A bearing structure for an X-ray tube is provided that includes a journal bearing shaft with a radially protruding thrust bearing flange encased within a bearing housing or sleeve. The sleeve includes a thrust seal that is engaged with the sleeve in a manner to maintain coaxiality for the rotating liquid metal seal formed in the sleeve about the shaft. The shaft includes a central bore containing a cooling tube that directs coolant within the bore to maximize the heat transfer from the shaft to the coolant, allowing materials with lower thermal conductivities, such as steel, to be used to form the bearing shaft. The thrust flange on the shaft is formed with channel(s) therein that enable the coolant and/or the liquid metal to effect greater heat transfer on the components of the sleeve through the thrust flange, thereby reducing thermal deformation of the bearing components.

A system may include a motor that has a rotor and a stator. The system may include one or more sensors that measure a voltage signal of a winding of the stator. The system may include a processor that executes computer-executable instructions which, when executed, cause the processor to receive, from the one or more sensors, the voltage signal that includes an induced voltage signal associated with the winding of the stator, to determine a time constant associated with the induced voltage signal based on a decay pattern of the induced voltage signal, to determine a temperature of a rotor based on the time constant, and to adjust one or more operations of the motor based on the temperature.

A bearing structure for an X-ray tube is provided that includes a journal bearing shaft with a radially protruding thrust bearing flange encased within a bearing housing or sleeve. The sleeve includes a thrust seal that is engaged with the sleeve in a manner to maintain coaxiality for the rotating liquid metal seal formed in the sleeve about the shaft. The shaft includes a central bore containing a cooling tube that directs coolant within the bore to maximize the heat transfer from the shaft to the coolant, allowing materials with lower thermal conductivities, such as steel, to be used to form the bearing shaft. The thrust flange on the shaft is formed with channel(s) therein that enable the coolant and/or the liquid metal to effect greater heat transfer on the components of the sleeve through the thrust flange, thereby reducing thermal deformation of the bearing components.

An X-ray generating apparatus and an imaging device. The X-ray generating apparatus includes: a casing; a heat-conduction member, the heat-conduction member being arranged to run through the casing, and a through-channel being provided in the interior of the heat-conduction member, the through-channel being configured to circulate a cooling medium; an anode target, the anode target being configured to receive electron bombardment in order to generate X-rays, and the anode target is arranged in the casing and surrounding the heat-conduction member in a rotatable fashion. The imaging device includes a cooling system and an X-ray generating apparatus. The cooling system is in communication with two ends of the heat-conduction member, and the cooling system is configured to convey a cooling medium into the heat-conduction member.

An X-ray tube is provided. The X-ray tube includes a bearing configured to couple to an anode. The bearing includes a stationary member, a rotary member configured to rotate with respect to the stationary member during operation of the X-ray tube, and a support feature configured to minimize bending moment along a surface of the stationary member to reduce deflection of the stationary member relative to the rotary member due to radial loads during operation of the X-ray tube.

An X-ray tube is provided. The X-ray tube includes a bearing configured to couple to an anode. The bearing includes a stationary member, a rotary member configured to rotate with respect to the stationary member during operation of the X-ray tube, and a support feature configured to minimize bending moment along a surface of the stationary member to reduce deflection of the stationary member relative to the rotary member due to radial loads during operation of the X-ray tube.

A liquid metal or spiral groove bearing structure for an x-ray tube and associated process for manufacturing the bearing structure is provided that includes a bearing shaft rotatably disposed in a bearing housing or shell. The shell includes a thrust seal engaged with a sleeve to maintain co-axiality for the rotating liquid metal seal formed in the shell about the shaft. The shaft has a bore for the introduction of a cooling fluid into the bearing assembly in which is disposed a cooling tube. The cooling tube includes turbulence-inducing features to increase the turbulence of the cooling fluid flowing through the cooling tube, consequently enhancing the heat exchange between the cooling fluid and the shaft. This maximizes the heat transfer from the shaft to the oil, allowing materials with lower thermal conductivities, such as non-refractory materials, to be used to form the bearing shaft and shell.

Methods and apparatus for predicting x-ray tube liquid bearing failure are disclosed. An example circuit board device includes a sensor to detect, in a free run mode of an x-ray tube, vibration in an x-ray tube housing. The example device includes a digital signal processor to process vibration information representing vibration detected to generate x-ray tube characterization information. The example device includes a communication interface to relay the x-ray tube characterization information to a cloud infrastructure to process the characterization information to generate a failure prediction based on x-ray tube bearing coast down characteristics extracted from the characterization information. Other example instructions cause a machine to receive x-ray tube characterization information related to bearing vibration in the x-ray tube. The instructions, when executed, cause the machine to process the information based on coast down characteristics extracted from the information to identify a rate of failure and/or a time to failure, etc.

A bearing structure for an X-ray tube is provided that includes a journal bearing shaft with a radially protruding thrust bearing encased within a sleeve. The structure of sleeve is formed with enlarged traps or voids in the sleeve that are disposed adjacent various rotating anti-wetting seals/seal surfaces formed between the sleeve and the shaft. The geometry of the traps is formed to retain liquid metal/lubricating fluid within the gap defined by the bearing assembly and to direct to liquid metal flowing outwardly from the gap defined between the sleeve and the shaft away from the rotating anti-wetting seals and back towards the gap. This geometry allows the centrifugal forces exerted on the liquid metal by the rotation of the bearing structure to move the outflowing liquid metal away from the rotating anti-wetting seals to significantly reduce contact of the liquid metal with the seals.

A structure and method of operation of a journal bearing is disclosed that minimizes contact of the shaft with the sleeve during start up and slow down of the rotation of the shaft relative to the sleeve, or vice versa. The bearing assembly includes a gravitational load reduction mechanism with magnets disposed on the sleeve and on the shaft in alignment with one another. The magnet(s) on the shaft interacts with the magnet(s) disposed on the sleeve to provide a force against the pressure of the shaft towards the sleeve generated by gravity acting on the rotating component. The magnets enable centering of the rotating component within the stationary component during low rotation and non-rotation. This prevents rubbing of the rotating journal bearing component surfaces, e.g., sleeve, against the stationary journal bearing component, e.g., shaft, during assembly, ramp-up, and coast-down when the journal bearing fluid provides minimal or no bearing centering capability.