<p>This master thesis is intended to give an increased understanding of the stress state in an axle, which is assembled in one of Atlas Copco’s mountain drilling rigs. The main problems investigated were how the axle is affected when the bearing is worn, when the pretension is varied, and how to dimension the axle. Answers to these questions were found by using hand calculations, practical testing and with Finite Element analyzes. The dimensioning of the axle is currently based on the bending stress, but the author’s opinion is that the axle should be dimensioned considering the equivalent stress. Wear and pretension had large influence on the strain along the axle, but almost no influence on the shear stress and on the equivalent stress. Maximum equivalent stress occurs in the same place on the axle independently on wear and pretension, except for one case. This particular case is, however, not likely to occur. The maximum equivalent stress occurs inside the axle, at the hole which the pretension bolt goes through. This equivalent stress depends mostly on a shear stress concentration which occurs inside the axle. Theshear stress concentration was verified with a number of different FEM-models with various geometries, and with theory. The concentration depends on the geometry of the axle, and it occurs where the expansion bushings ends, but on the inside of the axle. The shear stress concentration is approximately two and a half time bigger than the stress on the outside of the axle. Finally a new design method is proposed which is based on the shear stress, that is recalculated into an equivalent stress.</p>

This master thesis is intended to give an increased understanding of the stress state in an axle, which is assembled in one of Atlas Copco’s mountain drilling rigs. The main problems investigated were how the axle is affected when the bearing is worn, when the pretension is varied, and how to dimension the axle. Answers to these questions were found by using hand calculations, practical testing and with Finite Element analyzes. The dimensioning of the axle is currently based on the bending stress, but the author’s opinion is that the axle should be dimensioned considering the equivalent stress. Wear and pretension had large influence on the strain along the axle, but almost no influence on the shear stress and on the equivalent stress. Maximum equivalent stress occurs in the same place on the axle independently on wear and pretension, except for one case. This particular case is, however, not likely to occur. The maximum equivalent stress occurs inside the axle, at the hole which the pretension bolt goes through. This equivalent stress depends mostly on a shear stress concentration which occurs inside the axle. Theshear stress concentration was verified with a number of different FEM-models with various geometries, and with theory. The concentration depends on the geometry of the axle, and it occurs where the expansion bushings ends, but on the inside of the axle. The shear stress concentration is approximately two and a half time bigger than the stress on the outside of the axle. Finally a new design method is proposed which is based on the shear stress, that is recalculated into an equivalent stress.