CA1038004A

CA1038004A - Method and device for aiding and enhancing rotary motion

Info

Publication number: CA1038004A
Application number: CA242,773A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Henry Replin
Original assignee: Vector Bearing Corp
Current assignee: Vector Bearing Corp
Priority date: 1975-01-06
Filing date: 1975-12-30
Publication date: 1978-09-05
Also published as: DD123728A5; IL48768A0; DE2559030A1; AT346654B; IN143368B; IT1054001B; EG12377A; FR2296789A1; ZA7650B; ATA4376A; AU8755375A; FR2296789B1; AR207670A1; SE7514782L; JPS5192945A; BE837198A; NL7514687A; ES444080A1; BR7508766A; NZ179689A

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE

Method and device for aiding and enhancing rotational movement of a member journaled with another member by biassing one of the members to an offset position relative to the other member with the offset being unstable and tending to aid rotation as a restorative force. Particularly, a bearing device having inner and outer members which are interfaced and supported in the portion of the bearing closest to the direction from which the load is imposed and in which roller members sequentially and substantially continuously offset the inner member during rota-tion to maintain an offset having a constant orientation relati-ve to the load applied through the bearing device.

Description

~.Q~8~)~D4 The present invention relates ~enerally to load aided rotational devices and methods of enhancing rotation The wheel is a classical rotational device. Generally, the load borne by the wheel is imposed directly ~rom the contact portion of the wheel with the support surface through a vertical radius of the wheel to the supporting axle. To turn the wheel, pure torque is applied to the wheel or the axle thereby producing a twisting force substantially independent of the load-bearing function of the wheel.
In U.S. Patent ~o. 3,9~8,568 issued on April 6, 1976 to Henry Replin, a ~ethod and apparatus for interfacing a wheel with an axle to offset the load supplied to the wheel to a constant po-sition in the por~ion of the whe~ adin~ the contact point oE
the wheel to the 9upporting ~ur~ace i~ ~isclo~ed. In this prior concept, the axle and wheel are interfaced through a movable and selectively engageable connection.
The present invention which provides a heretofore unavailable improvement over previous rotational devices, compri-ses a method and device for offsetting a member to which a torque is applied, such as an axle, in such a manner as to permit the axle to be fi~edly and securely attached to a wheel ~earing on a supporting surface while the load is applied offset to the verti-cal radius of the wheel. More particularly, the device of instant invention comprises a bearing structure which selectively and sequentially offsets a rotating axle contained within a relatively fixed housing to a position which provides a restorative force seeking to relocate the axle within the housing and thereby pro-ducing an aiding and enhancing force arrangement.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a device and method for aiding and enhancing rotation.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a device and method for applying torque to enhance traction ~..~

~C)38~
between a wheel member and a supporting or driving surface.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a device and method which provides a rota-tional force couple acting around and offset from the load contact portion of a circular member.
Yet another object of the present invention is to pro-vide a device and method for applying the load imposed upon a - circular member at a position other than through the center of the circular member.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a dev.ice and method which provides improved brakin~ per-formance and characteristics in vehicle w~ee:L aqsemb~i~s, Yet still another object of the pxesent :invention :is to provide a device and method for transmitting greater amounts of torque he-tween a circular member and a supportiny surface, According to the above objects, from a first broad aspect, the presen-t invention provides a method of load aiding rotation of a rotating mer~ber having a load applied thereto, with the ro-tating member being radially displaced from a fixed member. The method comprises applying a torque to the rotating member to induce rotation thereof. The rotating member is dis-placed to a nonconcentric position relative to the fixed member by positioning a roller means between the members and imposing at least a portion of the load from the fixed member to the ro-tating member at a position on the rotating member spaced Erom the center of the rotatlng member and in the direction haviny a : substantial component in the direction of rotation and spaced from the center of the rotating member, whereby the load force imposed on the rotating mer~ber induces rotation of the rotating member and applies the load force in a more advantageous manner than in the same load were applied through the center of rotation, ~ - 2 -~L~38~Q~
According to a further broad aspect of the present in-vention, there is provided a device for load aiding a rotating member having a load imposed thereon. The device comprises an inner member, an outer member at least partially surrounding the lnner member, and complementary bearing means located on the lnner member and on the outer member to position the inner member within the outer member to accommodate substantialy radial move-ment of the inner member within the outer member. An inner sur-face on the outer member is concentric relative to the outer member. An outer surEace on the inner member has securlng means thereon. Roller means is disposed ~etween the :inner surEace oE
the outer member and engaged by the secur:ing m~ans on the out~r surface of the inner memb~r, wh~r~ a port:io~l of th@ concentric inner surface on the outer member bears upon the roller means and selectively displaces the inner member in a substantially constant manner to transfer a load force to the inner member from the surface of the outer member at a position and in a direction spaced from -the center of the inner member.
The above obiects and features of the present inven-tion will become apparent from the following accompanying des-cription of the drawings which show a preferred form thereof and wherein:
Figure 1 is a partially cut-away sectioned side view of a beariny assembly according to the instant invention, and Figure 2 is a partially sectioned end view o~ the bearing device of Figure 1, as viewed along cross-section lines

2-2 of Fig. 1.
Turning now to the drawing wherein like components are designated by like reference numerals throu~hout the figures, a device for enhancing rotation is illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 and generally designated by the reference numeral 10 ~ - 2a -. :.
..~ ..

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Device 10 carries a rotatable axle 12 and i9 carried ina fixed outer housing 13. Disposed on axle 12-, preferably in a pressed fit relationship, is inner member 15. Beveled inner bearing surfaces 16 are defined on inner member 15 and interface the remainder of the device 10 as will be discussed below. Inner _ 2b -~3~
race depressions 17 are defined on the periphery of inne-r mem~er 15 and carry ball bearings 19. It should be noted that the pri-mary bearing function of inner member 15 is served by inner bear-ing surface 16, which may alternatively be in the Eorm of ball or roller bearings rather than the plane bearing surface as shown, and ball be~rings 19 serves a uni~ue displacement func-tion which is not primarily a classical bearing function.
Outer member 22 is preferably pressed~into outer housing 13 and includes as an integral part end portions 23 having beveled outer bearing sur.faces 2~ defined thereon. End portions 23 are separate from outer member 22 only for purposes oE ma-chining and assembly. Accordingly, one o:E end portions 23 m~y ~e formed integral with outer me~ber 22. ~nn~r b~ar.incJ surfac~
16 iq of a somewhat larger diame~e~ than outer b~ar:Lng surEace 24. Thus, axle 12 is n~t concentri.c with outer housing 13 but is free to seek a center eccentric to outer housing 13. Outer.
race groove 26 defined in outer member 22 receives ball bearings 19 thus securing ball bearings 19 between inner race depressions 17 and outer race groove 26. However, as shown in Figure 1 outer race groove 26 is not circular but includes a large diameter portion 28, a ramp portion 29 and a smaller diameter portion 30.
Smaller diameter portion 30, which is located primarily in the leading half of outer race groove 26 and immediately below ramp portion 29 is of such a dimension as to preclude axle 12 being concentric with outer housing 13. Accordingly, axle 12 is dis-placed primarily away :Erom smaller diameter portion 30, and, as a result of the dynamically displaced interface of inner bearing surface 16 and outer bearing surface 2~, upward to a center A
shown in Figure 1. Outer housing 13 has a center at ~'. Axle 12, as a result of the displacement o center A, experiences restorati.ve forces applied not through the center A of axle 12 but rather through inner member 15 from outer member 22 and outer l Q3BVf~
bearing surfaces 24 and through ball bearings 19 which tend to rotate axle 12 in the direction of the arrow appearing in Figure 1. Further, the restorative force, not passing through the cen-ter of axle 12, will, in the instance of a wheel assembly attach-ed to axle 12, tend to rotate the wheel around the load imposed at the instantaneous center of rotation of the wheel in contact with the supporting surface, I'his type of xotation is more ad-vantageous than the conventional concept of transferring a load through a radius of the wheel and applying the pure torque to the wheel, The method of khe present invention aids rotation oE a rotating member such as a wheel or an axle which has a load appliecl to it. Eith~r the wheel member or the axl~ m~mh~r ma~
be fixed or rotatabl~ with re~ar~ to th~ oth~r mernb~r and :i9 radially displaced therefrom. ~'he method comprises the steps o~ applying a torque to the rotating member to induce rotation of it, displacing the rotating member to a non-concentric posi-tion relative to the fixed member by positioning a roller means between the members and imposing at least part of the load from the fixed member to the rotating member at a position on the rotating member spaced from its center and in the direction having a substantial component in the direction of rotation and spaced from the center of the rotating member. The load force imposed on the rotating member induces rotation of the rotating member and applies the load force in a more advantageous manner than if it were applied through the center oE rotation.
Summarily, the instant invention involves a method and device for offsetting the loading on a rotational member to a position such that the load vector does not pass through the center of the rotational member. This is accomplished by a bearing structure having means to substantially constantly dis-place the rotating mémber to a position in which the restorative forces tend to aid and enhance rotation, ~IQ38(~
Although only one embodiment of the instant invention has been illustrated and described, it is anticipated that va-rious changes and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art and that such changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention, as defined by the following claims~

Claims

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A method of load aiding rotation of a rotating member having a load applied thereto, said rotating member being ra-dially displaced from a fixed member, said method comprising:
applying a torque to the rotating member to induce rotation thereof, displacing the rotating member to a nonconcentric position relative to the fixed member by positioning a roller means between the members and imposing at least a portion of the load from the fixed member to the rotating member at a position on the rotating member spaced from the center of the rotating member and in the direction having a substantial component in the direction of rotation and spaced from the center of the rotating member, whereby the load force imposed on the rotating member induces rotation of the rotating member and applies the load force in a more advantageous manner than if the same load were applied through the center of rotation.

2. A method as set forth in Claim 1 in which the rotating member is an axle secured within a housing with substantial radial freedom of movement within the housing, and in which the axle is radially displaced to a nonconcentric relationship relative to the housing by roller means positioned intermediate the housing and the axle.

3. A device for load aiding a rotating member having a load imposed thereon comprising an inner member, an outer mem-ber at least partially surrounding the inner member, complemen-tary bearing means located on the inner member and on the outer member to position the inner member within the outer member to accommodate substantial radial movement of the inner member within the outer member, and an inner surface on the outer mem-ber eccentric relative to the outer member, an outer surface on the inner member having securing means thereon, and roller means disposed between the inner surface of the outer member and en-gaged by the securing means on the outer surface of the inner member, whereby a portion of the eccentric inner surface on the outer member bears upon the roller means and selectively displa-ces the inner member in a substantially constant manner to transfer a load force to the inner member from the surface of the outer member at a position and in a direction spaced from the center of the inner member.

4. A device as set forth in Claim 3 in which the means securing the inner member within the outer member comprises axially outwardly projecting bearing surfaces disposed facing radially inwardly on the inner member and axially inwardly projecting bearing surfaces disposed facing radially outward on the outer member, the bearing surfaces on the inner member being of a larger diameter than the bearing surfaces on the outer member.

5. A device as set forth in Claim 4 in which the bearing surfaces are beveled.

6. A device as set forth in Claim 3 in which the roller means are ball bearings.

7. A device as set forth in Claim 3 in which the eccentric inner surface of the outer member is defined in the outer member to comprise a larger diameter portion, a ramp portion, and a smaller diameter portion with the ramp portion connecting the larger diameter portion and the small diameter portion.

8. A device as set forth in Claim 3 in which the device is oriented to receive a load in a given direction and the inner member is displaced with the center thereof above the center of the outer member relative to the direction from which the load is imposed.

9 A device for load aiding a rotating member having a load imposed thereon comprising: an axle having an inner member extending radially therefrom and attached thereto, an outer member disposed within a housing and extending circumferentially around and radially spaced from the inner member circumferential bearing surfaces defined concentrically on the inner member and projecting axially from the inner member and facing radially inwardly direction, complementary circumferential bearing surfa-ces defined on the outer member extending axially inward and facing radially outward, the bearing surfaces defined on the in-ner member being of a larger diameter than the bearing surfaces defined on the outer member, a plurality of roller means dis-posed between the inner member and outer member, an eccentric surface defined on the inner surface of the outer member and adapted to receive the roller means and retaining means defined in the inner member outer surface adapted to receive the roller means, whereby the eccentric surface defined on the outer member bears upon the roller means and accordingly upon the inner member to displace the inner member and to induce forces on the inner member which aid rotation and enhance rotation.