Abstract
A bearing housing includes a hollow shell with opposite ends having coaxial openings for at least one bearing element at each end thereof. The shell between the openings has, when assembled in position for use, a bottom with a bottom surface, the bottom having an oil outlet and the bottom surface having an oil outlet opening. The cavity for impurities is arranged below the bottom surface of the shell, and the cavity is arranged in flow communication with the oil outlet and the oil outlet opening.
Claims
1. A bearing housing comprising: a hollow shell with opposite ends having coaxial openings for at least one bearing element at each end thereof, the shell between the openings having, when assembled in position for use, a bottom with a bottom surface, the bottom having an oil outlet and the bottom surface having an oil outlet opening; a cavity for impurities arranged below the bottom surface of the shell, the cavity being arranged in flow communication with the oil outlet and the oil outlet opening; and a first valve arranged between a closed cavity for impurities and the outlet in the bottom of the shell.
2. The bearing housing as recited in claim 1, wherein the cavity includes a cleaning access into an internal space thereof.
3. The bearing housing as recited in claim 1, further comprising a second valve, and the closed cavity is between the first valve and the second valve.
4. The bearing housing as recited in claim 3, wherein the second valve is arranged at the bottom of the cavity for impurities.
5. The bearing housing as recited in claim 1, further comprising a discharge pipe in flow communication with the outlet.
6. The bearing housing as recited in claim 5, wherein the discharge pipe forms, at least partially, the cavity for the impurities.
7. (canceled)
8. The bearing housing as recited in claim 1, further comprising a second valve disposed in a discharge pipe at a distance from the first valve, and the cavity for impurities being between the first and the second valve in the discharge pipe.
9. The bearing housing as recited in claim 7, wherein an impurity trap is arranged at an end of the discharge pipe.
10. The bearing housing as recited in claim 9, wherein the impurity trap is a removable cup.
11. The bearing housing as recited in claim 1, wherein the bottom surface is inclined towards the outlet opening.
12. A method of removing impurities from a bearing housing comprising a shell having, when assembled in position for use, a bottom with a bottom surface and an outlet for oil in the bottom, the method comprising: providing the bearing housing with a closed cavity below the bottom surface in flow connection with the bearing housing via the outlet, and with a first valve in flow communication with the outlet for oil, between the closed cavity and the outlet in the bottom of the shell, maintaining the first valve open, enabling impurities to settle in the closed cavity, and d) closing the first valve and discharging impurities from the closed cavity.
13. The method as recited in claim 12, wherein the providing includes providing the first valve and a second valve such that the cavity is formed between the first and second valves, and the closing the first valve includes opening the second valve and discharging the impurities from the cavity.
14. The method as recited in claim 12, further comprising after the discharging the impurities from the cavity, filling the cavity with oil via the second valve, closing the second valve and opening the first valve.
15. The method as recited in claim 12, further comprising arranging a removable impurity trap in connection with the first valve and the discharging the impurities from the cavity comprising removing the impurity trap arranged in connection with the first valve.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0025] The invention will be explained in more detail hereinafter with reference to the drawings.
[0026] FIG. 1 illustrates a side view of a bearing housing in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention,
[0027] FIG. 2 illustrates an isometric view of a bearing housing of FIG. 1,
[0028] FIG. 3 illustrates an enlarged schematical partial cross section of the bottom part of the bearing housing according to an embodiment of the invention, and
[0029] FIG. 4 illustrates an enlarged schematical partial cross section of the bottom part of the bearing housing in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention,
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0030] FIG. 1 depicts a side view of a bearing housing 10 and FIG. 2 depicts an isometric view of the bearing housing 10 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The bearing housing 10 normally has a tubular shape, i.e. it has a hollow shell 12 with circular openings 14 and 16 at its both ends. The cross section of the shell 12 normally has a cylindrical, rectangular or square shape, though, naturally, the cross section of the shell can have any imaginable shape that fits with the use of the shell. The openings 14 and 16 are coaxial so that a shaft can run through the bearing housing 10. The openings 14 and 16 are configured to provide attachment of bearings for the shaft. Normally, there is one bearing or a set of bearings installed at each opening, and the openings can have the same or a different diameter. One or both openings 14 and 16 can be surrounded with flange/s 18 and 20, respectively, so that the bearing housing 10 can be fastened to neighbouring components of the machine. The shell 12 can include, at its bottom part 22, when assembled in position for use, a separate means (or element) 24 or an extension or leg for fastening the bearing housing 10 to a base plate, for example. For instance, if the bearing housing 10 is used for supporting a pump shaft, the bearing housing 10 can have at its one end a flange 18 to which the pump volute is fastened and the shell 12 can have at its bottom 26 a fixed or removable leg 24 extending down to a base plate on which the pump volute is also supported.
[0031] As the actual space between the openings 14 and 16 in the bearing housing 10 as well as the diameter, or, rather, an internal dimension at right angles to the axis, of the shell 12 can be relatively small the shell 12 can, as shown in FIG. 1, include an oil chamber 28 so that some more oil can be disposed in the bearing housing 10. The surface area of the oil chamber 28 increases the cooling surface for the oil, whereby it can be ensured that the oil remains in its desired temperature range in all available operating conditions the bearing housing 10 may experience. The side wall of the shell 12 includes, preferably but not necessarily, a sight glass 30 by which it is easy to check or to inspect that the oil in the bearing housing 10 is at its desired level. The sight glass 30 can be replaced with any known means for determining liquid level in a vessel. The side wall of the shell 12, or the shell 12 in general, includes, in this embodiment at a side of the sight glass 30, h a cup or funnel 32 for adding oil. In other words, when it is detected that the oil level in the bearing housing 10 has decreased oil can be added via the cup or funnel 32 to reach the desired oil level again.
[0032] The bottom 26 of the bearing housing 10 or that of the shell 12, which is also the bottom 26 of the oil chamber 28 of the shell 12, includes an outlet 34 and an outlet opening 341. The bottom of the shell 12 is shown in the embodiments of FIGS. 3 and 4 in more detailed manner describing another optional embodiments of the invention. Applying also the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the inner bottom surface 261 of the bottom 26 of the bearing housing 10 or that of the shell 12 tapers towards the outlet opening 341 such that the impurities can collect in the lowermost part of the bottom 26, i.e. into the outlet opening 341 and sink in the outlet 34. However, now in accordance with embodiments of the present invention the outlet 34 does not include an ordinary plug but a downwardly extending discharge pipe 36 or alike including a first valve 38 and a cavity 42 for impurities behind the first vale 38, when seen from the inside of the housing 10. The first valve is illustrated in a very schematical and exemplary manner in the drawings. The type of the first valve 38 can vary, and is by no means limited to the shown butterfly valve. Advantageously the first valve 38 is a manually operated valve. The discharge pipe 36 and the first valve 38 function such that the impurities not only move to the lowermost part of the bottom 26/261 but sink inside the discharge pipe 36 and settle below the first valve 38, i.e. into a pipe section 361 forming the cavity 42 below the first valve 38. The pipe section 361 forms a cavity below the bottom surface 261, and the outlet opening 341, of the shell 12 for the impurities to collect. Now that the first valve 38 is maintained open, the impurities from the housing 10 falls into the cavity and the pipe section 361 of the discharge pipe 36. The cavity includes a cleaning access thereto, i.e. its internal space inside the cavity for removing the impurities accumulated therein. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 the pipe section 361 is plugged, or otherwise closed, at its end by a plug 40, or alternatively includes a removable bottom. The plug can be functionally referred to as a second valve 40. The first valve 38 is normally maintained open allowing impurities to settle in the cavity, and when needed or desired, the first valve 38 is closed and the impurities are discharged from the cavity 42 by opening the plug 40 at the end of the discharge pipe 36. Now that the first valve 38 is closed all the time needed for proper cleaning the cavity 42 carefully can be taken. As the volume of the cavity is substantially small, only a limited amount of oil is taken out of the bearing housing 10, whereby the oil level descends only a little. The oil level can be returned to its exactly correct level by adding oil via the cup or funnel 32. Oil can also, naturally, be added to the cup/funnel 32 during the bleeding of the impurities such that the oil level does not, in practice, change at all.
[0033] FIG. 3 depicts an enlarged schematical partial cross section of the bottom part 22 of the bearing housing in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. In fact, the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 is such a variation of the above discussed FIGS. 1 and 2 that the discharge pipe 36 includes the first valve 38 and a second valve 40 at a distance from the first valve 40, when assembled in position for use, below the first valve 38 such that a cavity 42 for impurities is formed between the two valves 38 and 40. The second valve 40 is closed and the first valve 38 open in normal running conditions. The above arrangement functions such that the impurities first move along the inclined bottom surface 261 of the oil chamber 28 or the bottom area of the shell towards the outlet opening 34 and then sink into the discharge pipe 36 and settle to the cavity 42 between the first valve 38 and the second valve 40, i.e. well below the bottom surface 261 of the shell. After a certain period of time the first valve 38 is closed and the second valve 40 is opened to bleed the impurities from the discharge pipe 36. Now that the first valve 38 is closed the discharge pipe 36 and the second valve 40 below the first valve 38 can be, if desired, flushed, rinsed or mechanically cleaned, for instance by brushing as there is no risk of further lowering the oil level in the bearing housing. When the impurities are removed, and the discharge pipe 36, possibly, cleaned, the second valve 40 is closed and the first one 38 opened. While opening the first valve 38 oil is added via the cup/funnel (see referenced numeral 32 in FIG. 1) to maintain the desired oil level in the bearing housing.
[0034] The above discussed embodiment can be simplified with a variation where the first valve 38 is coupled directly to the bottom 26 of the oil chamber 28 or shell, and the discharge pipe 36 to the first valve 38. Otherwise both the construction and the function thereof is as discussed above.
[0035] FIG. 4 depicts an enlarged schematical partial cross section of the bottom part 22 of the bearing housing in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention. In practice, the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 is a further development of, and applicable to other embodiments such that a removable impurity trap 44 is attached in connection with, or behind (seen from the inside of the housing 10) the first valve 38, forming at least a lower part of the cavity 40, to the lower end of the discharge pipe 36 when the bearing housing is assembled in position for use. The arrangement functions such that the impurities first move along the inclined bottom surface 261 of the oil chamber 28 towards the outlet opening 341 and then sink in normal running conditions into the discharge pipe 36, or directly to the cavity 42 and settle in the impurity trap 44 below the valve 38. After a certain period of running time the valve 38 is closed and the impurity trap 44 is removed from the end of the discharge pipe 36, or the bottom of the housing 10, for emptying and cleaning. Now that the first valve 38 is closed all the time needed for cleaning the impurity trap 44 carefully can be taken. When the impurities are removed from the impurity trap 44 and the impurity trap 44 cleaned, the impurity trap 44 is fastened back to the lower end of the discharge pipe 36, and the first valve 38 can be opened. While the valve 38 is opened the impurities sank in the discharge pipe 36 will further descend into the impurity trap 44. Thus, when the arrangement comprises a removable trap 44, only one valve 38 is needed for the bearing housing.
[0036] As is shown in FIG. 4 the arrangement can be simplified with a variation where the first valve 38 is coupled directly to the shell, the leg or the bottom of the oil chamber 28 or shell, and the impurity trap 44 to the first valve 38.
[0037] While the invention has been described herein by way of examples in connection with what are, at present, considered to be the most preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but is intended to cover various combinations or modifications of its features, and several other applications included within the scope of the invention, as defined in the appended claims. The details mentioned in connection with any embodiment above can be used in connection with another embodiment when such combination is technically feasible.
