Bearing stand test equipment

Abstract

To provide a test device on a bearing stand capable of accurately identifying vibration characteristics under a real use environment of a hub unit.SOLUTION: In a test device 1 on a bearing stand which installs a hub unit 50 on the table and performs an excitation test, there are provided: an excitation member 12 which fixes and excites a stator 51; an excitation input device 23 imparts vibrations to the excitation member; support members 13, 14 flexibly supporting the excitation member; a magnetic plate 17 which has a magnet 15 that is nearly annular of a diameter larger than a rotator and the stator, in which an N pole and an S pole are arranged by turns in a circumferential direction by turns, and which is composed of a nearly disk-shape for fixing the rotator; a plurality of electromagnetic coils 18 which generates driving force that rotates the magnetic plate in cooperation with the magnet while holding a non-contact state; a drive control unit 21 which performs current control to the plurality of electromagnetic coils; a bearing heater which is composed of an electric heating coil 19 heating by receiving a current of an AC power source 22; and a controller 20 controlling at least the excitation input device, the drive control unit, and the bearing heater.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a bearing stand test device for measuring vibration characteristics of a bearing, particularly a hub unit including a hub bearing used in a mounting shaft of a vehicle wheel. [Background technology]

[0002] Generally, in vehicles such as automobiles, hub bearings are used as bearing components on the shafts (called axles) on which the wheels are attached. Conventionally, when measuring the vibration characteristics of a hub unit including this type of hub bearing, for example, impact tests (hammering measurements) have been performed on the hub unit in a free state or fixed on a table.

[0003] However, hub bearings used in vehicles are components that rotate in response to the rotation of the wheels under actual operating conditions (i.e., when the vehicle is running), and as a result, the temperature of the hub bearings increases due to the rotational movement that occurs during use.

[0004] It is known that in a conventional vehicle hub unit, under normal operating conditions, the viscosity of the grease (lubricant) in the hub bearing is reduced due to agitation and friction, and at the same time, it is also known that the sliding friction between the steel balls and the case in the hub bearing causes the temperature of the grease to rise, which tends to reduce the viscosity of the grease.

[0005] Therefore, various proposals have been made in the past, such as in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 10-153527 and 2000-329654, regarding bearing stand testing devices for testing hub units including hub bearings as bearing parts used in vehicles on a stand, simulating their usage environments.

[0006] The bearing stand testing devices disclosed in the above-mentioned Patent Publications No. 10-153527 and No. 2000-329654, etc., are all configured to apply vibrations to a bearing having an axle (rotating shaft) while applying a rotational force (rotational drive) to the bearing using a vibration input device. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 10-153527 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-329654 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] However, in the bearing stand testing devices disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-153527 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-329654, the driving device is brought into contact with the axle (rotating shaft) when the driving force of the driving device is applied to the axle (rotating shaft) to drive it to rotate. With such a configuration, there is a problem in that vibrations generated from the driving device are transmitted to the hub unit, which is the test object, making it impossible to measure vibration characteristics accurately.

[0009] Furthermore, the bearing stand testing devices disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-153527 and the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-329654 do not take into consideration the temperature rise that occurs with rotation.

[0010] As described above, in conventional bearing stand testing equipment, when the test subject is a hub unit including a bearing part (hub bearing) used in a vehicle, it is difficult to measure the vibration characteristics while reproducing the actual usage environment of the hub unit, particularly the rotational movement and the temperature rise that occurs during that rotational movement.

[0011] Generally, the hub unit of a vehicle such as an automobile is an important component in terms of the transmission characteristics when transmitting the rotation of the axle to the wheels. Therefore, it is desirable to accurately identify the vibration characteristics of the hub unit under the actual usage environment.

[0012] An object of the present invention is to provide a bearing stand testing device that can accurately identify the vibration characteristics of a hub unit, including a hub bearing used in a vehicle axle, under an actual driving environment (particularly an environment involving rotation and temperature changes). [Means for solving the problem]

[0013] In order to achieve the above object, one aspect of the present invention provides a bearing stand testing apparatus for performing a vibration test on a vehicle hub unit that is set on a test stand as a test object and includes a bearing part consisting of a rotor spline-coupled to an axle and a stator that is fitted onto the rotor with a row of steel balls and grease sandwiched therebetween, the bearing stand testing apparatus comprising: a vibration member that fixes the stator and to which a vibration input is applied; a vibration input device that applies vibration to the vibration member; a support member that flexibly supports the vibration member; and a magnetic field that is formed in a substantially annular shape with a diameter larger than both the rotor and the stator and has north and south poles arranged alternately along the circumferential direction. a disc-shaped member made of a non-magnetic material that blocks the magnetism of the magnet and having a rotor mounting portion for mounting the rotor; a magnetic plate having a substantially circular shape that fixes the rotor; a plurality of electromagnetic coils that cooperate with the magnets to generate a driving force that rotates the magnetic plate while maintaining a non-contact state; and a drive control unit that controls current to the plurality of electromagnetic coils. A metal coil member wound around the outer circumferential surface of the axle in a non-contact state, The bearing heating device comprises an electric heating coil that receives current from an AC power source and generates heat through electromagnetic induction, and a controller that controls at least the vibration input device, the drive control unit, and the bearing heating device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a bearing stand testing device that can accurately identify the vibration characteristics of a hub unit including a hub bearing used on a vehicle axle under an actual driving environment (particularly an environment involving rotation and temperature changes). [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a side view conceptually illustrating the configuration of a bearing stand testing device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] 2 is a perspective cross-sectional view of the bearing stand test device of FIG. 1; [Figure 3] 3 is a plan view mainly showing the arrangement of the electromagnetic coils and the polarity arrangement of the magnetic plates when viewed from the direction of the arrow [3] in FIG. 2. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0016] The present invention will be described below with reference to the illustrated embodiments. The drawings used in the following description are schematic, and the dimensional relationships and scales of the components may be different for each component in order to show each component at a size that allows it to be recognized on the drawing. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiments in terms of the number of components shown in the drawings, the shapes of the components, the size ratios of the components, the relative positional relationships of the components, and so on.

[0017] Fig. 1 is a side view conceptually showing the configuration of a bearing stand test device according to one embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional perspective view of the bearing stand test device of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan view mainly showing the arrangement of the electromagnetic coils and the polarity arrangement of the magnetic plates when viewed from the direction of arrow [3] in Fig. 2.

[0018] 1, 2, and 3 show a state in which a test object (a vehicle hub unit) is installed on the bearing stand test apparatus of this embodiment. Also, in Fig. 2, electrical components (20, 21, 22, 23) are omitted from the illustration in order to mainly show the structure of the bearing stand test apparatus of this embodiment. Also, in Fig. 3, some components are omitted from the illustration in order to mainly show the arrangement of the electromagnetic coils.

[0019] The configuration of a bearing stand test device according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The bearing stand test device 1 of this embodiment is a test device for performing vibration tests on a table in a laboratory or the like, simulating the actual use environment of the bearing component to be tested.

[0020] Here, the bearing part to be tested is assumed to be a hub unit including a hub bearing used on the mounting shaft of a vehicle wheel (hereinafter simply referred to as the axle). In this case, the hub unit as the test object placed on the bearing stand testing device 1 of this embodiment is a hub unit of a general type used in vehicles.

[0021] The test performed by the bearing stand test device is, for example, a vibration test that measures vibration characteristics in an environment that replicates the actual use environment of the test object (hub unit). Based on the measurement data acquired by this vibration test, the vibration characteristics of the test object (hub unit) in the actual use environment can be identified.

[0022] Furthermore, here, the environment that reproduces the actual use environment is, for example, an environment that corresponds to the running environment during actual use of the test object (hub unit). Specifically, it has a configuration that allows the bearing part (hub bearing) of the test object (hub unit) to rotate freely during the test. In this case, for example, rotation drive control is performed to reproduce the rotation action of the wheel or axle corresponding to the actual running speed.

[0023] In addition, the device is configured to perform heating control to reproduce the temperature rise inside the bearing part (hub bearing) of the test object (hub unit) as the bearing part (hub bearing) rotates. In this case, heating control is performed to reproduce the internal temperature corresponding to the rotation of the bearing part (hub bearing) of the test object (hub unit) according to the actual driving speed. Note that the driving environment during actual use of the test object (hub unit) is assumed to be, for example, an upper limit of the vehicle's driving speed of approximately 200 km / h.

[0024] The specific configuration of the bearing stand testing device 1 of this embodiment will be described below. As shown in the figure, the bearing stand testing device 1 of this embodiment is mainly composed of a base 11, a vibration table 12, a flexible support device 13, a support table 14, a non-contact electromagnetic motor device (15, 18, 21), a non-magnetic plate 16, a bearing heating device (19, 22), a vibration input device 23, a plurality of various sensors 24, a controller 20, etc.

[0025] The base 11 is a base component on which all of the components of the bearing stand testing device 1 are placed.

[0026] The vibration table 12 is a vibration member that serves as a base on which a hub unit 50 (the detailed configuration of which will be described later) serving as a test object is mounted. The vibration table 12 is formed, for example, from a thin, substantially circular plate member. The vibration table 12 is formed, for example, from a hard material such as a metal member or a resin member.

[0027] A stator mounting portion 12c into which a stator (outer race 51; described below) of the hub unit 50 is fitted is formed integrally with the vibration table 12 on one surface of the vibration table 12 (the lower surface in FIGS. 1 and 2). This stator mounting portion 12c is formed around the central axis of the vibration table 12. A plurality of through holes are formed in the stator mounting portion 12c and aligned around the central axis. A mounting bolt 12x is inserted into each of the plurality of through holes. As a result, the plurality of mounting bolts 12x screw and fix the stator (outer race 51) of the hub unit 50.

[0028] At this time, the screw holes into which the mounting bolts 12x on the stator (outer race 51) side of the hub unit 50 are screwed are screw holes that are originally provided in the hub unit 50 as the test object. This makes it possible to install the hub unit 50 in the bearing stand testing device 1 without making any structural changes to the hub unit 50.

[0029] A vibration input device 23 (described in detail later) generates vibrations and applies them to the vibration table 12. To this end, the vibration table 12 is provided with vibration input sections 12a and 12b that serve as vibration input points.

[0030] Here, the vibration input section 12a is an area to which vibrations in the Y direction (see FIGS. 1 and 3) and the Z direction (see FIG. 3) are input. This vibration input section 12a is formed by cutting out a predetermined part on the outer circumferential surface of the vibration table 12. Moreover, the vibration input section 12b is an area to which vibrations in the X direction (see FIG. 1) are input. The vibration input section 12b is set at a position away from the axial center of the vibration table 12, specifically, for example, in a predetermined area near the outer circumferential edge of the vibration table 12.

[0031] The X direction is the vertical direction, and corresponds to the direction parallel to the axial direction of the axle 55 of the hub unit 50 installed on the bearing stand testing device 1. That is, vibration in the X direction is applied in a direction that twists the axle 55 and bearing (a direction that tilts the axle 55). The Y direction is a direction along the plane of the vibration table 12, and corresponds to the radial direction of the vibration table 12. That is, vibration in the Y direction is applied in a direction that bends the axle 55 and bearing. The Z direction is a direction along the plane of the vibration table 12, and corresponds to the circumferential direction of the vibration table 12. That is, vibration in the Z direction is applied in a direction that twists the axle 55 and bearing.

[0032] The flexible support device 13 and the support base 14 are support members that support the outer periphery of the vibration table 12 to which the test object (hub unit 50) is attached. In this case, the flexible support device 13 is a support device that maintains the posture of the vibration table 12 and constitutes a flexible support structure. The flexible support device 13 is arranged around approximately the entire outer periphery of the vibration table 12. For example, an air spring device that utilizes the elasticity of compressed air is used as the flexible support device 13.

[0033] The support table 14 is a support member having, for example, a rectangular or cylindrical shape (a rectangular pillar-shaped support table is shown as an example in FIG. 2). The base end of the support table 14 is fixed in an upright position at a predetermined position on the base 11. The tip of the support table 14 is disposed at a position where it abuts against the vicinity of the outer periphery of the vibration table 12.

[0034] The non-contact electromagnetic motor device is a device for rotating the rotor (inner race 52; described in detail below) of the test object (hub unit 50). This non-contact electromagnetic motor device is composed of a magnetic plate 17 (15, 16), multiple electromagnetic coils 18, a drive control unit 21, etc.

[0035] The magnetic plate 17 is a substantially disk-shaped member formed integrally as a two-layer structure by overlapping the annular magnet 15 and the non-magnetic plate 16 .

[0036] Of these, ring-shaped magnet 15 is a permanent magnet formed in a substantially circular ring shape with north and south poles alternately arranged in the circumferential direction. Ring-shaped magnet 15 is provided near the outer periphery of one surface of non-magnetic plate 16. Ring-shaped magnet 15 is formed to have sufficient inertia to generate the necessary and sufficient rotational torque.

[0037] Generally, a large rotational driving force is applied to the hub unit 50 during actual use in a running environment. In order to reproduce such a running environment, the annular magnet 15 is formed with a sufficiently large inertia. In the bearing stand testing device 1 of this embodiment, the annular magnet 15 is formed assuming an inertia equivalent to that of a disc rotor, for example.

[0038] Non-magnetic plate 16 is a magnetic shielding member provided to prevent the magnetism from ring magnet 15 from affecting multiple steel balls 53 (described in detail below; see FIG. 2) inside hub unit 50. At the same time, non-magnetic plate 16 also serves as a rotor mounting member for mounting the rotor (inner race 52) of hub unit 50.

[0039] The non-magnetic plate 16 is formed from a thin, approximately disk-shaped member having a larger diameter than both the rotor (inner race 52) and the stator (outer race 51) of the test object (hub unit 50). The non-magnetic plate 16 is formed using a hard, non-magnetic material (such as a resin material).

[0040] A rotor mounting portion 16a (see FIG. 2) into which the rotor (inner race 52) of the hub unit 50 is fitted is provided in the approximate center of the non-magnetic plate 16. A plurality of through holes are formed in the circumferential edge of this rotor mounting portion 16a and aligned in the circumferential direction, through which a plurality of mounting bolts 52x are inserted to screw-fix the rotor (inner race 52) of the hub unit 50 to the non-magnetic plate 16.

[0041] When the magnetic plate 17 is attached in a specified manner to the rotor (inner race 52) of the hub unit 50 installed on the bearing stand testing device 1, the non-magnetic plate 16 is positioned between the annular magnet 15 and the hub unit 50. With this configuration, the non-magnetic plate 16 magnetically isolates the annular magnet 15 from the hub unit 50. At the same time, the magnetic plate 17 is configured to have a sufficiently large inertia as required.

[0042] The multiple electromagnetic coils 18 cooperate with the annular magnet 15 to rotate the annular magnet 15 around the vicinity of the axle 55 while maintaining a non-contact state with the annular magnet 15. Therefore, when the annular magnet 15 rotates, the magnetic plate 17 including the annular magnet 15 also rotates.

[0043] A plurality of electromagnetic coils 18 are disposed on the base 11. In this case, the plurality of electromagnetic coils 18 are disposed in positions facing the respective pole faces of the annular magnet 15. For example, in the bearing stand testing device 1 of this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 3, three electromagnetic coils 18 are provided at approximately equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the magnetic plate 17. In Fig. 3, the arrows "OUT" and "IN" indicate the direction in which current flows.

[0044] The drive control unit 21 is a component unit that controls the current to the multiple electromagnetic coils 18 to control the rotation of the annular magnet 15. The drive control unit 21 is connected to the controller 20. The controller 20 is a control device that includes a processor that performs overall electrical control of the bearing stand testing apparatus 1. Therefore, the drive control unit 21 is controlled by the user of the bearing stand testing apparatus 1 operating the controller 20.

[0045] That is, when the user operates the controller 20, switching control is performed that appropriately changes the current flowing through the electromagnetic coil 18 via the drive control unit 21. Through this control, a rotational driving force is applied to the annular magnet 15 while maintaining a non-contact state with the annular magnet 15. As the annular magnet 15 rotates, the rotor (inner race 52) of the hub unit 50 rotates around the axis of the axle 55. At this time, by controlling the amount of current to the electromagnetic coil 18 and the on / off timing, the rotation direction and number of rotations per unit time (rotational speed) of the annular magnet 15 (and the rotor of the hub unit 50) can be appropriately controlled.

[0046] The bearing heating device is a device for controlling the temperature of the test object (hub unit 50) and is composed of an electric heating coil 19, an AC power supply 22, and the like.

[0047] The heating coil 19 is a metallic coil member that is wound in a non-contact manner around the outer circumferential surface of the downwardly protruding portion of the axle 55, which is disposed coaxially with the rotor (inner race 52) of the test object (hub unit 50) installed in the bearing stand testing apparatus 1. The heating coil 19 is connected to an AC power supply 22. The AC power supply 22 is a device that supplies current to the heating coil 19. The AC power supply 22 is connected to a controller 20. Therefore, the AC power supply 22 is controlled by the user of the bearing stand testing apparatus 1 operating the controller 20.

[0048] That is, when the user operates the controller 20 to pass an AC current through the heating coil 19 via the AC power supply 22, the heating coil 19 generates heat due to electromagnetic induction. At this time, the amount of heat generated by the heating coil 19 can be controlled by controlling the amount of current flowing from the AC power supply 22. When the heating coil 19 generates heat, the axle 55 is heated. When the axle 55 is heated, the thermal energy is transferred from the axle 55 to the grease 54 (described below; see Figure 2) inside the test object (hub unit 50).

[0049] In this way, by controlling the amount of current to the heating coil 19, the amount of heat generated by the heating coil 19 can be controlled, and the temperature inside the test object (hub unit 50) can be adjusted. This allows the temperature to be set according to the driving environment when the test object (hub unit 50) is actually used.

[0050] The vibration input device 23 is a device that applies vibrations to the vibration table 12, thereby applying appropriate predetermined vibrations to the test object (hub unit 50) placed on the vibration table 12. In this case, the vibrations applied to the vibration table 12 are in the X, Y, and Z directions, as described above. That is, the vibration input device 23 can apply vibrations to the vibration table 12 in six directions, including translational as well as rotational directions.

[0051] It is assumed that an electromagnetic shaker or the like is used as the vibration input device 23. As another example of the vibration input device 23, for example, an impact hammer or the like may be manually operated.

[0052] The vibration input device 23 is connected to the controller 20. Therefore, a user can control vibration by the vibration input device 23 by operating the controller 20. Furthermore, the bearing stand testing apparatus 1 of this embodiment has a plurality of various sensors 24, such as an acceleration sensor that measures vibration of the test object (hub unit 50) that occurs when the vibration input is received from the vibration input device 23 to the vibration table 12, and a temperature sensor that measures the surface temperature of the test object (hub unit 50). These multiple various sensors 24 are connected to the controller 20. As a result, output signals from the multiple various sensors 24 are input to the controller 20 and stored as measurement data in a predetermined storage area of ​​a storage device (not shown) provided within the controller 20.

[0053] As described above, the controller 20 is a control device including a processor that performs overall electrical control of the bearing stand testing apparatus 1. This controller 20 controls, for example, the drive control unit 21, AC power supply 22, vibration input device 23, etc. in response to user operations. The controller 20 also has a storage device. This storage device accumulates and stores measurement data from a plurality of various sensors 24, and also stores software programs and the like for performing various controls.

[0054] For example, the controller 20 is configured by a processor that includes all or part of hardware. This processor is configured by a well-known configuration including, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), non-volatile memory, non-volatile storage, and a non-transitory computer readable medium, as well as peripheral devices thereof.

[0055] Software programs to be executed by the CPU and fixed data such as data tables are stored in advance in ROM, non-volatile memory, non-volatile storage devices, etc. The CPU reads out the software programs stored in ROM, etc., expands them into RAM, and executes them, and the software programs refer to various data, etc. as appropriate, thereby realizing various functions based on various controls.

[0056] The processor may be configured with a semiconductor chip such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), etc. Furthermore, the above-mentioned components and component units (12, 20b, 21d, 22, 23, 24, 25) may be configured with electronic circuits.

[0057] Furthermore, the software program may be in a form in which it is recorded in whole or in part as a computer program product on a portable disk medium such as a flexible disk, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM, or on a non-transitory computer readable medium such as a card-type memory, HDD (Hard Disk Drive) device, or SSD (Solid State Drive) device.

[0058] Next, the schematic configuration of a vehicle hub unit, which is the test object in the bearing stand testing device 1 of this embodiment configured as described above, will be briefly described below with reference to FIGS.

[0059] As shown in Figure 1 etc., the hub unit 50 as the test subject has a general configuration including bearing parts such as an outer race 51, an inner race 52, a plurality of steel balls 53 (also called steel balls; see Figure 2), a ball holding member (retainer; not shown), grease 54 (see Figure 2), etc., and an axle 55 etc.

[0060] The outer race 51 is a stator that is fixed to the vibration table 12 using, for example, a plurality of mounting bolts 12x, as will be described later. For this purpose, the outer race 51 is provided with a plurality of screw holes (not shown) into which the mounting bolts 12x are screwed. These screw holes are provided around the central axis of the outer race 51.

[0061] The inner race 52 is a rotor that rotates relative to the outer race 51. A through hole 52a is provided at the rotation center of the inner race 52. A hub-side spline portion 52aa (see FIGS. 2 and 3) is formed on the inner wall surface of this through hole 52a. As will be described later, the inner race 52 is fixed to the magnetic plate 17 (15, 16) by, for example, using a plurality of mounting bolts 52x. For this purpose, the inner race 52 is provided with a plurality of screw holes (not shown) into which the mounting bolts 52x are screwed. These screw holes are provided in a flange portion formed around the central axis.

[0062] At this time, the screw holes into which the mounting bolts 52x on the rotor (inner race 52) side of the hub unit 50 are screwed are screw holes that are originally provided in the hub unit 50 as the test object. This makes it possible to install the hub unit 50 in the bearing stand testing device 1 without making any structural changes to the hub unit 50.

[0063] An inner race 52 is inserted into the outer race 51. In other words, the outer race 51 is fitted onto the inner race 52. In this case, a gap is formed between the outer race 51 and the inner race 52. In this gap, a plurality of steel balls 53 are arranged around the rotation axis while being held by a retainer (not shown). This forms a steel ball array. The gap is filled with grease 54.

[0064] The axle 55 is a shaft member that fits into the through hole 52a of the inner race 52 and rotates together with the inner race 52. To this end, a shaft-side spline portion 55a is formed in a predetermined region on the outer peripheral surface of one end of the axle 55. When the axle 55 is inserted into the through hole 52a, the hub-side spline portion 52aa engages with the shaft-side spline portion 55a. As a result, the inner race 52 and the axle 55 are spline-coupled and integrated. As a result, the inner race 52 and the axle 55 are configured to rotate simultaneously in the same direction.

[0065] In an actual use environment, a driving force from an engine or the like is applied to the axle 55. The rotational driving force of the axle 55 rotates the inner race 52. A wheel (not shown) is fixed integrally to the inner race 52. With this configuration, the rotational driving force applied to the axle 55 passes through the inner race 52 to rotationally drive the wheel (not shown).

[0066] When a hub unit 50, which is the test object, is attached to the bearing stand testing device 1 of this embodiment, it takes the form shown in Figures 1 and 2. At this time, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, the axle 55 is disposed so as to protrude downward in the figures. At this time, the tip of the axle 55 is in a non-contact state with the base 11.

[0067] However, in an actual use environment of the hub unit 50, a wheel is attached to the lower side in the figure, and the axle 55 projects upward in the figure.

[0068] In contrast, when the hub unit 50 is installed on the bearing stand testing device 1 of this embodiment, the axle 55 protrudes downward, as shown in Figures 1 and 2. This configuration is a convenient measure for using the axle 55 to heat the grease inside the hub unit 50.

[0069] It should be noted that there are many different types of hub units as test objects, each corresponding to a different model of the vehicle used. Therefore, in the bearing stand testing device 1, the vibration table 12 that fixes the stator (outer race 51) of the hub unit 50 and the magnetic plate 17 that fixes the rotor (inner race 52) of the hub unit 50 are prepared in a plurality of different configurations to suit the test objects. Therefore, in the bearing stand testing device 1 of this embodiment, by interchanging the vibration table 12 and the magnetic plate 17, it is possible to easily accommodate various types of test objects.

[0070] In the configuration of the hub unit 50 described above, the outer race 51 is used as a stator and the inner race 52 is used as a rotor, but the present invention is not limited to this example. For example, the bearing stand testing device 1 can easily accommodate a hub unit in which the outer race 51 is used as a rotor and the inner race 52 is used as a stator.

[0071] Next, a brief description will be given below of the operation when a test object (hub unit 50 for a vehicle) having the above-described configuration is placed on the bearing stand test device 1 of this embodiment and a vibration test is performed.

[0072] First, the vibration table 12 is fixed to the outer race 51 of the hub unit 50 as the test object using a plurality of mounting bolts 12x.

[0073] Next, the magnetic plate 17 is fixed to the inner race 52 of the hub unit 50 using a plurality of mounting bolts 52x. At this time, it is assumed that the axle 55 has already been attached to the inner race 52 of the hub unit 50.

[0074] The hub unit 50, to which the vibration table 12 and magnetic plate 17 are attached, is placed on the bearing stand testing device 1. At this time, the outer peripheral edge of the vibration table 12 is placed on the flexible support device 13. At the same time, the magnetic pole faces of the annular magnet 15 of the magnetic plate 17 are positioned in a non-contact state so as to face each of the multiple electromagnetic coils 18 provided on the base 11. At the same time, an electric heating coil 19 is wound in a non-contact state around the outer periphery of the downwardly protruding end of the axle 55.

[0075] Then, a plurality of various sensors 24 are fixed at predetermined positions on the outer surfaces of the outer race 51 and the inner race 52 of the hub unit 50. In this case, the various sensors 24 are fixed by, for example, adhesive or the like. The state at this stage is shown in FIG. 1.

[0076] In this state, the user (test implementer) of the bearing stand testing device 1 appropriately operates the controller 20 to control the drive control unit 21, AC power supply 22, and vibration input device 23. This allows for the execution of rotation control of the magnetic plate 17 (inner race 52), temperature control of the electric heating coil 19, vibration control by the vibration input device 23, etc.

[0077] Then, every time a vibration test is performed, measurement data from the various sensors 24 is input and recorded into the controller 20. In this manner, a vibration test is performed in the bearing stand testing device 1 of this embodiment, and measurement data is obtained under various environments.

[0078] As described above, according to the embodiment, a non-contact electromagnetic motor device is configured using the annular magnet 15 and multiple electromagnetic coils 18, so that a rotational driving force can be applied to the rotor (inner race 52) of the test object (hub unit 50) while maintaining a non-contact state. Therefore, when a vibration test is performed in a state close to the actual use environment of the hub unit 50 (bearing rotation state), unnecessary vibrations transmitted from the motor device and the like to the hub unit 50 can be eliminated. This makes it possible to obtain more accurate measurement data in a bench vibration test of the hub unit 50.

[0079] Furthermore, the magnetic plate 17 including the annular magnet 15 is formed with a sufficiently large inertia, so that it is easy to measure the vibration characteristics, especially the component in the twisting direction.

[0080] At the same time, a bearing heating device is formed by the electric heating coil 19 and AC power supply 22, and the axle 55 provided at the axial center of the hub unit 50 can be heated in a non-contact manner. Therefore, it is possible to easily carry out a vibration test that takes into account the temperature rise in the actual usage environment of the hub unit 50. As a result, it is possible to obtain more accurate measurement data in the bench vibration test of the hub unit 50.

[0081] Also, by devising the hub mounting portion of the vibration table 12 that fixes the stator of the hub unit 50 and the hub mounting portion of the magnetic plate 17 that fixes the rotor of the hub unit 50, the hub unit 50 can be installed on the bearing stand testing device 1 without changing the structure of the hub unit 50. Furthermore, by preparing vibration tables 12 and magnetic plates 17 that correspond to hub units 50 of different shapes, it is possible to accommodate many types of hub units 50.

[0082] The vibration input device 23 is configured to be able to apply vibrations to the vibration input sections 12a and 12b. This allows vibrations to be applied to the test object (hub unit 50) fixed to the vibration table 12 in the twisting direction in addition to the rotational direction. Therefore, vibration characteristics in six directions, including rotation and translation, can be identified.

[0083] In this way, in the bearing stand testing device 1 of this embodiment, the hub unit 50 used in a vehicle is used as the test object, and it is possible to reproduce the actual usage environment of the hub unit 50, particularly the environment that involves rotational states and temperature rises, and under rotation and temperature control, it is possible to perform accurate vibration tests that correspond to various vibration modes and measure vibration characteristics.

[0084] By using the acquired measurement data on vibration characteristics, it is possible to easily perform analytical predictions of road noise and vibrations of the bearing parts (bearings) of the hub unit 50 during actual driving, and to identify bearing stiffness, grease viscosity damping characteristics, etc., which will lead to elucidation of the mechanism of low-frequency vibrations. In addition, it is possible to identify pure part characteristics with disturbances such as rotational order components of the rotary drive device (motor) removed.

[0085] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and applications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Furthermore, the above-described embodiments include inventions at various stages, and various inventions can be extracted by appropriately combining the disclosed multiple constituent elements. For example, if the problem to be solved by the invention can be solved and the effects of the invention can be obtained even if some constituent elements are deleted from all the constituent elements shown in one embodiment, the configuration from which these constituent elements are deleted can be extracted as the invention. Furthermore, constituent elements from different embodiments may be appropriately combined. The present invention is not limited by specific embodiments other than as limited by the appended claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0086] 1...Bearing stand test equipment 11...Foundation 12...Vibration table (vibration member) 12a, 12b... Vibration input section 12c... Stator mounting part 12x…Mounting bolts 13... Flexible support device (support member) 14...Support base (support member) 15...Ring magnet 16...Non-magnetic plate 16a...Rotor mounting part 17...Magnetic plate 18...Electromagnetic coil 19...Heating coil 20...Controller 21...Drive control unit 22…AC power supply 23...Vibration input device 24...Various sensors 50...Hub unit (test object) 51...Outer race (stator) 52...Inner race (rotor) 52a...Through hole 52aa...Hub side spline part 52x...Mounting bolts 53...Steel ball 54...Grease 55...Axle 55a...Shaft side spline part

Claims

1. In a bearing stand testing device, a vehicle hub unit including a bearing part consisting of a rotor spline-coupled to an axle and a stator fitted onto the rotor with a steel ball array and grease sandwiched therebetween is placed on a stand as a test subject, and a vibration test is performed. a vibration member that fixes the stator and to which a vibration input is applied; a vibration input device that applies vibration to the vibration member; a support member that flexibly supports the vibration member; a magnetic plate having a substantially circular ring shape with a diameter larger than both the rotor and the stator, with N poles and S poles arranged alternately along the circumferential direction, and a disk-shaped member made of a non-magnetic material that blocks the magnetism of the magnet and having a rotor mounting portion to which the rotor is attached, the magnetic plate having a substantially circular shape that fixes the rotor; a plurality of electromagnetic coils that cooperate with the magnets to generate a driving force that rotates the magnetic plate while maintaining a non-contact state; a drive control unit that controls current to the plurality of electromagnetic coils; a bearing heating device comprising an electric heating coil, which is a metal coil member wound around the outer circumferential surface of the axle in a non-contact state and receives current from an AC power source and generates heat by electromagnetic induction; a controller that controls at least the vibration input device, the drive control unit, and the bearing heating device; A bearing stand testing device comprising:

2. The controller via the drive control unit, controlling the amount of current flowing through the electromagnetic coil and the on / off timing, and setting the rotation direction and the number of rotations per unit time of the magnetic plate and the rotor; The amount of current flowing from the AC power supply to the electric heating coil is controlled to control the amount of heat generated by the electric heating coil, thereby adjusting the temperature of the hub unit. controlling the direction and magnitude of the vibration applied to the vibration input device through the vibration input device; Measure vibration characteristics based on an output signal from an acceleration sensor attached to the test object.

2. The bearing stand test device according to claim 1.

3. 3. The bearing stand testing device according to claim 1, wherein the vibration input device is an impact hammer or an electromagnetic shaker.

4. 4. The bearing stand testing device according to claim 1, wherein the vibration input by the vibration input device is applied along any one of a rotation direction of the hub unit relative to the rotation axis of the rotor, a direction perpendicular to the rotation axis, and a direction twisting the rotation axis.

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