Thrust bearing assembly

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9470260-B2
Application number	US-201414497602-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 26, 2014
Priority date	Sep 26, 2014
Publication date	Oct 18, 2016
Grant date	Oct 18, 2016

Abstract

A hydrodynamic thrust bearing has an annular plate, a plurality of bearing foils, and a plurality of bumper foils. The annular plate has a first face and a second face opposite the first face. The bearing foils have an arcuate shape and are joined to the first face of the annular plate. The bumper foils have an arcuate and corrugated shape and are joined to the second face of the annular plate. A method of making a hydrodynamic thrust bearing includes joining the bearing and bumper foils to the annular plate with integrally-formed spacers in which each bumper foil corresponds to a bearing foil.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A hydrodynamic thrust bearing comprising:
an annular plate having a first face and a second face opposite the first face;
a plurality of bearing foils having an arcuate shape, wherein the plurality of bearing foils are joined to the first face of the annular plate; and
a plurality of bumper foils having a corrugated, arcuate shape, wherein the plurality of bumper foils are joined to the second face of the annular plate.

2. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 1 wherein the plurality of bearing foils are joined to the first face of the annular plate at a single radially-extending end of each bearing foil.

3. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 2 wherein the plurality of bearing foils each have a friction-reducing material applied to a face of the bearing foil.

4. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 3 wherein the friction-reducing material is polytetrafluoroethylene.

5. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 2 wherein the plurality of bearing foils have a curvature with respect to a radially-extending plane of each bearing foil, the curvature axially displacing each bearing foil at the radially-extending plane.

6. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 1 wherein the plurality of bumper foils are joined to the second face of the annular plate at a single end of each bumper foil.

7. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 1 wherein the plurality of bumper foils has a repeating corrugation pattern defined by one minor corrugation and one major corrugation.

8. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 7 wherein the first two minor corrugations and the first two major corrugations with respect to the single end of the bumper foil are smaller in axial height than the remaining minor and major corrugations of the bumper foil.

9. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 1 and further comprising:
a plurality of spacers integral with the annular plate and disposed such that each of the plurality of spacers is located between one of the plurality of bearing foils and the first face of the annular plate.

10. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 1 and further comprising:
a housing;
a plurality of locking elements affixed to the housing and engaging the annular plate;
a shaft rotatable relative to the housing; and
a disk concentrically joined to a first end of the shaft, wherein the disk has a wear-resistant material bonded to a bearing face and is disposed such that the plurality of bumper foils contact the housing and the plurality of bearing foils contact the wear-resistant material.

11. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 1 , wherein the first surface is spaced from the second surface to define a thickness of the annular plate.

12. A method of making a hydrodynamic thrust bearing, the method comprising:
forming an annular plate having a first face and a second face opposite the first face, wherein a plurality of spacers are integrally formed on a portion of the first face;
forming a plurality of arcuate bearing foils;
forming a plurality of arcuate and corrugated bumper foils;
joining the plurality of bumper foils to the second face of the annular plate, wherein each bumper foil corresponds to an opposing bearing foil; and
joining the plurality of bearing foils to the first face of the annular plate, wherein each bearing foil is associated with one of the plurality of spacers.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the annular plate and the plurality of spacers are formed by a chemical etching process.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein the plurality of arcuate bearing foils are formed from a foil stock by bonding a friction-reducing material to a side of the foil stock, burnishing the friction-reducing material to achieve a foil thickness, and separating a plurality of arcuate bearing foils from the foil stock.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein each bearing foil has a curvature forming a peak at a radially-extending mid-plane of each bearing foil.

16. The method of claim 12 , wherein the plurality of bearing foils and the plurality of bumper foils are each joined to the annular plate at a single end by a resistive weld process.

17. A hydrodynamic thrust bearing comprising:
an annular plate having a first face and a second face opposite the first face;
a plurality of bearing foils having an arcuate shape, wherein the plurality of bearing foils are joined to the first face of the annular plate; and
a plurality of bumper foils having a corrugated, arcuate shape, wherein the plurality of bumper foils are joined to the second face of the annular plate, wherein the plurality of bumper foils has a repeating corrugation pattern defined by one minor corrugation and one major corrugation.

18. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 17 , wherein the plurality of bearing foils each have a friction-reducing material applied to a face of the bearing foil.

19. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 18 , wherein the plurality of bearing foils are joined to the first face of the annular plate at a single radially-extending end of each bearing foil, and wherein the plurality of bearing foils have a curvature with respect to a radially-extending plane of each bearing foil, the curvature axially displacing each bearing foil at the radially-extending plane.

20. The hydrodynamic thrust bearing of claim 19 and further comprising:
a plurality of spacers integral with the annular plate and disposed such that each of the plurality of spacers is located between one of the plurality of bearing foils and the first face of the annular plate.

Assignees

• Hamilton Sundstrand Corp

Inventors

• Struziak Ronald M
• Lokhandwalla Murtuza
• Mcauliffe Christopher

Classifications

• F16C17/042 Primary

  with flexible leaves to create hydrodynamic wedge, e.g. axial foil bearings · CPC title

• F16C2226/10

  Force connections, e.g. clamping · CPC title

• F16C43/02

  Assembling sliding-contact bearings · CPC title

• F16C2226/30

  Material joints · CPC title

• F16C33/20

  Sliding surface consisting mainly of plastics (F16C33/22 - F16C33/28 take precedence) · CPC title