Machine Design: Department of Production Engineering and Metallurgy/ Industrial Engineering Branch/ Third Stage

MACHINE DESIGN
Lecture 10
Department of Production Engineering and Metallurgy/
Industrial Engineering Branch/ Third Stage
BY
Dr. Omar Hashim Hassoon
keys
A key is a piece of mild steel inserted between the shaft and hub or boss of the pulley to connect
these together in order to prevent relative motion between them. It is always inserted parallel to the
axis of the shaft. Keys are used as temporary fastenings and are subjected to considerable crushing
and shearing stresses. A keyway is a slot or recess in a shaft and hub of the pulley to accommodate a
Types of Keys
The following types of keys are important from the
subject point of view :
1. Sunk keys, 2. Saddle keys, 3. Tangent keys,
4. Round keys, and 5. Splines.
1. Sunk Keys
The sunk keys are provided half in the keyway of the shaft and half in the keyway
of the hub or boss of the pulley. The sunk keys are of the following types:
1. Rectangular sunk key. A rectangular sunk key is shown in Fig.1. The usual
proportions of this key are:
Fig.1. Rectangular sunk key.

2. Square sunk key. The only difference between a rectangular sunk key and a
square sunk key is that its width and thickness are equal, i.e.
w=t=d/4
3. Parallel sunk key. The parallel sunk keys may be of rectangular or square section
uniform in width and thickness throughout. It may be noted that a parallel key is a
tapeless and is used where the pulley, gear or other mating piece is required to slide
along the shaft.
4. Gib-head key. It is a rectangular sunk key with a head at one end known as gib
head. It is usually provided to facilitate the removal of key. A gib head key is
shown in Fig.2 (a) and its use in shown in Fig.2 (b).
Fig.2. Gib-head key.
The usual proportions of the gib head key are:
Width, w = d / 4; and thickness at large end, t = 2w / 3 = d / 6

2. Saddle keys
The saddle keys are of the following two

types:
1. Flat saddle key, and 2. Hollow
saddle key.
A flat saddle key is a taper key which fits
in a keyway in the hub and is flat on the
shaft as shown in Fig3. It is likely to slip
round the shaft under load. Therefore it is
used for comparatively light loads. Fig. 3. Saddle key.
A hollow saddle key is a taper key which fits in
a keyway in the hub and the bottom of the key
is shaped to fit the curved surface of the shaft.
Since hollow saddle keys hold on by friction,
therefore these are suitable for light loads. It is
usually used as a temporary fastening in fixing
and setting eccentrics, cams etc.
3. Tangent Keys
Fig. 4. Tangent key.
The tangent keys are fitted in pair at right
angles as shown in Fig. 4. Each key is to
withstand torsion in one direction only. These
are used in large heavy duty shafts.
. Round Keys
The round keys, as shown in Fig. 5(a), are circular in section and fit into holes drilled
partly in the shaft and partly in the hub. They have the advantage that their keyways
may be drilled and reamed after the mating parts have been assembled. Round keys
are usually considered to be most appropriate for low power drives.
Sometimes the tapered pin, as shown in Fig. 5 (b), is held in place by the friction
between the pin and the reamed tapered holes.
Fig. 5. Round keys.

5. Splines
Sometimes, keys are made integral with the shaft
which fits in the keyways broached in the hub.
Such shafts are known as splined shafts as shown
in Fig. 6. These shafts usually have four, six, ten
or sixteen splines. The splined shafts are relatively
stronger than shafts having a single keyway.
The splined shafts are used when the force to be
transmitted is large in proportion to the size of the
shaft as in automobile transmission and sliding
gear transmissions. By using splined shafts, we Fig. 6. Splines.
obtain axial movement as well as positive drive is
obtained.
Forces acting on a Sunk Key
When a key is used in transmitting torque from a shaft to a rotor or hub, the following two types of forces act
on the key :
1. Forces (F1) due to fit of the key in its keyway, as in a tight fitting straight key or in a tapered key driven in
place. These forces produce compressive stresses in the key which are difficult to determine in magnitude.
2. Forces (F) due to the torque transmitted by the shaft. These forces produce shearing and compressive (or
crushing) stresses in the key.
The distribution of the forces along the length of the key is not uniform because the forces are concentrated
near the torque-input end. The non-uniformity of distribution is caused by the twisting of the shaft within the
hub.
The forces acting on a key for a clockwise torque being transmitted from a shaft to a hub are shown in Fig.
7.
In designing a key, forces due to fit of the key are neglected and it is assumed that the distribution of forces
along the length of key is uniform.
Fig. 7. Forces acting on a sunk key.
Strength of a Sunk Key
A key connecting the shaft and hub is shown in Fig. 7.

Let T = Torque transmitted by the shaft,
F = Tangential force acting at the circumference of the shaft,
d = Diameter of shaft,
l = Length of key,
w = Width of key.
t = Thickness of key, and
τ and σc = Shear and crushing stresses for the material of key.
A little consideration will show that due to the power transmitted by the shaft, the key may fail due to
shearing or crushing.
Considering shearing of the key, the tangential shearing force acting at the circumference of the shaft,
The permissible crushing stress for the usual key material is at least twice the permissible shearing stress.
Therefore from equation (iii), we have w = t. In other words, a square key is equally strong in shearing
and crushing.
In order to find the length of the key to transmit full power of the shaft, the shearing strength of the key is
equal to the torsional shear strength of the shaft.
We know that the shearing strength of key,
Example 1. Design the rectangular key for a shaft of 50 mm diameter. The shearing and crushing
stresses for the key material are 42 MPa and 70 MPa.
Example : A 45 mm diameter shaft is
made of steel with a yield strength of
400 MPa.
A parallel key of size 14 mm wide and
9 mm thick made of steel with a yield
strength of 340 MPa
is to be used. Find the required length
of key, if the shaft is loaded to transmit
the maximum
permissible torque. Use maximum
shear stress theory and assume a factor
of safety of 2.

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MACHINE DESIGN

Fig.1. Rectangular sunk key.

The usual proportions of the gib head key are:

Width, w = d / 4; and thickness at large end, t = 2w / 3 = d / 6

The saddle keys are of the following two

Fig. 5. Round keys.

Strength of a Sunk Key

A key connecting the shaft and hub is shown in Fig. 7.

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