What are the types of shafts? How to design a shaft component?

A shaft is essentially a rotating component of any machine, with a circular cross-section, used to transmit power from one part to another or from a power generator to a power absorber. To transmit power, one end of the shaft is connected to the power source and the other end is connected to the machine. The shaft can be solid or hollow as needed, and a hollow shaft helps to reduce weight and provide advantages.

Axis is one of the very important components used in machines. They are used to support rotating components such as pulleys and gears, which are supported by bearings located in the rigid machine housing, and gears and pulleys located on the shaft help transmit motion.

Many other rotating components are mounted on the shaft through keys. Due to the reaction force of the components supported by the shaft and the torque generated by power transmission, they bear bending moments and torques.

The shaft always has a circular cross-section, which can be hollow or solid. Axles can be divided into crank axles, linear axles, articulated axles, or flexible axles, but linear axles are usually used to transmit power.

Axes are typically designed as steep cylindrical rods, so they have different diameters along their entire length, although shafts with a constant diameter are easy to produce.

The magnitude of stress in the stepped axis varies with its length. A shaft with a uniform diameter is not suitable for disassembly, assembly, and maintenance, and these shafts can create complexity when fastening parts installed on them, especially bearings.