Flex pad bearing pad configuration
AssigneeIngersoll-Rand Industrial U.S., Inc.
InventorsJames Lawrence Robb, Andrew J. Austin, Patrick Lynah
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A hydrodynamic bearing in the form of a flex pad bearing includes configurations structured to change a bearing characteristic. One form of the bearing includes a nonlinear back wall that includes a circular arc and a transition, where the back wall extends radially outward of a ligament. The bearing can include an opening for the deposit of a weighted mass, wherein the opening can threadingly receive a threaded weighted mass. In one form a sidewall that includes the back wall segment can have an average outer radius which determines a thickness of the flex pads.
Claims20
A flex pad for a bearing base to support radial loads, the flex pad to be arranged about a central axis of a flex pad bearing assembly including the flex pad and the bearing base, the flex pad comprising:
- a flex pad body having a bearing contact surface defined by an arc having a first radial distance from the central axis of the flex pad bearing assembly, a first sidewall extending from the bearing contact surface, a second sidewall extending from the bearing contact surface and circumferentially offset with respect to the first sidewall, the first sidewall and the second sidewall each extending radially outward to at least a second radial distance from the central axis of the flex pad bearing assembly;
- and
- a ligament connected to the flex pad body, the ligament having a first end for the bearing base and a second end at the flex pad body, the second end of the ligament connected to the flex pad body at a third radial distance from the central axis of the flex pad bearing assembly between the first radial distance and the second radial distance, the first end of the ligament extending to a fourth radial distance from the central axis of the flex pad bearing assembly between the second radial distance and the third radial distance.
A flex pad for a bearing base to support radial loads, the flex pad to be arranged about a central axis of a flex pad bearing assembly including the flex pad and the bearing base, the flex pad comprising:
- a flex pad body having a bearing contact surface defined by an arc having a first radial distance from the central axis of the flex pad bearing assembly, a first sidewall extending from the bearing contact surface, a second sidewall extending from the bearing contact surface and circumferentially offset with respect to the first sidewall;
- and
- a ligament connected to the flex pad body, the ligament having a first end for the bearing base and a second end at the flex pad body, the first sidewall and the second sidewall of the flex pad body extending toward the second end of the ligament to a location between the bearing contact surface and the second end of the ligament and radially outward from the second end of the ligament.
A flex pad for a bearing base to support radial loads, the flex pad to be arranged about a central axis of a flex pad bearing assembly including the flex pad and the bearing base, the flex pad comprising:
- a flex pad body having a circular arc bearing contact surface, a first sidewall, a second sidewall circumferentially offset from the first sidewall, and a pair of nonlinear back walls that extend respectively from the first sidewall and the second sidewall;
- and
- a ligament connected to the flex pad body, the nonlinear back walls extending to the ligament, the flex pad bearing assembly defining a central passage having a passage diameter defined by the bearing contact surface and an opposing bearing contact surface of a second flex pad for the bearing base, the flex pad body having a thickness defined between the circular arc bearing contact surface and an average radial distance of the back walls from the central axis of the flex pad bearing assembly, a ratio of the thickness of the flex bad body to the passage diameter between at least approximately 0.36 and 0.48.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.