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Unitized steering column bearing assembly

  • US 4,541,742 A
  • Filed: 05/02/1983
  • Issued: 09/17/1985
  • Est. Priority Date: 05/02/1983
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. A preassembled, preloaded bearing assembly adapted to be easily assembled and set in place as a unit between a cylindrical bore of a housing and an axial shaft so as to rotatably support said axial shaft in annular spaced coaxial relationship to said cylindrical bore comprising,at least one cylindrical support engageable with one of the shaft and the cylindrical bore and including an axially spaced pair of stop members,a pair of separate ball bearings located in the annular space between the support and the other of the shaft and cylindrical bore, each bearing including inner and outer angular contact races respective to the shaft and cylindrical bore with a circular complement of balls therebetween, said inner and outer races each further including a radially inner edge, said bearings each further including a cage having oppositely directed snap shoulders snap fitted over said radially inner edges to maintain said bearings as separate units that may be handled separately to thereby ease the assembly of said bearing assembly,spring means generally concentric to the coaxis of the shaft and cylindrical bore and located in the annular space between a cylindrical surface through the centers of the complements of balls and the other of the shaft and cylindrical bore, the spring means engaging the races respective the other of the shaft and cylindrical bore and axially biasing the races in axially opposed directions, said axial bias being transmitted through the balls to the other races to bias the other races into the stop members to preload the ball bearings and maintain the support and ball bearings as an axially symmetrical unit separable as a unit from the cylindrical bore and shaft and,a force transfer tube coaxial to and substantially axially coextensive with said spring means and having an axial length sufficient that a snap shoulder fitted over a radially inner edge of said engaged race may extend axially past an end of said force transfer tube, whereby said snap shoulder may also cooperate to radially retain said force transfer tube to, said bearing assembly, and whereby said force transfer tube may also cooperate to transfer pressing force from one ball bearing to the other ball bearing, so that said bearing assembly can be easily set in place as a unit between said cylindrical bore and shaft in a single operation.

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