Wire race bearing

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a wire race bearing comprising: an inner wire having a circular cross-sectional profile, an inner ring housing having an inner ring recess for accommodating the inner wire, an outer wire having a circular cross-sectional profile, an outer ring housing having an outer ring recess for accommodating the outer wire, rolling elements arranged between the raceway of the inner wire and the raceway of the outer wire, wherein one or both of the inner race recess and the outer ring recess have a first wall and a second wall at an acute angle to each other. Twisting of the wire in the recess can be effectively prevented by an angularly optimized design of the recess wall for accommodating the wire.

Description

WIRE RACE BEARINGTECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a wire race bearing.BACKGROUND

[0002] Wire race bearings are a uniquely structured bearing and can be applied to a various scenarios. A wire race bearing generally comprises rolling elements, wires in contact with the rolling elements and having raceway surfaces, a housing receiving the rolling elements and the wires, and the like. The wires are generally arranged at diagonal positions of the rolling elements and may for example comprise one pair of wires arranged along one set of diagonal positions or two pairs of wires arranged along two sets of diagonal positions. Typically, the wires are placed at respective recesses of the housing, which recesses are constituted by walls perpendicular to each other. Typically, the wires are placed at respective recesses of the housing, which recesses are constituted by walls perpendicular to each other.

[0003] However, due to the structural characteristics of the wire race bearing, it often occurs that the wire twists in the recess. Compared with the creep shoulder phenomenon of the conventional bearing, when the contact force applied to the wire race does not pass through the center of the cross-section of the wire, a torque will be formed on the crosssection of the wire, and therefore this phenomenon tends to occur to the wire; as the axial load increases, the working contact angle of the wire race bearing gradually increases (similar to the creep shoulder phenomenon of a conventional bearing), followed by a decrease of the contact angle due to wire twist (the ball rolls back to the center of the raceway). This twisting -prone nature of the wire may impart negative affect to the assembly and operation of the wire race bearing and its performance (stiffness, contact ellipse stage, contact force, etc.). The prior art has not yet proposed a technical solution capable of solving this problem well.SUMMARY

[0004] In view of the above-mentioned problems and needs, the present disclosure proposes a novel technical solution, which solves the above-mentioned problems due to adopting the following technical features, and brings about other technical effects.

[0005] The present disclosure provides a wire race bearing comprising: an inner wire having a circular cross-sectional profile, an inner ring housing having an inner ring recess for accommodating the inner wire, an outer wire having a circular cross-sectional profile, an outer ring housing having an outer ring recess for accommodating the outer wire, rolling elements arranged between the raceway of the inner wire and the raceway of the outer wire , wherein one or both of the inner race recess and the outer ring recess have a first wall and a second wall at an acute angle to each other.

[0006] Twisting of the wire in the recess can be effectively prevented by an angularly optimized design of the recess wall for accommodating the wire.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0007] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a wire race bearing;

[0008] FIGS. 2 and 3 are schematic views for explaining a case where a wire is twisted;

[0009] FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a structural design for preventing twisting of a wire according to the present disclosure;DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0010] In order to make the objectives, technical solutions and advantages of the technical solutions of the present disclosure more clear, a clear and complete description will be made hereinafter of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of specific embodiments of the present disclosure. Like numbers refer to like parts in the drawings. It is to be noted that the described embodiments are some, but not all, embodiments of the present disclosure. Based on the described embodiments of the present disclosure, all other embodiments obtainedby those of ordinary skill in the art without creative labor belong to the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0011] Possible embodiments within the scope of the present disclosure may have fewer components, have other components not shown in the figures, different components, differently arranged components, or differently connected components, etc., than the embodiments shown in the figures. Furthermore, two or more components in the figures may be implemented in a single component, or a single component shown in the figures may be implemented as multiple separate components.

[0012] Unless defined otherwise, technical or scientific terms used herein are to be given their ordinary meaning as understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs. The terms "first," "second," and the like as used in the description and claims of the disclosed patent application do not denote any order, quantity, or importance, but rather are used merely to distinguish one component from another. Where the number of components is not stated, the number of components may be one or more; Likewise, the articles "a," "an," "the," "said," and the like do not necessarily denote a limitation of quantity. "Comprising" or "comprising" and the like means that the elements or items preceding the word encompass the elements or items listed after the word and their equivalents, but not excluding other elements or items. "Mounted," "disposed," "connected," or "connected," and the like, are not limited to physical or mechanical mountings, arrangements, connections, but can include electrical mountings, arrangements, connections, whether direct or indirect. "Upper", "lower", "left", "right" and the like are used only to indicate the relative positional relationship when the device is used or the positional relationship shown in the drawings, and when the absolute position of the object to be described is changed, the relative positional relationship may be changed accordingly.

[0013] For ease of explanation, the direction of the axis of rotation of the bearing is referred to herein as the axial direction, and the direction perpendicular to the axial direction is referred to as the radial direction. The term "in / inward" refers to the direction toward the interior of the bearing, and conversely, the term "out / outward" refers to the direction toward the exterior of the bearing. In addition, the same reference numerals are used in different embodiments to refer to components having the same or similar structure and functionality.

[0014] Referring to FIG. 1, a wire race bearing generally comprises an inner wire 1 having a generally circular cross-sectional profile; an inner ring housing 2 having an inner ring recess 210 / 220 for accommodating the inner wire 1; an outer wire 3 having a substantially circular cross-sectional profile; an outer ring housing 4 having an outer ring recess 410 / 420 for accommodating the outer wire 3; rolling elements 5. The rolling elements 5 may be, for example, balls as shown in the drawings, but may also be rolling elements of other shapes, such as rolling elements with square cross-section or the like. In order to adapt to the rolling of the rolling elements, the wire may comprise a raceway in contact with the rolling elements (as shown in FIG. 2, the raceway surface of the wire 3 may be an arc-shaped surface adapted to the balls, and the wire 1 may have a similar raceway surface), and the rolling elements 5 are arranged between the raceway of the inner wire 1 and the raceway of the outer wire 3.

[0015] Depending on the application of the wire race bearing, the inner ring housing 2 and the outer ring housing 4 may have different configurations. For example, in the case shown in FIG. 1, the outer ring housing 4 may include a first portion 41 and a second portion 42 that are fitted together in the axial direction (up-down direction in the figure), and the first portion 41 has an outer ring recess 410 for accommodating the respective outer wire 3, and the second portion 42 includes an outer ring recess 420 for accommodating the respective outer wire 3.

[0016] Taking the outer ring recess 420 as an example, the reason of and solution for the twisting of the wire occurs in the prior art will be described hereinafter.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 2, in the axial direction, the outer ring recess 420 has a first wall 421 and a second wall 422 at 90 degrees to the first wall 421. The first wall 421 and the second wall 422 are in direct contact with the wire 3 accommodated in the outer ring recess 420. During operation of the bearing, when the wire 3 is subjected to a force along a dotted line A passing through the center of its circular cross-section (for example at a specific angle a with respect to the axial direction), the wire 3 will not twist; when the wire 3 is subjected to a force is along the dotted line B deviating from the dotted line A (e.g. at an angle b with respect to the axial direction), i.e. a force which does not pass through the center of the cross-section of the wire is applied to the wire, it will generate a torque on the wire, causing the wire to twist, as shown in FIG.3.

[0018] However, there are many factors influencing the twisting of the wire, and no solution has been made in the prior art which can solve the twisting problem of the wire well.

[0019] According to a deep study of the inventors, the present disclosure proposes that for one or both of the inner race recess and the outer ring recess for accommodating the wire, the first wall and the second wall constituting the respective recess thereof form an acute angle relative to each other. As shown for example in FIG. 4, taking the outer ring housing 4 as an example, the outer ring recess 420 of the second portion 42 thereof comprises a first wall 421 and a second wall 422 at an acute angle relative to each other. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 4, the inner ring recess 210 of the inner ring housing 2 may comprise a first wall 211 and a second wall 212 at an acute angle relative to each other. Although not shown, it should be understood that the respective first and second walls of the outer ring recess 410 and the inner race recess 220 may also be similarly disposed at acute angles.

[0020] The acute-angled first and second walls improve the friction between the wire and the first and second walls, compared to the conventional first and second walls at 90 degrees. Specifically, taking the free-body diagram in the upper portion of FIG. 4, the positive pressure, provided by the first and second walls at acute angle, to the wire is increased compared to that in the conventional case, and the increased positive pressure further increases the static friction to which the wire is subjected, which effectively resists the twisting of the wire.

[0021] Preferably, the acute angle between the first wall and the second wall may be set according to the specific configuration of the bearing, for example, 30° - 80°, more preferably 60° or 70°.

[0022] In the embodiment as previously described, the first wall 421 of the outer ring recess 420 is arranged parallel with respect to the axial direction, i.e. the first wall 421 is at an angle of 0 degree with respect to the axial direction. According to another preferred embodiment, the first wall 421 may be deflected to the position shown in phantom with respect to the axial direction, and correspondingly the second wall 422 is also deflected to the position shown in phantom but is not at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the axial direction, so that the first wall 421 and the second wall 422 are each at an angle other than 0 degree and other than 90 degrees with respect to the axial direction. Similarly, the firstand second walls of any recess on the outer and inner ring housings may also be configured as described above.

[0023] As previously mentioned, the inner wire is in direct contact with the walls of the inner ring recess and / or the outer wire is in direct contact with the walls of the outer ring recess. According to a preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 1, a damping pad 6 may be provided between the outer wire 3 and the outer ring recess, to partially surround the outer wire 3. According to a preferred embodiment not shown, a damping pad partially surrounding the inner wire 1 is provided between the inner wire 1 and the inner race recess 210 / 220.

[0024] Preferably, the surface roughness of one or both of the first wall and the second wall of the recess is set to 3.2 to 6.3. Thus, by optimizing the surface roughness of the first wall / second wall, the frictional to which the wire is subjected can be further increased, preventing accidental twisting thereof.

[0025] In addition, for the structure shown in FIG. 1, at the time of installation, after the second portion 42 of the outer ring housing 4 is in place, the first portion 41 is centered on the second portion 42 in the axial direction, and the two are fastened by bolts. Therefore, in order to facilitate the centering of the first portion 41 and the second portion 42, according to a further preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, the second portion 42 may comprise an annular flange 43 extending from its axially inner end face 423 in the axial direction towards the first portion 41, such that the annular flange 43 guides the movement of the first wall 411 of the outer ring recess 410 of the first portion 41 in the axial direction when the first portion 41 is fitted to the second portion 42.

[0026] Preferably, after assembly, the annular flange 43 may be disposed in a clearance fit with the first wall 411 of the outer ring recess 410 of the first portion 41.

[0027] Preferably, this annular flange 43 can also have a bevel 431 facing the rolling elements 5. The bevel 431 can be used to guide the rolling elements in place during bearing installation and can also be used temporarily as a raceway for the rolling elements when the rolling elements are out of their positions when the bearing is in unstable operation. Further preferably, the bevel may have a maximum roughness of 3.2. Preferably, the minimum distance between the bevel and the rolling elements is 1.2 mm to 1.6 mm, so thatthe normal operation of the rolling elements will not be disturbed and the bevel can be used as a raceway in time for the rolling elements when the bearing is unstable.

[0028] While exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure have been described in detail above with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will appreciate that many variations and modifications may be made to the specific embodiments described above without departing from the concept of the present disclosure, and that many combinations of the various technical features, structures proposed by the present disclosure may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, which is defined by the appended claims.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A wire race bearing comprising: an inner wire (1) having a circular cross-sectional profile, an inner ring housing (2) having an inner ring recess for accommodating the inner wire (1), an outer wire (3) having a circular cross-sectional profile, an outer ring housing (4) having an outer ring recess for accommodating the outer wire (3), rolling elements (5) arranged between the raceway of the inner wire (1) and the raceway of the outer wire (3), wherein one or both of the inner race recess and the outer ring recess have a first wall and a second wall at an acute angle to each other.

2. The wire race bearing according to claim 1, wherein said acute angle is between 30 and 80 degrees.

3. The wire race bearing of claim 1, wherein the first wall and the second wall are each at an angle other than 0 degree and other than 90 degrees with respect to the axial direction.

4. The wire race bearing of claim 1, wherein the inner wire (1) is in direct contact with the inner ring recess and / or the outer wire (3) is in direct contact with the outer ring recess.

5. The wire race bearing of claim 1, wherein a damping pad partly surrounding the inner wire (1) is provided between the inner wire (1) and the inner ring recess and / or a damping pad partly surrounding the outer wire (3) is provided between the outer wire (3) and the outer ring recess.

6. The wire race bearing of claim 4 or 5, wherein the surface roughness of one or both of the first wall and the second wall is 3.2 to 6.3.

7. The wire race bearing of claim 1, wherein the outer ring housing (4) comprises a first portion (41) and a second portion (42) which are fitted together in the axial direction, and the second portion (42) comprises an annular flange (43) extending from an axially inner end face (423) thereof in the axial direction towards the first portion (41), wherein the annular flange (43) guides the movement of the first wall (411) of the outer ring recess (410) of the first portion (41) in the axial direction when the first portion (41) is fitted to the second portion (42).

8. The wire race bearing of claim 7, wherein after assembly, the annular flange (43) is arranged in clearance fit with the first wall (411) of the outer ring recess (410) of the first portion (41).

9. The wire race bearing of claim 7, wherein the annular flange (43) has a bevel (431) facing the rolling elements.

10. The wire race bearing of claim 9, wherein the bevel has a maximum roughness of 3.2 and / or the minimum distance between the bevel and the rolling elements is 1.2- 1.6 mm.

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