GB2024338A - Mounting for a self-aligning bearing - Google Patents

Abstract

A mounting for a self-aligning bearing consists of a two-part flange-cartridge mount wherein the two parts have opposed truncated concave spherical-seat regions for self-aligning support of the convex spherical periphery of a self-aligning bearing 14, one of the flange parts 11 being essentially flat and of thickness extending for at least the axial extent of the concave seat formation therein, so that the said one flange part may fit flush to a frame member 13 and provide direct frame support for the bearing when the other flange part 10 is clamped to the frame member via the said one flange part. The other flange part is of pressed steel and the spherical seat is formed therein in an axially deformed offset portion 24. The thick flange part 11 may be of sintered powder metal or of cast metal or it may be of plastic material. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Flush-mounted flange assembly for mounting a self-aligning bearing The invention relates to adapter structure for mounting a self-aligning bearing to a frame, and in particular the invention is concerned with such structure wherein the adapter is a cartridge capable of unit-handling assembly to the bearing to be mounted to the frame.

Existing cartridge mounts of the character indicated comprise two like pressed-steel flanged members with matching radial flanges for flange-toflange abutment, and with axially outwardly deformed central seat formations which are characterized by truncated spherical surfaces, engaging the outer convex spherical surface of a self-aligning bearing. In use of such a cartridge to mount a shaft to a frame member, such as a steel plate forming part of the frame of a harvester or other agricultural machinery, the plate must be cut with an opening large enough to accommodate the cartridge-flange alone, i.e., to accommodate only flange abutment with the plate, and without frame interference with the pressed deformation which defines the seat portion of the flanged member.Not only does this requirement entail a shaft-mounting opening which is very much larger than the shaft size, but it also necessarily follows that all framesustained bearing-load forces must be transmitted via the relatively weak link represented by the flanges and flange-juncture to their respective pressed seat deformations. Such cartridge mounts thus present the machine designer with significant load and other limitations.

It is an object of the invention to provide an improved flange mount of the character indicated wherein the above-noted limitations are substantially reduced, if not entirely avoided.

It is a specific object of the invention to meet the above object with a construction in which bearing load can be much more directly and better sustained by the frame member to which the mount is secured.

Another specific object is to provide such an improved construction wherein the necessary frame opening may be of materially less diameter as compared with the requisite opening for an existing cartridge mount for accommodation of a given shaft or for accommodation of a given self-aligning bearing.

It is also a specific object to meet the above objects with a unit-handling assembly of cartridge and bearing parts, to facilitate mounting to a frame member.

A further specific object is to meet the above objects with the additional feature of bearing lubrication via the cartridge.

It is a general object to meet the stated objects with a rugged and relatively inexpensive construction, having substantially enhanced load capacity, and capable of installation by relatively unskilled persons.

Other objects and various further features of novelty and invention will be pointed out or will occur to those skilled in the art from a reading of the follow ing specification in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In said drawings, which show, for illustrative purposes only, preferred forms of the invention:: Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of a cartridge mount of the invention, shown in completed assembly to a frame member and to a shaft, via selfaligning bearing means; Fig. 2 is a view in end elevation, as seen from the left or exposed side of the mount of Fig. 1; Figs. 3,4 and 5 are respectively left-elevation, vertical-section, and right-elevation views of one of the cartridge parts of Fig. 1; Figs. 6 and 6A pertain to a modification, Fig. 6 being a fragmentary vertical section and Fig. 6A being a perspective view of a grommet part adapted for assembly in the combination of Fig. 6; Figs. 7 and 7A pertain to another modification, being respectively analogous to the views of Figs. 6 and 6A; Figs. 8 and 8A illustrate a further modification, Fig.

8 being a vertical sectional view and Fig. 8A being a left elevation; Fig. 9 is an exploded vertical section to illustrate a still further modification; Figs. 10 and 11 are respectively vertical-section and left-elevation views of a relubricatableversion of the structure of Fig. 1; Fig. 12 is a left elevation of one of the parts of Fig.

10; and Fig. 13 is a fragmentary vertical section to illustrate modification of a portion of Fig. 10.

Referring initially to Figs. 1 and 2, the invention is shown in application to a cartridge assembly comprised of two flange members 10-11 mounted by bolts 12 to the flat adjacent surface of a frame plate 13, all for the mounting of a self-aligning bearing 14 and a rotatable shaft 15, with the latter passing through an opening 16 in the frame plate. The bearing 14 is of the antifriction variety comprising an outer race ring 17, an inner race ring 18, interposed balls 19, and end seals 20; and a locking ring 21 coacts with part of the inner ring 18 to lock the same to shaft 15.The flange members 10-11 have opposed concave truncated-spherical seat surfaces in selfaligning engagement with the convex spherical outer surface of outer bearing ring 17, and selfaligning relative motion will be understood to be about the spherical center 22, to the extent 8 without having the outer ring 17 pierce the radial end plane at either axial end of the cartridge assembly.

In accordance with a feature of the invention, at least the frame-abutting one (11) of the flange members of the cartridge assembly is thick, solid, and relatively flat at each axial end. The other flange member 10 may be and preferably is of conventional configuration, being shown to be of pressed steel, wherein a flat annular flange portion 23 extends radially from an axially deformed central seat portion 24.

The thick flat flange member 11 is shown in greater detail in Figs. 3, 4, and 5 and may be of machined steel but is preferably of molded or cast construction, as for example an unmachined sintered powder-metal product; member 11 may also be of injection-molded polycarbonate, cast urethane, or the like, depending upon application conditions.

Dimensionally, the flange member 11 has an axial thickness T, which is at least as great as the axial extent T2 of its concave spherical seat portion 25; and T, is here shown to exceed T2 to permit provision of a short counterbore 26, near the flange-toflange abutment region, and of radius R2 exceeding the spherical seat radius R,. Rivet means 27 forcefitted to anchor holes 28 in the flange-to-flange abutment face of member 11 pass through aligned apertures in the outer flange member and loosely retain the basic cartridge assembly, in unit-handling relation, with the respective mounting-bolt holes in register; for tolerance purposes, these bolt holes are preferably square, as shown at 29 for member 11.

Axial access channels 30 of width W interrupt otherwise circumferential continuity of seat portion 25 at diametrically opposed locations to permit bearing assembly to or removal from the cartridge assembly. Finally,theflatframe-mounting side of member 11 is shown to comprise spaced foot areas 31 at the region of bolt clamping, and interposed stabilizing foot regions 32, the axial offset of these areas 31-32 being preferably relatively shallow and short of the adjacent axial end of seat portion 25.

The described cartridge structure will be seen to lend itself to marketability as the cartridgeperse, i.e., a loosely retained unit-handling preassembly of flange members 10-11, in readinessforthe customer's endwise insertion of bearing means 14 of his choice, via the access channels 30. The cartridge is also seen to be marketable as a loosely retained unit-handling assembly complete with the bearing means 14. Upon preliminary assembly to shaft 15 and to frame plate 13, the shaft and bearing are allowed to assume their self-aligned setting within the range 8 prior to final clamping via bolts 12 and locking ring 21.

Figs. 6 to 9 illustrate various alternatives to the rivets 27, for achieving the unit-handling relation of cartridge members 10-11. In the arrangement of Fig.

6, a split grommet 35 has snap-fitted assembly through aligned bolting apertures of members 10-11. The grommot 35 is seen in Fig. 6A to be of generally square central section, between a circular base flange 36 and a beveled front shoulder 37. Base flange 36 is fully accommodated in a counterbore at the frame-mounting axial end of each bolt aperture 29 in member 11, and the bevel at shoulder 37 enables transient circumferential deformation of shoulder 37 in the course of assembly to the register ing apertures 29. Grommet 35 may be of injection molded polyethylene or other suitable plastic or it may be of formed metal. In either event, the cartridge may be bolted to frame plate 13 by passing the bolt through the grommet, the grommet being sufficiently compressible so as not to impair full clamping via bolts 12.

In the arrangement of Fig. 7, the grommet 38 is of the press-in variety, having a shank end sized for retaining friction-fit assembly to the bolt aperture 29 of member 11 via the registering aperture of member 10. Grommet 38 may be of plastic or formed metal, roughened or formed with spring feet, as at 39, to enhance security of the friction fit. Again, application of mounting bolts 12 is via the open central passage of the grommet, which is also deformably yieldable to the clamping action of a bolt 12.

In the arrangement of Figs. 8 and 9, both of the flange units 1 0'-11' are thick and flat and are of thick- ness at least as great as the axial extent of their respective spherical seat portions. Three registering sets of mounting apertures 4040' accept mounting bolts, as at 12, and three registering sets of counterbored further apertures 4141' accept eyelet means 42 for unit-handling retention prior to frame-mounting. Access channels 43 in the spherical seat portion of the inner flange member 11' permit insertion and/or removal of self-aligning bearing means, suggested at44.

In the arrangement of Fig. 9, the flange member 11 is an injection-molded product of suitable plastic such as polycarbonate, and the "grommet" by which loose assembly to member 10 is retained is a stud formation 38' integral with member 11. The projection end of stud 38' is a beveled bead or shoulder for snap-in assembly to a registering opening in the flange portion of member 10, as will be understood.

The arrangement of Figs. 10 to 12 illustrates a lubricatable embodiment of the invention, and parts recognizable from Fig. 1 are given the same reference numbers. The difference in Figs. 10 to 12 is that a counterbore 45 of L-shaped profile (of revolution) has an axially shallow but radially more extensive portion at the flange-to-flange abutment surface of member 11, and a radially shallow but axially moreextensive contiguous portion at the larger diameter end of the spherical seat portion of member 11.

Counterbore 45 thus defines, with the outer bearing ring and with flange member 10, a circumferentially continuous manifold for distribution of lubricant, admitted via a grease fitting 46 mounted to the flange portion of member 10. Plural radial passages 47 in the axial region between the raceway and one of the seals 20 carried by the outer bearing ring enable lubricant entry from the manifold and into the rolling-contact zone of the bearing. It will be seen from the "aligned" bearing situation depicted in Fig.

10 that sufficient axial overlap exists for the manifold with respect to passages 47 to enable a range 8 of bearing self-alignment without cutting off the supply of lubricant to the bearing.

The effective lubrication potentiality of the Fig. 10 to 12 structure is enhanced by employment of a circumferentially continuous seal action at the flange-to-flange abutment interface for locations radially outside manifold 45 and radially inside the mounting-bolt apertures, rivet (27) apertures, or the like. In the form shown, an elastometic 0-ring 49 achieves the seal, and ring 49 is seen in Fig. 12 to be located in a continuous groove 50 in member 11, groove 50 having an outward-lobe course at 51 to assure a full seal around the fitting 46 and its location of discharge into manifold 45.

It will be understood that in the unclamped condition, O-ring 49 projects axially beyond the otherwise flat radial-plane surface of member 11 and that such projection is for the full circumferentially continuous extent of ring 49. Thus, clamping achieves fully sea led circumferential completion of the manifold passage.

By the same token, it will be understood that such sealing may be effected by other means, for example, gland wicking, deformable metal such as lead, and the like. Still further, if the member 11 is itself of inherently deformable material, for example, an elastomeric such as a cast urethane, the deformable seal projection may be a circumferentially continuous axially projecting bead 52, integrally formed with the body of member 11, as shown in Fig. 13.

It will be seen that the described structures of the invention meet all stated objects and, in the particular case of sintered powder-metal construction of member 11, it is possible to achieve such precision in the seat portion as to enable a fit-up torque (outer bearing ring to seat of member 11) of such magnitude as to prevent the outer bearing ring from rotating in its seat, while nevertheless allowing for initial alignment and mis-alignment during fit to a machine frame and to shafting of the machine. The pressed-steel nature of the other flange member 10 enables the latter to axially load the outer bearing ring at all times into its precision-seat engagement to member 11.

Still further, the invention is seen to provide a full range 8 of self-alignment accommodation without requiring anything like the shaft-aperture diameter which is necessary for the indicated all-pressed-steel mountings. This fact is comparatively displayed in Fig. 1,wherein the aperture 16 happens to be of diameter D1 but could equally well have been of a much lesser diameter D2; by comparison, the minimum diameter D3 needed to accommodate an all-pressed-steel mounting is seen to be very considerably greater than the minimum diameter D2 required for accommodating thick-body flange members 11 of the invention.

While the invention has been described in detail for preferred forms, it will be understood that mod ifications may be made without departing from the invention.

Claims (23)

1. In a flanged cartridge for selective mounting of a self-aligning bearing, said cartridge comprising first and second annular flanged members having registering bolt openings for flange-to-flange bolting of said members, said members each having a central opening with a concave truncated spherical seat surface adapted to engage and support the convex spherical outer surface of the outer ring of a selfaligning bearing, the improvement in which one of said annular members is a generally flat flange of thickness at least as great as the axial extent of the concave truncated spherical seat thereof, and in which the other of said annular members is of pressed steel wherein the truncated spherical seat is defined by an axially deformed offset inner portion integral with a radially outward flange extending from the large-diameter end of the seat truncation thereof; whereby, when said members are clamped to each other with their seat concavities in opposed relation on opposite sides of a great-circle plane of the bearing outer-ring surface, and with said flat flange clamped in flush-mounted relation to a frame member, said flat flange provides precise nondeforming support of the bearing ring with reference to the frame member and said pressed-steel flanged member provides stiffly complaint axially loaded seating of the outer bearing ring in said nondeforming support.

2. The improvement of claim 1, in which axialretention means coacting between flanges of said members loosely retains said members in unithandling relation.

3. The improvement of claim 2, in which the concave spherical seat of said flat flange comprises angularly opposed like arcuate spherical seat segments spaced by diametrically opposite axialloading grooves of width and depth sufficient to accommodate edge-wise insertion of a self-aligning bearing ring into the seat regions of the loosely retained unit-handling assembly.

4. The improvement of claim 1, in which said one annular member is a single sintered powder-metal part.

5. The improvement of claim 4, in which said powder-metal part is unmachined.

6. The improvement of claim 1, in which said one annular member is of cast metal.

7. The improvement of claim 1, in which said one annular member is of plastic material.

8. The improvement of claim 2, in which said axial-retention means comprises plural angularly spaced rivets carried by said flat flange and extending through aligned openings in said pressed-steel flange.

9. The improvement of claim 2, in which said axial-retention means comprises an annular deformable grommet through each of a plurality of aligned bolt openings of said flanged members.

10. The improvement of claim 2, in which said axial-retention means includes a deformable element integrally formed with the flange of one of said members and having loose-retaining engagement with a portion of the other of said members.

11. The improvement of claim 1, in which the flange-to-flange engaging generally flat surface of said one annular member is in the plane of a greatcircle of the geometrical sphere of the truncated spherical seat of said one annular member, the larger axial end of said seat being truncated short of said plane, and said one annular member having a circumferentially continuous counterbore between said plane and the larger axial end of said truncated seat.

12. The improvement of claim 11, in which said flange-to-flange engaging generally flat surface of said one annular member has a circumferentially continuous seal-locating groove facing and circumferentially continuously closed by the flange of said pressed-steel member, and a seal ring of yie Idable material located in said groove and compressed by said pressed-steel flange when said members are clamped in flange-to-flange relation.

13. The improvement of claim 12, in which said seal ring is of elastomeric material.

14. The improvement of claim 11, in which said one annular member is of stiffly yieldable material and in which the flange-to-flange engaging generally flat surface of said one annular member has a circumferentially continuous bead-seal formation projecting axially out of the plane of said surface and circumferentially continuously closed by the flange of said pressed-steel member when said members are clamped in flange-to-flange relation.

15. The improvementofclaim 12 orclaim 14, in which said pressed-steel member includes a lubric ant fitting between the seat region and the seal engaging flange region thereof, said lubricant fitting having communication with the annular manifold defined by the counterbore.

16. As an article of manufacture, a two-member cartridge and self-aligning antifriction bearing in loosely retained unit-handling relation with said cartridge, said cartridge comprising first and second annular flanged members having registering plural bolt openings and configurated forflange-to-flange clamped abutment with each other, each of said flanged members having a central truncated con cave spherical seat portion of spherical radius conforming to the spherical outer convex surface of the self-aligning antifriction bearing, and interengaging means coacting between said flanges and loosely retaining the unit-handling relation of said cartridge and bearing, at least one of said flanged members being of thickness at least as great as the axial extent of the concave truncated spherical seat thereof, and said one member having a flatframe-mounting surface in opposed parallel relation to the flange-toflange abutment surface of said one member.

17. Thearticleofclaim 16, in which at least one of said members is circumferentially continuously re!ieved between the seat and flange portions thereof to define with the convex bearing surface and with the other of said members a circumferen tially continuous lubricant manifold, the flange-to flange abutment surface of said one member having a circumferentially continuous seal-locating groove radially between the manifold and the bolt openings, a circumferentially continuous seal of yieldable material located in said groove and circumferentially continuously engageable by the adjacent flange surface of the other of said members, and a lubricant fitting carried by said other member in the region between the seat portion and the seal-engaging por tion thereof and providing lubricant-supply com munication to said manifold.

18. The article of claim 17, in which said groove has a radially outward lobe in its circumferential course at the region around said fitting.

19. The article of claim 18, in which said antifric tion bearing comprises inner and outer race rings with interposed balls and with bearing seals between said rings on both axial sides of said balls, the outer race ring having said convex spherical surface and having at least one radially communica tive lubricant passage from an axially central part, said convex surface to the ball-accommodating reg ion between said bearing seals, said passage com municating with said manifold for a range of angular self-aligning orientations of said bearing with respect to said flanged members.

20. The article of claim 16, in which said other flanged member is also flat and of thickness at least equal to the axial extent of the truncated spherical seat thereof.

21. The article of claim 16, in which said interengaging means is integral with at least one of said members.

22. Thearticleofclaim 16,inwhichatleastone of said members is of stiffly yieldable material and is circumferentially continuously relieved between the seat and flange portions thereof to define with the convex bearing surface and with the other of said members a circumferentially continuous lubricant manifold, the flange-to-flange abutment surface of said one member having a circumferentially continuous bead-seal formation projecting axially out of the plane of the flange-to-flange abutment surface thereof and circumferentially continuously closed by the flange of the other member when said members are clamped in flange-to-flange relation.

23. An assembly substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.