MULTI-LOBE SEMI-FLOATING JOURNAL BEARING

• US 20110200422A1
• Filed: 02/18/2010
• Published: 08/18/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Garrett Transportation I Inc. (Garrett Motion, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Gutknecht, Daniel Allen
• Granted Patent: US 8,790,066 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 415/1
• CPC Class Codes: F01D 25/16 Arrangement of bearings; Supporting or mounting bearings in casings bearings per se F16C
• CPC Class Codes: F01D 25/166 Sliding contact bearing gas bearings F01D25/22
• CPC Class Codes: F01D 25/18 Lubricating arrangements of machines or engines in general F01M
• CPC Class Codes: F02C 6/12 Turbochargers, i.e. plants for augmenting mechanical power output of internal-combustion piston engines by increase of charge pressure
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 17/028 with fixed wedges to generate hydrodynamic pressure, e.g. multi-lobe bearings
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 17/18 with floating brasses or brushing, rotatable at a reduced speed F16C17/03, F16C17/06 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 17/26 Systems consisting of a plurality of sliding-contact bearings
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 2360/24 Turbochargers
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 33/1065 Grooves on a bearing surface for distributing or collecting the liquid
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 33/1075 Wedges, e.g. ramps or lobes, for generating pressure

Abstract

An exemplary turbocharger assembly includes a housing with a through bore having a central axis extending between a compressor end and a turbine end of the housing and a bearing, configured for receipt by the through bore, where the bearing includes an inner journal configured to rotatably support a turbocharger shaft and where the inner journal includes a central axis, an axial length, a lubricant opening, an axially confined lubricant well, a lubricant ramp, and a lubricant channel that spans the axial length of the inner journal. Various other exemplary devices, systems, methods, etc., are also disclosed.

Claims

1. A turbocharger assembly comprising:

a housing that comprises a through bore having a central axis extending between a compressor end and a turbine end of the housing; and

a bearing, configured for receipt by the through bore, wherein the bearing comprises an inner journal configured to rotatably support a turbocharger shaft and wherein the inner journal comprises

a central axis,

an axial length,

a lubricant opening,

an axially confined lubricant well,

a lubricant ramp, and

a lubricant channel that spans the axial length of the inner journal.

2. The turbocharger assembly of claim 1 wherein the lubricant opening opens to the lubricant well.

3. The turbocharger assembly of claim 1 wherein the lubricant opening is disposed within the lubricant well.

4. The turbocharger assembly of claim 1 wherein the lubricant ramp comprises an arc span.

5. The turbocharger assembly of claim 4 where the arc span of the lubricant ramp is defined by an axial point offset from the central axis of the inner journal.

6. The turbocharger assembly of claim 1 wherein the inner journal comprises two or more of the lubricant openings, two or more of the axially confined lubricant wells, two or more of the lubricant ramps and two or more of the lubricant channels.

7. The turbocharger assembly of claim 1 wherein the bearing comprises two of the inner journals.

8. The turbocharger assembly of claim 1 wherein the inner journal further comprising a pad disposed between a lubricant ramp and a lubricant channel.

9. The turbocharger assembly of claim 1 further comprising a turbocharger shaft configured for rotation in a direction from the lubricant opening to at least a portion of the lubricant ramp and to the lubricant channel.

10. The turbocharger assembly of claim 1 comprising two of the inner journals, the two inner journals comprising a compressor end inner journal and a turbine end inner journal and further comprising a center section disposed between the two inner journals.

11. A method of operating a turbocharger, the method comprising:

providing lubricant to a lubricant opening in a bearing disposed in a through bore of a center housing of the turbocharger;

rotating a turbocharger shaft, supported by the bearing, in a clockwise direction;

flowing the lubricant from the lubricant opening to an axially confined lubricant well;

flowing the lubricant in a clockwise direction from the axially confined lubricant well to a lubricant ramp to a pad and to a lubricant channel that extends axially to an end of the bearing; and

flowing the lubricant out of the end of bearing.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the method comprises avoiding lubricant coking by flowing the lubricant at a rate sufficient to prevent temperatures or temperature-time profiles associated with coke formation.

13. The method of claim 11 further comprising halting the rotating and flowing lubricant from the lubricant opening to the lubricant channel.

14. A method comprising:

providing a partially finished turbocharger bearing that comprises at least one lubricant opening at a through bore, the through bore having a central axis;

inserting a broach in the through bore; and

manipulating the broach to form a lubricant ramp over an arc span.

15. The method of claim 14 further comprising:

removing the broach from the through bore;

inserting another broach in the through bore; and

manipulating the other broach to form a pad.

16. The method of claim 14 further comprising:

removing the broach from the through bore;

inserting another broach in the through bore; and

manipulating the other broach to form a lubricant channel.

17. The method of claim 14 wherein the lubricant ramp is disposed between a lubricant channel and a pad.

18. The method of claim 14 wherein the lubricant ramp spans one of the at least one lubricant openings.

19. The method of claim 14 wherein the inserting inserts the broach at an offset from the central axis of the through bore.

20. The method of claim 14 further comprising repeating at least the manipulating to form another lubricant ramp.