• Sainio, Hannu
• Vaajoensuu, Eero
• Halme, Jari
• Parikka, Risto
• Jantunen, Erkki

Abstract

A measuring method, which takes advantage of the natural frequencies in the measuring chain, can be used for identifying poor lubrication conditions in grease-lubricated rolling bearings, to allow automated lubrication management. The lubrication conditions are determined by movements and vibrations taking place inside the bearing housing. The measurement method can determine the grease starvation in lubricated contacts within a rolling bearing based on high-frequency vibration. As the thickness of lubricant film decreases, more metal-to-metal contact occurs between rolling elements and raceways, exciting vibration at natural frequencies in bearings and adjacent structures. The vibration-based monitoring can explain the situations, where lubricated contacts suffer from grease-starvation, which is extremely difficult to predict at the planning stage of the bearing and lubrication system using conventional lubrication theories. Automatic lubrication can be controlled by diagnostic software, which monitors bearing temperature as well as low- and high-frequency vibrations.

Topics

• impedance spectroscopy