Influence of Flexibly Mounted Rolling Element Bearings on Rotor Response: Part I—Linear Analysis

Abstract

The paper evaluates the influence of damped, linear flexibly mounted rolling-element bearings on dynamic rotor unbalance response. The system analyzed is treated as a general four degree of freedom unbalanced rotor mounted on damped flexible supports and includes rotor gyroscopic effects. The rotor equations of motion are solved for synchronous precession over a wide range of speeds for various support conditions. Rotor performance curves on bearing amplitude, forces transmitted, phase angles as a function of speed for various values of support damping are computer plotted to illustrate rotor and bearing performance over a wide range of speed and operating parameters. Results indicate that forces transmitted to the bearings by the rotor synchronous unbalance response can be dramatically reduced by proper design of the bearing support characteristics.