Method and computer programme for detecting the stationary state of a roller bearing and a roller bearing which may be analyzed thus

• US 7,860,689 B2
• Filed: 07/26/2005
• Issued: 12/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Schaeffler Technologies AG & Co.KG (INA-Holding Schaeffler GmbH & Co. KG)
• Original Assignee: Schaeffler KG (INA-Holding Schaeffler GmbH & Co. KG)
• Inventors: Gempper, Sven, Pecher, Alfred
• Primary Examiner(s): Bhat; Aditya
• Application Number:
  US11/572,857
• Publication Number:
  US 20080317396A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,981 Days
• Field of Search: 702/199
• US Class Current: 702/199
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 13/00 Indicating or recording presence, absence, or direction, of movement electric switches H01H; counting moving objects G06M7/00

Abstract

The invention relates to a method and a computer programme for detecting the stationary state of a roller bearing, comprising z rolling bodies, where z is a whole number, preferably an even number, to which a sensor arrangement is fixed, delivering a sinusoidal signal, dependent on the rotational position of the bearing on the rotation of the roller bearing. Said sinusoidal signal is sampled, whereupon sampled values are determined. According to the invention, a first average value (MW₁) of the sampled values of a first time interval (J₁) is determined (S120), whereupon the corresponding average value (MW₂, MW₃) of other time intervals (J₂, J₃) is determined (S132). The roller bearing is considered stationary as long as A) the corresponding average value (MW₂, MW₃) of the other time intervals (J₂, J₃) does not differ (S134) significantly from the first average value (MW₁) and/or B) the gradient between the first average value (MW₁) and the corresponding average value (MW₂, MW₃) of the other time intervals does not differ significantly from 0 (S335). The invention further relates to a roller bearing, provided with an analytical device for carrying out the inventive method or the computer programme.

Claims

1. A method for detecting the a stationary state of a roller bearing having z rolling bodies, where z is an integral number, to which a sensor arrangement is fixed, comprising:

attaching a sensor arrangement to a roller bearing,

obtaining a sinusoidal signal from the sensor arrangement,

delivering the sinusoidal signal to an evaluating device, dependent on a rotational position of the roller bearing upon rotation of the roller bearing, where the signal is sampled, and samples are determined,

determining a first average value of the samples of a first time interval, and

determining a respective average value of further time intervals

wherein the roller bearing is stationary, as long as;

A) the respective average value of the further time intervals is substantially equal to the first average value or

B) a gradient between the first average value and the respective average value of the further time intervals is substantially equal to 0.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, comprising the following steps:

a) sampling of a signal delivered from the sensor arrangement at times for determining samples,

b) calculating as a first average value a kth average value of a predetermined number N of samples at times which are located in a kth time interval of p time intervals, of which each one has a predetermined duration,

c) storing the first average value,

d) calculating a (k+1)th average value of a predetermined number of samples at times which are located in a (k+1)th time interval of the p time intervals

e) assessing whether the (k+1)th average value differs from the first average value stored in step c) by at least a predetermined, preferably adjustable threshold value,

f) if the assessment in step e) is positive;

establishing that the roller bearing is rotating, otherwise

g) incrementing k by 1 and repeating steps d) to f),

wherein k, m, n, p, L, M and N are integral numbers and the following applies;

1≦

k<

p, 0<

n≦

N<

M, 0<

m≦

M.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein each (k+1)th average value, in the case of which it is found in step e) that it does not differ by at least the predetermined threshold value from the first average value stored in step c), is discarded without being stored.

4. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the average values of each time interval are calculated in steps b) and d) in that the first sample and the second sample are added and their sum is stored as intermediate sum, whereafter each further sample is added to the intermediate sum and this is stored until the last sample of the relevant time interval is reached, and subsequently the last intermediate sum is divided by the respective number of samples taken into consideration.

5. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the same number N of times is allocated to each time interval in steps b) and d).

6. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein that L<

N applies.

7. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein L=N applies.

8. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the distance of a time to the preceding time t_m−

1 and subsequent time t_m+1 is equidistant.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, comprising the following steps:

a) sampling of the signal at times for determining samples,

b) calculating as a first average value a kth average value of a predetermined number N of samples at times which are located in a kth time interval of p time intervals of which each one has a predetermined duration,

c) storing the first average value,

d) calculating a (k+1)th average value of a predetermined number of samples at times which are located in a (k+1)th time interval of the p time intervals,

h) determining the gradient between the (k+1)th average value and the first average value,

i) assessing whether the gradient determined in step h) differs from 0 by at least one predetermined, adjustable threshold value and storing the gradient

j) if the assessment in step i) is positive;

establishing that the roller bearing is rotating, otherwise

k) incrementing k by 1 and repeating steps d) and h) to j),

wherein k, m, n, p, L, M and N are integral numbers and the following applies;

1≦

k<

p, 0<

n≦

N<

M, 0<

m≦

M.

10. The method as claimed in claim 9, wherein each gradient in the case of which it is found in step i) that it does not differ from 0 by at least the predetermined threshold value is discarded without being stored.

11. The method as claimed in claim 1, comprising the following steps:

a) sampling of the signal at times for determining samples

b) calculating as a first average value a kth average value of a predetermined number N of samples at times which are located in a kth time interval of p time intervals, of which each one has a predetermined duration,

c) storing the first average value,

d) calculating a (k+1)th average value of a predetermined number of samples at times which are located in a (k+1)th time interval of the p time intervals,

e) assessing whether the (k+1)th average value differs from the first average value stored in step c) by at least a predetermined, adjustable threshold value,

h) determining the gradient between the (k+1)th average value and the first average value,

i) assessing whether the gradient determined in step h) differs from 0 by at least one predetermined, preferably adjustable threshold value,

l) if the assessment in step e) and/or in step i) is positive;

establishing that the roller bearing is rotating, otherwise

m) incrementing k by 1 and repeating steps d), e), h), i) and l),

wherein k, in, n, p, L, M and N are integral numbers and the following applies;

1≦

k<

p, 0<

n≦

N<

M, 0<

m≦

M.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein each (k+1)th average value, in the case of which it is found in step e) that it does not differ from the first average value stored in step c) by at least the predetermined threshold value and each gradient allocated to these average values, in the case of which it is found in step i) that it does not differ from 0 by at least the predetermined threshold value is discarded without being stored.

13. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the p time intervals extends at the most over an angle of rotation of 90°

/z of the roller bearing.

14. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the method is continued even when a rotation of the roller hearing has been found.

15. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein depending on the outcome of the assessment whether the roller bearing is rotating, an output is made on the output device, whether the roller bearing is rotating or not.

16. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least two sensor arrangements are provided at the roller bearing which each deliver a sinusoidal signal dependent on the rotational position of the roller bearing upon rotation of the roller bearing which is sampled, whereupon respective samples are determined and the sensor arrangements are arranged behind one another in the circumferential direction of the roller bearing and have a distance from one another in this circumferential direction which is unequal to an integral multiple of the distance between two adjacent rolling bodies in this circumferential direction, and wherein the signals of all sensor arrangements are evaluated and used for detecting the stationary state.

17. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein more than z sensor arrangements are provided as a result of which the distance of the sensor arrangements from one another in the circumferential direction of the roller bearing is smaller than the distance of two adjacent rolling bodies from one another in the circumferential direction, and wherein the signals of all sensor arrangements are evaluated in parallel with one another.

18. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the signals of all sensor arrangements are additionally used for detecting a possibly occurring to and fro movement of the roller bearing by an angle of rotation within the range of less than 360°

/z.

19. A non-transitory computer readable medium containing a computer program stored therein for causing a computer processor to perform and the computer program to detect a stationary state of a roller bearing having z rolling bodies, where z is an integral number and the roller bearing comprises a sensor arrangement which delivers a sinusoidal signal, dependent on a rotational position of the roller bearing upon rotation of the roller bearing, to an evaluating device, wherein the computer program contains means for carrying out the steps according to the method of claim 1 in an evaluating device.

20. A roller bearing comprising z rolling bodies, wherein z is an integral number, and with a device for detecting the stationary state of the roller bearing, comprising at least one sensor arrangement fixed to the roller hearing wherein each sensor arrangement delivers a sinusoidal signal dependent on the rotational position of the roller bearing upon rotation of the roller bearing and at least one evaluating device, each evaluating device being connected to one sensor arrangement, wherein each evaluating device contains an evaluating unit for carrying out the steps according to claim 1.

21. The roller bearing as claimed in claim 20, wherein each sensor arrangement is formed from four strain gauges interconnected to form a Wheatstone bridge, which are arranged behind one another in the circumferential direction of the roller hearing wherein the first strain gauge and the third strain gauge of each sensor arrangement and the second strain gauge and the fourth strain gauge of each sensor arrangement have c-times the distance of two adjacent rolling bodies from one another in the circumferential direction, or two strain gauges interconnected to in each case one Wheatstone half bridge, which arc arranged behind one another in the circumferential direction of the roller bearing, wherein the signal is generated by the rolling bodies rolling over the strain gauges and c is an integral number of greater than or equal to 1.

22. Roller bearing as claimed in claim 21, wherein the strain gauges and the at least one evaluating device arc arranged in a circumferential outer groove of the outer ring of the roller bearing.

23. The roller bearing as claimed in claim 20, wherein each evaluating unit is constructed as electrical circuit.

24. The roller bearing as claimed in claim 20, wherein at least two sensor arrangements are provided at the roller bearing which each deliver a sinusoidal signal dependent on the rotational position of the roller bearing upon rotation of the roller bearing, which is sampled in each case, whereupon respective samples are determined, the sensor arrangements are arranged behind one another in the circumferential direction of the roller bearing and have a distance from one another in this circumferential direction which is unequal to an integral multiple of the distance between two adjacent rolling bodies in this circumferential direction, and at least one evaluating device is connected to a number of sensor arrangements as a result of which the signals of the sensor arrangements can be evaluated and used for detecting the stationary state.

25. The roller bearing as claimed in claim 24, wherein more than z sensor arrangements are provided, as a result of which the distance of the sensor arrangements from one another in the circumferential direction of the roller bearing is smaller than the distance of two adjacent rolling bodies from one another in the circumferential direction, and the evaluating device is designed for evaluating the signals of a number sensor arrangements from the respective evaluating units in parallel with one another.

26. The roller bearing as claimed in claim 24, wherein the evaluating device is designed for additionally using the signals of all sensor arrangements for detecting a possibly occurring to and fro movement of the roller bearing by an angle of rotation within the range of less than 360°

/z.