Ch 4 Belt Drives

4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.7

Types of Belt Drives

V-belt Drives
Loading and Stress of Belt Drives
Belt Creep
V-Belt Drives Design
Tension Mechanism for Belt Drives
Timing Belt and Chain Drives

Examples of belt drives

V-belt
Flat
belt

Belt conveyer

Automotive engine

Polyrib belt

Timing
belt

Agricultural machinery

Precision positioning, 0.05mm

4.1 Types of Belt Drives

Flat Belt Drive

Introduction
V-Belt Drive

Features of belt drives:

Belt drives can be widely used for power transmission.
For a great center distance power drive.
Commonly, the driving shaft and driven shaft are parallel.
Belts are flexible.
Friction causes the belt to turn the driven sheave.

4.1 Types of Belt Drives

Combination Drive
1

How to arrange
them

1- Electrical motor; 2- V-belt drive;

3- Gear reducer; 4- Chain drive;
5- Driven machine (Roller).

Basic Geometries of Belt Drives

4.1 Types of Belt Drives

Layout of belt drives

1 and 2 are wrap angles

of driving sheave and
driven sheave. 1 >120 .
3

C
Center distance

Fig. 4-1 Basic belt drive geometries

1 Driving sheave
2 Driven sheave
3 Belt

Types of sheave arrangement

4.1 Types of Belt Drives

Most commonly used

a

c
a. Open belt drive
b. Cross belt drive
c. Quarter-twist belt drive

Great center distance;

low belt speed
Fig. 4-2 Types of sheave arrangement

For twist axis drive

4.1 Types of Belt Drives

Types of belt (1)

Classified by principle of operation

Friction force;
For power drive.

Belt Drive

Friction belt drive

Mesh belt drive

(Synchronous belt)

Positive drive;
Without slippage;
For precise
positioning.

4.1 Types of Belt Drives

Types of belt (2)

Classified by belt crossing section

a. Flat belt

b. Round belt
c. V-belt
Fig. 4-3 Types of belt

d. Poly-rib belt

Flat
V-belt -More significant driving force than flat belt.

-Significant driving force, great power, compact structure,

Poly-rib larger speed ratio (10), high belt speed (40 m/s).
-Small driving force, for handling devices, instruments,
Round and household appliances.

4.1 Types of Belt Drives

FQ

FN

Flat belt
Simple structure, convenient
to manufacture, applicable
for large center distance

Normal pressure force

Friction force

Fig. 4-4 Sectional view of flat belt drive

FQ=FN
F=FN=FQ

V-belt

4.1 Types of Belt Drives

FQ
FN

FN

Fig. 4-4 Sectional view of

V-belt drive

FQ 2 FN sin cos
2
2

FQ
2 FN

FN
sin cos
2
2
FN
FQ
F 2 FN
e FQ

sin cos
2
2
Coefficient of friction;
e Equivalent coefficient of friction;
Intersectional angle of belt, 40 ;
' Groove angle, 32 , 34 , 36 ,
38 ;

If =0.3, e=0.50-0.53. The V-shape causes the belt to wedge tightly

into the groove, increasing friction and allowing high torques to be
transmitted before slipping occurs.

V-belt and Narrow-section V-belt

4.2 V-belt Drives

V-belt includes:
Standard V-belt, Narrow-section V-belt, Wide-section V-belt, et al.
Standard V-belts are most widely used.
Standard V-belt: h/bp0.7

Neutral
layer

Narrow-section V-belt: h/bp0.9

Applicable for the
great power with
compact dimensions

4.2 V-belt Drives

Structure of V-belt

By GB/T11544-1997,
Standard V-belt contains 7 different cross section: Y, Z, A, B, C, D, E.
Components: Cords, Top rubber, Bottom rubber, Wrapper.
Pitch line: the circumference of pitch line is constant.
Pitch line
Pitch surfaceContaining all of pitch lines
wrapper
Top rubber
Cords
Pitch surface

Layer cord

Convenient to
manufacture

Bottom rubber

Fabric cord

High flexibility, applicable for situation

with high rotational speed, medium load
and small pitch diameter

Geometries of V-belt

4.2 V-belt Drives

Table 4-1 Cross section of V-belt

Section Type

Top width b
Pitch width bp

6
5.3

10 13
17
22
32 38
8.5 11.0 14.0 19.0 27.0 32.0

Height h

Wedge angle
Mass/m l (kg/m)

0.02 0.06

0.01

10.5 13.5
40

19

0. 17 0.30 0.62

b
bp

23.5

0.90

When belts pass around sheaves, top rubbers are stretched and
bottom rubbers are compressed. But between top rubber and bottom
rubbers, there is a neutral layer, whose length keeps invariable. We
call this neutral layer as pitch surface of belt or belt pitch.
The width of pitch surface bp keeps invariable when belts are bent.
Relative height: h/bp0.7 (Standard belt).
On sheave grooves, basic diameter is defined on a cylinder whose
width keeps same with bp.

Table 4-2 Basic length of belt Ld, and coefficient of length kL

Ld
/mm

kL

4.2 V-belt Drives

Characteristics of V-belt

Advantages:
Smooth movements, low noise, reducing impact and vibration;
When overload, belt slipping occurs, which can be used to
protect other components;
Convenient and low cost to manufacture, assemble and maintain;
Applicable for the situation with great center distance;
Disadvantages:
Belt has an inclination to slip on sheaves, so speed ratio varies a
little;
Life of belt is short;
A great center distance will reduce the compactness of structure ;
Additional tension mechanism is needed.
Inapplicable for flammable and explosive situation.
Applications of belt drive:
Allowable max power P<700KW; Allowable belt speed v=5-25m/s; Speed
ratio i<7, commonly 2-4; Efficiency =0.94-0.96. In a combination drive,
Belt drive needs to be placed at the high speed stage.

4.2 V-belt Drives

Sheave of V-belt

1. Requirements of sheave
(1) Light weight;
(2) Convenient to manufacture;
(3) Low interior stress by casting process;
(4) Well-distributed mass, dynamic balance needed if high
rotational speed;
(5) Smooth surface to avoid wear;
(6) Enough precision of groove to distribute load uniformly.
2. Materials for sheave
Commonly: cast iron, HT150 or HT200
High speed situation: cast steel or steel stamping and welding
Small power: cast aluminum or plastic
3. Three types for sheave
Solid type, Web type, Spoke type

Sheave of V-belt

4.2 V-belt Drives

Solid type--for small diameter,

pitch diameter of sheave d 2.5D (dia. of shaft)

B
L
Solid type

Sheave of V-belt

4.2 V-belt Drives

d
da

dh

ds

Web type with holes----for medium diameter

pitch diameter of sheave d 300

S2

Taper1:25

Web type
dh = (1.82)ds dk=( dh +dr) /2
dr = da -2(H+) H and , see Table 4 - 11
S= (0.2 0.3) B S11.5S S20.5S
L=(1.5-2)ds

4.2 V-belt Drives

Sheave of V-belt

h1

h2

d
da

dh

Spoke type--d>350mm

Taper1:25

P
h1 290
nA
h2 =0.8 h1
a1 = 0.4 h1
a2 = 0.8 a1
f10.2 h1 f2 0.2 h2
3

Spoke type
P- Power, KW
n- rotational speed, r/min
A- No. of spokes

b0
bd

Table 4-11 Groove dimension of sheaves

ha

h H

6.3

da d

Groove type
bd /mm

Y
5.3

hamin/mm

e/mm

1.6

2.0

80.3

120.3

A
11

B
14

C
19

2.75

3.5

4.8

150.3 190.4

25.50.5

6
4.7

7
7.0

9
8.7

11.5
10.8

min

5.5

7.5

10

32

60
---

--- 80

--- 118

--- 190

--- 315

60

----

----

----

----

fmin
hmin

( )

Z
8.5

34
36
38

---

> 80

> 118

>190

16
14.3

> 315

4.3 Loading and Stress of Belt Drives

Force analysis of belt drive

1. Effective circle force

Without the initial tension,
the slack side would go totally loose,
and the belt would not seat in the groove;
n1
thus, it would slip.
At rest, the two sides of the belt have the same tension.
F1 = F2 = F0
F0

Slack side
F
F2 2

F0

n2

Driven sheave

F0 F
0

F1 F
1
Driving sheave
Tight side
As power is being transmitted, the tension in the tight side increases
while the tension in the slack decreases.

F1 F2

F1 , Tight side

F2 , Slack side

Ignoring the variation of belt length, the tension increment of

tight side equals to the decrement of slack side

F1 F0 = F0 F2

F0 = (F1 + F2 )/2

Considering the driving sheave,

T1 = F1dd1/2 - F2 dd1/2

T1 =( F1- F2 )dd1/2

Effective circle force: driving force

F = F1 - F2=F
A relationship among power, effective force and belt speed
Fv
P
1000

P Transmitted power by belt drive, kW;

F Effective circle force, N; v Belt speed, m/s.

If F>F,the belt will slip, which will cause the belt wear, and
decrease the efficiency. Then the belt drive fails.

2. Euler formula
To maximize the efficiency of belt drive and avoid slippage
failure of belt drive, we need to investigate the critical situation.
Analyzing a short segment
Normal pressure: dFN Friction force: dFN
Tension forces at two endsF and F+dF
Force equilibriums in horizontal and vertical axes
d
Ignoring centrifugal force,
2 F

F2

d
d
dl dF
dFN F sin
( F dF )sin
N
2
2 dFN

d
d
dFN ( F dF ) cos
F cos
2
2 d
2

F+dF

F1

Force equations

d
d
dFN F sin
( F dF )sin
2
2
d
d
dFN ( F dF ) cos
F cos
2
2
d d
d

As d is quite small, we have sin

And ignoring second order term, we have

dFN Fd
dFN dF

, cos

d
dF
0
2

dF
d
F

Integration

F1

F2

dF
d
0
F

F1
ln
F2

Tension ratio between slack side and tight side

Eulers formula

F1

e
F2

This is a basic equation about flexible body friction.

3. Maximum efficient circle force Fmax

2F0=F1 + F2
F=F1 - F2

1
F F1 F2 F1 (1 )
e

1
1
F1

e
e
Analysis
F
Fmax 2 F0
1
F2

1
e
(1) To ensure the ability of belt drive, commonly, we have >120 .
(2) is decided by materials of belt and sheave, status of contact
surface and working environment.
(3) If and are already decided, initial tension F0 plays an very
important role in Fmax.
(4) It is very important to specify F0. If F0 is too small, the belt drive
work under a poor situation and has an inclination to slip. If F0 is
too great, the wear of belt will be very serious.

4.3 Loading and Stress of Belt Drives

Stress analysis of belt drive

1. Stretching stress c from centrifugal force Fc

F2

Fc

On a short segment, the centrifugal force

2

v
dFc ma l ( Rd )
R

dFc

dl

R
d

On the horizontal axis, a force balance equation

Fc

d
v2
2 Fc sin
dFc l Rd
2
R
So, we have

Fc l v2

Fc l v 2
c
A
A

d d
sin

2
2

F1

2. Stretching stress from tension force

F1
A
F2
Stretching stress on slack side: 2
A
Stretching stress on tight side: 1

MPa
MPa

3.Bending stress when passing around sheave

We have the bending stress

2y
b E
dd

E Elasticity of belt, for common V-belt, 250-400Mpa;

y Distance between neutral layer and outside layer;
dd Basic diameter of sheave.
When passing around the smaller sheave and bigger sheave

2y
b1 E
d d1

b2

2y
E
dd2

b1 b2

4. Combination of three different kind of stress

c b
Belt stress changes with position and time. It is a variable stress.

max c b1 1

b1

b2
n2

1 n1

c
Some tips:
1. If the basic diameter of sheave
max
is reduced by 10%, the life of belt
1
will be reduced by 50%.
2. If the transmitted power is
Video
increased by 10%, the life of belt
will be reduced by 50%.
3. If the length of belt is reduced by 50%, the life of belt will be
reduced by 50%.

4.4 Belt Creep

1. Elastic creep of belt
If the strain is proportional with the stress, we have

F1
1
AE

For tight side

F1 > F2

For slack side: 2

F2
AE

1 > 2

(1) When belt passes around the driving sheave, the belt length will
become a little shorter, and the belt will slip on groove, which will
cause that the speed of belt falls behind the speed of driving sheave a
little.
(2) When belt passes around the driven sheave, the belt length will
become a little longer, and the belt will slip on groove, which will
cause that the speed of belt lead the speed of driven sheave a little.

(3) This kind of creep is resulted from the elastic deformation of

materials, We define it as elastic creep, which is the natural
characteristic of belt drive.
Video of elastic slippage

Because of the existence of elastic creep,

the linear speed of driven sheave v2 < v1 that of driving sheave

(1) This will decrease the efficiency of belt drive, and also cause
wear and temperature rise of belt.

(2) The magnitude of elastic slippage is decided by the initial tension

A greater initial tension means a greater elastic slippage.
2. Creep ratio
Definition

n2 d d2
d d2 1
v1 v2 n1d d1 n2 d d2

1
1
v1
n1d d1
n1d d1
d d1 i
d d2 1
i
dd1 1
Commonly for V-belt =0.01~0.02we can ignore it.

Homework-12
1. Explain why we choose V-belt for power drive instead of flat belt
under the same tension force.

2. Explain the three stress components in the belt drive, and find out
the belt position with maximum stress.