FIELD
The present disclosure relates to the field of bearing assemblies for vehicles.
DEFINITION OF TERMS USED IN THE SPECIFICATION
The expression ‘preloading’ used hereinafter in this specification refers to a
technique to remove the internal clearance in the 5 bearing by applying a permanent
thrust load to it. Preloading is carried out in order to maintain axial and radial position
for accurate displacements of angular movements and for increasing bearing rigidity.
The expression ‘preload loss’ used hereinafter in this specification refers to a
phenomenon where the elastic deformation on rolling or sliding contacts of a bearing
10 is reduced due to wear, resulting in dwindled preload. The preload is usually axial
load which is required to support radial and axial load in order to eliminate any
clearance from the bearing assembly for ensuring the system stiffness to take care of
the application loads, and to prevent separation of rolling elements and cage assembly
either from inner ring or outer ring.
15 These definitions are in addition to those expressed in the art.
BACKGROUND
Typically taper roller bearings are used in bearing applications of vehicles such as in
wheels, pinions and the like. In a conventional application such as wheel and pinion
support, two taper roller bearings are assembled in a face to face orientation in a
20 housing wherein the bearings are preloaded on the shaft. In this assembly, the taper
roller bearings are subjected to radial load as well as heavy axial load exerted on the
shaft, and are thus prone to rapid wear and tear. Moreover, the taper roller bearings
tend to get heated at high speeds. Also, sliding contacts of rollers on a cone flange in
case of the taper roller bearings cause sliding wear, and ultimately preload loss,
3
which in turn reduces rigidity, and increases bearing noise, vibration and unstable
rotation in the taper roller bearings. This results in premature failure of the
surrounding components within sub-assembly, such as pinion gear, crown gear etc.
Therefore, there is a need to provide a bearing assembly that limits the
5 aforementioned drawbacks.
OBJECTS
Some of the objects of the present disclosure, which at least one embodiment herein
satisfies, are as follows:
It is an object of the present disclosure to ameliorate one or more problems of the
10 prior art or to at least provide a useful alternative.
An object of the present disclosure is to provide a bearing assembly for a shaft in a
vehicle.
Another object of the present disclosure is to provide a bearing assembly for low
wear.
15 Yet another object of the present disclosure is to provide a bearing assembly for low
torque.
Other objects and advantages of the present disclosure will be more apparent from the
following description, which is not intended to limit the scope of the present
disclosure.
20 SUMMARY
A bearing assembly for a shaft in a vehicle is envisaged. The bearing assembly
comprises a housing, at least two arrays of ball bearings, at least one array of
cylindrical roller bearings, and an outer raceway. The housing is configured to
4
circumscribe the shaft and has at least two inner rings. The at least two arrays of ball
bearings are configured to withstand radial and axial load when exerted on the shaft.
The at least one array of cylindrical roller bearings is configured to withstand radial
load when exerted on the shaft. The outer raceway is integral with the housing,
wherein the inner rings and the outer raceway are 5 configured to securely hold the ball
bearings and the cylindrical roller bearings respectively therebetween.
In an embodiment, the ball bearings are angular contact ball bearings. In another
embodiment, the at least one array of cylindrical roller bearings is positioned between
the at least two arrays of ball bearings. In yet another embodiment, the at least one
10 array of cylindrical roller bearings is positioned on either side of the at least two
arrays of ball bearings. Further the outer raceway and the inner rings are of structural
steel. The bearing assembly facilitates preloading by an orbital formations configured
on the inner rings or by a lock nut assembly on the shaft.
In one embodiment, the bearing assembly comprises three inner rings, wherein two
15 inner rings and the outer raceway are configured to securely hold two arrays of ball
bearings, and one inner ring and the outer raceway are configured to securely hold
one array of cylindrical roller bearings. In another embodiment, the bearing assembly
comprises two inner rings, wherein one inner ring and the outer raceway are
configured to securely hold one array of ball bearings and one array of cylindrical
20 roller bearings, and another inner ring and the outer raceway are configured to
securely hold another array of ball bearings. In yet another embodiment, the bearing
assembly comprises two inner rings, wherein one inner ring and the outer raceway are
configured to securely hold two arrays of ball bearings, and another inner ring and the
outer raceway are configured to securely hold one array of cylindrical roller bearings
25
5
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWING
A bearing assembly for a shaft of a vehicle, of the present disclosure will now be
described with the help of the accompanying drawing, in which:
Figure 1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a conventional bearing assembly having
5 two taper roller bearings;
Figure 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a bearing assembly for a shaft of a
vehicle, in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure; and
Figures 3A to 3F illustrate cross-sectional views of a bearing assembly in accordance
with different embodiments of the present disclosure.
10 List and details of reference numerals used in the description and drawing:
Reference Numeral Reference
100 Bearing assembly
102 Housing
104 A plurality of ball bearings
106 A plurality of cylindrical roller bearings
108, 302, 304, 306, 308, 310 Inner rings
110 Orbital formations
10 Two taper roller bearings
20 Housing of conventional bearing assembly
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Typically, taper roller bearings are used in bearing applications of vehicles such as in
wheels, pinions and the like. In a conventional application such as wheel and pinion
15 support, two taper roller bearings (illustrated as 10 in Figure 1) are assembled in a
6
face to face orientation in a housing (illustrated as 20 in Figure 1) wherein the
bearings are preloaded on the shaft. In this assembly, the taper roller bearings are
subjected to radial load as well as heavy axial load exerted on the shaft, and are thus
prone to rapid wear and tear. Moreover, the taper roller bearings tend to get heated at
high speeds. Also, sliding contacts of rollers on a cone 5 flange in case of the taper
roller bearings cause sliding wear, and ultimately preload loss, which in turn reduces
rigidity, and increases bearing noise, vibration and unstable rotation in the taper roller
bearings. This results in premature failure of the surrounding components within
subassembly, such as pinion gear, crown gear etc.
10 Therefore, there is a need to provide a bearing assembly that limits the
aforementioned drawbacks. The present disclosure envisages a bearing assembly that
facilitates low wear and low torque. The bearing assembly of the present disclosure is
now described with the help of accompanying drawing in which Figures 2 and 3A to
3F illustrate cross-sectional views of different embodiments of the bearing assembly
15 100 for a shaft in a vehicle.
The bearing assembly 100 comprises a housing 102, at least two arrays of ball
bearings 104, at least one array of cylindrical roller bearings 106, and an outer
raceway. The housing 102 has at least two inner rings 108 and is configured to
circumscribe the shaft..
20 The at least two arrays of ball bearings 104 are configured to withstand radial and
axial load when exerted on the shaft, and the at least one array of cylindrical roller
bearings 106 is configured to withstand radial load when exerted on the shaft. The
axial load exerted on the shaft is in two opposite directions. The outer raceway is
integral with the housing 102, and the inner rings 108 and the outer raceway are
25 configured to securely hold the arrays of ball bearings 104 and the array of cylindrical
roller bearings 106 respectively therebetween. In an embodiment, the outer raceway
and the inner rings 108 are of structural steel such as S53C. Additionally, the outer
7
raceway undergoes induction hardening. Further, the bearing assembly 100 facilitates
preloading by orbital formations 110 configured on the inner rings 108 (illustrated in
Figure 3) or by a lock nut assembly on the shaft.
In an embodiment, the ball bearings 104 are angular contact ball bearings. In another
embodiment, the at least one array of cylindrical 5 roller bearings 106 is positioned
between the at least two arrays of ball bearings 104 (illustrated in Figures 3A and
3D). In yet another embodiment, the at least one array of cylindrical roller bearings
106 is positioned on either side of the at least two arrays of ball bearings 104
(illustrated in Figures 3B, 3C, 3E and 3F).
10 In one embodiment, the bearing assembly 100 comprises three inner rings 302, 304,
306, wherein two inner rings 302, 306 and the outer raceway are configured to
securely hold two arrays of ball bearings 104, and one inner ring 304 and the outer
raceway are configured to securely hold one array of cylindrical roller bearings 106
(as illustrated in Figure 3A, 3B, and 3C).
15 In another embodiment, the bearing assembly 100 comprises two inner rings 308,
310, wherein one inner ring 308 and the outer raceway are configured to securely
hold one array of ball bearings 104 and one array of cylindrical roller bearings 106,
and another inner ring 310 and the outer raceway are configured to securely hold
another array of ball bearings 104 (as illustrated in Figures 3D, 3E, and 3F).
20 In yet another embodiment, the bearing assembly 100 comprises two inner rings,
wherein one inner ring and the outer raceway are configured to securely hold two
arrays of ball bearings 104, and another inner ring and the outer raceway are
configured to securely hold one array of cylindrical roller bearings 106 (not shown in
Figures).
25 In the bearing assembly 100 of the present disclosure, line contact of rollers is
minimized which helps in reducing the bearing running torque. Further, the sliding
8
contact of rollers on cone flange (in case of taper roller bearing), resulting in sliding
wear, is entirely eliminated thereby reducing preload loss of the bearing.
TECHNICAL ADVANCEMENTS
The present disclosure described herein above has several technical advantages
5 including, but not limited to, the realization:
 a bearing for a shaft in a vehicle;
 a bearing for low wear; and
 a bearing for low torque.
The embodiments herein and the various features and advantageous details thereof
10 are explained with reference to the non-limiting embodiments in the following
description. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques are
omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein. The examples
used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the
embodiments herein may be practiced and to further enable those of skill in the art to
15 practice the embodiments herein. Accordingly, the examples should not be construed
as limiting the scope of the embodiments herein
The foregoing description of the specific embodiments will so fully reveal the general
nature of the embodiments herein that others can, by applying current knowledge,
readily modify and/or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments
20 without departing from the generic concept, and, therefore, such adaptations and
modifications should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and
range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be understood that the
phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not
of limitation. Therefore, while the embodiments herein have been described in terms
25 of preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the
9
embodiments herein can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of
the embodiments as described herein.

WE CLAIM:
1. A bearing assembly (100) for a shaft in a vehicle, said bearing assembly (100)
comprising:
a housing (102) configured to circumscribe said shaft and having at least
5 two inner rings (108);
at least two arrays of ball bearings (104) configured to withstand radial
and axial load when exerted on said shaft;
at least one array of cylindrical roller bearings (106) configured to
withstand radial load when exerted on said shaft; and
10 an outer raceway integral with said housing (102),
wherein said inner rings (108) and said outer raceway are configured to
securely hold said ball bearings (104) and said cylindrical roller bearings
(106) respectively therebetween.
15 2. The bearing assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said ball bearings
(104) are angular contact ball bearings.
3. The bearing assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one
array of cylindrical roller bearings (106) is positioned between said at least two arrays
20 of ball bearings (104).
4. The bearing assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one
array of cylindrical roller bearings (106) is positioned on either side of said at least
two arrays of ball bearings (104).
25
5. The bearing assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said outer raceway
and said inner rings (108) are of structural steel.
11
6. The bearing assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, which facilitates
preloading by orbital formations (110) configured on said inner rings (108) or by a
lock nut assembly on the shaft.
7. The bearing assembly (5 100) as claimed in claim 1, which comprises three
inner rings (302, 304, 306), wherein two inner rings (302, 306) and said outer
raceway are configured to securely hold two arrays of ball bearings (104), and one
inner ring (304) and said outer raceway are configured to securely hold one array of
cylindrical roller bearings (106).
10
8. The bearing assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, which comprises two inner
rings (308, 310), wherein one inner ring (308) and said outer raceway are configured
to securely hold one array of ball bearings (104) and one array of cylindrical roller
bearings (106), and another inner ring (310) and said outer raceway are configured to
15 securely hold another array of ball bearings (104).
9. The bearing assembly (100) as claimed in claim 1, which comprises two inner
rings, wherein one inner ring and said outer raceway are configured to securely hold
two arrays of ball bearings (104), and another inner ring and said outer raceway are
20 configured to securely hold one array of cylindrical roller bearings (106).