Improvements in Roller Bearings.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 9th May, 1895--Accepted, 9th May, 1896
Improvements in Roller Bearings.
I, WILLIAM HUGH WOODCOCK, of 25 Auckland Hill, West Norwood, in the
County of Surrey, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly descubed and
ascertained in and by the following statement —
This invention has reference to improvements in roller bearings, and has for its
object to dimmish triction between revolving journals or shafts and their bearings,
as also between wheels or pulleys revolving on fixed journals or shafts. For this
purpose I place between the journal, or shaft, (which I prefer to incase 11
hardened sleeve) and its bearing, a series of rollers retained in their proper relativo
circumferential positions by a cradle formed of one piece of metal so devised that
the rollers can be inserted in the cradle from the outside before the cradle is placed
in the casing, but after being so placed, the tollers, and cradle, are retained in their
proper positions, or as an alternative the cradle can be placed in the casing and
the rollers inserted from the inside, before the casing is placed upon the Journal or
shaft and after being so placed, the rollers and cradle are retuned in their proper
positions
The bearing ends of the rollers are by preference made coueal (they may
however he made parallel, on partly conical and partly parallel) and ran in bearings
which fit into the cradle; by this arrangement the bearings for the roller ends can
be hardened.
Lateral movement of the rollers, and cradle, upon the journal or shaft, is limited
by two projecting circulat ribs, which may be formed upon the sleeve, or upon the
Journal or shatt (where no sleeve is used), or upon the casing; when applied to the
casing the ribs are preferably formed of separate hardened steel rings.
In order to enable my improvements to be the more easily understool, I will
now describe them with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which similar
letters refer to sumilar puits throughout the different figures.
Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6, represent an application of my improvements to #
railway axle box. The left half of Figure 1 being an end elevation, and the right
a cross section on line X-Y, Figure 2
Figure 2 being a part sectional elevation,
Figure 3 being a half plan on top of box,
Figure 4 being a plan of cradle formed of one piece of metal with the rollers,
and then bearing pieces in position ready for insertion into the casing,
Figure 5 being an end elevation of tolle end bearing, and Figure 6 a cross,
Bection of Bame on line V-W Figure 5
Referring to the drawings, a is the jounal at the end of the axle of a railway
vehicle, 18 the sleeve of haidened steel, wrought iron case hardene 1, chilled cast
iron, or other suitable material which is shrunk on or otherwise fastenal to the
axle journal a, is the axle box preferably made of cast steel, d is the front cover
of axle box, e is a disc of gun metal, phospher bronze, or other suitable material,
to take the end pressure of the axle, are the rollers placed between the
Journal sleeve aud the casing, is the metal cradle, and hh are the bearing
pieces for the roller ends (Fig. 2); these beating pieces being fitted into the
ends g and between the spokes g' of the cradle g. The roller end bearing, hh are
provided with lips or projections 4 which fit over the ends y' of the cradle g and
by this means the cradle g is maintained in its concentric position with the journal,

page_text: the lateral movement of the cradle g with reference to the rollers ƒ being prevented
by the body of the bearing pieces h h. are projections on the sleeve to prevent
the rollers and cindle y from moving laterally In this arrangement the rollers
and cradle are placed upon the sleeve before the casing is put into position
Figure 7 shows an alternative ariaugement, in which the rollers and cradle are
placed in position in the casing before the casing is placed over the journal or
shaft In this arrangement the sleeve is shown of somewhat different form to that
shown on Figure 2. The rollers and cradle are prevented from moving Interally
by the projections which in this case are formed of steel rings attached to the
casing, instead of being upon the sleeve as in Figure 2.
Figmes 8 and 9 show a further alternative method in which the roller end, f*
beat directly in the cradle g without the interposition of separate bearing pieces,
the cradle in this case being made so that the rollers are inserted into the
oradle g from the outside.
In cradles hitherto constructed for sunilai purposes, the rollers once in position
bave been prevented from being withdrawn without the taking apart of the cradle.
With my invention it will be readily understood that by the addition of the
separate bening pieces, or by the formation of bearings in the ends of the cradle,
the rollers may be cadily taken from the positions in the cradle or inserted
without trouble.
In Figures 10 & 11 15 shown a similai arrangement to that shown by Figmes 8
& 9, with the single exception that the rollers are inserted into the cradle g from
the inside.
I am aware that parallel rollers have been used before; I am also aware that
cradles have been used to support parallel roller, but such cradles have been
constructed of sepunte ends connected by spokes, I, therefore, do not claim any
of these, but what I do claim is .—
1. In roller bearings, the combination of a cylindrical journal or shaft, with or
without a sleeve fitted thereon, parallel rollers with wholly comical, wholly parallel,
or partly comical and partly parallel ends uning in beating, either formed in the
ends of a cradle or in separate bearings fitted in the ends of a cradle which cradle
is formed of one piece of metal, the rollers being retained in positions concentric
with the axle or jommal, projecting ribs upon the sleeve or jominal or casing to
limit the lateral movement of the rollers and candle, all substantially as described
and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
2. In cradles for roller bearings, fitting separate bearing pieces such as & for the
rollers to revolve upon, substantially as described and as illustrated in the diawings
annexed.
3. In cradles for roller bearings, forming the ends of the cradle as bearings to
receive the ends of the rollers, substantially as described and as illustrated in the
accompanying drawings.
4. In iolle bearings, constructing parallel rollers with comical ends, or
constructing parallel rollers with partly conical and partly parallel ends,
substantially as described and illustrated and for the purposes set forth.
Dated this 9th day of Ma 1005
JOHN P. O'DONNELL, Fol. Chart. Inst. P.A.,
70 & 71 Palace Chambers, Westminster, S.W.,
Agent for the said Applicant.
JOHN P. O'DONNELL, Fol. Chart. Inst. P.A.,
70 & 71 Palacc Chambers, Westminster, S.W.,
Agent for the said Applicant.