An Influence Analysis of the Bearing Waviness on the Vibrations of a Flexible Gear

Roller bearing manufacturing errors have been proven to be critical factors affecting the vibrations of gear systems. Waviness is one main form of manufacturing error affecting the operational performance and life of bearings. However, most previous studies did not completely incorporate the effects of the uneven bearing waviness on the flexible gear system vibrations. To characterize the contribution of the uneven bearing waviness on the vibrations of the gear system, a gear transmission system dynamics model considering shaft flexibility was established. The evenness sinusoidal waviness model (SWM) and uneven sinusoidal waviness model considering the time-varying contact (SWMS) were compared. The influences of the time-varying gear meshing stiffness excitations and flexibilities of shafts on the vibrations of the gear system were considered. A dynamic model was established, and the vibrations of the flexible gear system with the SWM and SWMS were compared. The vibrations induced by different amplitudes and orders of bearing waviness were analyzed. Note that the waviness of the bearing has a great influence on the system vibrations. The vibrations of the flexible gear system intensified with the increase in the bearing waviness order and amplitude. The vibrations from the gear system with the SWMS were bigger than those of the SWM. This paper introduces an alternative dynamic modeling model enabling the vibration analysis of the flexible gear system with evenness and uneven bearing waviness.