Bearings – Rotary bearing – Antifriction bearing
Patent
1998-11-04
2000-10-17
Footland, Lenard A.
Bearings
Rotary bearing
Antifriction bearing
F16C 2308
Patent
active
061320994
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a radial bearing assembly for a drive shaft of vehicles, in particular for a drive halfshaft, for connecting a transmission of a transversely mounted internal combustion engine to a driven front wheel, wherein the drive halfshaft is supported by a sealed radial bearing which is received in a holder securely fixed in place on the side of the internal combustion engine.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A radial bearing assembly of this type is described in the workshop repair manual (Manual de Reparation N. 8881) for the vehicle Citroen BX, edition of September 1982, chapter 5, page 3. The figure XB 16 illustrates a holder which appears to be mounted on the engine block and supports the drive shaft, with the outer ring of a radial bearing being restrained in the holder against rotation. Secured to the drive halfshaft is the inner ring which is supported by a shoulder that forms an axial stop of the radial bearing. This conventional radial bearing assembly does not allow a self-alignment, i.e. no compensation for a radial offset between the radial bearing and the drive halfshaft during installation. Alignment of the radial bearing is not possible since the outer ring is mounted coaxial with the drive halfshaft in the housing without any clearance, and the housing is attached to the engine block without provisions for adjustment.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,413,701 discloses a support provided for a drive halfshaft and including a holder secured to the engine block for receiving a radial bearing having an inner ring which is secured on the drive halfshaft against rotation. The drive halfshaft has a cardan joint immediately at the transmission output, thereby rendering the need for alignment of the radial bearing unnecessary. The arrangement of a further cardan joint incurs disadvantageously increased manufacturing costs and further complicates installation of the drive shaft.
A further solution for creating a drive halfshaft support which allows a self-alignment proposes a radial bearing assembly which has an outer ring received in a holder or a receiving housing via an elastic intermediate ring. This type of support for a drive halfshaft leads to higher maintenance costs since the elastic intermediate ring as a result of considerable mechanical stress is subject to high wear which is even compounded if the drive halfshaft is out-of-true.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to provide a cost-effective radial bearing assembly which supports a drive halfshaft and is arranged in a holder without clearance and can be self-aligned during installation, while yet having a long service life, optimized configuration and still is simple to install.
According to one aspect the invention, an inner ring of the radial bearing is formed from a sheet metal band in non-cutting fashion and fixedly secured in place on the drive halfshaft. The outer ring of the radial bearing is provided with a spherical or crown-shaped outer surface area of the outer ring which is receivable in oriented position in the holder assembled from flanges. The use of the radial bearing with an inner ring formed without cutting results, advantageously, in a reduced wall thickness in comparison to conventional massive inner rings. This thin-walled inner ring has a greater inside diameter while the dimensions of the other components remain the same, so as to permit installation of a drive shaft with a greater outside diameter.
As a consequence of the spherical outer surface area of the outer ring, the radial bearing in the holder can be aligned during assembly and is arranged, for example, at a limited radial offset relative to the drive halfshaft depending on tolerances. This self-alignment in accordance with the invention advantageously ensures a stress-free radial bearing assembly and thereby prevents the bearing from being out-of-true This feature positively impacts the wear behavior of the radial bearing and therefore extends its service life. The exact alignment of the radial bearing relativ
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Jennes Peter
Olszewski Piotr
Simon Pierre
Wittmann Raphael
Feiereisen Henry M.
Footland Lenard A.
Ina Walzlager Schaeffler OHG
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