A bearing raceway element configured as an inner ring or as an outer ring, or configured to be attachable to an element serving as an inner ring or as an outer ring for the bearing or to an inner ring or an outer ring of the bearing. The raceway element is manufactured from a sheet metal panel and includes at least one first joint edge and at least one second joint edge directed in the circumferential direction that are configured to be connected to each other in order to form an annular raceway element. The at least one first joint edge is at least partially configured as a first alignment element and/or includes the first alignment element. Also a bearing including the raceway element and an associated method.

A method of performing an operation such as a maintenance operation on a vessel assembly, said vessel assembly having a vessel, such as a crystallizing vessel, a rotor, said rotor including an upright, rotatable shaft, said shaft having a top shaft section extending above a top wall of the vessel, to perform maintenance. The top shaft section includes a first member chosen from a male member and a female member for engaging a device. The device has a top end, and a bottom end. The bottom end includes a complementary second member for the first member. According to the method, the device is connected to the top shaft section of the shaft, the rotor is lifted by lifting the shaft at its top end section using the device, following which the operation is performed.

A sliding member includes an overlay layer made of a resin on a side of a sliding surface of a bearing alloy layer. When a valley void volume Vvv (μm.sup.3/μm.sup.2) in the sliding surface of the overlay layer is defined as Vv1, Vv1 is in a range of 0.015≤Vv1≤0.200.

A hydrodynamic bearing in the form of a flex pad bearing includes configurations structured to change a bearing characteristic. One form of the bearing includes a nonlinear back wall that includes a circular arc and a transition, where the back wall extends radially outward of a ligament. The bearing can include an opening for the deposit of a weighted mass, wherein the opening can threadingly receive a threaded weighted mass. In one form a sidewall that includes the back wall segment can have an average outer radius which determines a thickness of the flex pads.

A conical bearing member includes a communication hole communicating an inner peripheral surface and an outer peripheral surface of the conical bearing member, and the inner peripheral surface includes a press-fit region in contact with a shaft and an enlarged diameter region having a diameter greater than a diameter of the press-fit region and including an inner opening part of the communication hole. A tapered part having a diameter increasing toward the enlarged diameter region is provided at an end part of the press-fit region on the enlarged diameter region side.

A hydrodynamic bearing in the form of a flex pad bearing includes configurations structured to change a bearing characteristic. One form of the bearing includes a nonlinear back wall that includes a circular arc and a transition, where the back wall extends radially outward of a ligament. The bearing can include an opening for the deposit of a weighted mass, wherein the opening can threadingly receive a threaded weighted mass. In one form a sidewall that includes the back wall segment can have an average outer radius which determines a thickness of the flex pads.

A sliding member includes an overlay layer made of a resin on a side of a sliding surface of a bearing alloy layer. When a valley void volume Vvv (μm.sup.3/μm.sup.2) in the sliding surface of the overlay layer is defined as Vv1, Vv1 is in a range of 0.015≤Vv1≤0.200.

A hydrodynamic bearing in the form of a flex pad bearing includes configurations structured to change a bearing characteristic. One form of the bearing includes a nonlinear back wall that includes a circular arc and a transition, where the back wall extends radially outward of a ligament. The bearing can include an opening for the deposit of a weighted mass, wherein the opening can threadingly receive a threaded weighted mass. In one form a sidewall that includes the back wall segment can have an average outer radius which determines a thickness of the flex pads.

A bearing raceway element configured as an inner ring or as an outer ring, or configured to be attachable to an element serving as an inner ring or as an outer ring for the bearing or to an inner ring or an outer ring of the bearing. The raceway element is manufactured from a sheet metal panel and includes at least one first joint edge and at least one second joint edge directed in the circumferential direction that are configured to be connected to each other in order to form an annular raceway element. The at least one first joint edge is at least partially configured as a first alignment element and/or includes the first alignment element. Also a bearing including the raceway element and an associated method.

A method includes separating a strip of sheet metal from a sheet metal body by a combination of punching and laser cutting, the strip having a first joint edge having at least one first alignment element and a second joint edge having at least one second alignment element complementary to the at least one first alignment element, folding a longitudinal edge portion of the strip to form a flange, bending the strip into a ring and materially bonding the first joint edge to the second joint edge, installing the ring on a radially inner circumferential surface or a radially outer circumferential surface and mounting a plurality of rolling-elements on the ring. The first joint edge and the second joint edge are formed by the punching, and side edges connecting the first joint edge and the second joint edge are formed by the laser cutting.