PRELOAD TESTING SYSTEM FOR ANGULAR CONTACT BALL BEARINGS USING SHAPE MEMORY ALLOY MODULES

Andrei ZAMĂ, Viorel PALEU, Gelu IANUȘ

Abstract


The preloading of bearings, particularly in industrial machinery, is critical for ensuring reliable operation and preventing premature failure. While established methods exist for maintaining proper preload, this paper presents a variation of constant pressure preload systems. This approach is suitable for situations where traditional methods are costly to implement initially or incur high operational expenses during maintenance. The proposed solution involves employing disc-shaped springs made from shape memory alloys (SMAs), tailored to specific applications. SMAs regain their original shape when subjected to specific stimuli, often involving temperature changes. The stiffness of the disc springs progressively increases with rising temperatures, providing additional preload. In this study, a preload is achieved for a pair of angular contact ball bearings in a test setup, followed by the integration of SMA disc springs into the system. As the system operates and reaches a certain temperature, the preload increases, ensuring effective operation at the desired speed. A dedicated apparatus was developed to observe the behavior of SMA disc springs, determining the friction torque and bearing preloads required for this alternative constant pressure preload method.

References


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