METHOD OF SETTING BEARING PRELOAD

• US 20160017914A1
• Filed: 03/06/2013
• Published: 01/21/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/06/2013
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: ABet SKF
• Original Assignee: ABet SKF
• Inventors: VISSERS, Cornelius Petrus Antonius, GARRONE, Alessandro, FORNERO, Alessandro, KATSAROS, Padelis, MAZZITELLI, Isidoro Francesco
• Application Number:
  US14/771,386
• Publication Number:
  US 20160017914A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B23P 19/02 for connecting objects by press fit or for detaching same B23P19/10 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B23P 19/027 using hydraulic or pneumatic means B23P19/033 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B23P 19/06 Screw or nut setting or loosening machines
• CPC Class Codes: B23P 19/065 Arrangements for torque limiters or torque indicators in screw or nut setting machines for hand tools B25B23/14
• CPC Class Codes: B23P 19/10 Aligning parts to be fitted together
• CPC Class Codes: B25B 27/0035 for motor-vehicles wrenches for mounting or dismounting wheels B60B29/003
• CPC Class Codes: B25B 27/06 inserting or withdrawing sleeves or bearing races
• CPC Class Codes: B25B 27/064 fluid driven
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 19/364 with tapered rollers, i.e. rollers having essentially the shape of a truncated cone
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 19/548 in O-arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 19/56 in which the rolling bodies of one bearing differ in diameter from those of another
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 2229/00 Setting preload
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 2361/61 Toothed gear systems, e.g. support of pinion shafts in general F16H57/02
• CPC Class Codes: F16C 25/06 Ball or roller bearings

Abstract

A method of setting a desired axial preload F_P in a bearing arrangement by selecting a shim that will generate the desired preload at a predetermined axial force F_A applied by a clamping element, such as a locknut. The method comprises steps of: (a) mounting a reference shim, having a known thickness t, and preloading the bearing arrangement using the shim, by applying the predetermined axial force F_A; (b) measuring the actual preload of the bearing arrangement F_actual; and (c) constructing an analytical model that defines a correlation between bearing preload and applied axial force on the bearing arrangement, for a plurality of different shims, whereby each shim in the plurality of shims is defined in terms of an initial axial gap δ between the shim and an axially displaceable bearing ring of the bearing arrangement, and in terms of a certain clamping force at which the gap becomes zero.

Claims

1. A method of setting a desired axial preload F_P in a bearing arrangement comprising an inner ring and an outer ring, whereby one of the bearing rings is axially displaceable relative to the other of the bearing rings, the method comprising steps of:

(a) mounting a reference shim, having a thickness t, between the axially displaceable bearing ring and a fixed abutment, and preloading the bearing arrangement by applying a predetermined axial force F_A against the displaceable bearing ring, whereby

prior to preloading, there is an initial axial gap δ

_ref between the reference shim and the displaceable bearing ring, and at a reference clamping force F_{c, ref}, less than the predetermined axial force F_A, the displaceable bearing ring makes contact with the reference shim;

(b) measuring an actual preload F_actual of the bearing arrangement;

(c) constructing an analytical model that correlates bearing preload to applied axial force on the bearing arrangement, the model encompassing a plurality of shims that define different values of the initial axial gap δ

₁, δ

₂, δ

₃, . . . δ

_i between the shim in question and the displaceable bearing ring and corresponding values for the clamping force F_c1, F_c2, F_c3, . . . F_ci at which the shim makes contact with the displaceable bearing ring;

(d) using the analytical model to;

determine the value of the initial axial gap δ

_ref and the corresponding reference clamping force F_{C, ref}, by identifying the reference shim as the shim from the plurality of shims which generates the measured preload F_actual at the predetermined axial force F_A; and

determine a target value of the initial axial gap δ

_target and a corresponding target clamping force F_{c, target}, by identifying a target shim as a shim from the plurality of shims that generates the desired preload F_P at the predetermined axial force F_A; and

(e) replacing the reference shim of thickness t with a second shim having a thickness of t+(δ

_ref−

δ

_target), such that the desired preload F_P is achieved when the predetermined axial force F_A is applied to the bearing arrangement.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

step (b) of measuring actual bearing preload F_actual comprises measuring a value σ

_actual of a parameter that is representative of the stiffness of the bearing arrangement;

the analytical model of step (c) defines a correlation between the measured parameter and bearing preload and further defines a correlation between the measured parameter and applied axial force for the plurality of shims; and

in step (d) the analytical model is used to;

determine actual bearing preload from the measured parameter value σ

_actual,

determine a target value σ

_target of the measured parameter corresponding to the desired preload F_P; and

determine the target value for the initial axial gap δ

_target, by identifying the target shim as the shim from the plurality of shims that generates the target parameter value σ

_target at the predetermined axial force F_A.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of measuring comprises causing the bearing arrangement to vibrate and the measured parameter is a resonant frequency.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the measured parameter is an axial mode eigenfrequency.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the measured parameter is a bending mode eigenfrequency.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the bearing arrangement comprises a clamping element such as a locknut for applying the predetermined axial force F_A.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the bearing arrangement further comprises a flange element mounted between the clamping element and the displaceable bearing ring.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the bearing arrangement comprises a double-row taper rolling bearing or a double-row angular contact bearing, having first and second inner rings and first and second outer rings.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the fixed abutment is an axial side face on a part to which the displaceable bearing ring is mounted.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the displaceable bearing ring is the first inner ring and the fixed abutment is formed by an axial side face of the second inner ring.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the displaceable bearing ring is the first outer ring and the fixed abutment is formed by an axial side face of the second outer ring.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the step of constructing an analytical model is based on finite element analysis of the bearing arrangement.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the initial axial gap δ

₁, δ

₂, δ

₃, . . . δ

_i associated with the clamping force F_c1, F_c2, F_c3, . . . F_ci at which a shim from the plurality of shims comes into contact with the displaceable bearing ring is calculated, taking into account an interference between the clamping element and the flange.

14. The method of claim wherein the step of constructing an analytical model is based on finite element analysis of the bearing arrangement.