Modeling and mechanical characteristics analysis of matched angular contact ball bearings under combined loads

Although bearings have been used in many rotating machineries, the literatures relative to matched bearings are very scarce. The distributions of contact load and contact angle between bearing parts are the key indicators to reflect the operating condition of bearings, which can directly influence the wear rate and fatigue life of bearings. Owing to the complex and compact structure of matched bearings, it is hard to judge and evaluate what happens inside the matched bearings by experiments. To solve this problem, this paper presents a novel method to determine the distributions of contact load and contact angle of matched bearings under complex working conditions. Firstly, to establish the nonlinear relationship between internal deformations of balls and applied loads, a comprehensive model is proposed by using the coordinate transformation method and the Hertz contact theory. Then, the accuracy of the proposed model is validated by comparing the stiffness values with those reported in the existing reference. Finally, a pair of 7206B bearings is used as a case to introduce the use of the proposed model. The influences of installation type, preload, combined loads on the distributions of contact load and contact angle of matched bearings are detailed analyzed and studied.