Self-aligning maintenance free bearing unit for agricultural applications

A bearing assembly comprising:

• a housing;
• an outer ring mounted at least partially within the housing and having an outer surface and a sliding surface on the inner diameter of the outer ring;
• an inner ring mounted at least partially within the outer ring and having a sliding surface on the outer diameter thereof, the inner and outer rings defining a bearing space between them;
• a plurality of rolling elements disposed within the bearing space and supporting the inner ring for rotation about an axis;
• an inboard seal structure supported within the bearing space, the inboard seal structure including a first washer fixed to one of the inner or outer rings and a first sealing member mounted to the first washer, wherein the first sealing member is in sliding contact with the sliding surface of the other of the inner or outer rings;
• and
• an outboard seal structure supported within the bearing space adjacent to and axially outwardly from the inboard seal structure, the outboard seal structure including a second washer fixed to the other of the inner or outer rings and a second sealing member mounted to the second washer, wherein the second sealing member is in sliding contact with the sliding surface of the one of the inner or outer rings, at least a portion of the contact zone between the first sealing member and the sliding surface of the other of the inner or outer rings is radially aligned with at least a portion of the contact zone between the second sealing member and the sliding surface of the one of the inner or outer rings;
• and wherein one of the first and second washers has a diagonal portion, at least a portion of which is radially aligned with the radially aligned portions of said contact zones between the sealing members and the sliding surfaces.