WEDGES AND FRICTIONAL FORCES ON FLAT BELTS Todays

WEDGES AND FRICTIONAL FORCES ON FLAT BELTS Today’s Objectives: Students will be able to: a) Determine the forces on a wedge. b) Determine the tensions in a belt.

APPLICATIONS Wedges are used to adjust the elevation or provide stability for heavy objects such as this large steel vessel. How can we determine the force required to pull the wedge out? When there are no applied forces on the wedge, will it stay in place (i. e. , be selflocking) or will it come out on its own? Under what physical conditions will it come out?

APPLICATIONS (continued) Belt drives are commonly used for transmitting power from one shaft to another. How can we decide that the belts will function properly, i. e. , without slipping or breaking?

APPLICATIONS (continued) In the design of a band brake, it is essential to analyze the frictional forces acting on the band (which acts like a belt). How can we determine the tensions in the cable pulling on the band? How are these tensions, the applied force P and the torque M, related?

ANALYSIS OF A WEDGE W A wedge is a simple machine in which a small force P is used to lift a large weight W. To determine the force required to push the wedge in or out, it is necessary to draw FBDs of the wedge and the object on top of it. It is easier to start with a FBD of the wedge since you know the direction of its motion. Note that: a) the friction forces are always in the direction opposite to the motion, or impending motion, of the wedge; b) the friction forces are along the contacting surfaces; and, c) the normal forces are perpendicular to the contacting surfaces.

ANALYSIS OF A WEDGE (continued) Next, a FBD of the object on top of the wedge is drawn. Please note that: a) at the contacting surfaces between the wedge and the object the forces are equal in magnitude and opposite in direction to those on the wedge; and, b) all other forces acting on the object should be shown. To determine the unknowns, we must apply Eof. E, Fx = 0 and Fy = 0, to the wedge and the object as well as the impending motion frictional equation, F = S N. Now of the two FBDs, which one should we start analyzing first? We should start analyzing the FBD in which the number of unknowns are less than or equal to the number of equations.

ANALYSIS OF A WEDGE (continued) W If the object is to be lowered, then the wedge needs to be pulled out. If the value of the force P needed to remove the wedge is positive, then the wedge is self-locking, i. e. , it will not come out on its own. However, if the value of P is negative, or zero, then the wedge will come out on its own unless a force is applied to keep the wedge in place. This can happen if the coefficient of friction is small or the wedge angle is large.

BELT ANALYSIS Belts are used for transmitting power or applying brakes. Friction forces play an important role in determining the various tensions in the belt. The belt tension values are then used for analyzing or designing a belt drive or a brake system.

BELT ANALYSIS (continued) Consider a flat belt passing over a fixed curved surface with the total angle of contact equal to radians. If the belt slips or is just about to slip, then T 2 must be larger than T 1 and the friction forces. Hence, T 2 must be greater than T 1. Detailed analysis (please refer to your textbook) shows that T 2 = T 1 e where is the coefficient of static friction between the belt and the surface. Be sure to use radians when using this formula!!

EXAMPLE Given: The load weighs 100 lb and the S between surfaces AC and BD is 0. 3. Smooth rollers are placed between wedges A and B. Assume the rollers and the wedges have negligible weights. Find: The force P needed to lift the load. Plan: 1. Draw a FBD of wedge A. Why do A first? 2. Draw a FBD of wedge B. 3. Apply the E-of-E to wedge B. Why do B first? 4. Apply the E-of-E to wedge A.

EXAMPLE (continued) N 2 10º The FBDs of wedges A and B are shown in the figures. Applying the Eof. E to wedge B, we get P A + FX = N 2 sin 10 – N 3 = 0 F 1= 0. 3 N 1 + FY = N 2 cos 10 – 100 – 0. 3 N 3 = 0 100 lb Solving the above two equations, we get N 2 = 107. 2 lb and N 3 = 18. 6 lb F 3= 0. 3 N 3 B Applying the E-of-E to the wedge A, we get + FY = N 1 – 107. 2 cos 10 = 0; N 1 N 2 10º N 1 = 105. 6 lb + FX = P – 107. 2 sin 10 – 0. 3 N 1 = 0; P = 50. 3 lb N 3

GROUP PROBLEM SOLVING Given: Blocks A and B weigh 50 lb and 30 lb, respectively. Find: The smallest weight of cylinder D which will cause the loss of static equilibrium.

GROUP PROBLEM SOLVING (continued) Plan: 1. Consider two cases: a) both blocks slide together, and, b) block B slides over the block A. 2. For each case, draw a FBD of the block(s). 3. For each case, apply the Eof. E to find the force needed to cause sliding. 4. Choose the smaller P value from the two cases. 5. Use belt friction theory to find the weight of block D.