Seal assembly
AssigneeAktiebolaget Skf
InventorWarrick Allen
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A dual function coating on a counterface of a seal. The dual function provides having a low friction and being hydrophobic. This is achieved by chemically modifying a low friction coating. Gaps are included, primarily on the exterior side of a seal, one side being coated with the modified low friction coating on a counterface and the other side with a hydrophobic or omniphobic material on a seal body. The material can be in the form of a coating, film, strip, or ring depending on application, and be coated, glued, fused, mechanically attached or by any other suitable method, attached to the seal body. The gap should preferably be in the order of 0.2 to 1 mm wide, thus creating ‘reverse-capillary’ function where water cannot pass all the way through the gap.
Claims9
A seal assembly comprising:
- a seal body having at least one seal lip;
- a counterface;
- wherein
- the at least one seal lip is in contact with the counterface covering a contact area on the counterface, and wherein
- the counterface is coated with a chemically modified low friction coating, the chemical modification making the coating hydrophobic, wherein the low friction coating is a polyurethane low friction coating and is chemically modified with a low surface tension silicone modified polyacrylate monomer units with mono-hydroxyl functionality to allow the additive to bond into the polyurethane to thereby create the hydrophobic chemically modified low friction coating, and in that the coating of the counterface, when in use, extend on both sides of the at least one seal lip which is in contact with the counterface, thereby creating a hydrophobic barrier close to the at least one seal lip.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.