Flexible Shafts – Better Option to Transmit Motion or Power Around Corners
One of the greatest limitations of the solid shaft is that it cannot transmit motion or power around corners. It is therefore necessary to resort to belts, chains, or gears, together with bearings and the supporting framework associated with them. The flexible shaft may often be an economical solution to the problem of transmitting motion around corners. In addition to the elimination of costly parts, its use may reduce noise considerably. There are two main types of flexible shafts: the power-drive shaft for the transmission of power in a single direction, and the remote-control or manual-control shaft for the transmission of motion in either direction.
The cable is made by winding several layers of wire around a central core. For the power-drive shaft, rotation should be in a direction such that the outer layer is wound up. Remote-control cables have a different lay of the wires forming the cable, with more wires in each layer, so that the torsional deflection is approximately the same for either direction of rotation. Flexible shafts are rated by specifying the torque corresponding to various radii of curvature of the casing. A 15-in radius of curvature, for example, will give from 2 to 5 times more torque capacity than a 7-in radius. When flexible shafts are used in a drive in which gears are also used, the gears should be placed so that the flexible shaft runs at as high a speed as possible. This permits the transmission of the maximum amount of horsepower.
(Courtesy of S.S. White Technologies, Inc.)
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