Types of Cam

According to Shape

Wedge and flat cams: A wedge cam has a translational motion. The follower can either translate or oscillate.
Radial or Disc Cams : A cam in which the follower moves radially from the centre of rotation of the cam is known as a radial or disc cam.
Spiral cams : A spiral cam is a face cam in which a groove is cut in the form of a spiral. It is used in computer.
Cylindrical cams: In a cylindrical cam, a cylinder which has a circumferential contour cut in surface, rotates about its axis. It is also known as barrel or drum cams.
Conjugate cams: It is a double disc cam and preferred when the requirements are low wear, low noise, better control of the follower, high speed, high dynamic loads etc.
Globoidal cams: It has two types of surface moderate i.e. convex or concave. It is used when speed is moderate and the angle of oscillation of the follower is large.