Sealed ball thrust bearing

Claim 1

A SEALED BALL THRUST BEARING COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, TWO ANNULAR THRUST MEMBER DISPOSED IN MUTUALLY CONFRONTING CONCENTRIC RELATION FOR ROTATION RELATIVE TO EACH OTHER, SAID THRUST MEMBERS DEFINING RESPECTIVELY TWO CIRCULAR BEARING BALL RACES DISPOSED IN CONFRONTING RELATION TO EACH OTHER; AN ANNULAR SERIES OF BEARING BALLS DISPOSED BETWEEN SAID MEMBERS IN THRUST BEARING ENGAGEMENT WITH BOTH OF SAID RACES AND BEING MOVABLE, IN RESPONSE TO RELATIVE ROTATION OF SAID THRUST MEMBERS, IN AN ORBITAL PATH HAVING AN OUTER BOUNDARY; AN ANNULAR BEARING BALL SPACER DISPOSED IN CONCENTRIC RELATION TO SAID THRUST MEMBERS AND INCLUDING AN ANNULAR SERIES OF SPACER ELEMENTS PROJECTING RADIALLY OUTWARD BETWEEN SAID THRUST MEMBERS IN INTERVENING RELATION BETWEEN SUCCESSIVE BALLS OF SAID SERIES OF BALLS TO MAINTAIN THE BALLS IN CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED RELATION TO EACH OTHER, SAID SPACER ELEMENTS HAVING RADIALLY OUTER EXTREMITIES WHICH TERMINATE RADIALLY SHORT OF THE OUTER BOUNDARY OF SAID ORBITAL PATH BY DISTANCES WHICH ARE MAJOR FRACTIONS OF THE RADII OF SAID BALLS, AN OUTER ANNULAR SHELL MEMBER ENCIRCULING SAID SERIES OF BEARING BALLS IN AXIALLY SPANNING RELATION TO THE SPACE BETWEEN SAID RACES, SAID OUTER SHELL MEMBER HAVING TWO CIRCUMFERENTIAL MARGINAL EDGES ONE OF WHICH IS SEALABLY JOINED TO ONE OF SAID THRUST MEMBERS AND THE OTHER OF WHICH IS TURNED RADIALLY INWARD TO FORM AN ANNULAR LIP SLIDABLY OVERLAPPING AND AXIALLY OUTER SURFACE ON THE OTHER THRUST MEMBER AND FORMING A CAPILLARY SEAL THEREWITH, SAID CAPILLARY SEAL EXTENDING RADIALLY INWARD TO A DEGREE SUCH THAT THE INNER PERIPHERY OF THE CAPILLARY SEAL IS LOCATED RADIALLY INWARD FROM THE BALL ENCIRCLING PORTION OF THE OUTER SHELL MEMBER BY A RADIAL DISTANCE EQUAL TO A MAJOR FRACTION OF THE RADIUS OF EACH BALL, SAID OUTER SHELL MEMBER INCLUDING SAID LIP THEREON COACTING WITH SAID THRUST MEMBER TO PREVENT MOVEMENT OF THE THRUST MEMBERS AWAY FROM EACH OTHER, EACH OF SAID THRUST MEMBERS DEFINING A GENERALLY FLAT INNER SURFACE THEREON EXTENDING RADIALLY OUTWARD FROM SAID RACE ON THE THRUST MEMBERS SUBSTANTIALLY TO THE PORTION OF SAID OUTER SHELL MEMBER ENCIRCLING THE BALS, SAID OUTER SHELL MEMBER BEING POSITIONED RADIALLY IN RELATION TO SAID BEARING BALLS SO THAT THE RADIAL SPACING OF THE INDIVIDUAL BALLS FROM THE PORTION OF SAID OUTER SHELL MEMBER ENCIRCLING THE BEARING BALLS BETWEEN SAID THRUST MEMBERS DOES NOT EXCEED FIFTEEN PERCENT OF THE DIAMETER OF EACH BEARING BALL, AN INNER ANNULAR SHELL MEMBER DISPOSED RADIALLY INWARD OF SAID BALLS IN CONCENTRIC RELATION TO SAID THRUST MEMBERS AND IN AXIALLY SPANNING RELATION TO THE SPACE BETWEEN SAID THRUST MEMBERS; SAID INNER SHELL MEMBER HAVING TWO CIRCUMFERENTIAL MARGINAL EDGES SEALED TO SAID RESPECTIVE THRUST MEMBERS, THE SEAL BETWEEN ONE OF SAID THRUST MEMBERS AND SAID INNER SHELL MEMBER BEING FORMED BY A CAPILLARY SEAL PROVIDING FOR FREE ROTATION OF SAID ONE THRUST MEMBERS AND SAID INNER SHELL MEMBER IN RELATION TO EACH OTHER; SAID THRUST MEMBERS AND SAID INNER AND OUTER SHELL MEMBERS AS SEALED TOGETHER DEFINING SEALED INTERNAL VOID SPACE THROUGH WHICH SAID BILLS ORBIT IN ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID RACES, AND GREASE DISPOSED IN SAID VOID SPACE AND HAVING A VOLUME THAT IS EQUAL TO AT LEAST TWENTY PERCENT BUT NOT MORE THAN FIFTY PERCENT OF THE VOLUME OF SAID VOID SPACE.