Smart sonic bearings for frictional force reduction and switching
AssigneeGRQ Instruments, Inc.
InventorsJack Cheng, Christopher Damien Carruno
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An ultrastiff precision sonic bearing assembly and method thereof for controlling an effective coefficient of friction between two elements in slidable contact configured along an interface under a force sufficient to maintain contact and having static friction therebetween, by inducing a repetitive motion in one of the elements parallel to the interface thereby altering the effective coefficient of friction therebetween. The bearing assembly also provides for additional and independent electronic control over the average thickness thereof and senses the force thereon to allow the bearing assembly stiffness to be altered.
Claims46
An ultrastiff precision sonic bearing assembly, comprising of:
- a. at least one load member having a load member mass, each load member having at least one load accepting surface and at least one load sliding surface;
- b. at least one bearing element having at least one bearing support region and at least one bearing sliding surface;
- c. the load sliding surface in slidable contact with the bearing sliding surface by a force, the surfaces in slidable contact along a slidable path relative to each other
- d. the sliding surfaces having a coefficient of friction therebetween;
- and
- e. energizing means for generating a substantially oscillatory sliding motion in the bearing element, the motion having an oscillation path tangent with the slidable path for at least one interacting point between the load sliding and the bearing sliding surfaces, wherein the oscillatory sliding motion alters an effective coefficient of friction between the load sliding surface and the bearing sliding surface without inducing the load member to move in the direction of the slidable path.
An ultrastiff sonic bearing system comprising:
- a. a first element having a first surface;
- b. a second element having a second surface, the first surface and the second surface in slidable contact with one another along an interface and having an effective coefficient of friction therebetween, wherein the first surface and the second surface maintain slidable contact by a substantially constant force;
- and
- c. means for inducing a repetitive motion along the interface thereby altering the effective coefficient of friction, wherein the repetitive motion does not impart a directional motion onto the second element.
An ultrastiff sonic bearing system comprising:
- a. a first element having a first surface;
- b. a second element having a second surface, the first surface and the second surface in slidable contact with one another along an interface, wherein the first surface and the second surface maintain contact by a substantially constant force, the first surface and the second surface having an effective coefficient of friction therebetween;
- and
- c. means for inducing a symmetrical motion along the interface thereby altering the effective coefficient of friction, wherein the symmetrical motion does not impart a directional motion onto the second element.
An ultrastiff sonic bearing system comprising:
- a. a first element having a first surface, wherein the first surface includes at least two contact points;
- b. a second element having a second surface, the second surface in slidable contact with the at least two contact points along an interface only at the anti-nodal regions, wherein the second surface and the at least two contact points maintain slidable contact by a force, the second surface and the at least two contact points having an effective coefficient of friction therebetween;
- and
- c. energizing means for repetitively and alternately expanding and contracting a physical dimension of the first element such that the at least two contact points move away from and toward one another at a determined velocity and parallel to the interface, thereby altering the effective coefficient of friction without imparting a directional motion onto the second element.
A precision sonic bearing assembly comprising:
- a. a first element having a first surface;
- b. a second element having a second surface, wherein the first surface and the second surface are in slidable contact with one another only at an anti-nodal region and under a force;
- and
- c. means for changing a dimension of the first element over a period of time such that an effective coefficient of friction between the first surface and the second surface at the anti-nodal region is altered.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.