An Experimental and Numerical Study on Reduction of Generated Axial Force

This paper proposes an experimental and numerical study to reduce the generated axial force (GAF) in a tripod constant velocity joint (CVJ). Based on the GAF model developed through kinematic and frictional analysis on the tripod CVJ, the key parameters that have a significant influence on the GAF are obtained. These parameters vary with the design parameters of the CVJ and the optimal design parameter with the lowest GAF are presented. The GAF of a tripod CVJ is estimated by the developed model, with respect to various design parameters, and the results shows that track curvature highly affects the GAF whereas contact angle hardly affects the GAF. The GAF decreases with the decrease of track curvature, and the minimum GAF occurs at −20% track curvature and +20% contact angle.