor of safety is n fs
H nom K s
Durability (life) correlations are complicated by the fact that the bending induces
flexural stresses in the belt; the corresponding belt tension that induces the same
maximum tensile stress is Fb1 at the driving sheave and Fb2 at the driven pulley.

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These equivalent tensions are added to F1 as
Kb Kb
T1  F1  Fb  F1  T2  F1  Fb  F1 
1
d 2
D
 
where Kb is given in Table 17–16. The equation for the tension versus pass trade-off
used by the Gates Rubber Company is of the form

T b NK b p
where NP is the number of passes and b is approximately 11. See Table 17–17. The
Miner rule is used to sum damage incurred by the two tension peaks:

The lifetime t in hours is given by

N P Lp
t
720V
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 Table 17–17 Durability Parameters for Some V-Belt Sections

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The constants K and b have their ranges of validity. If NP > 109, report that NP = 109
and t > NP Lp/(720V) without placing confidence in numerical values beyond the
validity interval. See the statement about NP and t near the conclusion of Ex. 17–4.

The analysis of a V-belt drive can consist of the following steps:

• Find V, Lp, C, , and exp(0.5123)
• Find Hd , Ha , and Nb from Hd/Ha and round up
• Find Fc, F, F1, F2, and Fi , and nfs
• Find belt life in number of passes, or hours, if possible

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 Hnom = 10 hp, n = 1,750 rpm, d = 7.4 in, D = 11 in

B-type, L = 112 in, Ks = 1.2+0.1 =1.3

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 Type B: Lp = 105~120, K2 = 1.05
For θ =174.3o, K1 = 0.99

For type B, Kc = 0.965

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 For type B, Kb = 576

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 For type B, K = 1193, b = 10.926

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