Bearing device, for power transmission unit for an azimuth thruster
AssigneeAktiebolaget Skf
InventorsPierre Lavaine, Lars Kahlman
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A bearing device providing at least one bearing, an acquisition device having at least one optical fiber attached at least partly to the bearing configured to measure at least one first parameter relative to the bearing, an optical interrogator coupled to the at least one optical fiber configured to process the at least one first parameter so as to obtain at least one second parameter, and having a transmitting antenna connected to the at least one optical fiber configured to process the at least one first parameter, and a receiving antenna cooperating with the transmitting antenna configured to send wirelessly the at least one second parameter.
Claims10
A bearing device comprising:
- at least one bearing,
- acquisition means coupled to the bearing and configured to measure at least one first parameter relative to the bearing;
- computing means configured to process the at least one first parameter to obtain at least one second parameter, and
- transmission means configured to send wirelessly the at least one second parameter, characterized in that the acquisition means and the computing means are connected together with a cable link.
A power transmission unit for an azimuth thruster comprising a vertical shaft with a power input and with a power output, and comprising:
- a bearing device providing at least one bearing, acquisition means coupled to the bearing and configured to measure at least one first parameter relative to the bearing;
- computing means configured to process the at least one first parameter to obtain at least one second parameter, and transmission means configured to send wirelessly the at least one second parameter, wherein
- the acquisition means and the computing means are connected together with a cable link, and wherein
- the at least one bearing supporting the vertical shaft.
An azimuth thruster assembly for a vessel, comprising:
- at least one motor and at least one propeller;
- a power transmission unit including a vertical shaft with a power input and with a power output, and comprising:
- a bearing device providing at least one bearing, acquisition means coupled to the bearing and configured to measure at least one first parameter relative to the bearing;
- computing means configured to process the at least one first parameter so as to obtain at least one second parameter, and transmission means configured to send wirelessly the at least one second parameter, wherein the acquisition means and the computing means are connected together with a cable link, and wherein
- the at least one bearing supporting the vertical shaft, provided between the at least one motor and the at least one propeller to rotate the propeller, the vertical shaft connecting the motor to the propeller, and
- a steering unit containing at least partially a fluid, wherein the power transmission chain is arranged inside the steering unit.
A method of monitoring a bearing device comprising at least one bearing, the method comprising:
- measuring at least one first parameter relative to the at least one bearing with acquisition means of the bearing device coupled to the bearing,
- sending at least one first parameter of the bearing device to computing means through a cable link,
- processing the at least one parameter received through the cable link by computing means to obtain at least one second parameter and
- wirelessly sending the at least one second parameter by transmission means of the bearing device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.