Improvements in Ball Bearings.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 16th Oct., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 25th Nov., 1891-Accepted, 2nd Jan., 1892
IRUVIDIONAL DI MUITIVATION.
[Communicated from abroad by HENRY HOWARD, of Providence, Rhode Island,
United States of America.]
Improvements in Ball Bearings.
1, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent
Agents, 45 Southampton Buildings in the County of Middlesex, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to the construction and combination of devices connected
with the use of balls in bearings for the purpose of lessening the friction and
for the greater convenience of handling, both for transportation and in the process
of applying them to their several uses, avoiding the serious difficulty found in
keeping the several parts together while handling them, and getting them in position
in the bearing.
"
The case for holding the balls consists of a series of rings placed at a proper
distance apart to receive a set of the balls between every two rings. The said
rings are made concave on their faces or planes square to their axes on both sides,
with the exception of the outer faces of the end ones, which may be made flat, so
that when two of the round or hollowed sides are placed together a "groove," as
it may be called, is formed, the outer projecting edges of which keep the balls
from coming out, and the inner edges in like manner keep the balls from falling
in, though at the same time the diameter of the balls being greater than the radial
thickness of the rings, they will project beyond the outer and inner surfaces of the
rings and bear on the surfaces of the bearing and journals.
I usc
For the purpose of holding the rings together for convenience in handling and
applying in use, as before mentioned, and of forming an independent case,
one or more rods passing through small holes in the rings and made secure by
screwing into the end rings, or sleeves made of short pieces of tube or the like
may be put on the rods between the rings to hold them apart, being made of just
the right length to hold the rings free of the sides of the balls, so that they can
turn freely.
The rings and sleeves, if the latter are used, can all be put on the rods in regular
order and the ends of the rods screwed part way into the end rings. Then by
pushing the rings all !!! toward one end, the space between the end ring or washer
and the second one will be open sufficiently to admit the balls, and when that space
is filled, the second ring can be pushed down on the balls and the third space can
be filled, and so on with all the rings until all the spaces are filled. The screw-
rods are then screwed up tightly, and the case with its balls can be safely handled
and transported. The object is to form a case with the balls that can be easily
handled and put on the market as an article of manufacture to be disposed of to
those who may wish to apply them to bearings on machines they are building or
have already in operation.
Various modifications of my invention may be adopted for instance :-
A series of radial holes to hold the balls are made through the sides of their
containing tase a little larger than the diameter of the balls, so that they may have
room to move freely in them, and they may be arranged in any order with regard
to each other, or vary in number as may be desired. When the case and balls are
intended for transportation the holes are partially closed at their inner and outer
ends so that the balls will not fall out of them when the case is held separate from
the axle or shaft and the bearing. The inner ends of the holes are preferably made
partially closed by boring them with a drill having a round or bevelled end a little

page_text: out.
Several
larger than the diameter of the balls and not running the drill clear through to the
full size, so as to leave projecting edges that partly close the holes, so that the
balls will not fall out when the axle or shaft is taken out of the case.
means of partly closing the outer ends of the holes may be adopted; the metal
around the hole in which the ball is confined may be swaged in so as to project
over and make a ridge round the edge of the said hole the aperture through which
is smaller than the diameter of the balls and consequently will not let them drop
Another method of keeping them in is by pressing in certain rings made just
large enough to fit tightly in the holes, and then swaging the metal outside over
slightly to hold the rings in place, the aperture in the rings being too small to
allow the balls to come out. The ends of the holes may be partly closed in other
ways well known to those skilled in the art of working metal, but however the
closing may be done, it is essential that the balls should be allowed to project
somewhat beyond the case, both on its inside and outside, and have perfect freedom
to turn in their places. It is obvious that the tubes may be divided lengthways
for convenience in putting them on shafts with collars.
By this method of holding the balls in a case, they are entirely relieved when in
action, (that is, when sustaining the pressure of the axle) from all contact and
pressure of the other balls and the resultant friction. And the disadvantage is
also avoided that is met with in holding them separate by means of rods extending
lengthways of the case; which is that when there is a rod, there will be a space
for the whole length of the case without any balls; but in this case or shell they
may be arranged so as to have balls always in position to take the whole pressure.
Another and somewhat similar form of the case in which the balls are kept in
the case when it is handled separate from the bearing is constructed as follows:-
The case is made in a hollow cylindrical form, having recesses or slots made
through its sides, extending nearly its whole length, and dividing it up into bars of
equal or varying lengths, as will hereafter be explained.
The bars have their sides made concave, to form circular slots to hold the balls
which play loosely in them. The edges of the concave sides project over both at
the outer and the inner surfaces of the bars, to prevent the balls from falling out
or in toward the centre, when the case is off the bearing. The main portion of the
case, may be cast in bronze or other metal, by moulding it upright and drawing it
endways from the mould or it may be made of a piece of tubing and the parts
between the bars cut out by means of a drill or milling tool, or it may be made by
casting the end collars separate from the bars. In this last mentioned method of
construction, the bars are preferably rolled or drawn to the proper shape in section
with concave sides and inner surface, and having an outer surface, corresponding
with the inside circle of the case. They are then cut off to the proper length, and
rabbeted leaving a portion to be fitted into notches in the end collars. In putting
the cases made in this way together the ends of the bars are first placed in the
notches in one end collar, and made fast by soldering, pinning or other way if
preferred, and then the slots between the bars are filled with the balls and the
other end collar placed between the ends of the bars and secured there in like
manner as with the first end collar.
In some instances, as in shafts having shoulders at each end of the bearing, or
with collars shrunk on it is not convenient, to put the case as a whole on the
bearing. To provide for this, the end collars may be cast in halves, by dividing
across their centres. In this case, the division should be made through the centre
of a bar, leaving one half of it on cach part, to retain the balls in place. These
halves may be made identical in shape and size, and the same form or pattern
answer for both parts of a bearing. Other divisions of the case than halves
may be made if necessary such as in thirds. Each successive row of balls is
started from the end a little further than the preceding row, in order to prevent
grooving. This is accomplished by varying the thickness of the end collars, at
the ends of the slots or by putting in blocks of different thicknesses at those
places, if preferred. As it is much easier to make the bars straight, the incline to

page_text: the centre line of the bearing may be given to them, by twisting the case with
sufficient force to set it as desired, before the balls are put in the slots.
Dated this 16th day of October 1891.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Ball Bearings.
I, HENRY HARRIS LAKE, of the firm of Haseltine, Lake & Co., Patent
Agents, 45 Southampton Buildings in the County of Middlesex, do hereby
declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement :-
My invention relates to the construction and combination of devices connected
with the use of balls in bearings for the purpose of lessening the friction and for
the greater convenience of handling, both for transportation and in the process of
applying them to their several uses avoiding the serious difficulty found in keeping
the several parts together while handling them, and getting them in position in
the bearing.
In the accompanying drawings,
Figure 1 is a front elevation of a case of balls confined and ready for use, with
a part of the bearing and journal, the bearing being in section.
Figure 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of the same through the centre of the
rings or washers without the shaft.
Figure 3 is a side elevation of one of the rings.
Figure 4 is an edge view of the ring of Figure 3.
Figure 5 is a vertical section through the centre of the ring of Figure 4.
Figure 6 is a view of one of the rods for holding the rings and balls in place.
Figure 7 is a perspective view of the sleeve or bolster used to keep the rings
apart.
Figure 8 is a vertical cross-section of the case and bearing of Figure 1 on dotted
line a.
Figure 8 is a side elevation of another form of the case or shell for holding
the balls with a portion of an axle or shaft in it.
Figure 9 is a cross-section of the case shown in Figure 8 taken on line y y,
the balls and axle or shaft being shown in elevation.
Figure 10, is a longitudinal section of the case, taken on line Y Y Figure 8ª
with the balls in elevation.
Figures 11 and 12 are enlarged cross-sections of the portions of the case showing
different ways of keeping the balls in.
Figure 13 is a side elevation of a modification of the case for holding the balls,
embracing the same principle in construction to retain the balls in the case when
free from the bearing.
Figure 14, represents an edge view of the removable end collar.
Figure 15 is a vertical cross-section of the form of case seen in Figure 13,
taken on line x <.
Figure 16 shows the bar portion of the case with one end collar.
Figure 17, is a view of the open end of case, as shown in Figure 16.
Figure 18 represents the inner side of the collar of Figure 14.
Figure 19 shows the case made in two parts, the division being made lengthways
through the middle of the case.
Figure 19.
Figure 20 is a cross-section of the two halves of the case on line ==
Figure 21 is an outside view of the ends of the divided case shown in Figure 19,

page_text: Figure 22 is a side view of one of the bars of the case (sec Figure 19).
ני
The case represented in Figure 1 for holding the balls consists of a series of
rings a placed at a proper distance apart to receive a set of the balls d between
every two rings. The said rings a are made concave on their faces or planes
square to their axes on both sides, with the exception of the outer faces of the end
ones, which may be made flat, so that when two of the rounded or hollowed sides
are placed together (see Figure 2) a "groove as it may be called, is formed, the
outer projecting edges of which keep the balls from coming out, and the inner
edges in like manner keep the balls from falling in, though at the same time the
diameter of the balls being greater than the radial thickness of the rings, they will
project beyond the outer and inner surfaces of the rings and bear on the surfaces of
the bearing g and journals.
For the purpose of holding the rings together for convenience in handling and
applying in use, as before mentioned and of forming an independent case, I use one
or more rods see Figure 6 passing through small holes in the rings and made
secure by screwing into the end rings or sleeves (see Figure 7) made of short
pieces of tube or the like, which may be put on the rods between the rings to hold
them apart, being made of just the right length to hold the rings free of the sides
of the balls, so that they can turn freely.
The rings and sleeves, if the latter are used, can all be put on the rods in regular
order and the ends of the rods screwed part way into the end rings. Then by
pushing the rings all up toward one end, the space between the end ring or washer
and the second one, will be opened sufficiently to admit the balls, and when that
space is filled, the second ring can be pushed down on the balls, and the third
space can be filled, and so on with all the rings until all the spaces are filled. The
screw-rods are then screwed up tightly and the case with its balls can be safely
handled and transported. The object is to form a case with the balls that can be
easily handled and put on the market as an article of manufacture to be disposed
of to those who may wish to apply them to bearings on machines they are building
or have already in operation.
Various modifications of my invention may be adapted; for instance:
Figures 8 to 12 show a modification of the form of the case for holding the
balls.
A series of radial holes e¹ to hold the balls a' are made through the sides
of their containing case A', a little larger than the diameter of the balls,
so that they may have room to move freely in them, and they may be arranged
in any order with regard to each other, or vary in number as may be
desired. When the case and balls are intended for transportation the holes e
are partially closed at their inner and outer ends so that the balls will not fall
out of them when the case is held separate from the axle or shaft and the
bearing. The inner ends of the holes are preferably made partially closed by
boring them with a drill having a round or bevelled end a little larger than the
diameter of the balls and not running the drill clear through to the full size, so
as to leave projecting edges f¹ f¹ (sec Figures 11 and 12) that partly close the
holes, so that the balls a will not fall out when the axle or shaft is taken out of
the case.
In Figures 11 and 12 several means of partly closing the outer ends of
the holes are shown. In Figure 11 the metal around the hole in which the ball is
confined may be swaged-in-so as to project over and make a ridge round the edge
of the said hole the aperture through which is smaller than the diameter of the
balls and consequently will not let them drop out. In Figure 12 is shown another
method of keeping them in by pressing in certain rings c¹ e' made just large enough
to fit tightly in the holes, and then swaging the metal outside over slightly to hold
the rings in place, the aperture in the rings being too small to allow the balls to
The ends of the holes may be partly closed in other ways well known
to those skilled in the art of working metal, but however the closing may be done,
it is essential that the balls should be allowed to project somewhat beyond the
come out.

page_text: case, both on its inside and outside, and have perfect freedom to turn in their
places. It is obvious that the tubes may be divided lengthways for convenience in
putting them on shafts with collars.
By this method of holding the balls in a case, they are entirely relieved when
in action, (that is, when sustaining the pressure of the axle) from all contact and
pressure of the other balls and the resultant friction. And the disadvantage is
also avoided that is met with in holding them separate by means of rods extending
lengthways of the case; which is, that when there is a rod, there will be a space
for the whole length of the case without any balls; but in this case or shell, they
may be arranged so as to have balls always in position to take the whole pressure.
In Figures 13 to 22 the details of construction of another and somewhat similar
form of the case in which the balls are kept in the case when it is handled
separate from the bearing is constructed as follows:-
The case Jis made in a hollow cylindrical form, having recesses or slots
made through its sides, extending nearly its whole length, and dividing it up into
bars a², of equal or varying lengths, as will hereafter be explained.
The bars a have their sides made concave as seen in Figure 15; to form circular
slots to hold the balls 2, which play loosely in them. The edges of the concave
sides project over, both at the outer and the inner surfaces of the bars, to prevent
the balls from falling out or in toward the centre, when the case is off the bearing.
The main portion of the case, as seen in Figure 16, may be cast in bronze or
other metal, by moulding it upright and drawing it end ways from the mould, or
it may be made of a piece of tubing and the parts between the bars a' cut out
by means of a drill or milling tool, or it may be made by casting the end collars J*,
separate from the bars a² as shown in Figures 18 to 22. In this last mentioned
method of construction, the bars are preferably rolled or drawn to the proper
shape in section with concave sides and inner surface, and having an outer surface,
corresponding with the inside circle of the case. They are then cut off to the
proper length, and rabbeted at ee leaving a portion ees to be fitted into
notches in the end collars. In putting the cases made in this way together,
the ends of the bars a² are first placed in the notches in one end collar, and made
fast by soldering, pinning, or other way if preferred, and then the slots between the
bars are filled with the balls d2 and the other end collar placed between the ends of
the bars and secured there in like manner as with the first end collar.
In some instances, as in shafts having shoulders at each end of the bearing, or
with collars shrunk on, it is not convenient to put the case as a whole, on the
bearing. To provide for this, the end collars J³ may be cast in halves, by dividing
across their centres, as shown in Figure 20. In this case, the division should be
made through the centre of a bar, leaving one half of it on each part, to retain the
balls in place. These halves may be made identical in shape and size and the same
form or pattern answer for both parts of a bearing. Other divisions of the case
than halves may be made if necessary such as in thirds &c. Each successive
row of balls is started from the end a little further than the preceding row in
order to prevent grooving. This is accomplished by varying the thickness of the
end collars, at the ends of the slots, as seen in Figures 13 and 14, or by putting
in blocks of different thicknesses at those places, if preferred. As it is much
easier to make the bars a straight, the incline to the centre line of the bearing
may be given to them, by twisting the case with sufficient force to set it as
desired, before the balls are put in the slots.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed as communicated to me
by my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
First. As a new article of manufacture, a case or cage with balls for use in
a ball bearing constructed substantially as described; that is, of a series of
independent concave-faced rings placed at right angles to the centre line of the
aperture through them to be occupied by the axle or journal when in use, with

page_text: rows of balls between the rings and rods and spacing sleeves for holding said rings
in position, substantially as herein set forth.
Second. A roller-bearing cage comprising a series of separate rings having
concavities in their faces, rods passing through each of said rings, and balls
arranged to project beyond the walls of the rings, substantially as set forth.
Third. The combination of two or more concave-faced rings a placed at right
angles to the centre line of the bearings, rods spacing sleeves n, and balls d,
substantially as described.
Fourth. In a ball bearing, a case or shell with perforations for holding the balls
separate from each other and guiding them in any preferred way, said perforations
being partially closed at their inner and outer ends to retain the balls thereon,
substantially as set forth.
Fifth. In a ball bearing, a case for holding the balls, consisting of a tube having.
radial holes made in it for holding the balls, said holes being contracted or made
smaller at their inner and outer ends than the diameter of the balls, substantially
as described.
Sixth. A new article of manufacture, a case for holding balls in a ball bearing,
constructed substantially as described; that is, a tube having radial holes in it
partly closed at their inner and outer ends, provided with balls held in said holes as
herein set forth.
Seventh. A case for holding balls in a ball bearing, comprising a series of bars
having concave sides, extending lengthwise of the bearing at a slight angle to the
centre line or axis thereof, to bring the balls in each row successively under the
centre of the bearing instead of simultaneously.
Eighth. A case for holding balls in a ball bearing, comprising a series of bars
having concave sides extending lengthwise of the bearing at a slight angle to the
centre line or axis thereof, to bring the balls in each row successively under the
centre of the bearing, instead of simultaneously, and held together at their end by
end walls or supports of variable thickness, to cause the balls to follow on different
paths.
Ninth. A case for holding balls in a ball bearing, comprising a series of bars,
extending lengthwise of the bearing at a slight angle to the centre line or axis
thereof, held together by end walls or case A', at their ends, said case being
divided lengthwise into two or more parts to admit of its being applied to a bearing
where it cannot conveniently be slipped over the end, substantially as set forth.
Dated this 25th day of November 1891.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.