Roller bearing lubrication

Claim 2

A tapered roller bearing assembly including a cup, a cone having a tapered raceway and a thrust rib at the large diameter end of the tapered raceway, and a plurality of rollers arranged between the cup and the cone, in which the cone is provided with one or more lubricating holes which provide communication between the large diameter end face of the cone and the intersection of the cone raceway and the thrust rib, and in which the large diameter end face of the cone is provided with a gutter defining an annular space opening radially inwards, the lip of the gutter extending radially inwardly to a diameter which is less than the diameter of a circle circumscribing the openings of the lubricating holes in the large diameter end face of the cone, and means is provided for directing lubricant to the annular space defined by the gutter so that the lubricant flows into the openings of the holes in the large diameter end face of the cone.

Claim 3

A bearing assembly as claimed in claim 1 in which lubricant is supplied directly to the gutter by means of a pipe.

Claim 4

A bearing assembly as claimed in claim 1 in which lubricant is supplied indirectly to the gutter by means of centrifugal force.

Claim 5

A bearing assembly as claimed in claim 3 in which the cone is mounted on a shaft having a conical portion abutting the large diameter end face of the cone and lubricant is delivered onto the conical portion up which it is moved by centrifugal action into the gutter.

Claim 6

A bearing assembly as claimed in claim 4 in which lubricant is delivered directly onto the conical portion through a pipe. 6 A bearing assembly as claimed in claim 4 in which the large diameter end of the cup is provided with a barrier having at least one finger directed radially inwardly towards the conical portion whereby lubricant passing through the bearing is directed onto the said conical portion.

Claim 7

A bearing assembly as claimed in claim 1 in which the gutter is constituted by an L-shaped annular ring secured on the thrust rib of the cone.

Claim 8

A bearing assembly as claimed in claim 1 in which the gutter is constituted by an annular undercut portion formed in an axial extension of the thrust rib of the cone.

Claim 9

A bearing assembly as claimed in claim 1 in which the lubricating holes in the cone are inclined radially outwardly from their openings in the large diameter end face of the cone whereby lubricant is carried through the holes by centrifugal force.

Claim 10

A bearing assembly as claimed in claim 9 in which the holes open into a radially outwardly inclined groove formed in the large diameter end face of the cone.

Claim 11

A tapered roller bearing comprising inner and outer races having opposed raceways, and rollers positioned between the races and engaged with the raceways thereof, the inner race having a rib located at the end of the raceway thereon and provided with an abutment face against which the ends of the rollers abut, the inner race also having an inwArdly opening gutter at one end thereof with the inwardly opening portion of the gutter being located closer to the axis of rotation for the bearing than the abutment face, the inner race further having at least one passageway leading from the gutter to the vicinity of the abutment face on the rib so that lubricating oil which is introduced into the gutter will flow over the abutment face and prevent excessive friction from developing between that face and the ends of the rollers.

Claim 12

A tapered roller bearing comprising inner and outer races having opposed raceways, and rollers positioned between the races and engaged with the raceways thereof, the inner race having a rib located at the end of the raceway thereon and provided with an abutment face against which the ends of the rollers abut, the inner race also having an inwArdly opening gutter at one end thereof with the inwardly opening portion of the gutter being located closer to the axis of rotation for the bearing than the abutment face, the inner race further having at least one passageway leading from the gutter to the vicinity of the abutment face on the rib so that lubricating oil which is introduced into the gutter will flow over the abutment face and prevent excessive friction from developing between that face and the ends of the rollers.

Claim 13

A bearing according to claim 11 wherein the gutter is on the rib.

Claim 14

A bearing according to claim 11 wherein the raceways and rollers are tapered and the rib is at the large diameter end of the tapered raceway for the inner race.

Claim 15

A bearing according to claim 12 wherein the gutter extends outwardly beyond the ends of the holes which open into it to enable a supply of lubricant to accumulate in the gutter so that the addition of anymore lubricant to the accumulated supply will cause the lubricant to overflow into the holes, whereby the lubricant will be evenly distributed to the holes.

Claim 16

A tapered roller bearing assembly for use with a rotatable shaft, said bearing assembly comprising: a cup having an inwardly presented raceway; tapered rollers having their tapered side faces against the cup raceway; a cone positioned within the cup and having an outwardly presented tapered raceway against which side faces of the tapered rollers are also positioned, the cone also having a bore through which the rotatable shaft extends such that the cone rotates with the shaft, the cone further having a thrust rib provided on one end with an end face through which thrust loading is transmitted from the shaft and on the other end with an abutment face located adjacent the large diameter end of the cone raceway with the large diameter ends of the tapered rollers being against the abutment face, the thrust rib having holes extending generally axially through it from the end face to the abutment face with the ends of the holes at the end face being located outwardly from the cone bore, means for supplying oil to the ends of the holes located at the end face of the thrust rib, said means being located outwardly from the cone bore in its entirety.

Claim 17

A tapered roller bearing assembly for use with a rotatable shaft, said bearing assembly comprising: a cup having an inwardly presented raceway; tapered rollers having their tapered side faces against the cup raceway; a cone positioned within the cup and having an outwardly presented tapered raceway against which side faces of the tapered rollers are also positioned, the cone also having a bore through which the rotatable shaft extends such that the cone rotates with the shaft, the cone further having a thrust rib provided on one end with an end face through which thrust loading is transmitted from the shaft and on the other end with an abutment face located adjacent the large diameter end of the cone raceway with the large diameter ends of the tapered rollers being against the abutment face, the thrust rib having holes extending generally axially through it from the end face to the abutment face with the ends of the holes at the end face being located outwardly from the cone bore, means for supplying oil to the ends of the holes located at the end face of the thrust rib, said means being located outwardly from the cone bore in its entirety.

Claim 18

A tapered roller bearing according to claim 15 wherein the means for supplying oil to the holes includes an oil supply pipe directed generally toward small diameter ends of the rollers whereby the rotating rollers will pump the oil discharged therefrom through the space between the cup and cone and will discharge it from that space at the large diameter ends of the rollers, and a deflecting surface opposite the large diameter ends of the rollers for directing the oil discharged from between the cup and cone inwardly toward the ends of the holes at the end face of the thrust rib.

Claim 19

A tapered roller bearing assembly for use with a shaft which rotates about its axis at high speed through at least 360*, said bearing comprising: a cup having an inwardly presented raceway; a cone located within the cup and configured to receive a shaft such that the cone rotates with the shaft, the cone having an outwardly presented tapered raceway located opposite the cup raceway and a thrust rib at the large diameter end of the cone raceway, the cone being provided with oil holes having inlet and discharge ends with the discharge ends being at the surface of the thrust rib located adjacent to the cone raceway so that oil issuing therefrom will lubricate that surface; tapered rollers between the cup and the cone and having their tapered side faces along the raceways and their large diameter end faces against said surface of the thrust rib; means defining a cavity which rotates with and at the same speed as the cone and into which the inlet ends of the oil holes open, the cavity at least in part being closer to the axis of rotation than the discharge ends of the oil holes, the cavity further extending radially outwardly beyond the inlet ends of the oil holes tO provide a space in which oil will accumulate due to centrifugal force on the oil, the surfaces defining said space being imperforate, whereby the addition of more oil to the accumulated supply in said space will cause the oil to overflow into the oil holes; and means for introducing oil into the cavity while the cone rotates with the shaft.

Claim 20

A tapered roller bearing assembly for use with a shaft which rotates about its axis at high speed through at least 360*, said bearing comprising: a cup having an inwardly presented raceway; a cone located within the cup and configured to receive a shaft such that the cone rotates with the shaft, the cone having an outwardly presented tapered raceway located opposite the cup raceway and a thrust rib at the large diameter end of the cone raceway, the cone being provided with oil holes having inlet and discharge ends with the discharge ends being at the surface of the thrust rib located adjacent to the cone raceway so that oil issuing therefrom will lubricate that surface; tapered rollers between the cup and the cone and having their tapered side faces along the raceways and their large diameter end faces against said surface of the thrust rib; means defining a cavity which rotates with and at the same speed as the cone and into which the inlet ends of the oil holes open, the cavity at least in part being closer to the axis of rotation than the discharge ends of the oil holes, the cavity further extending radially outwardly beyond the inlet ends of the oil holes tO provide a space in which oil will accumulate due to centrifugal force on the oil, the surfaces defining said space being imperforate, whereby the addition of more oil to the accumulated supply in said space will cause the oil to overflow into the oil holes; and means for introducing oil into the cavity while the cone rotates with the shaft.