Wear sleeve and lip seal positionable upon a machine component
AssigneeCaterpillar Inc.
InventorsGabriel S. Ferreira, Jennifer L. Wilson, Wesley A. Thill
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A seal assembly includes a wear sleeve, the wear sleeve having an outer sleeve surface made of a fluoropolymer material and a lip seal made of an elastic material and fitted upon the wear sleeve. The lip seal defines a seal axis extending between a first axial seal end and a second axial seal end and includes an outer seal surface and a circumferentially extending inner seal surface forming an opening receiving the wear sleeve. The lip seal further includes a sealing lip in sealing contact with the outer sleeve surface.
Claims18
A machine assembly comprising:
- a machine component rotatable around a component axis:
- a wear sleeve having an inner sleeve surface in contact with the machine component, an outer sleeve surface made of a fluoropolymer material, and the inner sleeve surface is formed at least in part by the fluoropolymer material;
- and
- a lip seal including an outer seal surface, an inner seal surface, and a first sealing lip in sealing contact with the outer sleeve surface at a first axial location.
A seal assembly comprising:
- a wear sleeve made at least in part of a fluoropolymer material, and defining an axis extending between a first axial sleeve end and a second axial sleeve end, and the wear sleeve further including a radially inward exposed inner sleeve surface defining an unobstructed opening circumferentially around the axis and diametrically across the wear sleeve, and a radially outward outer sleeve surface;
- and
- a lip seal made of an elastic material and structured to fit upon the wear sleeve, the lip seal including a radially outward portion and a radially inward portion having a sealing lip structured for sealing contact with the outer sleeve surface at an axial location so as to form a sealing interface extending fully circumferentially around the axis.
A seal assembly comprising:
- a wear sleeve, the wear sleeve having an outer sleeve surface made of fluoropolymer material:
- the wear sleeve further including an inner sleeve surface forming a slot, and a cylindrical metallic element seated within the slot and forming the inner sleeve surface at least in part;
- and
- a lip seal made of an elastic material:
- the lip seal defining a seal axis extending between a first axial seal end and a second axial seal end, and including an outer seal surface and a circumferentially extending inner seal surface forming an opening receiving the wear sleeve;
- and
- the lip seal further including a sealing lip in sealing contact with the outer sleeve surface, and the outer sleeve surface forming a running surface rotatable relative to the sealing lip.
-18. (canceled)
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.