Patent ID: 7918608

Claim:
An axial bearing arrangement, comprising: at least first and second rolling-contact bearings, each having one outer ring and at least one inner ring, wherein the inner rings are axially fixedly mounted on a shaft, the outer ring of the first bearing is axially slideably located on a casing by at least one elastically deformable tensioning element; there being a first axial direction from the first bearing toward the second bearing and a second axial direction opposite to the first axial direction; a first end of the elastically deformable element being connected to the outer ring of the first bearing and a second opposite end of the elastically deformable element being fixedly connected to the casing to exert an axial force on the outer ring of the first bearing in the second axial direction when an axial force is applied to the shaft in the first axial direction, thereby increasing an axial loading on the first bearing due to the opposing axial forces exerted on the first bearing by the shaft and the elastically deformable element, the outer ring of the second bearing being axially slideably located on the casing and engageable against at least one stop of the casing, when moved a sufficient distance in the first axial direction.