Tapered roller bearing

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Tapered roller bearings are bearings that can take large axial forces (i.e. they are good thrust bearings) as well as being able to sustain large radial forces.

[edit] Description

The inner and outer ring raceways are segments of cones and the rollers are also made with a taper so that the conical surfaces of the raceways and the roller axes if projected, would all meet at a common point on the main axis of the bearing. The larger the half angles of these cones the larger the axial force that the bearing can sustain.

This conical geometry is used as it means that the tangential speeds of the surfaces of each of the rollers is the same as their raceways along the whole contact patch and no differential scrubbing occurs. This avoids rapid wear and greatly reduces rolling friction.

The rollers are guided by a flange on the inner ring. This stops the rollers from sliding out at high speed due to their momentum.

Tapered roller bearings are separable and have the following components: outer ring, inner ring, and roller assembly (containing the rollers and a cage). The nonseparable inner ring and roller assembly is called the "cone", and the outer ring is called the "cup". Internal clearance is established during mounting by the axial position of the cone relative to the cup

[edit] Applications

In many applications tapered roller bearings are used in back-back pairs so that axial forces can be supported equally in either direction.

Pairs of tapered roller bearings are used in car and vehicle wheel bearings where they must cope simultaneously with large vertical (radial) and horizontal (axial) forces.

[edit] See also

Timken Company, major manufacturer of tapered roller bearings.

SKF, major manufacturer of all types of bearings.