Gauge and process for adjusting bearings

• US 20040060185A1
• Filed: 08/06/2003
• Published: 04/01/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Timken Company
• Original Assignee: The Timken Company
• Inventors: Ries, Mark R., Russell, Daniel T
• Granted Patent: US 6,993,852 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 33/613
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 19/547 with two angular contact rolling bearings
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 2229/00 Setting preload
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 23/06 Ball or roller bearings
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 2361/61 Toothed gear systems, e.g. support of pinion shafts in general F16H57/02
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 35/067 Fixing them in a housing with interposition of an element F16C35/07
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 5/146 measuring play on bearings

Abstract

A setting gauge (G) determines the thickness of a spacer (22) which gives the correct setting for a pair of tapered roller bearings (B1, B2) that are mounted in opposition to accommodate relative rotation between machine components (S, H). The gauge has a base (50) which at one end fits against a surface (12) to which the spacer is to be applied, and at its other end holds one of the races (32) of the bearing (B2) remote from the other race (30) which remains in its operating position. In addition, the gauge has a pair of gauge elements (52, 54), one of which fits against a conical envelope along the remote race and the other of which fits against an identical conical envelope on the race which remains in its operating position, in effect, projecting the conical envelope defined by the in-place race out of the bearing to a remote location so that measurements may be taken from the bearing. The race which is remote during the measurements has a cylindrical surface (48) which is configured to fit another cylindrical surface (10) on one of the machine components (H) with an interference fit, and the gauge also measures the diameters of the two cylindrical surfaces so that the magnitude of the interference fit may be ascertained and its effect on the bearing compensated.

Claims

1. A gauge for setting a bearing that accommodates rotation about an axis and has races and rolling elements between the races, with the rolling elements being configured to transfer both radial and axial loads, one of the races having a cylindrical surface which is located along another cylindrical surface on a machine component with an interference fit;

said gauge comprising;

a first measuring device for ascertaining the offset between the bearing and a reference surface in the absence of the interference fit; and

a second measuring device for determining the diameter of one of the cylindrical surfaces to enable compensation for the interference fit.

2. A gauge according to claim 1 wherein the second measuring device determines the diameter of the cylindrical surface on said one race;

and

further comprising a third measuring device for determining the diameter of the cylindrical surface on the machine component.

3. In combination with inner and outer machine components and first and second bearings for accommodating relative rotation between the machine components about an axis, one of the machine components having a cylindrical surface located around the axis and a reference surface located at an angle with respect to the axis, the first bearing including inner and outer tapered raceways carried by the inner and outer machine components, respectively, and tapered rollers organized in a row between the raceways, the second bearing including inner and outer tapered raceways and tapered rollers located along the inner raceway, the outer raceway and the tapered rollers defining identical conical envelopes having their axis coinciding with axis of rotation, one of the raceways of the second bearing being on a race having a cylindrical surface that is sized to fit along the cylindrical surface of said one machine component with an interference fit and also having an end face oriented at an angle with respect to the axis, the other raceway of the second bearing being carried by the other machine component, the tapered rollers of the first and second bearings being oriented in opposite directions, a setting gauge for determining the thickness of a spacer to be installed against the reference surface, so as to provide the bearings with a desired setting, said setting gauge comprising:

a base bearing against the reference surface on said one machine component and temporarily carrying the race of the second bearing at a location axially offset from the cylindrical surface of the one machine component;

a first gauge element mounted on and shiftable axially relative to the base, the first gauge element having a gauging surface which bears against the conical envelope on the race;

a second gauge element also mounted on and shiftable axially relative to the base and having a gauging surface that bears against the conical envelope that is on said other machine component;

a first measuring device for determining the axial positions of first and second gauge elements relative to each other, whereby the spacing between equivalent diameters on the two conical envelopes is ascertained;

a second measuring device to determine the diameter of the cylindrical surface on the race carried by the base; and

a third measuring device to determine the diameter of the cylindrical surface on said one machine component;

whereby the magnitude of the interference fit between the race of the second bearing and the cylindrical surface on said one machine component may be ascertained.

4. The combination according to claim 3 wherein the gauging surfaces on the first and second gauge elements are tapered and inclined at equal angles with respect to the axis, which angle corresponds to the angles of the conical envelopes.

5. The combination according to 4 wherein the second measuring device is along the base and the third measuring device is along the second gauge element.

6. The combination according to claim 5 wherein the cylindrical surface on said one machine component is the surface of a bore in the outer machine component.

7. The combination according to claim 6 wherein the tapered rollers for the second bearing are around the raceway on the inner machine component and the second gauge element projects into the bore of the outer machine component.

8. The combination according to claim 5 wherein the first and second gauge elements are located within the base.

9. The combination according to 5 wherein the first measuring device measures the distance between the fir and second gauge elements.

10. In combination with inner and outer machine components and first and second bearings for enabling one of the components to rotate relative to the other component about an axis, the outer component having an axially directed bore and a reference surface located at an angle with respect to the axis, the first bearing including a tapered inner raceway carried by the inner member and a tapered outer raceway carried by the outer component and tapered rollers organized in a row between the inner and outer raceways, the second bearing including an inner raceway carried by the inner member and presented outwardly away from the axis and an outer race provided with an outer raceway that is presented inwardly toward the axis, and tapered rollers organized in a row around the raceway of the inner race, the outer race also having a cylindrical exterior surface of a size to fit into the bore of the outer machine component with an interference fit and a back face located at an angle with respect to the axis, the raceways and rollers of the first bearing having their large ends presented toward the large ends of the raceways and rollers for the second bearing so that the bearings are in the direct configuration, a setting gauge for positioning the outer race of the second bearing in the bore of the outer component, with the axial positioning between the reference surface on the outer component and the back face on the outer race of the second bearing being such that the directly mounted first and second bearings have a desired setting, said setting gauge comprising:

a base fitted at its one end against the reference surface on the outer machine component and receiving the outer race of the second bearing at its other end;

a male element located in the base and having a tapered external surface that fits into the outer race that is received in the base and against the tapered raceway of the outer race;

a female element located in the base and has one end that fits into the bore in the housing where it is provided with a tapered internal surface that fits over and seats against the rollers of the second bearing, with the angle of its taper corresponding to the angle of the taper on the raceway for the outer race of the second bearing;

a first measuring device that determines the distance between the male and female elements so as to ascertain the distance between corresponding diameters on the tapered surfaces of the elements;

a second measuring device carried by the base for determining the diameter of the cylindrical exterior surface for the outer race of the second bearing; and

a third measuring device on the female element to determine the diameter of the bore in the outer machine component, whereby the magnitude of the interference fit between the outer race of the second bearing and the bore of the outer machine component may be ascertained.

11. The combination according to claim 10 wherein the base has a bore in which it loosely receives the outer race of the second bearing.

12. The combination according to claim 11 wherein the second measuring device includes an air channel which extends through the base and opens into the bore in the base to discharge air against the cylindrical surface of the outer race in that bore.

13. The combination according to claim 10 wherein the third measuring device includes an air channel which extends through the female and discharges air out of that element and against the surface of the bore in the outer machine component.

14. A gauge for setting a pair of tapered roller bearings mounted in opposition along a common axis and between inner and outer machine components, one of which has a cylindrical surface to which a race of one of the bearings is to be fitted with an interference fit and also has a reference surface located at an angle with respect to the axis, said gauge comprising:

a base having an end face configured to fit against the reference surface and at its other end configured to hold the race that is to be fitted to the cylindrical surface;

so that the race is detached from said one machine component;

a first gauge element mounted on and shiftable axially relative to the base and having a gauging surface for contacting a conical envelope on the detached race that is carried by the base;

a second gauge element also mounted on and shiftable relative to the base and having a gauging surface for contacting an identical conical envelope on the bearing of which the detached race is also a part;

a first measuring device for determining the axial positions of the first and second gauge elements to ascertain the distance between gauging surfaces on them;

a second measuring device for determining the diameter of the race that is carried by the first gauge element; and

a third measuring device for determining the diameter of the cylindrical surface of the one machine component, so that the magnitude of the interference fit may be ascertained.

15. A gauge according to claim 14 wherein the gauging surfaces on the first and second gauge elements are tapered.

16. A gauge according to claim 15 and further comprising a spring which urges the first and second gauge elements apart.

17. A gauge according to claim 15 wherein the second measuring device is on the base and the third measuring device is on the second gauge element.

18. A gauge according to claim 17 wherein the second measuring device includes an air channel which, opens out of the base and the third measuring device includes an air channel which opens out of the second gauge element.

19. A gauge according to claim 14 wherein the first and second gauge elements are located within the base.

20. A gauge according to claim 19 wherein the gauging surface on the first gauge element is presented outwardly away from the axis and the gauging surface on the second gauge element is presented inwardly toward the axis.

21. A process for setting first and second bearings for accommodating relative rotation between inner and outer machine components about an axis, one of the machine components having a cylindrical surface located around the axis and a reference surface located at an angle with respect to the axis, the first bearing including inner and outer tapered raceways carried by the inner and outer machine components, respectively, and tapered rollers organized in a row between the raceways, the second bearing including inner and outer raceways and tapered rollers located along the inner raceway, the outer raceway and the tapered rollers defining identical conical envelopes having their axes coinciding with the axis of rotation, one of the raceways of the second bearing being on a race having a cylindrical surface that fits along the cylindrical surface of said one machine component with an interference fit and also having an end face oriented at an angle with respect to the axis and spaced axially from the reference surface, the other raceway of the second bearing being carried by the other machine component, the tapered rollers of the first and second bearings being oriented in opposite directions, said process comprising:

placing the inner machine component in the outer machine component;

seating the rollers of the first bearing along the tapered raceways for the first bearing;

locating one of the conical envelopes for the second bearing on said other machine component;

axially separating the other conical envelope and the race of the second bearing from said one conical envelope;

measuring the axial distance between equivalent diameters on the separated conical envelopes;

while the conical envelopes are separated axially, measuring the diameters of the cylindrical surfaces on the race and on said one machine component;

installing the race along the cylindrical surface of said one machine components;

from the measured axial distance between equivalent diameters on the separated conical envelopes and the measured diameters of the cylindrical surfaces calculating the thickness of the spacer which, when fitted against the reference surface on said one machine component, will provide the first and second bearings with the desired setting.