COUPLINGS

AND JOINTS
D€SIGN, S€l€CTION,RND RPPLICRTION

S€COND €DITION,
R€VIS€D RND €XPRND€D

JON R. MANCUSO
Kop-Flex
Emerson Power Transmission Corporation
Baltimore, Maryland

M A R C E L

MARCELDEKKER,
INC. NEWYORK BASEL
D E K K E R
ISBN: 0-8247-9950-X
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 In memory of
Lynn-my daughter
Samuel-my father

and to the rest of my family

Josephine-my mother
Rose-my w$e
Samuel, Jonette, and Kristie-my children
and the next generation, my grandchildren
Jonathan
Lynnette
Allec
Brandon
D.J.
Preface to the Second Edition

The first edition of Couplings and Joints was published in 1986 and it took me
5 years to put it together. When I started work on this edition, I thought the task
would be a lot simpler, but its preparation has taken me almost as long. The new
edition is almost 100 pages longer. It has over 700 illustrations and tables (over
150 more than in the first edition) to help the reader understand coupling
design, selection, and application.
The first chapter updates the history of couplings since the first edition.
Chapter 2 has been expanded to give more detail on the types of couplings, how
they work, and where they are used. Here I have classified couplings into gen-
eral-purpose couplings and special-purpose couplings, and the chapter dis-
cusses the types and usage in each of these categories. Tables have been
updated for capacities and characteristics and broken down into general-pur-
pose couplings and special-purpose couplings. Chapter 4 has been expanded
and provides the latest information on alignment, including laser alignment and
signature analysis. Chapter 6 has been greatly expanded to include some of the
latest developments in gear couplings, such as carburized ground spindles. An
updated table on S,V criteria for gear couplings is included, giving additional
vi Preface to the Second Edition

materials and information on heat treatment. The section on U-joints now

offers more details on the various types of industrial U-joints and many exam-
ples of the various types of failures seen by U-joints.
Chapter 8 has been expanded to include several methods for calculating
coupling guard temperatures. Guidelines on how to design a guard that will not
overheat are also given. Metallic element couplings have greatly improved
since the first edition. They have become the preferred choice for new equip-
ment, because they require less maintenance than lubricated couplings.
Because of improvements in materials and the manufacturing process, the reli-
ability of these couplings has greatly increased.
A new chapter has been added, Chapter 10, which covers some of the
topics most commonly discussed when rotating engineers get together. This
chapter covers torquemeter couplings, why they are used, and the advantages
and disadvantages of various types. There is a section in this chapter on tor-
sional damping couplings: what they do and the various types available. Also
in Chapter 10 is a section on the most discussed topic at technical meetings, the
replacement of lubricated couplings with nonlubricated couplings. The section
covers what needs to be considered, the pros and cons. It also gives guidelines
for replacements. Also given is an example for replacing gear couplings with
diaphragm couplings for a high-speed drive train.
Chapter 11 presents coupling nomenclature; these terms will be found in
catalogues, in specifications, and in the discussions in this book.
I thought in 1986 that I had written everything on couplings that there
was to be written. But in more than 30 years of designing, selecting, and apply-
ing couplings, I continue to find that I learn something new about them almost
every day.

Jon R. Mancuso
Preface to the First Edition

The flexible coupling method of connecting rotating equipment is a vital and

necessary technique. Large shafts in loosely mounted bearings, bolted together
by flanged rigid couplings, do not provide for efficient and reliable mechanical
power transmission. This is especially true in today’s industrial environment,
where equipment system designers are demanding higher speeds, higher
torques, greater flexibility, additional misalignment, and lighter weights for
flexible couplings. The need for flexible couplings is becoming more acute as
is the need for technological improvements in them.
The basic function of a coupling is to transmit torque from the driver to
the driven piece of rotating equipment. Clutches (which constitute another sub-
ject for a book and are not covered here) are couplings designed to cease trans-
mitting torque at a certain load or speed. Flexible couplings expand upon the
basic function by also accommodating misalignment and end movement. Dur-
ing the initial assembly and installation of rotating equipment, precise align-
ment of the equipment shaft axes is not only difficult to achieve, but in most
cases it is economically prohibitive. In addition, misalignment during equip-
ment operation is even more difficult to control. Misalignment in operation can

vii
viii Preface to the First Edition

be caused by flexure of structures under load, settling of foundations, thermal

expansion of equipment and their supporting structures, piping expansion or
contraction, and many other factors. A flexible coupling serves as a means to
compensate for, or minimize the effects of, misalignment. Flexible couplings,
however, have their own limitations. Therefore, calculations and predictions
are required to know what the maximum excursions can be. Only then can the
correct coupling be selected.
A system designer or coupling user cannot just put any flexible coupling
into a system and hope it will work. It is the responsibility of the designer or
user to select a compatible coupling for the system. The designer must also be
the coupling selector. Flexible coupling manufacturers are not system design-
ers and should not be expected to assume the role of coupling selectors. Since
they are not system experts, they can only take the information given them and
size, design, and manufacture a coupling to fulfil1 the requirements specified.
Some coupling manufacturers can offer some assistance but they usually will
not accept responsibility for a system’s successful operation.
The purpose of this book is to aid the coupling selector (system designer
or user) in understanding flexible couplings so the best coupling can be selected
for each system. In order to help coupling selectors do their jobs properly, four
chapters are included that cover the basics of couplings. These chapters provide
answers to often-asked questions, such as:
Why a flexible coupling?
What are this coupling’s limitations and capabilities?
How much unbalance will this coupling produce?
How can I compare this coupling with that coupling?
How do I install this coupling?
How is it disassembled?
How is it aligned?
How is it lubricated?
There are two basic classes of couplings: the rigid coupling and the flex-
ible coupling. A chapter on rigid couplings has been included. Rigid couplings
should only be used when the connecting structures and equipment are rigid
enough so that very little misalignment can occur and the equipment is strong
enough to accept the generated moments and forces.
There are hundreds of different types of flexible couplings. In this book,
many types are covered in general and the more common ones in detail. The
eight most common types of couplings in use today are:
Gear couplings
Grid couplings
Preface to the First Edition ix

Chain couplings
Universal joints
Elastomeric shear couplings
Elastomeric compression couplings
Disk couplings
Diaphragm couplings
Each one of these couplings is covered in detail. Included in each section
are variations available, the principles of operation, coupling constructions,
design criteria, failure modes, and other important information.
It is hoped that this book will achieve two things: generally, to stress to
the reader the importance of couplings in power transmission systems; and,
more specifically, to provide the coupling selector with the basic tools required
for the successful application of couplings to particular needs.
This book could not have been written without the help and cooperation
of many individuals and coupling manufacturers. In particular, acknowledg-
ment is given to the Mechanical Drives Division of Zurn Industries, Inc. and
especially to the following personnel: Norman Anderson, Sam Steiner, Jim
Paluh, Bill Herbstritt, and my secretary Marty Keim. Special thanks are
extended to: Edward Heubel and Bill Herbstritt, for many of the sketches;
Michael M. Calistrat of Boyce Engineering, Howard Schwerdlin of Lovejoy,
and Q. W. Hein of the Falk Corporation, for their extra help.

Jon R. Mancuso
-

Contents

Prefuce to the Second Edition V

Preface to the First Edition vii

1. History of Couplings 1
I. Early History 1
11. The Period 1990-1930 2
111. The Period 1930-1945 4
IV. The Period 1945-1 960 10
V. The Period 1960-1985 10
VI. The Period from 1985 to the Present 15
VII. Conclusion 15

2. Overview of Couplings and Joints 23

I. Advantages of Using Flexible Couplings 23
11. Types of Flexible Couplings-General 29
111. Types of General-purpose Couplings 34

xi
xii Contents

IV. Special-Purpose Couplings 52

V. Characteristics and Capacities of Couplings 67

3. Selection and Design 75

I. Selection Factors 75
11. Design Equations and Parameters 80
111. Balancing of Couplings 118
IV. Interface Connections 152

4. Installation and Maintenance 177

I. Introduction 177
11. Installation of Couplings 178
111. Alignment of Equipment 193
IV. Coupling Assembly 215
V. Lubrication of Couplings 227
VI. Coupling Disassembly 240

5. Rigid Couplings 247

I. Introduction 247
11. Flanged Rigid Couplings 249
111. Ribbed Rigid Couplings 249
IV. Sleeve Rigid Couplings 253
V. Quill Shaft Rigid Couplings 258

6. Mechanically Flexible Couplings 261

I. Introduction 26 1
11. Gear Couplings 262
111. Grid Couplings 343
IV. Chain Couplings 354
V. Universal Joints 362

7. Elastomeric Couplings 403

I. Introduction 403
11. Elastomeric Compression Couplings 423
111. Elastomeric Shear Couplings 430

8. Metallic Element Couplings 439

I. Introduction 439
Contents xiii

11. Disc Couplings 462

111. Diaphragm Couplings 475

9. Miscellaneous Couplings 489

I. Introduction 489
11. Pin and Bushing Coupling 490
111. Offset Coupling (Schmidt Coupling) 49 1
IV. Tangential Spring Coupling 49 1
V. Metallic Beam Coupling 492
VI. Sliding Block Coupling 493

10. Special-Purpose Couplings 495

I. Torquemeter Couplings 495
11. Torsional Damping Couplings 508
111. Retrofitting Nonlubricated Couplings 519

11. Coupling Nomenclature 537

Appendix A: Coupling Manufacturers 553

Appendix B: Typical Installation Instructions 563
References 569
Index 573
COUPllNGS
RND JOINTS
 1
History of Couplings

1. EARLY HISTORY
The flexible coupling is an outgrowth of the wheel. In fact, without the
wheel and its development there would have been no need for flexible
couplings. It has been reported that the first wheel was made by an
unknown Sumerian more than 5000 years ago in the region of the Tigris
and Euphrates rivers. The earliest record we have dates to 3500 B.C. His-
tory records that the first flexible coupling was the universal joint (see
Figure I . I), used by the Greeks around 300 B.C. The Chinese were using
this concept sometime around A.D. 25. The father of the modem flexible
coupling was Jerome Cardan, who in the sixteenth century invented
what was described as a simple device consisting of two yokes, a cross,
and four bearings. This joint, the common ancestor of all flexible cou-
plings, is still in use today and is continually being upgraded with the
latest technology. Cardan did not design the Cardan shaft for rotating-
shaft applications, but only as a suspension member. The Cardan joint

1
2 Chapter 1

FIGURE
1.1 The ancestor of the flexible coupling-the universal joint.

is also known as the Hooke joint. In approximately 1650, Robert Hooke

developed the first application of this joint, using it in a rotating shaft in
a clock drive. Hooke wrote the equation for the fluctuations in angular
velocity caused by a single Cardan joint.
Between 1700 and 1800, very little is recorded in the way of fur-
ther developments in flexible couplings. The Industrial Revolution and
especially, later, the automobile revolution precipitated the creation of
many flexible couplings. In 1886, F. Roots theorized that if he thinned
down the flange section of a rigid coupling it would flex and prevent the
equipment and shaft from failing, an idea that was the forerunner of
today’s diaphragm coupling (see Figure 1.2A). The Davis compression
coupling (Figure 1.2B) was developed to eliminate keys by compress-
ing hubs onto the shaft. It was thought to be safer than other coupling
devices because no protruding screws were required, What is believed
to be the first chain coupling (Figure 1.2C) was described in the May
1914 issue of ScientiJicAmerican.

II. THE PERIOD 1900-1930

The coupling industry expanded rapidly in the 1920s as a direct result
of the invention of the automobile. Table I . 1 gives some of the coupling
manufacturers established during this period. (See Figures 1.3A-H.)
History of Couplings 3

FIGURE 1.2 Early couplings. (A) Diaphragm coupling patented in 1886.

(B) Davis compression coupling. (C) Early chain coupling.
4 Chapter 1

1.1 Coupling Manufacturers Established in the 1920s

TABLE
Date Figure
Original name started Today’s name number

Thomas Flexible Cou- 1916 Thomas Flexible Disc 1.3A

pling Company Coupling Operation
of Rexnord Corpora-
tion
Fast’s Couplings, The 1919 Kop-Flex, Inc., Emer- 1.3B
Barlette Hayward Co. son Power Trans-
mission Corporation
Lovejoy Couplings 1927 Lovejoy, Inc. 1.3c
Poole Foundry and 1920 TB Wood’s, Inc. 1.3D
Machine
American Flexible Cou- 1928 Ameridrives Interna- 1.3E
plings tional
Ajax Flexible Coupling 1920 Renold, Inc., Engi- 1.3F
Company, Inc. neered Products
TB Wood’s & Sons, Inc. 1920 TB Wood’s, Inc. 1.3F
Bibby 1919 Bibby 1.3H

111. THE PERIOD 1930-1945

During the period 1930-1 945 many general-purpose flexible couplings
were introduced into the industrial market. The most frequently used are
illustrated in Figure 1.4:
Chain coupling (Figure 1.4A)
Grid coupling (Figure 1.41B)
Jaw coupling (Figure 1.4C)
Gear coupling (Figure 1.4D)
Disc coupling (Figure 1.4E)
Slider block coupling (Figure 1.4F)
Universal joint (Figure 1.4G)
History of Couplings 5

FIGURE 1.3 Couplings of the period 1900-1 930. (A) Thomas disc cou-
pling. (B) Fasi’s gear coupling. (C) Lovejoy jaw coupling. (D) Poole gear
coupling. (E) American slider block coupling. (F) Ajax pin-and-bushing
coupling. (G) TB Wood’s resilient coupling. (H) Bibby grid coupling.
6 Chapter 1

1.3 Continued.
FIGURE
History of Couplings 7

FIGURE
1.3 Continued