Fiber-Composite Bearing Support with Integrated Sliding Surface
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing bearing supports in vehicle transmissions, made from fiber-reinforced plastic, lack stability to support high forces due to the expensive integration of sliding bearing bushings or rolling-element bearing rings, and previous solutions like 2-component injection molding do not provide sufficient structural integrity.
Innovation Solution
A bearing support formed from fiber-composite plastic with spatially oriented fibers embedded in the sliding surface or raceway, eliminating the need for separate bearing bushings or rings, and using PTFE fibers for low friction and lubrication, ensuring targeted force dissipation and improved stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If sliding bearing bushings or bearing rings are integrated into the bearing support, then the bearing support can support high forces, but the manufacturing complexity and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the bearing support structure with the sliding bearing surface and rolling-element bearing raceway into a single integrated fiber-reinforced plastic component. The bearing support body, sliding surface, and raceway are formed as one piece through injection molding, eliminating the need for separate bearing bushings or rings and their associated assembly steps.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses fiber-reinforced plastic material where fibers are oriented in specific directions to provide mechanical strength and force support capability. The composite material structure allows the single integrated component to withstand high forces while maintaining manufacturing simplicity.
2Strength
If sliding bearing bushings or bearing rings are integrated into the bearing support, then the bearing support can support high forces, but the manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple components (bearing support, sliding bearing, rolling-element bearing) into a single injection-molded part, eliminating the need for separate manufacturing processes and assembly operations for bearing bushings or rings, thereby reducing manufacturing cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The fiber-reinforced plastic bearing support performs multiple functions simultaneously: it provides structural support, contains the sliding bearing surface, and houses the rolling-element bearing raceway, reducing the overall part count and manufacturing complexity.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If a 2-component injection molding is used with tribologically effective plastic, then the sliding surface has good lubrication properties, but the overall bearing support lacks stability to support high forces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies fiber reinforcement locally in the bearing support body and raceway regions where mechanical strength is required, while maintaining a smooth surface finish in the sliding bearing regions where low friction is needed. This localized differentiation resolves the contradiction between lubrication properties and structural stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The use of fiber-reinforced plastic provides the necessary structural stability and force support capability throughout the bearing support, while the injection molding process ensures smooth surface quality in bearing regions, combining structural performance with tribological performance in a single material system.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables a cost-effective, stable, and lightweight bearing support capable of handling high forces with reduced manufacturing complexity and assembly steps, while providing a smooth sliding surface and self-lubrication, suitable for various operating conditions.
Implementation Method 1
PTFE fibers are embedded in the plastic in the region of the sliding surface and/or raceway. Since the bearing support itself is configured as the sliding surface for the sliding bearing and/or the raceway for the rolling-element bearing, the expensive introducing of a bearing bushing or a bearing inner ring is omitted, with the result that the bearing support is quickly and simply manufacturable. It is preferred in particular if the sliding fibers are PTFE fibers. In addition to low friction values PTFE also has the advantage that with PTFE a lubricating can be provided of the to-be-supported elements or the bearing elements themselves.
Implementation Method 2
The spatially oriented fibers in turn ensure that forces that act on the sliding surface or the raceway can be dissipated to the bearing support in a targeted manner, since the forces are dissipated along the spatial orientation of the fibers.
Data Source
AI summary
A bearing support includes at least one sliding bearing defined by the bearing support and/or at least one rolling-element bearing having an outer raceway defined by the bearing support. The bearing support is formed from a fiber-plastic composite and includes an integrally formed sliding surface of the sliding bearing and/or an integrally formed raceway for rolling elements of the rolling-element bearing, and the fiber-plastic composite includes a matrix into which spatially oriented sliding fibers, for example, PTFE fibers, are embedded in a region of the sliding surface of the sliding bearing and/or a region of the raceway of the rolling-element bearing.