Stick-Slip Analysis on Press-Fit Joints through Finite Element Method and Laboratory Tests

Frictional contact is a recurrent theme in engineering thanks to its ubiquity on several fields of study and the fact it can not be calculated ab initio. Furthermore, it gives rise to other complex phenomena that can only be predicted with the help of numerical methods, like the Finite Element Method (FEM). However, most FEM software still use Coulomb's local model of friction to estimate friction, which may not be reliable on predicting phenomena as complicated as the object of this paper. This work aims to simulate the stick-slip phenomenon in a press-fit and to compare this simulation with laboratory tests. The work was developed based on real cases such as the development of assembled camshafts using tubes. The structural simulations were performed using linear static analysis through the use of finite element method software. Tests were done on a digital torque tester machine used for bolts and nuts. At the end of the work the results obtained in the tests are presented. Those are compared with the virtual simulation showing a clear correlation between them.