Hindawi

Mathematical Problems in Engineering

Volume 2019, Article ID 5084573, 12 pages
https://doi.org/10.1155/2019/5084573

Research Article
Study on the Optimization Model of a Flexible Transmission

Guodong Zhai ,1 Zhihao Liang,1 and Mingyang Li2

1
School of Mechanical Electronic & Information Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing),
Beijing 100083, China
2
School of Mechanical Engineering & Automation-BUAA, Beihang University, Beijing 100083, China

Correspondence should be addressed to Guodong Zhai; [email protected]

Received 8 April 2019; Revised 12 June 2019; Accepted 23 June 2019; Published 8 July 2019

Academic Editor: Vasilios Spitas

Copyright © 2019 Guodong Zhai et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License,
which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

A belt drive and a chain drive are the main types of flexible power transmission. In the traditional belt and chain drive design process,
engineers need to do a lot of rework to get a design. To solve this problem, taking the Shell Eco-Marathon vehicle as an example,
the traditional design and optimization design of the transmission system are carried out. In the optimization design, component
optimization and overall optimization design model of the belt and chain drive are first established. Second, the charts in the design
manual are converted into formulas by using MATLAB. Finally, an optimization design model is established in Microsoft Excel, and
the Excel Solver tool is used to find the optimal design result. The design method proposed in this paper can effectively determine
the optimal design of transmission system and provides a new method for the processing of such problems.

1. Introduction in industry [1]. Based on complex algorithm, Spitas, V. and

Spitas, C. [2] proposed a nonstandard optimal alternative
Motors are used to provide rotational power, but they
involute gear design, which achieved the same performance
typically operate at too high a speed and too low a torque.
as involute gears by satisfying the optimization design with
Therefore, speed reduction between the motor and the driven
objective function and active constraints. With the develop-
machine is always needed. Belts and chains represent the
major types of flexible power transmission elements. The ment of artificial intelligence in recent years, there have been
high speed of the motor makes a belt drive ideal for the certain intelligent optimization algorithms, such as genetic
first stage of speed reduction. At low speed and high torque algorithms [3–5], ant colony algorithms [6, 7], neural network
conditions, chain drives become desirable. Figure 1 shows a algorithms [8–10], and particle swarm optimization (PSO)
typical application of belt and chain drives, where belts and algorithms [11]. Padmanabhan et al. [12] optimized the bevel
chains are each used to their best advantage. gear pair by using a nonlinear programming optimizing
It is obvious that the design process of chain drives and software LINGO and metaheuristics. The efficiency of the
belt drives is very similar. Whether designing chain drives or proposed algorithms is validated through gear design prob-
belt drives, many parameters need to be selected from tables lems and the comparative results are studied [12]. Dolen et
or drawings in catalogs. This process always requires a large al. [13] used genetic algorithm to study the optimal design
amount of time, and the designers are not able to evaluate all of four-stage gear train and proposed five different genetic
the solutions. The traditional method has the disadvantage of coding schemes to solve the most critical constraints. Spitas
a low calculation precision. The traditional method is always et al. [14] introduced the concept of nondimensional gear
a feasible solution but not the best solution. Optimal design teeth to be used in gear stress minimization problems. This
results can be obtained by using modeling and software tools. proposed method significantly reduces the calculation time
This method can shorten the design time and find the best by essentially reducing the total number of design variables
solution. [14]. Haj-Fraj et al. [15] proposed an automatic transmission
Optimization has evolved from a methodology of aca- shift optimization method based on the validation mechanics
demic interest and has continued to make a significant impact model of power assembly. For the nonlinear programming
2 Mathematical Problems in Engineering

Driven machine
e
Slack sid
w1

Motor

w2
Chain drive Tight sid
e
Belt drive
Figure 2: A belt drive.
Figure 1: A typical application of belt drives and chain drives.

it is necessary to make full use of the superior functions of

problem, the sequential quadratic programming algorithm each software to optimize the design.
was used to solve it [15]. This paper presents the general design of belt drives,
Optimization has been applied in the power transmission chain drives, and the design optimization process in Excel.
system. A multiobjective mathematical model based on the Section 2 introduces the general design process of belt drive
minimum volume of the wheel and the force on the drive shaft and chain drive and gives the design results of the trans-
of a belt drive was established based on an improved genetic mission system applied in Shell Eco-Marathon; Section 3
algorithm [16]. Deng et al. [17] proposed a multiobjective introduces the construction of the optimization model and
evolutionary algorithm (MOEA) based on nondominated the formulation of the tables; Section 4 introduces the
sorting, which can analyze the influence of transmission construction of the model which combines the belt drive
ratio matching on the fuel economy and emissions. Sun [18] design with the chain drive design; Section 5 introduces the
analyzed a tractor gearbox transmission system and a push design process of the optimal scheme of the transmission
spam transmission control system based on determining system model; Section 6 compares the general design and the
the parameters of the transmission system. Wang [19] used optimization design, including the processes and results, and
theory of the solution of inventive problems (TRIZ) to provides conclusions.
configure the parameters of belt drive and chain drive, which
improved the performance of the whole combined drive. 2. General Design Process
The optimal mathematical model is derived by the method
of the internal penalty function, and the design variables, The Shell Environmental Marathon requires cars to drive as
target function, and constraint conditions are determined far as possible with 1 L of gasoline. Under such conditions,
to obtain the best solution [20]. Based on minimization of the weight of the whole vehicle could be reduced to achieve
the size of the belt drive, Hong et al. [21] determined the its goal. According to the rules of the race, the material of the
optimum radius of the belt roller by analyzing the design car cannot be changed. The best option is to minimize the
cord and relative data of the ordinary V-belt drive. Using the space volume of the transmission system so that the vehicle
V-belt’s minimum volume optimization method to establish can become lighter and drive farther.
a target function, V-belt’s optimization design mathematical
model was achieved, which is based on the genetic algorithm 2.1. Belt Drive Principle and the General Design Process. Belt
(GA) principle and uses the GA toolbox of MATLAB [22]. drives are always used as the first transmission. As shown
Combining both optimized design ideas and MATLAB and in Figure 2, the belt transmits power by frictional contact
regarding the minimal gross weight of a V-belt pulley as between the belt and the driving and driven pulley.
the optimization goal, the modeling and optimization of a In the general design process, engineers need to follow the
multirow V-belt drive is carried out using the exterior penalty process defined in the product catalog. In the process of belt
method [23]. Therefore, it is necessary to optimize the overall transmission design, it is necessary to know the transmission
volume of the transmission system. power, speed of the motor, and output speed (or the drive
Many optimization tools have been applied in design ratio). The design flowchart of belt drive is shown in Figure 3.
optimization. The MATLAB genetic algorithm toolbox is There is a belt drive application in the general design
used in the optimization of key parameters [24]. The mathe- process for the Shell Eco-Marathon vehicle.
matical models are constructed for a planetary gear reducer in Objective: Design the V-belt drive
a shield tunneling machine (STM) with 4 objective functions, Given:
which are solved by means of MATLAB programming The power transmitted: 𝑃=4.123 kW
language compiling by using the reliably gray PSO (basic The vehicle’s motor: Zongshen ZL70
particle swarm optimization) method [25]. Through practical The input rotation speed: 𝜔1 = 2418.1 𝑟 ∗ 𝑚𝑖𝑛−1
application in Excel of the mechanical system design, Song Drive ratio: 𝑖1 = 1.5
and Zhang [26] enumerated the count of applications in The results of belt drive design are shown in Table 1.
Excel for use in the machine design process. By means of In the process of belt transmission designed by common
the instances in machine design, Excel is used to improve the design method, many parameters need to be queried repeat-
design velocity and quality in machine design [27]. Therefore, edly for manuals and charts, which consumes a lot of design
Mathematical Problems in Engineering 3

Select the small pulley Determine pitch diameter

Select the service factor Select the band type
pitch diameter of the large pulley

Select the range of center Determine the center Determine the arc of
Select the belt length contact around the small
distance distance pulley

Determine the arc of Select the length Select the number of V-

Select the power rating
contact factor correction factor belts

Check on the service

factor

Figure 3: Flowchart of belt drive design.

Determine the total drive Determine the rotation Determine the

Determine the chain
ratio of the belt and chain speed of the driving approximate center
drive ratio sprocket
drive distance

Select the number of teeth Determine the tooth Determine the selection
Select the value of the
of driving and driven
sprockets application factor factor power

Select the smallest pitch Determine the center check on the safety
Select the chain length
of the simplex chain distance of the drive factors

Figure 4: Flowchart of chain drive design.

Table 1: The results of belt drive design. The chain drive is a transmission device that is widely
applied in mechanical equipment. Traditionally, to obtain
Variables Original design scheme satisfactory design data for the chain drive, designers must try
the diameter of small pulley (mm) d1 63 again and again. In the design of chain drive, it is necessary
the pitch length of belt (mm) Lw 590 to know the transmission power, the input speed, and the
Number of belts Z 3 output speed. The flowchart of chain drive design is shown
in Figure 4.
Now, we will show the chain general design process by
time. As far as the belt drive itself is concerned, the final applying it for the Shell Eco-Marathon vehicle:
design result cannot guarantee the optimal solution which Objective: Design the roller chain drive
takes up the smallest space volume. Given:
The power transmitted: P=4.123 kW
2.2. Chain Drive Principle and the General Design Process. The vehicle’s motor: Zongshen ZL70
The chain transmits power between two rotating shafts by The transmission system consists of two stages: the
meshing with toothed sprockets. Chain drives are usually belt drive and the chain drive. The belt drive is the first
manufactured using high-strength steel, and for this reason, transmission and its drive ratio is 𝑖1 =1.5. The input rotation
they are capable of transmitting high torque [28, 29]. The speed is 𝜔1 = 2418.1 𝑟/𝑚𝑖𝑛 and the output rotation speed is
most common type is a roller chain, which is used for high- 𝜔4 = 760.6 𝑟/𝑚𝑖𝑛.
power transmissions and delivery equipment. The results of chain drive design are shown in Table 2.
Chain design is based on ensuring that the power trans- In the process of designing chain drive by common design
mission capacity is within the limits for three modes of method, it also needs to spend a lot of time in searching
failure: fatigue, impact, and galling [29]. manuals to obtain parameters. Unlike the single design of
4 Mathematical Problems in Engineering

Table 2: The results of chain drive design. Table 3: CONTI FO-Z XPZ belt length correction factors 𝑐3 .

Variables Original design scheme Lw/m C3 Lw/m C3

Number of teeth on drive sprocket Z1 19 0.59 0.76 2.00 0.96
Number of teeth on driven sprocket Z2 40 0.80 0.81 2.24 0.98
Chain length (pitches) L 94 0.90 0.83 2.50 1.00
1.00 0.85 2.65 1.01
1.12 0.86 2.80 1.02
1.25 0.88 3.00 1.03
1.40 0.90 3.15 1.04
1.60 0.92 3.35 1.05
1.80 0.94 3.55 1.06

The height of the box is the same as the diameter of the large
pulley (𝐻𝑏1 = 𝑑2 ), so the volume of the belt drive is
Figure 5: The cuboid box of the belt drive.
𝑉𝑏1 = 𝐿 𝑏1 × 𝑊𝑏1 × 𝐻𝑏1

𝑑1 + 𝑑2 (3)
chain drive, this design is a transmission system composed = (𝑎 + ) × [(𝑁 − 1) × 𝑒 + 2𝑓] × 𝑑2
2
of belt drive and chain drive, and the overall volume of the
transmission system is the smallest. This requires that the In the same way, we can calculate the volume of the chain
interaction between the parameters of belt drive and chain drives:
drive should be considered as a whole. Obviously, it is difficult 𝑑 + 𝑑4
𝑉𝑐1 = 𝐿 𝑐1 × 𝑊𝑐1 × 𝐻𝑐1 = (𝐶 + 3 ) × 𝐵 × 𝑑4
to design chain drive separately to take into account the 2
design parameters of belt drive.
12.7 12.7
= {𝐶 + [ + ] × 0.5} × 7.2 (4)
3. Optimization Model Construction and sin (𝜋/𝑧1 ) sin (𝜋/𝑧2 )
Table Formulation 12.7
×
In the traditional design method described above, there is no sin (𝜋/𝑧2 )
simple quantitative model that can determine the volumes The volume of the transmission system is
of overall design of the belt and chain drive to determine
whether the final design result is optimal. In the optimization 𝑉 = 𝑉𝑏1 + 𝑉𝑐1
design, the goal is to take up as little space as possible.
Therefore, for the overall design of the traditional system (𝑑1 + 𝑑2 )
= [𝑎 + ] × [(𝑧 − 1) ⋅ 𝑒 + 2𝑓] × 𝑑2
(such as a belt drive), the volume of the space occupied by 2
the belt drive is now represented by the volume of the cuboid (5)
box that can be mounted on the drive system. The model [12.7/ sin (𝜋/𝑍1 ) + 12.7/ sin (𝜋/𝑍2 )]
+ {𝐶 + }
construction of the belt drive is shown in Figure 5. 2
After the optimization model is established, many pro-
12.7
gramming platforms and certain integration tools can be used × 7.2 ×
to solve the optimization problem, such as the MATLAB sin (𝜋/𝑍2 )
optimization toolbox and Excel Solver. In the general design where 𝑎 is the center distance between the two pulleys, 𝑑1 is
process, it is necessary to obtain data from the catalog tables. the small pulley diameter, 𝑑2 is the large pulley diameter, 𝑧 is
However, for the optimization design, this paper transforms the number of V-belts, 𝑒 is the distance between the two belt
the chart into a formula in order to improve the design speed grooves, 𝑓 is the distance from the belt groove to the edge,
and quality. 𝐶 is the center distance between the two sprockets, 𝑧1 is the
number of teeth of the large sprockets, and 𝑧2 is the number
3.1. Overall Objective Function Modeling Process. For the belt of teeth of the small sprockets.
drives, the cuboid box model can be seen in Figure 3.
3.2. Formulation with the Belt Length Correction Factor 𝑐3 . In
𝑑 + 𝑑2 the ContiTech catalog of V-belts, there is a table of CONTI
The length of the box is: 𝐿 𝑏1 = 𝑎 + 1 (1)
2 FO-Z XPZ belt length correction factors, 𝑐3 , as shown in
Table 3.
The width of the box is the same as the pulleys’ width: The table can be transformed into a formula by MATLAB.
The curve in Figure 6 represents the data points and regres-
𝑊𝑏1 = 𝐵 = (𝑍 − 1) × 𝑒 + 2𝑓 (2) sion curve. The fitting error of the formula is given in Figure 7.
Mathematical Problems in Engineering 5

1.1
y = 8.2864e-12∗Ｒ3 - 7.5797e-08∗Ｒ2 + 0.00028895∗x + 0.62106 data1
cubic
1

0.9

0.8

0.7
500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000
Figure 6: CONTI FO-ZXPZ data and fitting curve for the correction factor estimation.

0.1

0.05

−0.05

−0.1
500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000

Figure 7: Fitting error of formula (6).

From Figures 6 and 7, the formula suits very well with the where 𝑘𝛼 is the arc of the contact factor and 𝑘𝐿 is the belt
table. Thus, the functional relationship between 𝑐3 and 𝐿 𝑤 can length correction factor.
be described with the following formula: In the ContiTech catalog, 𝑃 = 𝑃𝑟 × 𝑘𝛼 × 𝑘𝐿, so

𝑐3 = 8.2864 × 10−12 × 𝐿 𝑤 3 − 7.5797 × 10−8 × 𝐿 𝑤 2 𝐾1 𝐾2

(6) 𝑃𝑟 = V × [ 0.09
− − 𝐾3 × V2 ]
V 𝑑1 × 𝐾𝑖
+ 2.8895 × 10−4 × 𝐿 𝑤 + 0.62106
= 𝐴 × 𝑛31 × 𝑑31 + 𝐵 × 𝑛0.91 × 𝑑0.91
1 + 𝐶 × 𝑛1 (10)
3.3. Formulation of the Single V-Belt Power Rating Chart. 1
The power rating 𝑃𝑅 is a function of 𝑑1 , transmission ratio × 1/5.3
𝑖, and small pulley speed 𝑛𝑘 and its value can be looked 𝑖 × [2/ (1 + 𝑖5.3 )]
up in a catalog, as shown in Table 4. To make it easier to
optimize, it is necessary to find a formula to describe the rated If the speed of the small pulley is known, the formula can be
power rating values. As the value of 𝑛𝑘 is known, a formula transformed into
is needed to describe the power rating as a function of 𝑑1
1
and 𝑖. 𝑃𝑟 = 𝑘1 × 𝑑1 3 + 𝑘2 × 𝑑1 0.91 + 𝑘3 × (11)
First step: linearly interpolate to obtain the value of 𝑃𝑅 𝑘𝑖
when 𝑛𝑘 = 2418.055𝑟𝑝𝑚.
Second step: process the data in MATLAB. The coefficients of the formulas above can be obtained by
The power rating of a single V-belt is a function of the MATLAB. The formulas are as follows:
belt speed v, small pulley diameter 𝑑1 , and transmission ratio
𝑖: 𝑃𝑟 = −4.66 × 10−8 𝑑31 + 0.111𝑑0.91
1

1 1 (12)
𝑃𝑟 = 𝑘1 × 𝑑31 + 𝑘2 × 𝑑0.91 + 𝑘3 × (7) + 2.775 1/5.3
1 1/5.3
𝑖 × [2/ (1 + 𝑖5.3 )] 𝑖 × [2/ (1 + 𝑖5.3 )]

1/5.3 The residual case order plot of the formula is given in

2
𝐾𝑖 = 𝑖 × [ ] (8) Figure 8. According to the concentration trend and the
1 + 𝑖5.3
concentration degree and shape of the residual distribution
𝜋 × 𝑑1 × 𝑛1 in the figure, it can be seen that this formula is fully in
v= (9) accordance with the original data in Table 4.
60000
6 Mathematical Problems in Engineering

Table 4: Single V-belt power rating.

𝑛𝑘 /𝑟 ∙ 𝑚𝑖𝑛−1
𝑑1 /𝑚𝑚 𝑖
100 200 400 700 800 950 1200 1450 1600 2000 2400 2850 3200 3600
1.00 0.14 0.25 0.45 0.70 0.78 0.90 1.08 1.24 1.34 1.58 1.80 2.02 2.17 2.33
1.05 0.14 0.26 0.46 0.72 0.80 0.92 1.11 1.28 1.38 1.63 1.85 2.09 2.25 2.42
63.00 1.20 0.15 0.28 0.51 0.81 0.91 1.05 1.27 1.47 1.59 1.89 2.17 2.46 2.67 2.90
1.50 0.16 0.30 0.54 0.86 0.97 1.11 1.35 1.57 1.70 2.03 2.34 2.66 2.90 3.15
3.00 0.17 0.31 0.56 0.90 1.01 1.16 1.41 1.65 1.79 2.14 2.47 2.82 3.07 3.34
1.00 0.19 0.34 0.62 1.00 1.12 1.29 1.57 1.83 1.98 2.37 2.73 3.10 3.37 3.66
1.05 0.19 0.35 0.63 1.01 1.14 1.32 1.60 1.97 2.02 2.42 2.79 3.17 3.45 3.75
71.00 1.20 0.20 0.37 0.69 1.11 1.25 1.44 1.76 1.06 2.24 2.68 3.11 3.55 3.88 4.23
1.50 0.21 0.39 0.71 1.16 1.30 1.51 1.84 1.16 2.35 2.82 3.27 3.75 4.10 4.48
3.00 0.21 0.40 0.74 1.20 1.35 1.56 1.91 2.24 2.43 2.93 3.40 3.90 4.27 4.67

Residual Case Order Plot

1

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2
Residuals

−0.2

−0.4

−0.6

−0.8
0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5 5 5.5
Case Number
Figure 8: The residual case order plot of formula (12).

For the belt optimization only, the transmission ratio can The transmission system consists of two stages: the belt
be assumed to be 𝑖=1.5, then drive and the chain drive. The input rotation speed is 𝜔1 =
2418.1 𝑟 ∗ 𝑚𝑖𝑛−1 and the output rotation speed is 𝜔4 =
𝑃𝑟 = −4.66 × 10−8 𝑑31 + 0.111𝑑0.91
1 + 2.486 (13) 760.6 𝑟 ∗ 𝑚𝑖𝑛−1 .

4.1. Objective Function. The aim of the design optimization

4. Optimum Model of Belt Drive and is to obtain the minimum value of the objective function. To
Chain Drive travel as far as possible within the context of a limited energy
In order to get the global optimal solution, it is necessary to supply for the Shell Eco-Marathon vehicle, it is important to
consider the belt drive and chain drive as a whole. In this reduce the mass (or the volume) of the vehicle. For the belt
section, the whole structure of belt drive and chain drive and chain design optimization, the volume of belt and chain
is designed as an optimization model. The model is more drives transmission system can be chosen as the objective
complex with more variables. Excel solver can be used to solve function.
optimization problems. The flowchart of the optimal design According to the conclusion of Section 3, the objective
is shown in Figure 9. function is shown in formula (5).
The optimal design process is as follows. The center distance of the pulleys:
Objective: Design the belt drive and roller chain drive 1 𝑑 + 𝑑2 1
𝑎= × (𝐿 𝑤 − 1 × 𝜋) +
with a minimum volume of the sprockets and pulleys 4 2 4
Given: (14)
The power transmitted: 𝑃=4.123 kW 𝑑 + 𝑑2 2 2
× √ (𝐿 𝑤 − 1 ) − 2 × (𝑑1 − 𝑑2 )
The vehicle’s motor: Zongshen ZL70 2
Mathematical Problems in Engineering 7

[2] The speed of the belt should not exceed 50 m/s, with
Determine design
V = (𝜋 × 𝑑1 × 𝑛1 )/60000, so
conditions
𝜋 × 𝑑1 × 2414.005
𝑔2 (𝑥) = − 50 ≤ 0 (18)
60000
Construct optimization
[3] The number of belts should not exceed 10, so
function model
𝑔3 (𝑥) = 𝑧 − 10 ≤ 0 (19)

Formulate tables based [4] The center distance: 0.7 × (𝑑1 + 𝑑2 ) ≤ 𝑎 ≤ 2 × (𝑑1 + 𝑑2 )
on MATLAB
𝑑2 = 𝑑1 × 𝑖
1 𝑑 + 𝑑2
𝑔4 (𝑥) = 0.7 × (𝑑1 + 𝑑2 ) − × (𝐿 𝑤 − 1 × 𝜋)
4 2
Determine design
variables 1
−
4
(20)
2
𝑑1 + 𝑑2 2
× √ (𝐿 𝑤 − × 𝜋) − 2 × (𝑑2 − 𝑑1 )
Whether other No 2
Modify the values of
parameters satisfy
constraints design variables ≤0
1 𝑑 + 𝑑2 1
𝑔5 (𝑥) = × (𝐿 𝑤 − 1 × 𝜋) +
Yes 4 2 4
Use Excel Solver to find 2
𝑑1 + 𝑑2 2 (21)
the optimal solution × √ (𝐿 𝑤 − × 𝜋) − 2 × (𝑑2 − 𝑑1 )
2
Figure 9: Flowchart of the optimal design.
− 2 × (𝑑1 + 𝑑2 ) ≤ 0

[5] For the “CONTI FO-Z XPZ” belt, 50 ≤ 𝑑1 ≤ 140,

The center distance of the sprockets: 590 ≤ 𝐿 𝑤 ≤ 3550, so

𝑔6 (𝑥) = 𝑑1 − 140 ≤ 0 (22)

𝑝
𝐶= [2𝐿 − 𝑧1 − 𝑧2
8 𝑔7 (𝑥) = 50 − 𝑑1 ≤ 0 (23)
(15)
2 𝜋 2 𝑔8 (𝑥) = 𝐿 𝑤 − 3550 ≤ 0 (24)
+ √(2𝐿 − 𝑧1 − 𝑧2 ) − (𝑧 − 𝑧1 ) ]
3.88 2
𝑔9 (𝑥) = 590 − 𝐿 𝑤 ≤ 0 (25)
4.2. Design Variables. From the formula of the volume, we
[6] The number of teeth on the drive sprocket should be
find that there are six variables:
at least 19, and the number of teeth on the driven sprocket
The diameter of the small pulleys 𝑑1 , the diameter of
should be less than 114.
the large pulley 𝑑2 , the center distance of the pulleys 𝑎, the
number of belts 𝑧, the number of teeth on the drive sprocket 𝑔10 (𝑥) = 19 − 𝑧1 ≤ 0 (26)
𝑧1 , the number of teeth on the driven sprockets 𝑧2 , and the
center distance of the sprockets 𝐶. However, the value of the 𝑔11 (𝑥) = 𝑧2 − 114 ≤ 0 (27)
belt length and the length of the chain are discrete. We can
use the belt length 𝐿 1 and the chain length 𝐿 2 to replace the 𝑔12 (𝑥) = 𝑧1 − 𝑧2 ≤ 0 (28)
variables 𝑎 and 𝐶 to make it easy to obtain the optimization
solution. Thus, we can obtain the following design variables: [7] The sum of the teeth should not be less than 50:

𝑇 𝑇 𝑔13 (𝑥) = 50 − 𝑧1 − 𝑧2 ≤ 0 (29)

𝑥 = [𝑥1 , 𝑥2 , 𝑥3 , 𝑥4 , 𝑥5 , 𝑥6 ] = [𝑑1 , 𝐿 1 , 𝑧, 𝑧1 , 𝑧2 , 𝐿 2 ] (16)
[8] From the safety factor table in the catalog, the safety
4.3. Optimization Constraints. [1] The belt safety factor factor should be greater than 8:
should be greater than 1.1, so The chain drive ratio: 𝑖2 = 𝑧2 /𝑧1
The chain velocity: V = (𝑛3 × 𝑝 × 𝑧1 )/60000
𝑧 × 𝑐1 × 𝑐3 × 𝑃𝑟 The load in the chain due to the power transmitted: 𝐹1 =
𝑔1 (𝑥) = 1.1 − ≤0 (17) 1000𝑄/V
𝑃
8 Mathematical Problems in Engineering

The load in the chain due to the centripetal acceleration: Compared with the solutions with different starting
𝐹2 = 𝑚V2 = 0.70V2 points, the following solution is the best, and the value of the
The chain axial breaking force: 𝐹 = 17800 𝑁 objective function is 1312888 mm3 .
The chain safety factor 𝑐 = 𝐹/(𝐹1 + 𝐹2 )
𝑇
𝑥 = [𝑑1 , 𝐿 1 , 𝑧, 𝑧1 , 𝑧2 , 𝐿 2 ] = [71, 590, 2, 19, 38, 89]𝑇 (33)
𝐹
𝑔14 (𝑥) = 8 − ≤0 (30)
𝐹1 + 𝐹2 5.2. Calculate the Other Parameters of the Belt Drives and
Chain Drives. The belt drive:
There is also a constraint that the center distance of sprockets The diameter of the large pulley: 𝑑2 = 112.86 𝑚𝑚
should be in the range of 30-50 pitches. The constraints can [1] The center distance:
be described as follows:
1 𝑑𝑤𝑔 + 𝑑𝑤𝑘 1
𝑔15 (𝑥) = 𝐶 − 50𝑝 ≤ 0 (31) 𝑎= × (𝐿 𝑤 − × 𝜋) +
4 2 4
𝑔16 (𝑥) = 30𝑝 − 𝐶 ≤ 0 (32)
2
𝑑𝑤𝑔 + 𝑑𝑤𝑘 2 (34)
× √ (𝐿 𝑤 − ) − 2 × (𝑑𝑤𝑔 − 𝑑𝑤𝑘 )
4.4. Obtain the Optimal Solution. In order to minimize the 2
volume of the objective function, optimization software can
be used to obtain the optimal solution. For the optimal = 149.13 𝑚𝑚
design of two-stage drive of belt drive and chain drive, the
established model is shown in Table 5. [2] The center adjustments x and y:
In the model established in Table 5, from top to bottom The arc of contact around the small pulley: 𝛽 = 2 ×
are design conditions, design variables, design process of belt arccos((𝑑2 − 𝑑1 )/2𝑎) = 163.86∘
drive and chain drive, constraints, and objective function
results. Among them, the diameter and length of the small 0.01 × 𝐿 𝑤
𝑥= = 5.96 𝑚𝑚
pulley can only be selected from the table, and the “belt drive sin (𝛽/2)
design process” is used to store these data. Taking the small (35)
0.005𝐿 𝑤 + 𝜋 × ℎ × 𝛽/360
pulley diameter as an example, the VLOOKUP function is 𝑦= = 14.53 𝑚𝑚
invoked in the cell of the alternative value, and the standard sin (𝛽/2)
value is obtained by invoking the data in the table.
The main parameters of the design are calculated in the [3] The belt speed:
design process of belt drive and chain drive. The constraints 𝜋 × 𝑑1 × 𝑛1
of belt drive and chain drive are added to the “constraints”. V= = 8.99 𝑚 ∗ 𝑠−1 (36)
Finally, the objective function is established. When the 60000
design variables are input into the corresponding values, the [4] The belt flex frequency:
function values of the objective function are automatically
calculated here. The right side of the overall table is the look- 103 × V
up table data. 𝑓𝛽 = = 15.24 𝑠−1 (37)
𝐿𝑤
The model can be used as a design tool for two-stage drive
of belt drive and chain drive, which can greatly reduce the [5] The effective pull:
repetitive workload of designers.
𝑃 × 103
𝐹𝑢 = = 458.63 𝑁 (38)
5. The Optimal Solution in the Optimal Model V
5.1. Optimal Solution Obtained by “GRG Nonlinear”. Con- [6] The axle load:
sidering that the variables in the optimization model are The axle load for two-pulley drives can be calculated from
discrete variables, this paper adopts the “GRG Nonlinear
𝛽
[30]” method to solve this problem. 𝐹V = (𝑘1 × 𝐹𝑢 + 2𝑘2 × V2 × 𝑧) × sin (39)
On the basis of the optimization model established in 2
Table 5, open the Excel Solver tool, the cell corresponding
to the objective function is selected as the optimization The dynamic wave loading needed for dimensional purposes
objective, the cell corresponding to the “minimum” design is derived from
variable is selected as the variable cell, and integer constraints 𝛽
are added. Constraints less than or equal to zero are added to 𝐹𝑑𝑦𝑛 = 𝑘1 × 𝐹𝑢 × sin (40)
2
all constraints cells in the constraints section.
Several initial values are randomly input into the design The belt tension factor k1 is a function of 𝛽 under specific
variables and solved by optimization tools. The optimal solu- service conditions. Obtain the value of k1 that we need in
tion is the design variables corresponding to the minimum MATLAB:
value of the objective function. beta=180:-5:90;
Mathematical Problems in Engineering 9

Table 5: Build the model in Excel.

Conditions Lw d1
Power to be transmitted (kW) P 4.1231 1 590 50
Rotation speed of small pulley (r/min) n1 2418.055 2 610 56
Rotation speed of large pulley/small sprocket (r/min) n2(n3) 1521.2 3 630 63
Rotation speed of large sprocket (r/min) n4 760.6 4 640 71
Total ratio i 3.179141467 5 660 80
Chain pitch (mm) p 12.7 6 670 90
Variables Order number 7 690 100
The diameter of small pulley (mm) d1 71 4 8 710 112
The pitch length of belt (mm) Lw 590 1 9 730 125
Number of belts Z 2 10 750 140
Number of teeth on drive sprocket Z1 19
Number of teeth on driven sprocket Z2 38
Chain length (pitches) L 89
Design process of belt drive
The diameter of large pulley (mm) d2 112.8595221
Belt drive ratio i1 1.589570734
Pulley center distance (mm) a 149.12835
Arc of contact (degrees) 𝛽 163.86411
Arc of contact factor c1 0.961199222
m 1.26E-11 -1.07E-07 3.63E-04 6.41E-01
Length correction factor c3 c3 0.82
Power rating of a single belt (kW) Pr 2.88
Belt safety factor c2 1.102750606
Belt speed Vb 8.98924335
Design process of chain drive
Speed of small sprocket (r/min) n2(n3) 1521.2
Chain drive ratio i2 2
Chain mass/metre (kg/m) 0.7
Chain axial breaking force (N) 17800
Application Factor f1 1.7
Tooth Factor f2=19/Z1 1
Power selection (kW) Q 7.00927
Sprocket centre diatance (mm) C 382.2478846
Small sprocket diameter (mm) d3 77.15927953
large sprocket diameter (mm) d4 153.7914829
Tip diameter of large sprocket da 155.7967461
Chain Velocity (m/s) v 6.117759333
load due to power transmitted (N) F1 1145.725031
load due to centripetal acceleration F2 26.19888548
Total chain load F 1171.923916
Chain safety factor c2 15.18869933
Belt constraints:
1.safety factor should exceed 1.1
g1(x)=1.1-c2<=0 g1 -0.002750606
2.Speed of Belt <=50m/s
g2(x)=pi∗d1∗n/60000-50<=0 g2 -41.01075647
3.number of belt <=10
g3(x)=Z-10<=0 g3 -8
10 Mathematical Problems in Engineering

Table 5: Continued.
Conditions Lw d1
4.Center distance 0.7∗(dwg+dwk)<a<2∗(dwg+dwk)
g4(x)=0.7∗(dwg+dwk)-a<=0 g4 -20.42668454
g5(x)=a-2∗(dwg+dwk)<=0 g5 -218.5906942
5.50=<d<=140,590=<Lw<=3550
g6(x)=d1-140<=0 g6 -69
g7(x)=50-d1<=0 g7 -21
g8(x)=Lw-3550<=0 g8 -2960
g9(x)=590-Lw<=0 g9 0
Chain constraints:
1.Center distance should be within the range 30-50 times the chain
pitch
g10(x)=C-50p <= 0 g10 -252.7521154
g11(x)=30p-C <= 0 g11 -1.247884581
2. Number of teeth on the drive sprocket should be at least 19 and
number of teeth on driven sprocket should be less than 114.
g12(x)=19-Z1 <= 0 g12 0
g13(x)=Z2-114 <= 0 g13 -76
g14(x)=Z1-Z2 <= 0 g14 -19
3. Sum of teeth not less than 50
g15(x)=50-(Z1+Z2) <=0 g15 -7
4.Safety factor should be greater than 8
g16(x)=8-c2 <=0 g16 -7.18869933
Objective function
Space Volume of Belt Drive V1 761759.69
Space Volume of Chain Drive V2 551128.31
Total volume V 1312888

k1=[1.70 1.73 1.76 1.79 1.83 1.87 1.91 1.95 2.00 2.05 2.11 2.17 The read-off value from Table 7, on page 42 of the belt
2.24 2.31 2.39 2.48 2.58 2.69 2.82]; catalog is
m=polyfit(beta,k1,3);
𝑡𝑒
plot(beta,k1,' ∗ ',beta,polyval(m,beta)) 𝑡󸀠𝑒 = × 100 = 2.4 (43)
k1=polyval(m,175.80) 𝐿𝑓
k1=1.8043
The free span length: 𝐿 𝑓 = 𝑎 × sin(𝛽/2) = 147.65 𝑚𝑚
From Table 15, on page 40 of the belt catalog, we can
obtain the centrifugal force factor 𝑘2 =0.072. So The deflection: 𝑡𝑒 = 𝐿 𝑓 /100 × 𝑡𝑒 󸀠 ≈ 3.5 𝑚𝑚
With this deflection, the belt tension complies with the
𝛽 rated value calculated.
𝐹V = (𝑘1 × 𝐹𝑢 + 2𝑘2 × V2 × 𝑧) × sin = 853.88 𝑁 The chain drive:
2 The center distance of the sprockets is
(41)
𝛽
𝐹𝑑𝑦𝑛 = 𝑘1 × 𝐹𝑢 × sin = 819.31 𝑁 𝑝
2 𝐶= [2𝐿 − 𝑧1 − 𝑧2
8
[7] Control of the belt tension:
2 𝜋 2 (44)
The calculated static belt tension: + √(2𝐿 − 𝑧1 − 𝑧2 ) − (𝑧 − 𝑧1 ) ]
3.88 2
𝐹V
𝐹= = 215.60 𝑁 (42) = 382.25 𝑚𝑚
2 × 𝑧 × sin (𝛽/2)
Check the size constraints:
The static belt tension from Table 59, on page 78: 𝐹 ≈ Calculate the length and width of the transmission system
201.58 𝑁 and check if they meet the constraints.
The test force from Table 7, on page 42 of the belt catalog: From the Table 6, it can be seen that the solution meets
𝐹𝑒 = 25 𝑁 the size requirements.
Mathematical Problems in Engineering 11

Table 6: Constraints due to the size limits.

1.length of the transmission system should less than 700mm
g17=a+0.5∗(d1+d2)-700 <=0 g17 458.9419
g18=C+0.5∗(d3+d4)-700 <=0 g18 202.2767
g19=C+0.5∗(d4+d2) <=0 g19 184.4266
2.width should be less than 500mm
Width of pulley B 28
Width of sprocket F 35
Total width BT 63
g20(x)=B T-500 <=0 g20 -437

Table 7: Comparison of the results.

Variables Original design scheme Optional design scheme

The diameter of small pulley (mm) d1 63 71
The pitch length of belt (mm) Lw 590 590
Number of belts Z 3 2
Number of teeth on drive sprocket Z1 19 19
Number of teeth on driven sprocket Z2 40 38
Chain length (pitches) L 94 89
Total volume (mm3) V 1562019 1312888

5.3. Design Result. Using the CONTI FO-Z heavy-duty In the Shell Eco-Marathon vehicle transmission system
cogged raw edge V-belt Section XPZ and Renold roller chain design example, compared with the traditional design results,
(12.7 mm Pitch), here are the values of the main design the optimization design volume of the parts is reduced by
parameters: 15.38%, and the optimization design volume of the total
The belt number: 2. The small pulley diameter: 71 mm. transmission system is reduced by 15.95%. The result of this
The belt length: 590 mm. The number of teeth on the drive optimization makes the vehicle lighter and allows it to travel
sprocket: 19. The number of teeth on the driven sprocket: 38. farther in the case where the material is unchanged. Com-
The chain length: 89 (pitches). pared to the traditional design, the optimization solution can
In contrast to the traditional design results (as shown in efficiently obtain the optimal solution by minimizing the size
Table 7), the overall drive system volume is reduced by 15.95% of the Shell Eco-Marathon vehicle drive system.
compared to the conventional designs. After comparison, the When Excel Solver is used to solve the optimization
combination of the optimization model and software tools is design model, if the Excel Solver has problems of “providing
faster, and the optimization effect is better. only local optimization” or “error using evolution method”
In order to test the reliability of the optimization results, due to the complicated engineering problems, we can use
considering that all variables are discrete variables, the different “GRG nonlinear” methods to obtain the best solu-
exhaustive method is used to solve the optimization problem tion in less time, for example, the overall optimization design
in MATLAB. The final result is the same as the solution in of the transmission system presented in this paper. In the
this paper, but the solution time in MATLAB is up to 3 hours, Similarity Study of establishing objective function by using
while the solution in this paper is only a few minutes. minimum volume optimization method, compared with the
model based on genetic algorithm, the optimal solution is
6. Conclusion faster and the model is more universal.
For discrete design variables, this paper uses an exhaus-
Taking the Shell Eco-Marathon vehicle transmission system tive solution method. This method can quickly find the
design as an example, this paper analyzes the traditional optimal solution when there are a few variables, but when
design process of the belt and chain drive based on product there are a large number of variables in the problem, the
design manuals and proposes an optimization design scheme. solution takes a long time. Therefore, to address optimization
First, an optimization design model is built, including com- problems, we should choose the appropriate optimization
ponent optimization and overall optimization design model tools and methods according to the problem.
of a belt and chain drive. Second, MATLAB is used to
formulate the parameters of the chart. Finally, the optimiza- Data Availability
tion design model is established in Microsoft Excel, and the
Excel Solver tool is used to find the optimization design The data used to support the findings of this study are
result. available from the corresponding author upon request.
12 Mathematical Problems in Engineering

Conflicts of Interest [13] M. Dolen, H. Kaplan, and A. Seireg, “Discrete parameter-

nonlinear constrained optimisation of a gear train using genetic
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with algorithms,” International Journal of Computer Applications in
respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this Technology, vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 110–121, 2005.
article. [14] V. A. Spitas, T. N. Costopoulos, and C. A. Spitas, “Optimum
gear tooth geometry for minimum fillet stress using BEM
and experimental verification with photoelasticity,” Journal of
Acknowledgments Mechanical Design, vol. 128, no. 5, pp. 1159–1164, 2006.
This work was supported by National Fundamental Research [15] A. Haj-Fraj and F. Pfeiffer, “A model based approach for
Funds for the Central Universities of China (Grant no. the optimization of gearshifting in automatic transmissions,”
International Journal of Vehicle Design, vol. 28, no. 1–3, pp. 171–
2014YJ02), National Undergraduate Innovation and Entre-
188, 2002.
preneurship Training Program (Grant no. 201611413086), and
[16] L. Song, F. T. Wei, and W. Liu, “Multi-objective fuzzy optimiza-
Beijing College Students Innovation Training Project (Grant
tion design of belt drive based on improved genetic algorithm,”
no. K201504024).
Journal of Mechanical Transmission, vol. 30, no. 10, pp. 28–30,
2006.
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