Protective cover having sensor holder part, bearing device including the protective cover, and method for manufacturing protective cover having sensor holder part

A protective cover having a sensor holder part for use in a bearing device including an inner ring with an inner ring track surface on an outer peripheral surface, an outer ring with an outer ring track surface on an inner peripheral surface, a bearing having a rolling element rolling between the inner ring track surface and the outer ring track surface, and a magnetic encoder positioned at one axial end portion of the bearing, fixed to the inner ring, and has N and S poles alternately arranged at regular intervals in a circumferential direction;

• and a magnetic sensor that is opposed to the magnetic poles of the magnetic encoder to detect rotation of the magnetic encoder, the protective cover comprising:
• a disc-shaped member, wherein the disc-shaped member includes a main body part and the sensor holder part, the main body including a division wall, and a thick part,
• wherein the protective cover is a cup-shaped protective cover,
• wherein the sensor holder part holds the magnetic sensor and the division wall divides the magnetic encoder and the magnetic sensor,
• wherein out of a cylindrical member and the disc-shaped member forming the cup shape, at least the disc-shaped member is an injection-molded article, and
• wherein the thick part of the disc-shaped member, seen from a bottom surface, is approximately fan-shaped such that it becomes gradually wider with increasing proximity towards positions corresponding to the sensor holder part and the division wall from a position corresponding to a gate of the molding die in the injection molding, and
• wherein the thick part has a thickness of about 1.2 to 3 times larger than the thickness of a surrounding part of the thick part.