Patent ID: 7665577

Claim:
A method for lubricating and monitoring a state of a lubricatable element during a lubrication cycle in which an injection head injects lubricant into the lubricatable element, comprising: measuring an injection pressure of lubricant being injected into the lubricatable element as a function of time during the lubrication cycle; registering the injection pressure as a variable representing the state of the lubricatable element during the lubrication cycle; and evaluating the state of the lubricatable element as a function of the variable, wherein the injection pressure is measured upstream of the injection head as viewed in the direction of flow of the lubricant, and the state of the lubricatable element is evaluated during injection of the lubricant by an analysis of the injection pressure as a function of time, the analysis including an interpretation of a transfer time, the transfer time defined as a time during which the pressure is greater than a predetermined percentage of a maximum pressure observed during the injection cycle.