Bearing supports, methods of making bearing supports, and systems employing bearing supports

Abstract

Bearing supports may include a free end portion around a central axis. A fixed end portion may be positioned radially outside of the free end portion relative to the central axis. A spring cage portion interconnecting the free end portion and the fixed end portion. Methods of making bearing supports may include forming a free end portion around a central axis, forming a fixed end portion positioned radially outside of the free end portion relative to the central axis, and forming a spring cage portion interconnecting the free end portion and the fixed end portion. Other aspects, embodiments, and features are also included.

Description

BEARING SUPPORTS, METHODS OF MAKING BEARING SUPPORTS, AND SYSTEMS EMPLOYING BEARING SUPPORTSPRIORITY CLAIM

[0001] The present Application for Patent claims priority to Provisional Application No. 63 / 616,043 entitled “Bearing Supports, Methods of Making Bearing Supports, and Systems Employing Bearing Supports” fded December 29, 2023, and assigned to the assignee hereof and hereby expressly incorporated by reference herein.TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The technology discussed below relates generally to systems employing bearings, and more particularly to bearing supports for use in such systems.BACKGROUND

[0003] In many systems that employ high-speed bearings, such as in gas turbine engines that employ large rolling-element bearings, it is common to support such bearings using bearing supports employing spring centering cages. Such bearing supports may commonly be referred to as squirrel cages. The flexibility of the squirrel cage bearing support can accommodate vibrations in a shaft rotating at relatively high speeds, such as when a rotor shaft is bowing due to uneven thermal expansion, or when accelerating through key resonance frequencies. Improvements to such bearing supports may be beneficial.BRIEF SUMMARY OF SOME EXAMPLES

[0004] The following summarizes some aspects of the present disclosure to provide a basic understanding of the discussed technology. This summary is not an extensive overview of all contemplated features of the disclosure, and is intended neither to identify key or critical elements of all aspects of the disclosure nor to delineate the scope of any or all aspects of the disclosure. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects of the disclosure in summary form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

[0005] Various examples and implementations of the present disclosure employ improvements to bearing supports.

[0006] One or more aspects of the present disclosure include bearing supports. In one or more examples, a bearing support may include a free end portion around a central axis. A fixed end portion may be positioned radially outside of the free end portion relative to the central axis. A spring cage portion may interconnect the free end portion and the fixed end portion. The spring cage portion may include a plurality of elongated beams each extending at least substantially parallel to the central axis away from the fixed end portion and transitioning to extend at least substantially transverse to the central axis toward the free end portion.

[0007] Additional aspects of the present disclosure include methods of making bearing supports are disclosed. In one or more implementations, such methods may include forming a free end portion around a central axis, forming a fixed end portion positioned radially outside of the free end portion relative to the central axis, and forming a spring cage portion interconnecting the free end portion and the fixed end portion, wherein the spring cage portion includes a plurality of elongated beams each extending at least substantially parallel to the central axis away from the fixed end portion and transitioning to extend at least substantially transverse to the central axis toward the free end portion.

[0008] Further aspects of the present disclosure include systems. According to at least one example, such systems may include at least one bearing support and a bearing positioned within the bearing support. The at least one bearing support may include a free end portion around a central axis. A fixed end portion may be positioned radially outside of the free end portion relative to the central axis. A spring cage portion may interconnect the free end portion and the fixed end portion. The spring cage portion may include a plurality of elongated beams each extending at least substantially parallel to the central axis away from the fixed end portion and transitioning to extend at least substantially transverse to the central axis toward the free end portion.

[0009] Other aspects, features, and embodiments associated with the present disclosure will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reviewing the following description in conjunction with the accompanying figures.DRAWINGS

[0010] FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a system employing at least one bearing configured as a gas turbine engine according to at least one example.

[0011] FIG. 2 is an isometric view of a bearing support employing a spring centering cage.

[0012] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side view of a bearing support according to at least one example.

[0013] FIG. 4 is an isometric cross-sectional view of a bearing support with two bearings positioned within the bearing support.

[0014] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating at least one example of a method of making a bearing support.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015] The description set forth below in connection with the appended drawings is intended as a description of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts and features described herein may be practiced. The following description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well known circuits, structures, techniques, and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the described concepts and features.

[0016] The illustrations presented herein are, in some instances, not actual views of any particular system employing one or more bearings, bearing supports, or bearings, but are merely idealized representations which are employed to describe the present disclosure. Additionally, elements common between figures may retain the same numerical designation.

[0017] Various embodiments of the present disclosure systems that employ a bearing and bearing supports. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a system employing a bearing and bearing support according to at least one example embodied as a gas turbine engine 100. The gas turbine engine 100 generally includes a fan 102 through which ambient air is propelled, a multistage compressor 104 for pressurizing the air, a combustor 106 in which the compressed air is mixed with fuel and ignited for generating an annular stream of hot combustion gases, and a turbine section 108 for extracting energy from the combustion gases. The gas turbine engine 100 comprises a concentric shaft system which supports major rotating assemblies within the gas turbine engine 100. The concentric shaft system comprises an inner shaft 110 and an outer shaft 112 which arerotatably secured to a stationary portion of the gas turbine engine 100 via bearings (not shown).

[0018] FIG. 1 illustrates just one possible environment for the bearing supports disclosed herein. Although the example depicts a multistage, two-spool turbofan engine, other non-limiting examples of a system where bearing supports of the present disclosure can be employed may include turbine engines with or without fans, single stage compressors, single spool (or single shaft) engines, and other turbomachinery applications. By way of some examples and not limitation, the bearing supports disclosed herein may be utilized in any of a turbojet engine, a turbofan engine, a turboprop engine, a turboshaft engine, a gas turbine generator, and a component demonstrator.

[0019] As noted above with reference to FIG. 1, the shafts 110, 112 are supported by bearings. According to aspects of the present disclosure, a system, such as the gas turbine engine 100, may include bearing supports. FIG. 2 is an isometric view of a bearing support 200 employing a spring centering cage, which may also be referred to as a squirrel cage. As depicted, the bearing support 200 includes a free end portion 202 around a central axis 204, a fixed end portion 206 positioned radially outside of the free end portion 202 relative to the central axis 204, and a spring cage portion 208 interconnecting the free end portion 202 and the fixed end portion 206.

[0020] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side view of the bearing support 200 according to at least one example. Referring now to FIGS. 2 and 3, the free end portion 202 may have an annular configuration about the central axis 204 with a first radius Rl. The free end portion 202 extends axially along the central axis 204. The free end portion 202 includes a first longitudinal end 302 and an opposite second longitudinal end 304. The free end portion 202 is configured to receive one or more bearings between the first longitudinal end 302 and the second longitudinal end 304.

[0021] The fixed end portion 206 also includes an annular configuration about the central axis 204 with a second radius R2. The second radius R2 is larger than the first radius Rl. The fixed end portion 206 may be positioned to overlap at least a portion of the free end portion 202 along the axial length. In at least some examples, the fixed end portion 206 may include a mounting flange 306 for coupling the bearing support 200 to one or more other elements of a system. For example, the mounting flange 306 may facilitate coupling the bearing support 200 to one or more elements of the gas turbine engine 100 of FIG. 1.

[0022] The spring cage portion 208 is formed of a plurality of elongated members or beams 210 extending between the fixed end portion 206 and the free end portion 202. Each beam 210 is configured to extend generally axially away from the fixed end portion 206 at about the same second radius R2. Each beam 210 may then transition from extending axially to extending radially inward toward the second longitudinal end 304 of the free end portion 202. Each beam 210 may be coupled to the free end portion 202 at or near the second longitudinal end 304. In other words, each beam 210 extends axially away from the fixed end portion 206 at about the second radius R2, then turns or bends to continue extending toward the free end portion 202 at or near the second longitudinal end 304 until it connects to the free end portion 202.

[0023] FIG. 4 is an isometric cross-sectional view of a bearing support 200 with two bearings 402 positioned within the bearing support 200. As depicted, each bearing 402 is positioned in contact with the free end portion 202. It should be understood that although this example shows two bearing, the number of bearings in any given application may vary from one bearing to multiple bearings. The beams 210 lend flexibility to the spring cage portion 208, to provide resilience against vibration of the bearings 402 when a shaft coupled to the bearings is rotated. The specific configuration of the beams 210 (e.g., the dimensions, the number of beams 210, etc.) can vary as suitable for specific applications.

[0024] Additional aspects of the present disclosure include methods of making bearing supports, such as the bearing support 200. FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating at least one example of a method of making a bearing support. Referring to FIGS. 2 through 5, a free end portion 202 may be formed around a central axis 204 at 502. For example, the free end portion 202 may be formed about the central axis 204 with a first radius Rl, and including a first longitudinal end 302 and a second longitudinal end 304 axially opposite from the first longitudinal end 302.

[0025] At 504, a fixed end portion 206 may be formed and positioned radially outside of the free end portion 202 relative to the central axis 204. For example, the fixed end portion 206 may be formed with an annular configuration about the central axis 204 with a second radius R2 that is larger than the first radius Rl. The fixed end portion 206 may be positioned to overlap at least a portion of the free end portion 202.

[0026] At 506, a spring cage portion 208 may be formed, where the spring cage portion 208 interconnects the free end portion 202 and the fixed end portion 206. As disclosedherein, the spring cage portion 208 may include a plurality of elongated beams 210 extending between the fixed end portion 206 and the free end portion 202. Each elongated beam 210 may extend at least substantially parallel to central axis 204 away from the fixed end portion 206, and may transition to extending at least substantially transverse to the central axis 204 toward the free end portion 202.

[0027] While the above discussed aspects, arrangements, and embodiments are discussed with specific details and particularity, one or more of the components, steps, features and / or functions illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, and / or 5 may be rearranged and / or combined into a single component, step, feature or function or embodied in several components, steps, or functions. Additional elements, components, steps, and / or functions may also be added or not utilized without departing from the present disclosure. The apparatus, devices and / or components illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and / or 4 may be configured to perform or employ one or more of the methods, features, parameters, and / or steps described in FIG. 5. The novel algorithms described herein may also be efficiently implemented in software and / or embedded in hardware.

[0028] While features of the present disclosure may have been discussed relative to certain embodiments and figures, all embodiments of the present disclosure can include one or more of the advantageous features discussed herein. In other words, while one or more embodiments may have been discussed as having certain advantageous features, one or more of such features may also be used in accordance with any of the various embodiments discussed herein. In similar fashion, while exemplary embodiments may have been discussed herein as device, system, or method embodiments, it should be understood that such exemplary embodiments can be implemented in various devices, systems, and methods.

[0029] Also, it is noted that at least some implementations have been described as a process that is depicted as a flowchart, a flow diagram, a structure diagram, or a block diagram. Although a flowchart may describe the operations as a sequential process, many of the operations can be performed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order of the operations may be re-arranged. A process is terminated when its operations are completed. A process may correspond to a method, a function, a procedure, a subroutine, a subprogram, etc. When a process corresponds to a function, its termination corresponds to a return of the function to the calling function or the main function. The various methods described herein may be partially or fully implemented by programming (e.g.,instructions and / or data) that may be stored in a processor-readable storage medium, and executed by one or more processors, machines and / or devices.

[0030] Those of skill in the art would further appreciate that the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, or any combination thereof. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0031] The various features associate with the examples described herein and shown in the accompanying drawings can be implemented in different examples and implementations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, although certain specific constructions and arrangements have been described and shown in the accompanying drawings, such embodiments are merely illustrative and not restrictive of the scope of the disclosure, since various other additions and modifications to, and deletions from, the described embodiments will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art. Thus, the scope of the disclosure is only determined by the literal language, and legal equivalents, of the claims which follow.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat is claimed is:

1. A bearing support, comprising: a free end portion around a central axis; a fixed end portion positioned radially outside of the free end portion relative to the central axis; and a spring cage portion with a plurality of elongated beams interconnecting the free end portion and the fixed end portion, wherein each elongated beam extends at least substantially parallel to the central axis away from the fixed end portion and transitions to extending at least substantially transverse to the central axis toward the free end portion.

2. The bearing support of claim 1, wherein: the free end portion comprises an annular configuration about the central axis with a first radius; and the fixed end portion is positioned to overlap at least a portion of the free end portion and comprises an annular configuration about the central axis with a second radius that is larger than the first radius.

3. The bearing support of claim 1, wherein the free end portion comprises: an annular configuration about the central axis with a first radius; a first longitudinal end; and a second longitudinal end axially opposite from the first longitudinal end.

4. The bearing support of claim 3, wherein the free end portion is configured to receive one or more bearings between the first longitudinal end and the second longitudinal end.

5. The bearing support of claim 3, wherein: the fixed end portion comprises an annular configuration about the central axis with a second radius, wherein the second radius is larger than the first radius; andthe fixed end portion is positioned to overlap at least a portion of the free end portion.

6. The bearing support of claim 3, wherein the spring cage portion is coupled to the second longitudinal end of the free end portion.

7. A method of making a bearing support: forming a free end portion around a central axis; forming a fixed end portion positioned radially outside of the free end portion relative to the central axis; and forming a spring cage portion with a plurality of elongated beams interconnecting the free end portion and the fixed end portion, wherein each elongated beam extends away from the fixed end portion at least substantially parallel to the central axis and transitions to extending at least substantially transverse to the central axis toward the free end portion.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein: forming the free end portion comprises forming the free end portion with an annular configuration about the central axis with a first radius; and forming the fixed end portion comprises forming the fixed end portion with an annular configuration about the central axis with a second radius that is larger than the first radius, and positioning the fixed end portion to overlap at least a portion of the free end portion.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein forming the free end portion comprises: forming the free end portion with a first longitudinal end and a second longitudinal end axially opposite from the first longitudinal end, wherein the free end portion is formed with a first radius about the central axis.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein forming the free end portion comprises: forming the free end portion with a configuration to receive one or more bearings between the first longitudinal end and the second longitudinal end.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein forming the fixed end portion comprises: forming the fixed end portion with a second radius about the central axis, the second radius being larger than the first radius.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein forming the spring cage portion comprises: forming the spring cage portion interconnecting the fixed end portion and the second longitudinal end of the free end portion.

13. A system, comprising : at least one bearing support, including a free end portion around a central axis, a fixed end portion positioned radially outside of the free end portion relative to the central axis, and a spring cage portion with a plurality of elongated beams interconnecting the free end portion and the fixed end portion, wherein each elongated beam extends at least substantially parallel to the central axis away from the fixed end portion and transitions to extending at least substantially transverse to the central axis toward the free end portion; and a bearing positioned within the bearing support.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein: the free end portion of the at least one bearing support comprises an annular configuration about the central axis with a first radius; and the fixed end portion of the at least one bearing support is positioned to overlap at least a portion of the free end portion and comprises an annular configuration about the central axis with a second radius that is larger than the first radius.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the free end portion of the at least one bearing support comprises: an annular configuration about the central axis with a first radius; a first longitudinal end; and a second longitudinal end axially opposite from the first longitudinal end.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein: the fixed end portion comprises an annular configuration about the central axis with a second radius, wherein the second radius is larger than the first radius; and the fixed end portion is positioned to overlap at least a portion of the free end portion.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the spring cage portion is coupled to the second longitudinal end of the free end portion.

18. The system of claim 13, further comprising a gas turbine engine including: a compressor; a combustor; a turbine section; and a concentric shaft system including at least one shaft coupled to the bearing positioned within the bearing support.

19. The system of claim 13, wherein the at least one bearing support is positioned in one of a turbojet engine, a turbofan engine, a turboprop engine, a turboshaft engine, a gas turbine generator, or a component demonstrator.

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