Bearings

KCEP 2112
Design of Machine Elements
Dr. Ahmed Aly Diaa Sarhan
Room L8-14
Phone: 4593
Email: ah_sarhan@um.edu,my

Bearings are used for carrying loads while allowing

relative motion(rotation) with minimum friction

Types of bearings:
Rolling contact or anti-friction bearing
Journal or sleeve bearings(sliding contact
bearing)
Mechanical Engineering Dept.

Bearings are classified under two main

categories:
Plain or slider bearing : -

In which the rotating shaft has a

sliding contact with the bearing
which is held stationary . Due to
large contact area friction between
mating parts is high requiring
greater lubrication.
Rolling or anti-friction bearing : -

Due to less contact area rolling

friction is much lesser than the
sliding friction , hence these
bearings are also known as
antifriction bearing.

Rolling or anti-friction bearing

Bearings
Rolling Contact Bearings load is transferred through
rolling elements such as balls, straight and tapered cylinders
and spherical rollers.

Mechanical Engineering Dept.

Bearings

Journal (sleeve) Bearings load is transferred through

a thin film of lubricant (oil).

Journal (Sleeve) Bearings

Load is transferred through a lubricant in sliding contact

Mechanical Engineering Dept.

Mechanical Engineering Dept.

Design Considerations

Comparison of rolling contact and

journal bearings

Bearings are selected from catalogs, before referring to

catalogs you should know the followings:

Rolling contact bearings have low starting friction and are

used for applications with high starting loads(coefficient of
friction between 0.001 and 0.002)
Journal bearings with hydrodynamic lubrication are suited
for high rotating speeds with impact loads(the higher the
rotating speed, the more effective the hydrodynamic
pumping action
Rolling contact bearings take up more radial space around
the shaft, but journal bearings usually require greater axial
space
Rolling contact bearings produce more noise
Journal bearings are less expensive than ball or roller
bearing for simple applications
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Mechanical Engineering Dept.

Rolling Contact Bearings

Bearing load radial, thrust (axial) or both

Thrust load

Radial load

Radial load

Bearing life and reliability

Bearing speed (rpm)
Space limitation
Accuracy
Mechanical Engineering Dept.

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Types of Ball bearings

1. Ball bearings
Deep groove ball bearing
Angular contact bearings (AC)
Self alignment ball bearing

In general, ball bearings are capable of higher

2. Roller bearings
speeds
and roller bearings can carry greater loads
Cylindrical bearings(straight roller
bearing)
Needle bearings
Tapered bearings
Spherical bearings
3. Thrust bearings
Mechanical Engineering Dept.
Mechanical Engineering Dept.

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Ball Bearings

Ball Bearings

Angular contact bearings (AC)

The centerline of contact between the balls and the raceway is
at an angle to the plane perpendicular to the axis of rotation.

Deep groove (Conrad) bearing

Extra support
in the back

Load capacity is limited by the number of balls

Primarily designed to support radial loads, the thrust

capacity is about 70% of radial load capacity

Direction
of thrust

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Used for high radial and thrust load applications

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Roller Bearings
Roller bearings have higher load capacity than ball bearings, load is
transmitted through line contact instead of point contact.

Self alignment bearing

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Needle bearing

Cylindrical bearing

Mechanical Engineering Dept.

Tapered bearings

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Tapered Bearings

Roller Bearings

Designed to withstand high radial loads, high thrust loads, and

combined loads at moderate to high speeds. They can also withstand
repeated shock loads.

Indirect and Direct mounting

Indirect mounting

Indirect mounting
provides greater rigidity
when pair of bearings is
closely spaced: front
wheel of a car, drums,
sheaves,..

Direct mounting
provides greater rigidity
when pair of bearings is
not closely spaced:
transmission, speed
reducers, rollers,..
Direct mounting

aa = effective bearing spread

Measure of the rigidity
of the bearing mounting

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Car wheel bearings

Roller Bearings
Bearing design uses barrel shaped rollers. Spherical roller bearings
combine very high radial load capacity with modest thrust load capacity
and excellent tolerance to misalignment.

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Roller Thrust Bearings

Spherical Thrust Bearings

Ball thrust bearing

Cylindrical
Thrust
Bearings

Tapered Thrust
Bearings

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Mounting Bearings
Pillow Block

Bearing Arrangement
Terminology

Flange

Common mounting, inner ring

held in position by nuts threaded
onto the shaft.

Alternative method, inner ring is

press fitted onto the shaft.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.

Two-bearing mounting

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Radial Bearing Types

Deep Groove

Full Complement
Cylindrical Roller

Angular
Contact

Self Aligning

Needle Roller

Cylindrical roller bearing

Four-point contact ball bearing
Housing
Shaft
Shaft abutment shoulder
Shaft diameter
Locking plate
Radial shaft seal
Distance ring
Housing bore diameter
Housing bore
Housing cover
Snap ring

Thrust Bearing Types

Cylindrical
Roller

Tapered
Roller

Thrust Ball
Bearing
Single Direction

Cylindrical
Roller

Thrust Ball Bearing

Double Direction

Needle Roller

Angular
Contact

Tapered
Roller

Bearing Selection Space

Limited Radial Space
Choose bearing with low
cross-sectional height
EX. Needle roller and cage
assemblies

Limited Axial Space

Choose bearings that can
handle combined loads
EX. Cylindrical roller, deep
groove, needle roller

Bearing Selection Loads

Axial
Thrust ball bearing and four-point contact ball
Angular contact thrust ball bearings

Bearing Selection Loads

Magnitude
Roller bearings support heavier
loads than similar sized ball
bearings
Full complement roller bearings
support heavier loads than
corresponding caged bearings

Radial
Some cylindrical roller and all
needle roller

Bearing Selection Loads

Combined
Greater the angle of contact, greater ability to
handle axial loads

Bearing Selection Loads

Moment
Eccentric loads resulting in tilting moment
Best: paired single row angular contact bearings or
tapered roller bearings

Bearing Selection Misalignment

Rigid Bearings
Deep groove and cylindrical roller
Cannot accommodate misalignments well

Accommodating Bearings
Self-aligning ball bearings, spherical roller
(radial and thrust)

Bearing Selection Speed

Highest Speeds
Purely Radial Loads
Deep Groove Ball Bearings
Self Aligning Ball Bearings

Combined Loads
Angular Contact

Thrust bearings cannot accommodate as

high speeds as radial

Seals
Purpose
Keep contaminants out, and lubricant in the
bearing cavity

Types
Seals in contact with stationary surfaces (static)
/ sliding surfaces (dynamic)
Non-contact seals
Bellows and membranes

Bearing Arrangement

Methods of Location
Locking Washer
Washer engages keyway in shaft
Tab is bent over into slot on circumference of
nut

Locating and Non-locating

Stiff
Deep groove ball bearing with
cylindrical roller bearing

Self-Aligning
Self-aligning ball bearing with
toroidal roller bearing

Locking Screw
Prevents nut from turning

Selection of Fit
The heavier the load, particularly if it is a shock load, the
greater the interference fit
Elements will heat up differently causing expansion
Tolerances on shaft and housing

http://www.skf.com/group/products/bearings-units-housings/ball-bearings/principles/application-of-bearings/radial-location-ofbearings/selection-of-fit/recommended-fits/index.html

Introducing Pre-Load

Enhance stiffness
Quiet running
Accurate shaft guidance
Compensates for wear and settling
Longer service life

Bearing Load
Dynamic
Load to failure after 1,000,000 revolutions (ISO
281:1990)
Shows metal fatigue (flaking, spalling) on rings or
rolling elements

Static
Rotate at slow speeds (< 10 RPM)
Perform very slow oscillating movements
Stationary under load for certain extended periods

Sliding contact bearing

Service Life Factors

Contamination
Wear
Misalignment
Corrosion
Cage Failure
Lubrication
Seal

Classification of the sliding contact bearing

Journal

bearing

Footstep

Collar

thrust bearing

bearing

 Journal bearing in this the bearing pressure is

exerted at right angles to the axis of the axis of the
shaft. The portion of the shaft lying within the bearing
in known as journal. Shaft are generally made of mild
steel.
Foot step or pivot bearing in this bearing the bearing
pressure is exerted parallel to the shaft whose axis is
vertical. Note that in this case the end of the shaft rests
within the bearing.
Thrust bearing in this bearing supporting pressure is
parallel to the axis of the shaft having end thrust. Thrust
bearing are used in bevel mountings, propeller drives,
turbines, etc. note here the shaft ,unlike foot-strep
bearing passes through and beyond the bearing.
Thrust bearings also known as collar bearing.

Journal bearing
Simple journal or solid bearing
It is simply a block of cast iron with a hole for the
shaft providing running fit. An oil hole is drilled at
the top for lubrication.
The main disadvantage of this type of bearing are
There is no provision for wear and adjustment on account of
wear.
The shaft must be passed into the bearing axially, i.e. endwise.
Limited load on shaft and speed of shaft is low.

Solid bearing
Bush bearing
In this the bush of soft material like brass or
gun metal is provided and the body or main
block is made of cast iron. Bush is hollow
cylindrical piece which is fitted in a housing to
accommodate the mating part. When the bush
gets worn out it can be easily replaced.

Bushed bearing
The outside of the bush is a driving fit (interference fit) in
the hole of the casting where as the inside is a running fit
for the shaft.
The bearing material used may be white metal (Babbit
Tin/Cu/Lead/antimony) , copper alloy (brass, gunmetal) or
aluminum alloy.
Solid bushes are entirely made of bearing material and find
the general application. In lined bush as the bearing
material is applied as a lining to a backing material .
Applications: turbines, large diesel engines etc

Note that the insertion of the shaft in this bearing

Bush and Direct-lined housing

Plummer block or Pedestal

bearing
It is a split type of bearing. This type of bearing is used for higher speeds,
heavy loads and large sizes.
The component of the bearing:

Direct lined housings

In this type of the housing is lined directly by

means of metallurgical bonding.
Low-melting point white metal is used as a
lining on the cast iron housing

Cast iron pedestal or block with a sole

Brass or gun-metal or phosphorus-bronze Brasses, bushes or steps
made in two halves.
Cast iron cap.
Two mild steel bolts and nuts.
Care is taken that the brasses do not move axially nor are
allowed to rotate. For preventing this rotation , usually a snug at the
bottom fitting inside a recess at the bottom of the pedestal is provided.
This bearing facilitates the placements and removal of the of
the shaft from the bearing. Unlike the solid bearing which are to be
inserted end-wise and hence are kept near the ends of the shaft, these
can be placed anywhere. This bearing ensures a perfect adjustment for
wear in the brasses by screwing the cap.

Journal bearing

Prevention of rotation of brasses

The steps are made octagonal on the outside and they
are made to fit inside a corresponding hole.
A snug is cast on the lower brass top which fits a
corresponding hole in the casting. The oil hole is
drilled through the sung.
Snug are provided at the side, and the corresponding
recesses left in the casting
The steps on the lower brass are made rectangular on
the outside and they are made to fit inside a
corresponding hole.

Prevention of rotation of brasses

Footstep or pivot bearing

suitable for supporting a vertical shaft with axial loads.
In a footstep bearing a gun metal bush having a collar on top is
placed inside the C.I. sole. The end of the shaft rests on a gun
metal disc placed at the bottom in the bush. The disc is
prevented from rotation with the help of a pin or sung fitted in
the sole. The disc act as a thrust bearing whereas the bush
fitted in the casting supports the shaft in position. The bush
can take radial loads, if any, on the shaft.
The disadvantage of footstep bearing is that it cannot be
efficiently lubricated and there is unequal wear on the bottom
disc.

Advantages and disadvantages of the plain

bearing
Plain bearing are cheap to produce and have
noiseless operation. They can be easily machined,
occupy small radial space and have vibration
damping properties. Also they can cope with tapped
foreign matter.
Disadvantages are they require large supply of
lubricating oil, they are suitable only for relative low
temperature and speed; and starting resistance is
much greater than running resistance due to slow
build up of lubricant film around the bearing
surface.