What is Shaft: Definition and 389 Discussions

A drive shaft, driveshaft, driving shaft, tailshaft (Australian English), propeller shaft (prop shaft), or Cardan shaft (after Girolamo Cardano) is a component for transmitting mechanical power and torque and rotation, usually used to connect other components of a drivetrain that cannot be connected directly because of distance or the need to allow for relative movement between them.
As torque carriers, drive shafts are subject to torsion and shear stress, equivalent to the difference between the input torque and the load. They must therefore be strong enough to bear the stress, while avoiding too much additional weight as that would in turn increase their inertia.
To allow for variations in the alignment and distance between the driving and driven components, drive shafts frequently incorporate one or more universal joints, jaw couplings, or rag joints, and sometimes a splined joint or prismatic joint.

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  1. V

    How Can I Safely Extend the Shaft of My Motor for Encoder Installation?

    Hi, I have this motor with me, http://www.etonm.com/products_detail/&productId=46.html What I want to do is mount an encoder at the back side of the output shaft of the gearbox. I am trying to figure out how to extend the motor shaft in the rear side. The encoder I am fitting will be optical...
  2. Z

    Pump Shaft Torque calculation

    Attempting to determine the torque on the shaft of a pump. Known values are flow rate, RPM, and shaft diameter. 1. What other values are needed to make the calculation? 2. What is the equation I can use for this?
  3. Sam Gallagher

    Meaning of "fast on the shaft?"

    Hello all, I'm trying to put together this little puppy: which is found here: http://507movements.com/mm_226.html Now, there are a few terms thrown around that I could use help clearing up. The descriptions use the terms "fast on the shaft, F" and "loose on the shaft, F" to describe the position...
  4. R

    Measuring torque acting on motor shaft?

    I have an electric motor that I am using to turn an auger to dispense pet food. I want to measure the average torque required to turn this auger at a given rpm. I know Powerin = Voltage into motor * Current into motor and Powerout = Torque exerted by shaft * RPM of auger and Powerout...
  5. R

    Net force acting on a piston shaft of an actuator

    Homework Statement A cylindrical piston shaft weighs 250 g and is held vertically inside an actuator (We can assume actuator is a box with hollow cylindrical space to fit the piston shaft). Compressed air at 100 psi is supplied at the bottom of the actuator and is acting on the piston upwards...
  6. A

    Selection of gearbox for rotating a solid shaft

    Hello Being practical I have been stuck in one question like if I have a 320 mm diameter and 805 mm long shaft which is suppose to rotate through gearbox how do I need to select a gearbox. As per I think I need to calculate the torque of shaft and find the torque of gearbox and based on that I...
  7. N

    Mounting Shaft to Plywood or Plastic - Ideas?

    Hello, As part of a project I'm working on, I need to mount a shaft to a sheet of plywood or plastic. On this shaft will sit a gear which rotates. The shaft, however, should not rotate or move in any way. I have tried using a threaded shaft, mounting it to wood just by screwing in two nuts on...
  8. T

    Will the air in the shaft condense?

    Consider a small enclosed vertical shaft (say 50x50 cm) inside an aparment building with an Ø160 mm uninsulated steel exhaust duct moving air at anything from +20°C to -10°C depending on time of year. Surrounding areas are at room temperature, 21°C. The air surrounding the duct inside the shaft...
  9. W

    Vertical alignment mechanism on eccentric shaft

    What would be the appropriate mechanism such that when the eccentric circle is rotating about the larger center circle the table stays horizontal? The large circular is the driver (its continuously rotating)
  10. T

    Moment and reaction of shaft - Statically Indeterminate

    A shaft of diameter 10 inch is supported by 3 ball bearings. An external force (F, given) from pulley (diameter not given) also acts on the shaft. The supports are subjected to bending load (moment and transverse shear) and torsion load due to pulley. Yield Stress at Tension given. Assume no...
  11. S

    Calculating Torque Limit on a hollow shaft type component

    I am designing a custom socket for an application at work and I am concerned about the wall thickness in the area marked by the red box (see attached drawing). The socket will be used to torque a nut to 500Nm. I have a degree in mechanical engineering and I can do stress calcs on straight...
  12. D

    Solid shaft compression - taper locks

    Hi all, I am trying to work out the stress on a shaft when a compressive force is placed on it such as a taper lock or press fit. I have looked at all the thin and thick wall section formulas and they seem ok. I am not sure what happens when the internal radius becomes 0 and its a solid shaft...
  13. billy_joule

    Radial Deflection of a rotating shaft

    This is a series of question that appear to become more and more vague, the last part has me stumped. 1. Homework Statement A) I have an electric motor that produces 0.4 HP of shaft power at a speed of 2800rpm. What will the gearbox speed and torque be on the output of a 1:5 (in : out)...
  14. James O'Neill

    Can you make the drive shaft the alternator?

    I recently read a post on "How much energy does an alternator use?". So I read some more online articles and found that some people have thought of running their alternator on their drive shaft. This doesn't seem more economical to me, since you will still loose engine power . If the alternator...
  15. S

    How Do I Mount a Keyed Bore Roller Pinion to a DC Motor?

    I'm trying to make a 3D model of a linear actuator. I'm using this roller pinion: http://www.nexengroup.com/nxn/products/details/id/966828 It has a keyed bore and says I need a shaft mount but I have no idea how I'm supposed to mount it to a DC motor... Could someone please explain the parts I...
  16. C

    Need help regarding shaft material

    I'm building a trike and wanted to know if an acrylic shaft would suffice? The accumulator shaft would hold two cycle ratchet and a sprocket.
  17. S

    Balancing a Rotating Shaft - Determining Masses & Positions

    Homework Statement A. A shaft 2m long rotates at 1500 revs min-1 between bearings as shown. The bearings forces of 5kN and 3kN acting in the same plane as shown. A single mass is to be used to balance the shaft, so that the reactions are zero. The mass is to be placed at a radius of 200mm...
  18. S

    How to find shaft torque for belt pulley arragement?

    I am facing problem in calculating the shaft torque for my system. Motor is driving pulley and that pulley is coupled with belt with another big pulley (please refer attached file image). Motor power 19.4 kw, Torque- 71.8 Nm, Motor Rated speed- 2580 rpm, motor shaft dia=42mm Pulley dia (refer...
  19. D

    Calculate hold down force for rotating shaft

    I have a .850" diameter steel shaft that will have a torque of 125 ft-lbs put on it. I need to calculate how much down force I need to stop the shaft from rotating. I suppose we can assume that it will be steel on steel. Going with a coefficient of friction of about .35 I tried to calculate...
  20. M

    Mechanics of materials torque on solid shaft

    Homework Statement http://prntscr.com/7rtrep http://prntscr.com/7rts95 Homework Equations theta = TL/GJ t(max)= Tc/J The Attempt at a Solution The two questions i have are rather similar so i put them up at the same time, i hope that's okay. For the first one ( the first link) i started by...
  21. S

    How can I connect a 6mm motor shaft to a 15mm disc shaft?

    Hello, I am on a project where i need to rotate a disc with the help of electric motor(connecting directly to the shaft of the motor). The motor shaft has a diameter of 6mm and the shaft of disc has 15mm. what could be the best possible way to connect both of them.
  22. S

    Discovering the Critical Speed of a Shaft: Effects of Bearing Support

    how to find out critical speed of shaft without load. Shaft is supported at ends with bearings. what is the effect of this speed.
  23. JetLife

    How to calculate torque on a shaft [solar panel]?

    < Mentor Note -- thread moved to HH from the technical engineering forums, so no HH Template is shown > I'm busy designing a solar panel mount for a 300W solar panel, roughly 2m x 1m in size and 30kg in mass. I would like to know how to calculate the torque on the shaft (situated in the centre...
  24. K

    Effect of golf shaft length and flex

    Hi, I'm wondering about the effect of the shaft flex on the impact velocity between the club and the ball. I understand that as I swing down the golf club, the shaft flexes and the club head lags behind. Near the end of the point of impact, the shaft bends forward. Intuitively, I would think...
  25. Dostetres

    Multiple BLDC per shaft for marine propulsion

    New to the forum, and can't find this info or examples on the web. I'm interested in the possibility of coupling multiple DC brushless motors to a single drive shaft for main propulsion on a 45-50', twin screw boat. Lots of sail boat examples are given, but my interest is in a power...
  26. S

    A glass marble is dropped down an elevator shaft

    Homework Statement [/B] A glass marble is dropped down an elevator shaft and hits a thick glass plate on top of an elevator that is descending at a speed of 2.10 m/s. The marble hits the glass plate 7.5 m below the point from which it was dropped. If the collision is elastic, how high will the...
  27. C

    Calculating Shaft Natural Frequency in Free Air and Liquid

    Hello Fellow members. In many litterature about mixing liquids in tanks, they describe how to calculate the natural frequency of shafts in free air. But i have only found one book that describe about natural frequency of shafts in liquid, and it should have a damping effect of the natural...
  28. P

    Torque on Shaft w/ 1000 kg Load & 35 mpm Wire Speed

    What is the torque on a shaft when applying a load of 1000 kgs. through winch lifting at a speed of 35 meters per minute wire speed. What should be the H.P of an electric motor if it runs the winch. The motor rpm is 980. Gear box speed ratio is 70:1.
  29. L

    What Are the Dimensions of a 6.35 mm x 12 mm Shaft Coupling?

    When a coupling is described as being 6.35 mm x 12 mm, what does this mean? I figure that 6.35 mm is the shaft diameter it accepts because that diameter equals 1/4". Is 12 mm the size of shaft the opposing side is designed to attach to? Thank you in advance.
  30. S

    Finding the shear stress and angle of twist in hollow shaft

    MODERATOR NOTE: THIS THREAD WAS ORIGINALLY IN ANOTHER FORUM, SO THERE IS NO TEMPLATE. I have a hollow shaft made of a titanium alloy, Shear Modulus "G". The shaft has a wall thickness of 3.2mm and an inner diameter of 20mm. The shaft looks as show in the attached image. A torque T of 232 Nmm...
  31. Adam Harris

    Circular shaft Applied mechanics

    In the pulley system shown in Figure Q1 the tangential forces on the pulleys are shown. Each pulley adds an additional load / weight of 500N on the shaft. Calculate a suitable shaft diameter so that to avoid failure by the maximum shear stress criterion. The tensile yield strength of the shaft...
  32. J

    Power transmission of a multi-stepped shaft

    Homework Statement Imagine a stepped turbine shaft for a wind turbine. (See PDF 'Question' for image) Wind hits the turbine blades with a pressure P Pa in a direction which may be averaged out at 90 degrees to the y-axis, creating a torque Ta, which acts clockwise in the x-direction as we...
  33. K

    Torque calculation on drive half shaft in coast downshift condition

    I want to calculate the torque coming onto a half shaft in a very particular event. The event is I let's say I am in 3rd gear and have reached my max torque zone after which I have taken my foot of the acc pedal...nw I m letting the the vehicle coast as soon as it reaches say 60% of max power...
  34. C

    How Can I Measure Torque for a Pedal-Powered Rotary Vane Pump Project?

    Hi guys. I am doing a project involving a pedal powered rotary vane pump. I would like to ask how do I measure the Torque. I used a hollow steel shaft with a diameter of 0.75 inches. I was trying out the formula T=Fr but I have no idea how to measure the perpendicular force. In the picture you...
  35. B

    Torque on a Shaft: 5HP & 10:1 Gear Ratio

    If a motor has a horsepower of 5hp and a gear box ratio of 10:1 does the hp through out the system remain 5? or does the gear box multiply the power? how does this affect the torque?
  36. praveenpandiyan

    Solid Hollow Shaft Torsion Resistance: How Will It Change?

    Homework Statement internal diameter of a hollow shaft is two third of its external diameter .if it is melted and new solid shaft is made.what would happen to the shaft resistance of torsion. in percentage? Homework Equations as i know T/j=G*angle of twist/length. torsional...
  37. spikeybrummy

    Convert solid shaft to hollow shaft

    I have a "bending stress" question, which is causing me "actual stress"... I have a solid 30m Aluminium shaft, which I need to replace with an equivalent hollow shaft, but I am having difficulty in calculating the internal and external diameters. The solid shaft diameter is 0.118m, and all I...
  38. R

    Determining new diameter of shaft after deformation

    Hey guys, I've been having an issue with my approach to this problem. I'm stuck after I get the deformation... : 1. The proportional portion of the tension-strain diagram for an aluminum alloy is shown in the figure (attached). The specimen used for the test gauge length of 2in and a diameter...
  39. K

    Thermal elongation-ring on a shaft

    Homework Statement A steel ring has a diameter of 75 mm at 20 deg C. how much must it be heated in order to mount on a brass shaft of dia 75.05 Then both are cooled. how must they be cooled so the ring will fall off? Homework Equations Thermal elongation coefficient of steel: 12E-6 Thermal...
  40. R

    Help with Bending Moment Diagrams & Shaft Design Questions

    Hi! Can someone please point me in the right direction with this? I'm having trouble and any form of help would be greatly appreciated :) It's a homework question! A rotating shaft is able to transmit 4kW of power whilst rotating with a speed of 450 revolutions per minute. The maximum torque at...
  41. J

    Estimating Impact Force from Rotating Shaft on Collar

    Hello All, Some background information: I'm a co-op engineering student and recently my supervisor asked me to do a bit of research on a solution to a problem we had. Essentially, a cardan shaft connecting a motor and a gear box failed at a joint during operation and caused some extensive...
  42. C

    Cons of Stopping shaft connected to gearbox

    Hi, I'm new to this field. I'm interested in knowing electrical motor/generator operations. I have few questions here could you please help me. Qtn: I have a shaft rotating a minute and not rotating 10 seconds. i.e 1min rotates + 10sec stopped + 1min rotates + 10...and so on. In this case...
  43. marellasunny

    Using the prop shaft tunnel as ''backbone'' for body structure

    In regards to the Lotus Elan from 1962, my book H-point says that Colin Chapman used the prop shaft tunnel as ''backbone'' to the body structure. Can someone please elaborate on this? Does this mean that the structure of the prop shaft tunnel acted like a stiffener for the entire body...
  44. S

    Torque on shaft due to impact loading during rotation

    Hi All, I am trying to determine the correct equations to apply with a problem I have run into at work. Basically I have a shaft with a cutter with straight flutes, I am trying to find out the torque load on the shaft when the cutter flutes make contact with the material they are cutting...
  45. C

    Mechanics of electric motor to drive shaft by chain drive

    Hi! I would like to change my work truck into an electric hybrid. I have all the electrical portions of this project handled. My big problem is somehow connecting the motor to the drive shaft. The motor is going to sit in the bed of the truck. Its a twelve foot box truck, the motor will sit...
  46. A

    Calculation of power absorbed at agitator shaft

    I have with me an existing Agitator details of which are as below Motor= 2.2KW/ 3 HP, 1440 Rpm Gear Reducer = ratio 40/1 Agitator Shaft RPM= 36 Agitator Shaft dimension Length = 2500mm round bar , SS 304 Blades = 5 nos, 100 mm wide, 5 mm thick, dia = 2200 mm, at a distance of 400mm...
  47. M

    Ideas on how to fasten to a motor shaft

    I have a rubber wheel that has a 1/2" plastic bore with a key slot in it (see attachment). I want to spin that wheel with a motor that has an 8mm straight shaft. I need some ideas on how to fasten the motor shaft to the wheel. I want to have a bearing opposite of the motor to keep the shaft...
  48. B

    Torque needed to rotate low-speed shaft

    Hi, I'm interested in wind power/energy and I would like to know how much torque is required to rotate a low-speed shaft of either a 2mw or 3mw wind turbine at an rpm of 20. Also, I'd like to know if the weight of components (e.g. the shafts, gears, or any other components) affect how much...
  49. V

    Which Shaft Transmits More Torque: Hollow or Solid?

    I have a two shaft 1) hollow shaft 2) solid shaft . both has same length. Condition 1) If diameter of both this shaft is same, which shaft can transmit a more torque? how? condition 2) If cross section area of both this shaft are same then which shaft can transmit more torque? how...
  50. C

    Shaft - find natural frequency of horizontal shaft with bearings

    shaft -- find natural frequency of horizontal shaft with bearings how to find natural frequency of horizontal shaft with bearings at either sides, using (Ansys-classic). Please reply, Thank you.
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