Driver Chain Guard
A guard around the chain helps protect the driver from serious injuries in case the chain fails
Calculation of the largest theoretical force exerted on the guard by the chain
The Chain Guard lowers the probability of serious injuries to the driver in case the chain fails. It must be strong enough to withstand the max force applied by the chain during maximum rpm of the motor. My design was chosen over two other proposals because it is easy to assemble, simple to manufacture on a roller, while achieving a safety factor of 2.
Role
Mechanical Designer & Analyst
Project Highlights
Performed FEA on all interior angles of the guard, thus ensuring the guard’s ability to protect the driver if the chain snaps.
Reduced the weight by tapering the guard’s arc closer to the chain, yet still maintain enough safety clearance.
The design went through more than 6 iterations, as the main difficulties are sizing the cutouts accurately and parallelly aligning the guard to the chain.
Tools
SolidWorks | ANSYS Mechanical | SpaceClaim
FEA of different possible angles where the chain can snap towards when broken
You spin me right ‘round …