JP2014219067A - Bearing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a bearing device that can automatically regulate an amount of lubricant to be fed to a bearing and maintain a bearing temperature by a simple configuration at low cost.SOLUTION: The bearing device 1 includes first and second bearings 4, 6, and is formed with a lubricant feeding passage 11 for feeding the lubricant fed from an oil pump toward the vicinity of raceway surfaces of respective bearings 4, 6. An oil passage forming member 10 forming the lubricant feeding passage 11 comes into contact with bearing washers 44, 64 of the respective bearings 4, 6. A thermostat 15 is provided in the vicinity of contact parts 14 with the bearing washers 44, 64 inside the lubricant feeding passage 11 of the oil passage forming member 10.

Description

  The present invention relates to a bearing device, and more particularly to a bearing device that includes a rolling bearing and automatically adjusts the temperature of the raceway surface while lubricating the raceway surface of the bearing.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a technique for controlling a bearing temperature by providing a temperature sensor, a thermostat or the like in a bearing or a lubricating oil supply path around the bearing is known. For example, Patent Document 1 describes a bearing with a temperature notification function provided with a temperature notification element capable of notifying the state when the temperature of the bearing and its surroundings exceeds a predetermined value. Yes. Further, Patent Document 2 discloses an automatic temperature management type rolling bearing in which oil circulation control is performed by a temperature control unit so as to achieve a predetermined appropriate temperature in accordance with a detection output of a detection unit that detects the temperature of the rolling bearing unit. Have been described. Further, in Patent Document 3, the temperature of the housing cooling fluid supplied to the cooling fluid supply path is adjusted by the temperature adjusting means according to the rotation speed of the main shaft detected by the rotation speed detecting means, and a desired bearing preload is set. A spindle device provided with a preload adjusting means for adjusting is described.

JP 2007-292155 A JP 2000-274441 A JP 2011-167799 A

  However, in Patent Document 1, a temperature notification element such as a thermostat for notifying the state is provided in accordance with a temperature change around the bearing, but this is only a rise in the temperature of the bearing and its surroundings exceeding a predetermined value. When this is done, the condition is only reported, and the bearing temperature is not adjusted.

  In Patent Documents 2 and 3, an attempt is made to control the bearing temperature to a desired temperature by converting the temperature detected by the temperature detecting means into an electrical signal and controlling the amount of lubricating oil or the temperature of the lubricating oil with a device outside the bearing. In both cases, since a detection signal that detects the state of the bearing, such as the bearing temperature, is sent to the outside of the bearing, wiring from the bearing to an external controller or control device is required, and the configuration of the device becomes complicated. There was a problem of high costs.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to automatically adjust the amount of lubricating oil supplied to the bearing and to maintain the bearing temperature with a simple configuration and low cost. To provide an apparatus.

The above object of the present invention is achieved by the following configurations.
(1) A bearing device provided with a rolling bearing, wherein a lubricating oil supply path for supplying lubricating oil supplied from an oil pump toward the vicinity of the raceway surface of the rolling bearing is formed,
The oil passage forming member that forms the lubricating oil supply passage is in contact with the race of the rolling bearing,
A bearing device, wherein a thermostat is provided in the vicinity of a contact portion with the raceway ring in the lubricating oil supply passage of the oil passage forming member.
(2) The lubricating oil supply path is provided with a lubricating oil reservoir in the vicinity of the contact portion with the raceway,
The bearing device according to (1), wherein the thermostat is installed in the vicinity of an outlet of the lubricating oil reservoir to the lubricating oil supply path.
(3) The thermostat has an opening / closing ratio that changes in accordance with the bearing temperature so that the amount of lubricating oil supplied increases as the bearing temperature increases (1) or ( The bearing device according to 2).
(4) The amount of oil supplied to the lubricating oil supply path by opening and closing the thermostat is set in advance according to usage conditions,
The preset amount of oil is the minimum required amount of oil under light conditions when the lubricating oil supply passage is fully closed, and under the usage conditions where the heat generation amount of the bearing is maximum when the lubricating oil supply passage is fully open. The bearing device according to any one of (1) to (3), wherein the amount of heat generated by the bearing is an amount of oil necessary to be released by the lubricating oil.
(5) The bearing device according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein the thermostat is a bimetal system or a molten wax system.
(6) The rolling bearing is any one of a deep groove ball bearing, an angular ball bearing, a thrust ball bearing, a four-point contact ball bearing, a cylindrical roller bearing, a tapered roller bearing, or a spherical bearing. The bearing device according to any one of (5).

  According to the bearing device of the present invention, the thermostat provided in the lubricating oil supply passage mechanically opens and closes the oil passage according to the bearing temperature, so that signal processing by an external controller or the like is unnecessary, and a simple configuration In addition, it is possible to automatically adjust the amount of lubricating oil necessary for maintaining the bearing temperature at a low cost. Further, compared to the conventional case where the lubricating oil is always supplied, it is possible to promote the temperature rise of the bearing at the cold start and to reduce the bearing loss. Furthermore, if the temperature of the lubricating oil supplied in the same mechanical device is lower than the temperature set in the thermostat, it is possible to set different optimum temperatures for other components and bearings.

It is sectional drawing which shows the bearing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2 is an axial sectional view showing an embodiment of a single cavity toroidal continuously variable transmission to which the bearing device shown in FIG. 1 is applied.

  Hereinafter, a bearing device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a bearing device 1 includes a first rotating member 3, a first bearing 4, a support member 5, an oil passage forming member 10 as a case member, a second bearing 6, and a rotating shaft 2. A second rotating member 7 is provided. In the present embodiment, the first bearing 4 and the second bearing 6 are each constituted by a thrust ball bearing.

  The first bearing 4 is supported by the first rotating member 3 so as to be integrally rotatable, and is supported by a first race ring 42 having a first raceway surface 41 and one axial side surface of the oil passage forming member 10. A second raceway 44 having a second raceway surface 43, and a ball 45, which is a plurality of rolling elements arranged so as to be freely rollable between the first raceway surface 41 and the second raceway surface 43; And a retainer (not shown) that holds the plurality of balls 45 at equal intervals in the circumferential direction.

  The second bearing 6 is supported by the second rotating member 7 so as to be integrally rotatable, and is supported by the first bearing ring 62 having the first raceway surface 61 and the other axial side surface of the oil passage forming member 10. A second raceway ring 64 having a second raceway surface 63, and a ball 65, which is a plurality of rolling elements disposed between the first raceway surface 61 and the second raceway surface 63 so as to be freely rollable, A retainer (not shown) that holds the plurality of balls 65 at equal intervals in the circumferential direction.

  Lubricating oil supplied from an oil pump (not shown) is provided between the first bearing 4 and the second bearing 6 in the vicinity of the first raceway surfaces 41 and 61 and the second raceway surfaces 43 and 63. A lubricating oil supply mechanism for supplying is provided.

  The lubricating oil supply mechanism includes a lubricating oil supply path 11 constituted by an oil path forming member 10 fixed to the casing 8. The lubricating oil supply path 11 communicates with a lubricating oil supply hole 9 provided in the casing 8. Further, as a lubricating oil supply mechanism, the outer peripheral surface of the support member 5 is more than the distance between the shoulder portions of the second race rings 44 and 64 so as to communicate with the bearing spaces of the first and second bearings 4 and 6. A plurality of wide recesses 5a are formed in the circumferential direction.

Thereby, the lubricating oil is supplied from the oil pump to the lubricating oil supply passage 11 through the lubricating oil supply hole 9, and from the opening 13 of the lubricating oil supply passage 11 formed on the inner peripheral surface of the oil passage forming member 10. Passes between the concave portion 5a of the support member 5 and the inner peripheral surfaces of the second race rings 44 and 64, and is supplied toward the vicinity of each of the first race surfaces 41 and 61 and the second race surfaces 43 and 63. Is done.
In the present embodiment, the support member 5 is fitted to and supported by the inner diameter of the oil passage forming member 10.

  A radial position corresponding to the second race rings 44 and 64, that is, a position where the axial side surface opposite to the race face surfaces 43 and 63 of the second race rings 44 and 64 contacts the lubricating oil supply path 11. An annular lubricating oil reservoir 12 is formed in the vicinity of. A thermostat 15 that opens and closes in accordance with the temperature and adjusts the supply amount of the lubricating oil is disposed in the opening 13 of the lubricating oil supply passage 11 near the outlet of the lubricating oil reservoir 12.

  The thermostat 15 is not particularly limited, and a bimetal type or a molten wax type is used. As is well known, bimetallic thermostats are composed of two kinds of metals with different coefficients of thermal expansion bonded to each other to form a valve member. The valve member is deformed by the difference in thermal expansion coefficient depending on the temperature change. The valve is opened and closed by using this. The molten wax type thermostat inserts a rod integrated with a valve for opening and closing the lubricating oil supply path into a sealed container filled with molten wax, and normally the valve is closed by a spring force or the like, When the temperature rises, the molten wax enclosed in the sealed container melts and expands, and when the internal pressure of the sealed container rises and exceeds the biasing force of the spring, the rod moves and the valve opens. is there.

  The thermostat 15 is disposed in the lubricating oil reservoir 12 in the vicinity of the contact portion 14 where the second raceway ring 44 of the first bearing 4 and the second raceway ring 64 of the second bearing 6 are in contact with the oil passage forming member 10. Therefore, the bearing temperature can be sensed sensitively and opened and closed according to the bearing temperature.

  That is, the thermostat 15 is configured to continuously change the open / close ratio according to the bearing temperature so that the amount of lubricating oil supplied to the bearings 4 and 6 increases as the bearing temperature increases. The When the bearing temperature is lower than a preset temperature, the bearings may be fully closed to limit the amount of lubricating oil supplied to the bearings 4 and 6.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, the temperature of the second bearing rings 44 and 64 of the first bearing 4 and the second bearing 6 is changed from the contact portion 14 through the oil passage forming member 10 to the lubricating oil supply passage 11 ( Alternatively, heat is transferred to the lubricating oil in the lubricating oil reservoir 12). Accordingly, when the bearing temperature increases, the temperature of the lubricating oil in the lubricating oil supply passage 11 near the contact portion 14 also rises, and the thermostat 15 installed near the contact portion 14 opens according to the increased temperature.

  When the thermostat 15 is opened, the lubricating oil in the lubricating oil reservoir 12 is supplied to the raceway surfaces 41, 43, 61, 63 of the first bearing 4 and the second bearing 6. As a result, the raceway surfaces 41, 43, 61, 63 of the first bearing 4 and the second bearing 6 are cooled by the lubricating oil, and the temperature of the raceway surfaces 41, 43, 61, 63 decreases.

  On the other hand, when the bearing temperature decreases, the temperature in the lubricating oil supply passage 11 (or the lubricating oil reservoir 12) decreases. Then, the thermostat 15 is closed by the lubricating oil whose temperature has decreased, and the amount of circulation through the opening 13 of the lubricating oil supply path 11 is limited.

  As described above, when the supply of the lubricating oil flowing through the lubricating oil supply passage 11 is restricted and the heat of the bearings 4 and 6 is not released to the outside, the bearing temperature rises again. When the bearing temperature rises, the thermostat 15 installed in the vicinity of the contact portion 14 opens, and the supply of lubricating oil is started again. As described above, the thermostat 15 automatically adjusts the supply of the lubricating oil according to the temperature.

  Since the lubricating oil has a high kinematic viscosity at low temperatures and a low kinematic viscosity at high temperatures, the dynamic torque of the bearing becomes smaller at high temperatures. However, when the temperature becomes too high, oil film breakage or the like occurs, causing peeling or seizing.

  On the other hand, according to the bearing device 1 of the present embodiment, by reducing the amount of lubricating oil at low temperatures, the bearing temperature can be increased to an appropriate temperature at an early stage, and the dynamic torque of the bearing can be reduced. Further, when the bearing becomes hot due to the heat generation of the bearing, by supplying a large amount of lubricating oil, it is possible to prevent the temperature from rising to a set temperature or more and prevent the oil film from being cut.

Further, the amount of oil supplied to the vicinity of the raceway surface when the thermostat 15 is opened and closed is set in advance according to usage conditions such as the number of rotations of the rotating shaft 2 and the load applied to each of the bearings 4 and 6. Specifically, when the thermostat 15 is completely closed, the minimum required oil amount under light conditions (the minimum required oil amount necessary for operation of the bearing without load) is set. When the thermostat 15 is fully opened, The amount of heat generated by each bearing under the usage conditions in which the amount of heat generated by each of the bearings 4 and 6 is maximized is the amount of oil necessary to be released by the lubricating oil.
In addition, as shown in FIG. 1, the thermostat 15 may be arranged so as to provide a gap through which the minimum required oil amount flows with respect to the opening 13 as a configuration for ensuring the minimum required oil amount when fully closed. . Alternatively, apart from the opening 13 in which the thermostat 15 is disposed, a bypass path for securing the minimum required oil amount may be formed so as to penetrate the oil path forming member 10.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the thermostat 15 provided in the lubricating oil supply passage 11 is mechanically opened and closed according to the bearing temperature, so that an external controller or the like is unnecessary, and a simple configuration and low cost. Thus, the amount of lubricating oil necessary for maintaining the bearing temperature can be adjusted automatically and continuously.

  Note that the bearing device 1 of the present embodiment is applied to a toroidal type continuously variable transmission used as a transmission of an automobile, for example. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an example in which the bearing device 1 of the present embodiment is installed in a single cavity type toroidal continuously variable transmission.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the single cavity toroidal continuously variable transmission 20 includes a toroidal transmission mechanism 21 and a first transmission mechanism 21 around a torque input shaft 2 that is a rotating shaft that rotates in conjunction with a drive source such as an engine. An output gear 3 that is one rotation member, a loading cam device 25, an output side bearing 4 that is a first bearing, and an input side bearing 6 that is a second bearing are provided.

  The toroidal transmission mechanism 21 includes an input disk 22 and an output disk 23 each having an arc-shaped concave cross section on the surfaces facing each other, and a rotatable power roller 24 sandwiched between the disks 22 and 23 and having a spherical convex surface. Are combined. The input disk 22 is drivingly coupled to the torque input shaft 2 so that the input disk 22 can move in the direction of the torque input shaft. The output disk 23 can rotate relative to the torque input shaft 2 and can be rotated from the input disk 22. It is attached opposite to the input disk 22 so that the movement in the direction of leaving is restricted.

  Further, the loading cam device 25 has a torque input shaft for adjusting the frictional force generated between the input disk 22 and the power roller 24 and between the power roller 24 and the output disk 23 so as to always have an appropriate magnitude. The pressing force in the input shaft direction is increased or decreased between the loading nut 26 fixed to the input disk side end 2 and the input disk 22 in accordance with the input torque.

  According to the toroidal type continuously variable transmission 20 configured as described above, the rotation transmitted from the drive source such as the engine to the cam disk 27 of the loading cam device 25 is transmitted to the input disk 22 via the roller 28. The rotation of the input disk 22 is transmitted to the output disk 23 via the power roller 24, and the rotation of the output disk 23 is taken out from the output gear 3.

  In the single cavity type toroidal type transmission 20, the power roller 24 is sandwiched between the input disk 22 and the output disk 23 to transmit power, and receives a large thrust load. This thrust load is also transmitted from the output disk 23 to the output gear 3, and the thrust load applied to the output gear 3 is received by the output side bearing 4. The input side bearing 6 also receives a thrust load from the flange member 7 coupled to the torque input shaft 2.

  Thus, since the output side bearing 4 and the input side bearing 6 rotate at a high speed under a large thrust load, it is important to supply lubricating oil to this portion, and the bearing device 1 of the above embodiment is suitable. Applies to

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and modifications, improvements, etc. can be made as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

  In the above embodiment, the thermostat 15 is disposed in the lubricating oil reservoir 12, and the bearing temperature can be appropriately sensed by transmitting the bearing temperature to the lubricating oil remaining in the lubricating oil reservoir 12, The present invention is not limited to this as long as the thermostat can appropriately sense the bearing temperature. For example, a thermostat may be arranged in the lubricating oil supply path in the vicinity of the contact portion without providing a lubricating oil reservoir.

  Further, the oil passage forming member of the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above-described embodiment, and is configured to contact the raceway of the rolling bearing so that heat conduction is performed from the raceway to the oil passage formation member. The thermostat only needs to be provided in the vicinity of the contact portion with the raceway so that the bearing temperature can be properly detected.

  The rolling bearing to which the present invention is applied is not limited to a thrust ball bearing, and may be any of a deep groove ball bearing, an angular ball bearing, a four-point contact ball bearing, a cylindrical roller bearing, a tapered roller bearing, or a spherical bearing. It can be used suitably.

1 Bearing device 2 Torque input shaft 3 Output gear (first rotating member)
4 Output side bearing (first bearing)
5 Support member 5a Recess 6 Input side bearing (second bearing)
7 Flange member (second rotating member)
8 Casing 9 Lubricating oil supply hole 10 Oil passage forming member 11 Lubricating oil supply passage 12 Lubricating oil reservoir 13 Opening 14 Contact portion 15 Thermostat

Claims (6)

A bearing device comprising a rolling bearing, wherein a lubricating oil supply path for supplying lubricating oil supplied from an oil pump toward the vicinity of the raceway surface of the rolling bearing is formed,
The oil passage forming member that forms the lubricating oil supply passage is in contact with the race of the rolling bearing,
A bearing device, wherein a thermostat is provided in the vicinity of a contact portion with the raceway ring in the lubricating oil supply passage of the oil passage forming member. The lubricating oil supply path is provided with a lubricating oil reservoir in the vicinity of the contact portion with the raceway,
The bearing device according to claim 1, wherein the thermostat is installed in the vicinity of an outlet of the lubricating oil reservoir to the lubricating oil supply path.   The open / close ratio of the thermostat changes according to the bearing temperature so that the amount of lubricating oil supplied increases as the bearing temperature increases. Bearing device. The amount of oil supplied to the lubricating oil supply path by opening and closing the thermostat is set in advance according to the use conditions,
The preset amount of oil is the minimum required amount of oil under light conditions when the lubricating oil supply passage is fully closed, and under the usage conditions where the heat generation amount of the bearing is maximum when the lubricating oil supply passage is fully open. The bearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the amount of heat generated by the bearing is an amount of oil required to be released by the lubricating oil.   The bearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the thermostat is a bimetal system or a molten wax system.   6. The rolling bearing according to claim 1, wherein the rolling bearing is a deep groove ball bearing, an angular ball bearing, a thrust ball bearing, a four-point contact ball bearing, a cylindrical roller bearing, a tapered roller bearing, or a spherical bearing. The bearing device according to claim 1.