Cross-plies support element for compliant bearings
AssigneeMechanical Technology Incorporated
InventorHooshang Heshmat
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A resilient support element for a compliant hydrodynamic fluid film bearing has top and bottom corrugated foil modules separated by a thin mid-plane sheet. Both modules are split by slits extending perpendicular to their corrugation axes, and the two modules are arranged with their corrugations extending transverse to each other. The angular stiffness of each finite area of the support element is substantially equal about orthogonal axes over its entire area. The support element provides superior damping and soft, strong isotropic support of the bearing sheet for generation of high load capacity at low speed, stable operation and high load capacity at high speed, and tolerance of manufacturing, use and loading abberations.
Claims10
A compliant hydrodynamic fluid film bearing, comprising:
- first and second relatively movable members having opposing surfaces defining therebetween a gap;
- a bearing sheet attached to one of said members and having a bearing surface facing said surface of the other of said members;
- a support element lying between said bearing sheet and said one member, and supporting said bearing sheet on said one member;
- said support element including a first corrugated foil module lying on said one member and formed as a plurality of strips whose length runs generally perpendicular to the axis of said corrugations;
- a second corrugated foil module lying between said bearing sheet and said first corrugated foil module, formed as a plurality of strips whose length runs generally perpendicular to the axis of its corrugations and to the strips of said first corrugated foil module;
- said support element thereby forming a matrix of substantially independently compliant support zones including a plurality of zones in orthogonal directions distributed across the area of said support element, each zone of said support element having an angular compliance that is substantially equal about orthogonal axes directions in the plane of said bearing sheet.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.