Vibration Analysis of a Sensor-Integrated Ball Bearing

Abstract

This paper presents an analysis of the vibrational behavior of a deep groove ball bearing with a structurally integrated force sensor. The miniaturized force sensor, accommodated within a slot on the bearing’s outer ring, provides on-line condition monitoring capability to the bearing. Analytical and finite element models were developed to predict the sensor output due to bearing dynamic load and rotational speed variations. Experimental studies were conducted on a ball bearing to validate the analytical and numerical solutions. Good agreement was found between the model-predicted sensor outputs and the experimental results. The findings validated the approach of integrated-sensing for on-line bearing condition monitoring. [S0739-3717(00)00203-8]