Abstract
It is the aim of this paper to make analyses of torsional rigidity and the stress of a flexible shaft, and make comparisons between theoretical and experimental results. Experiments were conducted with a view to these ends, and the results obtained are summarized as follows:
(1) A flexible shaft, when its torsional properties is treated analytically, should not be considered as a group of coil springs, because the contact pressure arises in the side wires of any two layers.
(2) An analytical method established by considering the contact pressure between the two layers is useful to determine the torsional properties of flexible shaft.
(3) The torsional properties of a flexible shaft depend not so much on the construction of internal layers as on that of the outer layer.
(4) In the case of flexible shafts having a constant outside diameter, the torsional rigidity increases and the stresses of side wires decrease with the increase of the number of side wires in the outer layer.
(5) The torsional rigidity C and the stress of side wires σ of a flexible shaft can be approximately determined by applying the practical equation proposed by the authors in which the construction of side wires in the outer layer is mainly taken into consideration.
