Sanitary steady bearing and method
AssigneeSPX Corporation
InventorRobert Blakley
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A sanitary steady bearing assembly and method provides for sanitary characteristics, easy cleanability, and easy replacement of wear parts without distributing the rest of the agitator, and can also support the agitator shaft during seal changes. The bearing assembly includes a bushing cup, a pedestal hub, a bushing shaft, and a bushing element.
Claims23
A bearing apparatus for supporting a lower rotating agitator shaft with respect to a stationary lower surface of a vessel, the bearing assembly comprising:
- a cylindrical bushing cup mounted to and projecting downwardly from the lower agitator shaft;
- a pedestal hub mounted to the vessel by a plurality of legs attached to the vessel;
- an upwardly projecting bushing shaft mounted to the pedestal hub;
- and
- a bushing element mounted to the inside of the bushing cup and surrounding the bushing shaft for rotational sliding contact with the outside of the bushing shaft.
A bearing apparatus for supporting a lower rotating agitator shaft with respect to a stationary lower surface of a vessel, the bearing assembly comprising:
- a cylindrical bushing cup projecting downwardly from the lower agitator shaft;
- supporting means mounted to the vessel by a plurality of legs attached to the vessel;
- an upwardly projecting bushing shaft mounted to the supporting means;
- and
- a bushing element mounted to the inside of the bushing cup and surrounding the bushing shaft for rotational sliding contact with the outside of the bushing shaft.
A method for supporting a lower rotating agitator shaft with respect to a stationary lower surface of a vessel, the bearing assembly comprising:
- mounting a cylindrical bushing cup to project downwardly from the lower agitator shaft;
- mounting an upwardly projecting bushing shaft to a pedestal hub mounted to the vessel by a plurality of legs attached to the vessel;
- and
- mounting a bushing element inside of the bushing cup and surrounding the bushing shaft for rotational sliding contact with the outside of the bushing shaft.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.