Control of Clearance Effects in Mechanisms

Abstract

The dynamic effects of bearing clearances in mechanisms can cause increased bearing loadings and noise. These undesirable effects occur when contact is remade in a bearing after relative motion of the two parts of the bearing within the clearance space. Thus if loss of contact could be prevented, the impulsive loadings which would normally occur would be eliminated. A method for preventing contact loss in a bearing by the use of constant magnitude spring forces, arranged so that the maximum bearing load is not increased, is described. Experimental results from a four bar linkage are presented. A method for calculating the magnitude of the required spring force using a standard no-clearance analysis is described.