Reticulated radial gas foil bearings

Abstract

The present invention discloses a mesh radial gas foil bearing, which relates to the technical field of gas foil bearings, and includes a bearing sleeve, a top foil and an elastic foil assembly, wherein the top foil is located in the bearing sleeve, the first end of the top foil is arranged opposite to the second end and has a gap, the first end of the top foil is relatively fixed to the bearing sleeve, the second end of the top foil can move relative to the bearing sleeve, the elastic foil assembly is located between the bearing sleeve and the top foil, the first end of the top foil is arranged opposite to the second end and has a gap, the first end of the elastic foil assembly is relatively fixed to the bearing sleeve, the elastic foil assembly includes n layers of elastic foil, two adjacent layers of elastic foil are fixedly connected, each layer of elastic foil is provided with a plurality of holes, and the holes of each layer of elastic foil are staggered, and n is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2. Such an arrangement solves the problem that the dynamic pressure air floating bearing in the prior art is easily deformed in working conditions, causing mechanical equipment to fail.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of gas foil bearings, and more specifically to a mesh radial gas foil bearing. Background Art

[0002] Air foil bearings have low friction loss and have many advantages such as almost no friction at extremely high speeds, good high-temperature stability, low vibration, and no need for lubricating oil. They are widely used in air cycle machines, air blowers, fuel cell air compressors, micro gas turbines and other machinery. They have very broad application prospects in the fields of low-temperature and high-temperature technology, high-speed turbines and space technology.

[0003] Among them, the dynamic pressure air bearing is a common and commonly used air foil bearing. It is composed of one or more layers of corrugated foil and top foil, and has a good flexible surface. When working, it relies on the relative movement of the shaft and the bearing surface to enable the shaft to suck the gas with a certain viscosity into the wedge-shaped space between the shaft and the bearing top foil for extrusion, forming a lubricating air film with a certain pressure, so that the shaft is suspended. Please refer to Figure 1 When there is a wedge-shaped space between two relatively moving surfaces, the surfaces moving against each other continuously drive the gas into the wedge-shaped groove, so that a dynamic pressure gas film 403 with a certain pressure is formed in the wedge-shaped groove, that is, the dynamic pressure gas film 403 is located between the inner surface 402 of the bearing and the rotating shaft 401. When the pressure of the dynamic pressure gas film 403 is large enough to support the load, the rotating shaft 401 will be suspended, and the friction will disappear.

[0004] However, when the common hydrodynamic air bearings in the prior art are placed under complex working conditions such as vehicle-mounted fuel cell air compressors, micro gas turbines, large loads or impact loads, their support structures are easily deformed due to their low damping and poor impact resistance, which can easily cause mechanical equipment failures.

[0005] Therefore, how to solve the problem in the prior art that the hydrodynamic air bearing is easily deformed in working conditions and causes mechanical equipment to malfunction has become an important technical problem to be solved by those skilled in the art. Summary of the invention

[0006] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a mesh radial gas foil bearing, which solves the problem of easy deformation in working conditions and causing mechanical equipment failure compared to the dynamic pressure air bearing in the prior art. The preferred technical solution among the many technical solutions provided by the present invention can produce many technical effects as described below.

[0007] To achieve the above object, the present invention provides the following technical solutions:

[0008] The present invention provides a mesh radial gas foil bearing, comprising:

[0009] Bearing sleeves;

[0010] A top foil is located in the bearing sleeve, wherein the first end and the second end of the top foil are arranged opposite to each other with a gap, the first end of the top foil is relatively fixed to the bearing sleeve, and the second end of the top foil is movable relative to the bearing sleeve;

[0011] An elastic foil assembly is located between the bearing sleeve and the top foil, with a first end and a second end arranged opposite to each other and having a gap, the first end of the elastic foil assembly is relatively fixed to the bearing sleeve, the elastic foil assembly includes n layers of elastic foil, two adjacent layers of the elastic foil are fixedly connected, each layer of the elastic foil is provided with a plurality of holes, and the holes of each layer of the elastic foil are staggered with each other; wherein n is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2.

[0012] Preferably, a pin hole is provided at the end of the bearing sleeve, a connecting groove is provided on the inner wall of the bearing sleeve, the connecting groove is connected to the pin hole, a fixing plate is provided at the first end of the top foil, the fixing plate is located in the pin hole and the connecting groove, and a pin is inserted into the pin hole to limit the fixing plate from slipping off the bearing sleeve.

[0013] Preferably, a limiting groove is provided on the inner wall of the bearing sleeve, and a sliding plate is provided at the second end of the top foil, and the sliding plate extends into the limiting groove and can slide along the limiting groove.

[0014] Preferably, the groove depth direction of the positioning groove is perpendicular to the axis of the bearing sleeve.

[0015] Preferably, the slide is tangential to the top foil.

[0016] Preferably, two fixing plates are provided, and the sliding plate passes between the two fixing plates.

[0017] Preferably, a positioning groove is provided on the inner wall of the bearing sleeve, and a positioning sheet is provided at the first end of the elastic foil assembly, and the positioning sheet is embedded in the positioning groove.

[0018] Preferably, the holes of the elastic foil are square holes, and all the square holes of the elastic foil assembly have the same size.

[0019] Preferably, two adjacent layers of the elastic foil are connected by spot welding at intervals.

[0020] Preferably, n is equal to three.

[0021] In the technical solution provided by the present invention, the mesh radial gas foil bearing includes a bearing sleeve, a top foil and an elastic foil assembly, wherein the top foil is located in the bearing sleeve, the first end of the top foil is arranged opposite to the second end and has a gap, the first end of the top foil is relatively fixed to the bearing sleeve, the second end of the top foil can move relative to the bearing sleeve, the elastic foil assembly is located between the bearing sleeve and the top foil, the first end of the elastic foil assembly is arranged opposite to the second end and has a gap, the first end of the elastic foil assembly is relatively fixed to the bearing sleeve, the elastic foil assembly includes n layers of elastic foil, two adjacent layers of elastic foil are fixedly connected, each layer of elastic foil is provided with a plurality of holes, and the holes of each layer of elastic foil are staggered, and n is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2. During operation, the top foil is located in the circumference of the rotating shaft, the first end of the top foil is fixed and the second end is free, which is conducive to the circumferential expansion of the top foil, so that the bearing clearance is stably controlled, and the layers of elastic foil of the elastic foil assembly are spaced and supported each other to form an elastic support structure. Due to the dynamic air film, the elastic foil assembly produces elastic deformation, and after elastic deformation, the layers of elastic foil produce mutual staggered friction, which provides sufficient rigidity and damping characteristics for the bearing. In addition, due to the mutual support between the multiple layers of elastic foil, the elastic foil assembly will not undergo plastic deformation, and the impact resistance is improved, so that the bearing is not easy to be damaged, thereby ensuring that the mechanical equipment is not prone to failure during operation. Such a setting solves the problem that the dynamic pressure air floating bearing in the prior art is easy to deform in working conditions, causing mechanical equipment to fail. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, other drawings may be obtained based on these drawings without any creative work.

[0023] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the principle of a hydrodynamic air bearing in the prior art;

[0024] Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the explosion structure of the mesh radial gas foil bearing in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the overall structure of the mesh radial gas foil bearing in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 4 for Figure 3 The structural diagram at A in the middle;

[0027] Figure 5 Schematic diagram of the positional relationship between the bearing sleeve and the top foil in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 6 for Figure 5 The structural diagram at B in the middle;

[0029] Figure 7 Schematic diagram of the positional relationship between the bearing sleeve and the elastic foil assembly in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 8 for Figure 7 Schematic diagram of the structure at C in the middle;

[0031] Fig. 9 Schematic diagram of the exploded structure of the elastic foil assembly in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Fig.10 Schematic diagram of the unfolded structure of the elastic foil assembly in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0033] Figure 1-Figure 10 middle:

[0034] 1. Bearing sleeve; 2. Top foil; 3. Elastic foil assembly; 4. Pin hole; 5. Connecting groove; 6. Fixing plate; 7. Limiting groove; 8. Sliding plate; 9. Positioning groove; 10. Positioning plate; 31. Elastic foil; 401. Rotating shaft; 402. Inner surface of bearing; 403. Dynamic pressure air film. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] To make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the present invention clearer, the technical solution of the present invention will be described in detail below. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other implementation methods obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work belong to the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0036] The purpose of this specific embodiment is to provide a mesh radial gas foil bearing, which can solve the problem that the hydrodynamic air bearing in the prior art is easy to deform in working conditions and cause mechanical equipment to malfunction.

[0037] The following embodiments are described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, the embodiments shown below do not limit the content of the invention described in the claims. In addition, the entire content of the structure represented by the following embodiments is not limited to the solution required as the invention described in the claims.

[0038] Please refer to Figure 2-Figure 10A mesh radial gas foil bearing provided in this embodiment comprises a bearing sleeve 1, a top foil 2 and an elastic foil assembly 3, wherein the bearing sleeve 1 has a central hole and a circular ring-shaped cross section, the top foil 2 is rectangular in an unfolded state, is curled into a cylindrical shape and is located in the bearing sleeve 1, the first end of the top foil 2 is arranged opposite to the second end and has a gap, the first end of the top foil 2 is relatively fixed to the bearing sleeve 1, the second end of the top foil 2 can move relative to the bearing sleeve 1, the elastic foil assembly 3 is unfolded into a rectangular shape, is curled into a cylindrical shape and is located between the bearing sleeve 1 and the top foil 2, the first end of the top foil 2 is relatively fixed to the second end and has a gap, the first end of the elastic foil assembly 3 is relatively fixed to the bearing sleeve 1, the elastic foil assembly 3 comprises n layers of elastic foil 31, two adjacent layers of elastic foil 31 are fixedly connected, each layer of elastic foil 31 is provided with a plurality of holes, and the holes of each layer of elastic foil 31 are staggered, and n is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2.

[0039] With such arrangement, during operation, the top foil 2 is located in the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft, the first end of the top foil 2 is fixed and the second end is free, which is conducive to circumferentially stretching the top foil 2 so that the bearing clearance is stably controlled, and the layers of elastic foil 31 of the elastic foil assembly 3 are spaced and supported from each other to form an elastic support structure. Due to the dynamic air film, the elastic foil assembly 3 produces elastic deformation, and after the elastic deformation, the layers of elastic foil 31 produce mutual staggered friction, which provides sufficient stiffness and damping characteristics for the bearing, and due to the mutual support between the multiple layers of elastic foil 31, the elastic foil assembly 3 will not undergo plastic deformation, and the impact resistance is improved, so that the bearing is not easily damaged, thereby ensuring that the mechanical equipment is not prone to failure during operation, and solving the problem in the prior art that the dynamic pressure air bearing is easily deformed in the working condition and causes the mechanical equipment to fail.

[0040] In addition, it is also beneficial to improve the manufacturing quality of bearings and the manufacturing consistency between bearings. In addition, the manufacturing process of the common hydrodynamic air bearings in the prior art is long and complex, involving processes such as stamping, heat treatment, welding, and assembly, which not only require high installation precision, but also make the manufacturing consistency difficult to control. The mesh radial gas foil bearing provided by the technical solution of the present invention only involves laser cutting process for the top foil 2 and the elastic foil assembly 3, without heat treatment and stamping, and is simple to process, greatly simplifying the manufacturing process.

[0041] As a specific implementation scheme, a positioning groove 9 connected to the center hole of the bearing sleeve 1 is provided on the inner wall, and a positioning piece 10 is provided on the first end of the elastic foil assembly 3. Preferably, a positioning piece 10 is provided on each layer of the elastic foil 31. During assembly, the elastic foil assembly 3 is curled into a cylindrical shape and enters the center hole of the bearing sleeve 1, and the positioning piece 10 is embedded in the positioning groove 9.

[0042] As a preferred embodiment, the depth direction of the positioning groove 9 can be set perpendicular to the axis of the bearing sleeve 1, that is, in the cross-section of the mesh radial gas foil bearing, the symmetry line of the positioning groove 9 coincides with the straight line of the diameter of the bearing sleeve 1, and the length direction of the positioning groove 9 is consistent with the length direction of the bearing sleeve 1.

[0043] In a more specific implementation scheme, a pin hole 4 is provided at the end of the bearing sleeve 1, and a connecting groove 5 is provided on the inner wall of the bearing sleeve 1. The connecting groove 5 is connected to the pin hole 4. The pin hole 4 can be set as a blind hole or a through hole. The connecting groove 5 passes through the end of the bearing sleeve 1. The first end of the top foil 2 is fixedly connected with a fixing plate 6. The pin hole 4 is located between the limiting groove 7 and the positioning groove 9. During assembly, the top foil 2 is curled into a cylindrical shape and enters the elastic foil assembly 3. The fixing plate 6 enters the pin hole 4 and the connecting groove 5. The pin is inserted into the pin hole 4 to limit the fixing plate 6 from slipping off the bearing sleeve 1 along the length direction of the bearing sleeve 1. Such an arrangement can achieve a detachable connection and a simple assembly process.

[0044] Furthermore, a limiting groove 7 is provided on the inner wall of the bearing sleeve 1, and a sliding piece 8 is fixedly connected to the second end of the top foil 2. The sliding piece 8 extends into the limiting groove 7 along the groove depth direction of the limiting groove 7 and can slide along the groove depth direction of the limiting groove 7 under force. Such an arrangement can ensure that the second end of the top foil 2 has freedom while ensuring that the top foil 2 does not shift in position.

[0045] In addition, the sliding sheet 8 is preferably arranged to be tangent to the top foil sheet 2, so that when the top foil sheet 2 is forced to expand outwards or contract inwards, the second end of the top foil sheet 2 moves smoothly along the tangential direction.

[0046] In a more preferred embodiment, two fixing sheets 6 are provided and are respectively located at two edges of the first end of the top foil 2, and the sliding sheet 8 is located in the middle of the second end of the top foil 2, passing through between the two fixing sheets 6, that is, the fixing sheet 6 and the first end of the top foil 2 are in a concave shape, and the sliding sheet 8 and the second end of the top foil 2 are in a convex shape.

[0047] Specifically, n is set equal to 3, that is, the elastic foil assembly 3 has three layers of elastic foil 31, and the deformation range of the elastic foil assembly 3 is the thickness of a single layer of elastic foil 31, so plastic deformation will not occur and the bearing is not easily damaged.

[0048] In addition, it is preferred to set the holes of the elastic foil 31 to be square holes, that is, the elastic foil 31 is woven, the square holes of the three layers of elastic foil 31 are staggered with each other, and all the square holes of the formed elastic foil assembly 3 are of the same size and arranged evenly, and the size of the square holes of the elastic foil assembly 3 is one ninth of the size of the square holes of the elastic foil 31.

[0049] In order to further optimize the manufacturing process of the mesh radial gas foil bearing, it is preferred to arrange two adjacent layers of elastic foil 31 to be spot-welded at intervals, that is, a columnar electrode is used during welding to form a welding spot between the contact surfaces of the two adjacent layers of elastic foil 31, which has a fast welding speed, simple operation and high production efficiency.

[0050] It is understood that the same or similar parts in the above embodiments can refer to each other, and the content not described in detail in some embodiments can refer to the same or similar content in other embodiments. The multiple solutions provided by the present invention include the basic solution itself, which are independent of each other and do not restrict each other, but they can also be combined with each other without conflict to achieve multiple effects together.

[0051] The above description of the disclosed embodiments enables one skilled in the art to implement or use the present invention. Various modifications to these embodiments will be apparent to one skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention will not be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but rather to the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A mesh radial gas foil bearing, characterized in that: include: Bearing sleeve (1); A top foil (2) is located in the bearing sleeve (1), a first end and a second end of the top foil (2) are arranged opposite to each other with a gap therebetween, the first end of the top foil (2) and the bearing sleeve (1) are relatively fixed in position, and the second end of the top foil (2) is movable relative to the bearing sleeve (1); An elastic foil assembly (3) is located between the bearing sleeve (1) and the top foil (2), with a first end and a second end thereof being arranged opposite to each other and having a gap therebetween, the first end of the elastic foil assembly (3) and the bearing sleeve (1) being relatively fixed in position, the elastic foil assembly (3) comprising n layers of elastic foils (31), two adjacent layers of the elastic foils (31) being fixedly connected, each layer of the elastic foils (31) being provided with a plurality of holes, and the holes of each layer of the elastic foils (31) being staggered with each other; wherein n is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2; The end of the bearing sleeve (1) is provided with a pin hole (4), the inner wall of the bearing sleeve (1) is provided with a connecting groove (5), the connecting groove (5) is connected with the pin hole (4), the first end of the top foil (2) is provided with a fixing sheet (6), the fixing sheet (6) is located in the pin hole (4) and the connecting groove (5), and a pin is inserted into the pin hole (4) to limit the fixing sheet (6) from slipping off the bearing sleeve (1); A limiting groove (7) is provided on the inner wall of the bearing sleeve (1), and a sliding plate (8) is provided on the second end of the top foil (2), wherein the sliding plate (8) extends into the limiting groove (7) and can slide along the limiting groove (7); The sliding sheet (8) is tangent to the top foil sheet (2); Two fixing plates (6) are provided, and the sliding plate (8) passes between the two fixing plates (6).

2. A mesh radial gas foil bearing according to claim 1, characterized in that: A positioning groove (9) is provided on the inner wall of the bearing sleeve (1), and a positioning piece (10) is provided at the first end of the elastic foil assembly (3), and the positioning piece (10) is embedded in the positioning groove (9).

3. A mesh radial gas foil bearing as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that: The groove depth direction of the positioning groove (9) is perpendicular to the axis of the bearing sleeve (1).

4. A mesh radial gas foil bearing as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The holes of the elastic foil (31) are square holes, and all the square holes of the elastic foil assembly (3) are of the same size.

5. A mesh radial gas foil bearing as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: Two adjacent layers of the elastic foil sheets (31) are connected by spot welding at intervals.

6. A mesh radial gas foil bearing as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: n is equal to 3.

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