Patent ID: 8701499

Claim:
A method for detecting defects in at least one chosen from raceways of bearing shells and rolling elements of ceramic hybrid bearings, comprising: magnetically coding at least one chosen from an outer and an inner ferromagnetic bearing shell of a ceramic hybrid bearing in at least a partial area to form at least two spatially separated oppositely directed magnetic fields in the bearing shell; using the magnetic coding of the bearing shell for generating changes in at least one magnetic field via inverse magnetostriction, for testing the raceways of the bearing shells and the ceramic rolling elements; providing at least two spatially separated sensors arranged around a circumference of the bearing shell for sensing the at least two spatially separated oppositely directed magnetic fields, a number and arrangement of the at least two spatially separated sensors corresponding to an orientation of the at least two spatially separated oppositely directed magnetic fields; and establishing final pressure characteristics by forming a difference of the at least two spatially separated oppositely directed magnetic fields sensed by the at least two spatially separated sensors, thereby reducing an effect on the inverse magnetostriction of the bearing shell by a magnetic field externally introduced on the ceramic hybrid bearing.