Patent Application
20210301873
The disclosure applies to the field of ball bearings. In particular, a cage suitable for high speed applications and a corresponding method of assembly are disclosed.
A method of fabricating a high-speed bearing includes forming two cage halves, mating them, and heating the ends of post. The first and second cage halves each define a plurality of half-pockets, a plurality of posts extending axially between adjacent half-pockets, and a plurality of holes between adjacent half-pockets. The number of posts on each cage half may be equal to the number of half-pockets defined in each cage half. The first cage half and the second cage half may be substantially geometrically identical. Rollers, such as balls, may first be inserted between inner and outer rings and then inserted into the half-pockets of the first cage half before mating the first cage half to the second cage half. The first cage half is mated to the second cage half such that ends of the posts of the first cage half extend through the holes of the second cage half and such that ends of the posts of the second cage half extend through the holes of the first cage half. The rollers are retained in pockets formed by pairs of corresponding half-pockets. Heating the ends of the posts of the first cage half and the ends of the posts of the second cage half forms vulcanized bonds between the posts and the adjacent material of the opposite cage half.
A high-speed bearing includes first and second cage halves. Each cage half defines a plurality of half-pockets, a plurality of posts extending axially between adjacent half-pockets, and a plurality of holes between adjacent half-pockets. The number of posts on each cage half may be equal to the number of half-pockets defined in each cage half. The two cage halves may be substantially geometrically identical. The first cage half is mated to the second cage half such that ends of the posts of the first cage half extend through the holes of the second cage half and such that ends of the posts of the second cage half extend through the holes of the first cage half. The ends of the posts of the first cage half and the ends of the second cage half are bonded to adjacent material of the opposite cage half with vulcanized bonds. Rollers, such as balls, may be retained in pockets formed by pairs of corresponding half-pockets. The rollers may separate an inner ring from an outer ring.
Embodiments of the present disclosure are described herein. It should be appreciated that like drawing numbers appearing in different drawing views identify identical, or functionally similar, structural elements. Also, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely examples and other embodiments can take various and alternative forms. The figures are not necessarily to scale; some features could be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular components. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the embodiments. As those of ordinary skill in the art will understand, various features illustrated and described with reference to any one of the figures can be combined with features illustrated in one or more other figures to produce embodiments that are not explicitly illustrated or described. The combinations of features illustrated provide representative embodiments for typical applications. Various combinations and modifications of the features consistent with the teachings of this disclosure, however, could be desired for particular applications or implementations.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular aspects only, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood to one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs. Although any methods, devices or materials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of the disclosure, the following example methods, devices, and materials are now described.
A symmetrical cage tends to perform significantly better compared with an asymmetrical design during high speed operation for a number of reasons. The failure mechanism of an asymmetrical high speed cage is either cage-ejection at high speed or high acceleration or a fatigue failure due to high stresses in the pocket of the cage. The proposed cage design eliminates both of these concerns. Cage ejection is not possible due to the vulcanized bond and riveting mechanism which is formed during the assembly process and the overall stress level in the cage pockets is significantly lower due to even expansion under significant centrifugal forces.
While exemplary embodiments are described above, it is not intended that these embodiments describe all possible forms encompassed by the claims. The words used in the specification are words of description rather than limitation, and it is understood that various changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. As previously described, the features of various embodiments can be combined to form further embodiments of the disclosure that may not be explicitly described or illustrated. While various embodiments could have been described as providing advantages or being preferred over other embodiments or prior art implementations with respect to one or more desired characteristics, those of ordinary skill in the art recognize that one or more features or characteristics can be compromised to achieve desired overall system attributes, which depend on the specific application and implementation. As such, to the extent any embodiments are described as less desirable than other embodiments or prior art implementations with respect to one or more characteristics, these embodiments are not outside the scope of the disclosure and can be desirable for particular applications.
