Pressure Plate Bearing Quick-Connection With Ball-Groove Locking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current pressure plate bearing devices face challenges in reliable connection and ease of assembly, with existing methods prone to disconnection during transport or vibration and stress concentration leading to premature failure under impact loads.
Innovation Solution
A pressure plate bearing device with a sleeving hole and limiting grooves that uses steel balls and a mounting channel with a limiting member for secure axial alignment, allowing for easy assembly and stable connection through a threaded screw and ball support mechanism.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If welding or riveting is used to connect the pressure plate to the bearing, then the connection strength is improved, but the operational complexity and difficulty of assembly increase
Solution Approach 1:
The connection structure is segmented into modular components: the pressure plate with limiting grooves, the bearing with outer race, and steel balls as independent locking elements. This segmentation allows for simple assembly by dropping balls into grooves without complex welding or riveting operations, while still achieving strong mechanical interlocking.
Solution Approach 2:
Steel balls serve as intermediary elements between the pressure plate and bearing. These balls fit into limiting grooves on both components, creating a mechanical intermediary that transmits and distributes loads while preventing relative movement. This intermediary mechanism achieves strong connection without the complexity of direct welding or riveting.
2Ease of operation
If a clamp ring is used to connect the pressure plate and bearing, then the assembly is simplified, but the connection reliability deteriorates under vibration and transport conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The connection system transitions from a static clamp ring to a dynamic ball-and-groove mechanism. The steel balls can dynamically adjust their position within the limiting grooves to accommodate vibrations and movements, maintaining continuous contact and connection. This dynamic adaptation prevents disconnection under vibration and transport conditions while keeping the assembly simple.
Solution Approach 2:
The limiting grooves are designed with sufficient depth and appropriate geometry to cushion and absorb the effects of vibrations and shocks before they can cause disconnection. The steel balls seated in these grooves act as pre-positioned cushioning elements that maintain connection integrity under adverse conditions without requiring complex anti-vibration mechanisms.
3Ease of operation
If a clamp ring connects the pressure plate to the bearing, then assembly is easier, but stress concentration occurs in the bearing outer race groove leading to premature failure
Solution Approach 1:
The connection interface is segmented into multiple discrete contact points through the use of multiple steel balls distributed around the circumference. This segmentation distributes the contact stress from the clamp ring's continuous groove into multiple localized ball-to-groove contacts, significantly reducing stress concentration in the bearing outer race and extending service life.
Solution Approach 2:
The limiting grooves are designed with optimized local geometry at the ball contact points to distribute stress evenly. The groove cross-section and curvature are specifically tailored to match the ball shape, creating uniform stress distribution locally at each contact point rather than the high stress concentration caused by a rigid clamp ring groove.
4Device complexity
If conventional connection methods are used for the pressure plate bearing device, then the structure is simpler, but the device cannot meet the strict requirements for production, transportation, and customer use
Solution Approach 1:
The steel balls and limiting grooves form a self-locating, self-locking connection system. When assembled, the balls automatically seat into the grooves on both the pressure plate and bearing, creating a self-servicing connection that requires no additional fastening operations or complex adjustment mechanisms. This self-service mechanism ensures reliable connection while maintaining structural simplicity suitable for mass production and various application conditions.
Data Source
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AI summary
The present disclosure provides a pressure plate bearing device assembled by quick connection, which includes a bearing and a pressure plate. The pressure plate includes a sleeving hole which sleeves outside an outer race of the bearing, a limiting groove provided in a position where the outer race of the bearing is nested in the sleeving hole in a matching manner, and a steel ball arranged in the limiting groove. Based on the limiting match between the steel ball and the sleeving hole and the limiting match between the steel ball and the outer race of the bearing, at least the axial limit between the bearing and the pressure plate is at least fulfilled. The outer race of the bearing or the pressure plate is provided with a mounting channel that is in communication with the limiting groove, and a limiting member capable of limiting and holding the steel ball in the limiting groove is arranged in the mounting channel. The pressure plate bearing device assembled by the quick connection of the present disclosure is more easily assembled and reliably connected.