Method and systems for texturing liquid bearing surfaces in X-ray tubes
AssigneeGeneral Electric Company
InventorsIan Strider Hunt, Kenwood P. Dayton, Ben David Poquette, Santosh Kumar Tiwari, Michael J. Danyluk
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Various methods and systems are provided for providing coatings and textures to surfaces of a bearing assembly in an x-ray system to control the wettability of the surfaces when components of the bearing assembly rotate during operation of the x-ray system. A lubricant is disposed in a gap formed between a shaft and a sleeve of the bearing assembly such that textured and coated surfaces of the shaft and sleeve alter wetting properties between the lubricant and surfaces. The coatings and textures can be wetting or anti-wetting to further enhance control over the behavior of the lubricant.
Claims20
A bearing assembly, comprising:
- a sleeve with an opening formed therein;
- a shaft positioned within the opening of the sleeve with a gap formed between an inner surface of the sleeve and an outer surface of the shaft;
- a lubricant disposed in the gap;
- and
- a texture formed on at least one of the outer surface of the shaft and the inner surface of the sleeve, the texturing altering a geometry and wettability of the inner and outer surfaces, wherein a length scale of the texture is less than microscopic.
An x-ray tube, comprising:
- a cathode;
- a target assembly positioned to receive electrons emitted from the cathode;
- and
- a self-lubricating bearing configured to support the target assembly, the self-lubricating bearing comprising:
- a rotatable component having a first surface;
- a stationary component positioned with respect to the rotatable component such that a gap is formed between the first surface of the rotatable component and a first surface of the stationary component;
- a liquid lubricant disposed within the gap;
- and
- a texture formed on at least one of the first surface of the rotatable component and the first surface of the stationary component, wherein a length scale of the texture is less than microscopic.
A method for manufacturing a bearing assembly, comprising:
- applying a plurality of textures and a plurality of coatings to surfaces of a stationary component and a rotatable component based on a desired wettability of the surfaces, the textures altering a geometry of the surfaces and the coatings adhering a first material to a second material of the surfaces, wherein a length scale of the textures is less than microscopic.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.