U.S. patent application number 11/604721 was filed with the patent office on 2007-06-21 for bearing unit and rotary drive using the same.
This patent application is currently assigned to Sony Corporation. Invention is credited to Yoshiaki Kakinuma, Takeshi Kaneko, Ichiro Nakamura, Hiroshi Sato, Yuji Shishido, Kiyoyuki Takada, Kenichiro Yazawa.
Application Number | 20070140604 11/604721 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 32718789 |
Filed Date | 2007-06-21 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070140604 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Shishido; Yuji ; et
al. |
June 21, 2007 |
Bearing unit and rotary drive using the same
Abstract
A bearing unit for rotatably supporting a shaft comprises a
seamless holding member with a gap allowing a shaft to run through
and extend to the outside, a bearing arranged in the inside of the
holding member to rotatably support the shaft so as to make it
radially revolvable, an anti-shaft-release member fitted to the
shaft so as to abut the bearing in order to prevent the shaft from
slipping away in the thrusting direction and a space-forming member
arranged in the inside of the holding member so as to secure a
space around the anti-shaft-release member. A bearing unit may
further comprise an lubricating oil seal member and the
space-forming member may be used to form a passage way for
lubricating oil to prevent lubricating oil from leaking.
Inventors: |
Shishido; Yuji; (Kanagawa,
JP) ; Yazawa; Kenichiro; (Tokyo, JP) ; Kaneko;
Takeshi; (Chiba, JP) ; Takada; Kiyoyuki;
(Chiba, JP) ; Sato; Hiroshi; (Chiba, JP) ;
Kakinuma; Yoshiaki; (Tokyo, JP) ; Nakamura;
Ichiro; (Chiba, JP) |
Correspondence
Address: |
RADER FISHMAN & GRAUER PLLC
LION BUILDING
1233 20TH STREET N.W., SUITE 501
WASHINGTON
DC
20036
US
|
Assignee: |
Sony Corporation
Tokyo
JP
|
Family ID: |
32718789 |
Appl. No.: |
11/604721 |
Filed: |
November 28, 2006 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
10506433 |
Apr 4, 2005 |
|
|
|
PCT/JP04/00063 |
Jan 8, 2004 |
|
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11604721 |
Nov 28, 2006 |
|
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Current U.S.
Class: |
384/100 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H02K 5/1675 20130101;
F16C 17/026 20130101; F16C 17/107 20130101; F16C 33/107 20130101;
F04D 25/062 20130101; F16C 33/103 20130101; H02K 7/085
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
384/100 |
International
Class: |
F16C 32/06 20060101
F16C032/06 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jan 10, 2003 |
JP |
P2003-004928 |
Feb 28, 2003 |
JP |
P2003-053231 |
Aug 25, 2003 |
JP |
P2003-300529 |
Claims
1. A bearing unit for rotatably supporting a shaft, comprising: a
seamless holding member with a gap allowing a shaft to run through
and extend to the outside; a bearing arranged in the inside of the
holding member to support the shaft so as to make it radially
revolvable; an anti-shaft-release member fitted to the shaft so as
to abut the bearing in order to prevent the shaft from slipping
away in the thrusting direction; and a space-forming member
arranged in the inside of the holding member so as to secure a
space around the anti-shaft-release member.
2. The bearing unit according to claim 1, wherein the
anti-shaft-release member and the shaft are formed integrally with
each other.
3. The bearing unit according to claim 1, wherein the holding
member is made of a polymeric material and the gap is defined by
the holding member and the shaft at the position where the shaft
extends from the holding member.
4. The bearing unit according to claim 1, wherein the space-forming
member is made of a polymeric material and operates as a thrust
bearing for rotatably supporting the shaft at an end of the latter
in the thrusting direction and the end of the shaft is made to show
a spherical profile while the thrust bearing is a pivot
bearing.
5. The bearing unit according to claim 1, further including dynamic
pressure generating grooves on the outer peripheral surface of the
shaft or on the inner peripheral surface of the bearing.
6. The bearing unit according to claim 2, wherein the surface of
the anti-shaft-release member or the surface of the space-forming
member arranged vis-a-vis the anti-shaft-release member is provided
with dynamic pressure generating grooves.
7. The bearing unit according to claim 1, wherein the shaft and the
space-forming member are made of an electrically conductive
material and the space-forming member is exposed to the outside
through the holding member.
8. A rotary drive including a bearing unit for rotataby supporting
a shaft, comprising: a seamless holding member with a gap allowing
a shaft to run through and extend to the outside; a bearing
arranged in the inside of the holding member to support the shaft
so as to make it radially revolvable; an anti-shaft-release member
fitted to the shaft so as to abut the bearing in order to prevent
the shaft from slipping away in the thrusting direction; and a
space-forming member arranged in the inside of the holding member
so as to secure a space around the anti-shaft-release member.
9-29. (canceled)
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] This invention relates to a bearing unit and a rotary drive
using such a bearing unit.
[0002] This is a divisional of application Ser. No. 10/506,433,
filed Apr. 4, 2005, the entire contents of which is hereby
incorporated by reference.
[0003] This application claims the priority of co-pending Japanese
Patent Application No. 2003-300529 dated Aug. 25, 2003, Japanese
Patent Application No. 2003-053231 dated Feb. 28, 2003 and Japanese
Patent Application No. 2003-004928 dated Jan. 10, 2003, all filed
in Japan. These patent applications are incorporated herein by
reference.
BACKGROUND ART
[0004] A bearing unit rotatably supports a shaft and is typically
arranged in a rotary drive such as a fan motor.
[0005] A bearing unit of the type under consideration is used with
an I-shaped shaft (also referred to as straight shaft) that is
rotatably supported by using lubricating oil. Japanese Patent
Publication No. 3265906 describes such a bearing unit. The bearing
unit 540 disclosed in the patent publication has a configuration as
shown in FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings. Referring to FIG. 1,
the bearing unit 540 rotatably supports a shaft 541 by means of a
radial bearing 542 and a thrust bearing 543. The radial bearing 542
is supported by a holding member 544 while the thrust bearing 542
is supported by a bottom plate 545. An anti-shaft-release member
546 is fitted to the shaft 541.
[0006] Since it is impossible to insert the anti-shaft-release
member 546 in the last step of assembly due to the structure of the
bearing unit 540, it is necessary to employ a step of mounting the
thrust bearing 543 and the bottom plate 545 in the holding member
544 as the last assembling step. In other words, because of the use
of such an assembling step, the housing of the bearing unit 540
needs to comprise a plurality of members, which include the holding
member 544 and the bottom plate 545, for the purpose of providing
the shaft 541 with the anti-shaft-release member 546. Then, it is
difficult to completely seal the binding section 548 of the holding
member 544 and the bottom plate 545. As a result, the lubricating
oil filled in the inside can leak out.
[0007] Additionally, end facet 547 of the radial bearing 542 is
exposed to the outside and lubricating oil can highly possibly
disperse and evaporate from there.
[0008] Since the known bearing unit 540 comprises the
anti-shaft-release member 546 for the shaft 541, the housing that
takes the role of surrounding the bearing unit 540 and preventing
lubricating oil from leaking and dispersing is formed by a
plurality of members. Therefore, there is a problem that
lubricating oil is apt to leak out through the binding sections of
various members of the housing. There is also a problem that such a
bearing unit needs to be prepared by way of complex steps to
consequently raise the manufacturing cost.
[0009] Another known proposed bearing unit employs as a bearing
means for supporting a shaft made of metal such as stainless steel
a radial bearing and a thrust bearing that are sintered and
oil-impregnated bearings or hydrodynamic fluid bearings and
supported by respective housing members made of metal such as
brass, of which the radial bearing is provided with a seal member
for minimizing the leakage of the lubricating oil filled in an
inner peripheral section thereof. With the proposed bearing unit,
the shaft is rotatably supported by the radial bearing and the
thrust bearing so that the shaft is supported and rotatable
relative to the housing members.
[0010] With this bearing unit, lubricating oil is indispensable for
the shaft to revolve smoothly and prevented from leaking out by a
seal member. Lubricating oil can ooze out through every gap and
leak to the outside of the bearing unit to shorten the service life
of the bearing unit. Therefore, the binding sections of members of
the bearing unit need to be hermetically sealed. For this purpose,
the applicant of the present invention proposed a bearing unit
wherein the binding section of a metal-made housing member and a
seal member is hermetically sealed by means of a UV-ray set type
adhesive agent in Japanese Patent Application No. 2001-289568 and
another bearing unit wherein a resin-made housing member is used
and integrally molded with a seal member in Japanese Patent
Application No. 2002-34331.
[0011] However, with such bearing units, it is difficult to
satisfactorily maintain the stability and the reliability.
[0012] For example, when a housing member and a seal member are
prepared separately, it is difficult to completely bond or bind
them together and hence to reliably prevent lubricating oil from
leaking through the binding section thereof. Additionally, it is a
highly complex and difficult operation to uniformly apply a
polymeric packing material such as adhesive to the entire periphery
of the binding section. It is also difficult to see if the binding
section is completely sealed without micro-gaps. The net result
will be either unsatisfactory reliability or prohibitive cost.
[0013] Leakage of lubricating oil cause to result in an unstable
service life, a reduced reliability of the bearing unit and/or
adverse effects (such as chemical attack phenomenon) on the
externally disposed components of the bearing unit. For instance,
when such a bearing unit is applied to a hard disc drive (HDD),
leakage of lubricating oil containing organic substances cause to
give rise to stiction and haze (a clouded disc surface).
[0014] When a housing member and a seal member are integrally
molded, no gap is produced between them. However, if the gap
between the seal member, which is now part of the housing member,
and the shaft needs to be minimized when the housing is molded with
the shaft supported by a bearing unit, it is difficult to guarantee
the accuracy of minimizing the gap. For instance, any variance in
the gap between the seal section and the shaft can influence the
level of the oil surface and hence, if the volume of oil is large,
lubricating oil cause to disperse to the outside when the oil
temperature rises and/or when the ambient pressure changes.
[0015] The PCT Application Laid-Open No. WO03/027521 describes
another known bearing unit adapted to rotatably support a rotary
shaft. Referring to FIG. 2 of the accompanying drawings, the
bearing unit 660 is able to reliably prevent viscous fluid from
leaking to the outside of the housing that is filled with viscous
fluid even when the internal pressure of the housing changes due to
a change in the environmental factors including atmospheric
pressure and/or ambient temperature.
[0016] The bearing unit 660 comprises a radial bearing 644 and a
thrust bearing 650, by which a rotary shaft 641 is rotatably
supported, air releasing passage sections 662 being arranged
between a housing 661 that is filled with lubricating oil 653 and
the inner peripheral surface of an outer sleeve 667 that covers the
housing 661.
[0017] The air releasing passage sections 662 are provided in order
to prevent lubricating oil 653 from leaking to the outside of the
bearing unit 660 when the atmospheric pressure falls due to an
altitude change and the air inside the housing 661 expands. The
housing 661 may be provided with one or more than one air releasing
passage sections 662. In the illustrated bearing unit 660, three
air releasing passage sections 662 are arranged on the outer
periphery of the housing 661 and angularly separated from each
other at regular intervals. The air releasing passage sections 662
can be formed in a simple manner when the housing 661 is produced
by outsert molding along with the thrust bearing 650 that contains
the radial bearing 644. If the air releasing passage sections 662
have a relatively complex profile, they can be formed when the
housing 661 and the thrust bearing 650 are molded by using
synthetic resin.
[0018] With the provision of such air releasing passage sections
662, it is possible to release the air that comes into the bearing
unit when the rotary shaft 641 is inserted into the radial bearing
644 and placed in position.
[0019] In the bearing unit 660, each of the air releasing passage
sections 662 has a first passage way 663 and a second passage way
664. The first passage way 663 is formed to extend along a radial
direction of the housing 661 from an internal space 665 that is
located near the thrust bearing 650. The inner end of the first
passage way 663 is connected to the internal space 665 where the
thrust bearing 650, which projects from the bottom closure section
647 of the housing 661, is located. The outer end of the first
passage way 663 is connected to the second passage way 664. The
second passage way 664 is exposed to the outer peripheral surface
of the housing 661 and extends along the axial direction of the
housing 661. While the air releasing passage section 662 including
the first passage way 663 and the second passage way 664 has a
relatively complex profile, it can be formed with ease when the
housing 661 and the thrust bearing 650 are molded from synthetic
resin.
[0020] As the bearing unit 660 is provided with the air releasing
passage section 662, the inside of the housing 661 is not
hermetically sealed. Therefore, the internal static pressure of the
housing 661 does not fall when the rotary shaft 641 revolves
relative to the housing 661 and hence the air remaining in the
housing 661 does not expand to force out the lubricating oil in the
inside.
[0021] The bearing unit 660 communicates with the outside by way of
a plurality of sections including the air releasing passage
sections 662 and the exposed part of the rotary shaft 641. In other
words, the former operate as an air inlet port while the latter
operates as an air outlet port so that lubricating oil cause to
disperse when impact is applied to the bearing unit 660. In short,
the bearing unit 660 is vulnerable to impact.
[0022] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No.
2000-352414 describes still another bearing unit for rotatably
supporting a rotary shaft. As shown in FIG. 3 of the accompanying
drawings, the bearing unit 680 of the above cited patent document
is adapted to rotatably support a rotary shaft 681 and comprises a
radial bearing 682 for supporting the rotary shaft 681 in a
peripheral direction, a thrust bearing 683 for supporting the
rotary shaft 681 in a thrusting direction and a housing 685
containing the radial bearing 682 and the thrust bearing 683.
[0023] The radial bearing 682 of the bearing unit 680 operates as
hydrodynamic fluid bearing with the lubricating oil filled in the
housing 685, which lubricating oil is viscous fluid. Dynamic
pressure generating grooves 684 are formed on the inner peripheral
surface of the radial bearing 682, along which the rotary shaft 681
is inserted.
[0024] The radial bearing 682 is provided on the outer peripheral
surface thereof with groove-shaped axial air passage ways 686 and
groove-shaped radial air passage ways 687 that are used as air
releasing passage ways when inserting the shaft member into the
inner space of the bearing main body.
[0025] As shown in FIG. 3, housing 685 that contains the radial
bearing 682, which by turn supports the rotary shaft 681, has a
bottomed hollow cylindrical profile so as to surround the lateral
surface and the bottom surface of the radial bearing 682, which
also has a hollow cylindrical profile.
[0026] A compressed resilient body 688 is arranged in the upper
opening of the housing 685 so as to be pressed against the inner
peripheral surface of the housing 685 to operate as caulking
member.
[0027] The rotary shaft 681 is inserted into the housing 685 of the
bearing unit 680 that is caulked by the resilient body 688. At this
time, air is released from the inside of the housing 685 to the
outside by way of the axial air passage ways 686 and the radial air
passage ways 687 so that the operation of inserting the rotary
shaft 681 can be conducted smoothly.
[0028] Since the bearing main body is surrounded by two members of
a housing 685 and a resilient body 688 in the bearing unit 680 of
FIG. 3, lubricating oil is caused to ooze out through the junction
of the housing 685 and the resilient body 688.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
[0029] Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to
provide a bearing unit that addresses the problems of the bearing
units that have been proposed to date and a rotary drive using such
a bearing unit.
[0030] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
bearing unit that is compact and highly reliable and can enjoy a
long service life and a rotary drive using such a bearing unit.
[0031] Still another object of the present invention is to provide
a bearing unit that can prevent the shaft supported by the bearings
of the bearing unit from slipping away and the lubricating oil
contained in the inside of the bearing unit from leaking and a
rotary drive using such a bearing unit.
[0032] Still another object of the present invention is to provide
a bearing unit that can prevent a phenomenon of leakage of the
viscous fluid such as lubricating oil that is filled in the housing
of the bearing unit from taking place and show an excellent
lubricating performance when the shaft is driven to revolve
relative to the housing to reduce the internal pressure of the
housing and expand the residual air in the housing and a rotary
drive using such a bearing unit.
[0033] Still another object of the present invention is to provide
a bearing unit from which viscous fluid such as lubricating oil can
hardly disperse when impact is applied thereto and a rotary drive
using such a bearing unit.
[0034] A further object of the present invention is to provide a
bearing unit that can effectively prevent viscous fluid such as
lubricating oil from oozing out from the housing of the bearing
unit that surrounds the bearings of the unit and a rotary drive
using such a bearing unit.
[0035] In an aspect of the present invention, the above objects are
achieved by providing a bearing unit for rotatably supporting a
shaft, the bearing unit comprising: a seamless holding member with
a gap allowing a shaft to run through and extend to the outside; a
bearing arranged in the inside of the holding member to support the
shaft so as to make it radially revolvable; an anti-shaft-release
member fitted to the shaft so as to abut the bearing in order to
prevent the shaft from slipping away in the thrusting direction;
and a space-forming member arranged in the inside of the holding
member so as to secure a space around the anti-shaft-release
member.
[0036] A bearing unit according to the invention comprises a
holding member and all the remaining components of the bearing unit
are arranged in the inside of the holding member. The bearing unit
radially supports the shaft so as to allow the latter to revolve.
The anti-shaft-release member is fitted to the shaft so as to abut
the bearing and prevent the shaft from slipping away along the
thrusting direction. The space-forming member is arranged inside
the holding member. The space-forming member is adapted to secure
space around the anti-shaft-release member. With this arrangement
of providing such a space-forming member, a small
anti-shaft-release member can be arranged inside the holding member
of the bearing unit. As a result, it is possible to downsize the
rotary drive, which may be a motor, to be used with the bearing
unit. Since the bearing unit comprises the anti-shaft-release
member and can prevent the shaft from slipping away in the
assembled state, it is easy to handle the bearing unit when it is
fitted to a rotary drive.
[0037] The holding member is formed as seamless member with an
opening that allows the corresponding end of the shaft to project
to the outside and hence it would not allow lubricating oil from
leaking out. Thus, it is possible to provide a compact and highly
reliable bearing unit that can enjoy a long service life.
[0038] The number of components is reduced when the
anti-shaft-release member and the shaft are formed integrally with
each other.
[0039] The holding member is made of a polymeric material and the
gap is defined by the holding member and the shaft at the position
where the shaft extends from the holding member.
[0040] The space-forming member of a bearing unit according to the
invention is made of a polymeric material and operates as a thrust
bearing for rotatably supporting the shaft at an end of the latter
in the thrusting direction. The end of the shaft is made to show a
spherical profile and the thrust bearing is a pivot bearing.
[0041] With this arrangement, the space-forming member can not only
secure space around the anti-shaft-release member but also
rotatably support the corresponding end of the shaft as pivot
bearing in the thrusting direction so that it is possible to reduce
the number of components and downsize the bearing unit.
[0042] A bearing unit according to the invention can generate
dynamic pressure as the shaft revolves because it is provided with
dynamic pressure generating grooves on the outer peripheral surface
of the shaft or on the inner peripheral surface of the bearing.
[0043] A bearing unit according to the invention can generate
dynamic pressure as the shaft revolves because additionally the
surface of the anti-shaft-release member or the surface of the
space-forming member arranged vis-a-vis the anti-shaft-release
member is provided with dynamic pressure generating grooves.
[0044] Of a bearing unit according to the invention, the shaft and
the space-forming member are made of an electrically conductive
material and the space-forming member is exposed to the outside
through the holding member. With this arrangement, the shaft can be
grounded by way of the space-forming member in order to release any
static electricity to the outside.
[0045] In another aspect of the present invention, there is
provided a rotary drive including a bearing unit for rotataby
supporting a shaft, the rotary drive comprising: a seamless holding
member with a gap allowing a shaft to run through and extend to the
outside; a bearing arranged in the inside of the holding member to
support the shaft so as to make it radially revolvable; an
anti-shaft-release member fitted to the shaft so as to abut the
bearing in order to prevent the shaft from slipping away in the
thrusting direction; and a space-forming member arranged in the
inside of the holding member so as to secure a space around the
anti-shaft-release member.
[0046] The bearing of this rotary drive is arranged in the inside
of the holding member. The bearing radially supports the shaft so
as to allow the latter to revolve. The anti-shaft-release member is
fitted to the shaft so as to abut the bearing and prevent the shaft
from slipping away along the thrusting direction.
[0047] The space-forming member is arranged inside the holding
member. The space-forming member is adapted to secure space around
the anti-shaft-release member. With this arrangement of providing
such a space-forming member, the anti-shaft-release member is
arranged inside the holding member of the bearing unit. As a
result, it is possible to downsize the rotary drive, which may be a
motor, to be used with the bearing unit.
[0048] In still another aspect of the invention, there is provided
a bearing unit having a shaft and a bearing means for rotatably
supporting the shaft, the bearing unit comprising: a lubricating
oil seal member arranged between the shaft and the bearing means
with a gap interposed between them; and a synthetic resin made
housing for peripherally holding the lubricating oil seal member
and the bearing means.
[0049] With a bearing unit according to the invention and having
the above-defined configuration, it is possible to realize a
seamless structure that binds the seal member and holding means
without any gap between them by peripherally holding the seal
member by the resin made housing. Thus, it is no longer necessary
to seal the gap between the seal member and the housing by means of
an adhesive agent or the like. A necessary gap is guaranteed
between the seal member and the shaft by securing the processing
precision and the molding precision of the member so that the
variance of the gap can be sufficiently reduced.
[0050] In still another aspect of the invention, there is provided
a bearing unit comprising: a shaft; a radial bearing for
peripherally supporting the shaft; a thrust bearing for supporting
an end of the shaft in the thrusting direction thereof; a
space-forming member arranged outside the radial bearing and the
thrust bearing; a housing having the space-forming member in the
inside and hermetically sealed except a shaft receiving hole
through which the shaft is made to extend; viscous fluid filled in
the housing; and a communication passage way arranged between the
space-forming member and the radial bearing so as to make the end
in the thrusting direction of the shaft projecting from the radial
bearing and the other end of the shaft communicate with each
other.
[0051] With a bearing unit according to the invention and having
the above described configuration, the end in the thrusting
direction of the shaft projecting from the radial bearing that is
located at the closed side of the shaft and the other end of the
shaft projecting from the radial bearing that is located at the
open side of the shaft where the shaft receiving hole is provided
are made to communicate with each other by way of a communication
passage way. Therefore, when the shaft is driven to revolve
relative to the housing, the pressure reduction at the closed side
of the shaft is minimized because the closed side of the shaft is
made to communicate with the open side of the shaft. As the
pressure reduction at the closed side is minimized, the residual
air in the housing is suppressed against expanding to prevent
viscous fluid such as lubricating oil from being forced to leak
out.
[0052] With a bearing unit according to the invention and having
the above described configuration, while the closed side end and
the open side of the shaft are held in communication with each
other, the shaft is exposed to the outside only at the other end
that projects in the thrust direction from the radial bearing
located at the closed side of the shaft through a minimally
dimensioned gap of the shaft receiving hole. In other words, the
communication passage way is formed in the housing, which is
hermetically sealed except the shaft receiving hole so that the
viscous fluid such as lubricating oil that is contained therein is
prevented from dispersing by impact and also from oozing out.
[0053] Other objects and advantages of the present invention will
become apparent from the following description that is made by
referring to the accompanying drawings that illustrate preferred
embodiments of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0054] FIG. 1 is a schematic cross sectional view of a known
bearing unit;
[0055] FIG. 2 is a schematic cross sectional view of another known
bearing unit;
[0056] FIG. 3 is a schematic cross sectional view of still another
known bearing unit;
[0057] FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of an electronic
device comprising a bearing unit according to the invention;
[0058] FIG. 5 is a schematic cross sectional view of the electronic
device of FIG. 4 taken along line V-V in FIG. 4;
[0059] FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view of a fan motor;
[0060] FIG. 7 is a schematic cross sectional view of the rotor and
the stator of a fan motor;
[0061] FIG. 8 is a schematic cross sectional view of an embodiment
of bearing unit according to the invention that is used in the fan
motor of FIG. 7;
[0062] FIGS. 9A through 9C are schematic cross sectional views of
the bearing unit of FIG. 8, showing assembling steps thereof;
[0063] FIG. 10 is a schematic cross sectional view of another
embodiment of bearing unit according to the invention;
[0064] FIG. 11 is a schematic cross sectional view of still another
embodiment of bearing unit according to the invention;
[0065] FIGS. 12A and 12B are schematic cross sectional views of
still another embodiment of bearing unit according to the
invention;
[0066] FIGS. 13A through 13D are schematic cross sectional views of
the embodiment of bearing unit of FIGS. 12A and 12B, showing
assembling steps thereof;
[0067] FIG. 14 is a schematic cross sectional view of still another
embodiment of bearing unit according to the invention;
[0068] FIG. 15 is a schematic cross sectional view of still another
embodiment of bearing unit according to the invention;
[0069] FIG. 16 is a schematic cross sectional view of an embodiment
of rotary drive according to the invention and comprising a bearing
unit according to the invention;
[0070] FIG. 17 is a schematic cross sectional view of another
embodiment of rotary drive according to the invention, which is a
motor, and comprising a bearing unit according to the
invention;
[0071] FIG. 18 is a schematic cross sectional view of an embodiment
of bearing unit according to the invention taken along line Y-Y' in
FIG. 19;
[0072] FIG. 19 is a schematic cross sectional view of the
embodiment of FIG. 18 taken along line X-X' in FIG. 18;
[0073] FIG. 20 is a schematic perspective view of dynamic pressure
generating grooves formed on the inner peripheral surface of the
radial bearing of a bearing unit according to the invention;
[0074] FIG. 21 is a schematic perspective view of a communication
passage way that can be formed between the space-forming member and
the radial bearing of a bearing unit according to the invention,
showing the profile thereof;
[0075] FIG. 22 is a schematic bottom view of second grooves that
can be formed on the bottom surface of the radial bearing so as to
operate as communication passage way of a bearing unit according to
the invention;
[0076] FIG. 23 is a schematic perspective view of another
communication passage way that can be formed between the
space-forming member and the radial bearing of a bearing unit
according to the invention, showing the profile thereof;
[0077] FIG. 24 is a schematic plan view of other second grooves
that can be formed on the bottom surface side of the space-forming
member so as to operate as communication passage way of a bearing
unit according to the invention;
[0078] FIG. 25 is a schematic cross sectional view of the gap
defined by the outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft and
inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole formed through
the housing of a bearing unit according to the invention;
[0079] FIG. 26 is a schematic illustration of the capillary
phenomenon of fluid;
[0080] FIG. 27 is a schematic cross sectional view of the
lubricating oil that has come into the gap formed between the outer
peripheral surface of the rotary shaft and the inner peripheral
surface of the shaft receiving hole of a bearing unit according to
the invention;
[0081] FIG. 28 is a schematic longitudinal cross sectional view of
the gap formed between the outer peripheral surface of the rotary
shaft and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole
of a bearing unit according to the invention, illustrating the
pressure difference between parts of the tapered section of the
rotary shaft having different diameters;
[0082] FIG. 29 is a schematic longitudinal cross sectional view of
the gap formed between the outer peripheral surface of the rotary
shaft and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole
of a bearing unit according to the invention, illustrating how air
is drawn into the lubricating oil that has come into the gap;
[0083] FIG. 30 is a schematic transversal cross sectional view of
the gap formed between the outer peripheral surface of the rotary
shaft and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole
of a bearing unit according to the invention, illustrating that the
lubricating oil that has come into the gap is cut apart;
[0084] FIG. 31 is a schematic longitudinal cross sectional view of
the rotary shaft received in the shaft receiving hole of the
housing of a bearing unit according to the invention, showing that
the rotary shaft is eccentric relative to the shaft receiving
hole;
[0085] FIG. 32 is a schematic cross sectional view of the rotary
shaft received in the shaft receiving hole of the housing of a
bearing unit according to the invention, showing the lubricating
oil that has come into the gap between them when the rotary shaft
is eccentric relative to the shaft receiving hole;
[0086] FIG. 33 is a schematic cross sectional view of the third
embodiment of bearing unit according to the invention, in which the
shaft receiving hole of the housing is tapered;
[0087] FIG. 34 is a schematic illustration of the temporary
assembling step in the process of manufacturing a bearing unit
according to the invention illustrated in FIG. 19;
[0088] FIG. 35 is a schematic illustration of the step of outsert
molding the housing in the process of manufacturing a bearing unit
according to the invention;
[0089] FIG. 36 is a schematic illustration of the step of inserting
the rotary shaft into the housing in the process of manufacturing a
bearing unit according to the invention;
[0090] FIG. 37 is a schematic illustration of the step of filling
lubricating oil in the process of manufacturing a bearing unit
according to the invention; and
[0091] FIG. 38 is a schematic cross sectional view of still another
embodiment of bearing unit according to the invention.
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
[0092] Now, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be
described by referring to the accompanying drawings.
[0093] A bearing unit according to the invention can typically find
an application in a portable computer 1 as shown in FIG. 4.
[0094] Referring to FIG. 4, the computer 1 has a display section 2
and a main body 3. The display section 2 is rotatably linked to the
main body 3 by means of a link section 4. The main body 3 has a
keyboard 5 and a cabinet 12. A heat-emitting device 10 is arranged
in the cabinet 12.
[0095] FIG. 5 is a schematic cross sectional view of the cabinet 12
of FIG. 4 taken along line V-V in FIG. 4. FIG. 6 is a schematic
perspective view of the heat-emitting device 10 arranged in the
cabinet 12 of FIG. 5.
[0096] As shown in FIG. 5, the heat-emitting device 10 is contained
in the cabinet 12. The heat-emitting device 10 has a configuration
as shown in FIG. 6. The heat-emitting device 10 is also referred to
as cooling device and comprises a metal made base 20, a motor 30, a
fan 34, that is a rotary body, a fan case 36 and a heat sink
38.
[0097] One of the surfaces, or surface 21, of the base 20 includes
a first fitting surface 50, a second fitting surface 52 and a third
fitting surface 54. When put together, the first fitting surface
50, the second fitting surface 52 and the third fitting surface 54
form a substantially L-shaped surface. A heat emitting element 40
is fitted to the first fitting surface 50 by way of a heat
transmitting seal 44. The heat emitting element 40 may typically be
a CPU (central processing unit) that emits heat when it is
electrically energized to operate.
[0098] The fan case 36 and the motor 30 are rigidly fitted to the
second fitting surface 52. The fan 34 and the motor 30 are
contained in the inside of the fan case 36. The fan case 36 has a
circular hole 48. The circular hole 48 is formed at a position of
the fan case 36 vis-a-vis the hole 60 bored through the bottom of
the cabinet 12 as shown in FIG. 5. The fan case 36 has another hole
37 formed along the side located close to the heat sink 38 that is
to be cooled by supplying cooling air.
[0099] The heat sink 38 is rigidly fitted to the third fitting
surface 54. The heat sink 38 typically has a corrugated profile or
a fan-shaped profile and is made of a metal that performs well for
emitting heat such as aluminum. The base 20 and the fan case 36 may
be made of a metal that performs well for emitting heat such as
aluminum or iron. The base 20 is provided with fitting holes 70 at
appropriate positions. Thus, the base 20 is rigidly secured to the
cabinet 12 as screws are driving into the respective bosses 72
arranged on the inner surface side of the cabinet 12 by way of the
respective holes 70.
[0100] As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the heat sink 38 is arranged at a
position vis-a-vis the hole 76 formed through a lateral wall of the
cabinet 12. With this arrangement, as the motor 30 is driven, the
fan 34 continuously revolves in the sense as indicted by arrow R in
FIG. 6 so that air is driven out from the inside of the cabinet 12
to the outside through the lateral hole 76 by way of the hole 60
and the hole 48 in the directions indicated by arrows D1, D2 and
D3. At this time, the heat generated by the heat emitting element
40 is transmitted to the fitting surface 54 by way of the fitting
surfaces 50, 52 of the base 20 so that consequently the heat is
transmitted to the heat sink 38. As the air flow that is produced
by the revolutions of the fan 34 takes place in three directions
indicated by the arrows D1, D2 and D3, the heat transmitted to the
heat sink 38 is released to the outside by way of the lateral hole
76 of the cabinet.
[0101] FIG. 7 is a schematic cross sectional view of the motor 30
of FIG. 6. The motor 30 has a rotor 80 and a stator 84.
[0102] The motor 30 and the fan 34 are contained in the fan case 36
and the stator 84 is integrally arranged on the top section 36A of
the fan case 36. The stator 84 has a stator yoke 88, a bearing unit
90, a coil 164 and a core 160.
[0103] The stator yoke 88 may be integral with the top section 36A
of the fan case 36 or separated from the latter. It is typically
made of iron or stainless steel. The housing 120 of the bearing
unit 90 is rigidly secured to the inside of the holder 92 by press
fitting and/or adhesion. The holder 92 is a cylindrical part of the
stator 84.
[0104] Roughly speaking, the bearing unit 90 has a shaft 100, a
radial bearing 130, a space-forming member 113, a holding member
120 and lubricating oil 150.
[0105] FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of the bearing unit 90 shown in
FIG. 7, illustrating its configuration.
[0106] Now, the structure of the bearing unit 90 will be described
in greater detail by referring to FIG. 8.
[0107] The shaft 100 is a so-called I-shaped shaft, which is also
referred to as straight type shaft. The shaft 100 is typically made
of stainless steel. The shaft 100 has an exposed end section 160,
an inner end section 161 and a tapered section 100A. The exposed
end section 160 and the shaft outer peripheral section 162 may be
made to have a same diameter. The tapered section 100A is a tapered
part located between the exposed end section 160 and the shaft
outer peripheral section 162. The tapered section 100A is tapered
from the shaft outer peripheral section 162 toward the exposed end
section 160. The exposed end section 160 is a part of the shaft 100
that extends from the gap S of the holding member 120 so as to be
exposed to the outside. The tapered section 100A is arranged at the
position located vis-a-vis the gap S.
[0108] The radial bearing 130 illustrated in FIG. 8 is a
cylindrical bearing that may typically be made of sintered metal so
as to operate as hydrodynamic fluid bearing. The radial bearing 130
has a pair of two dynamic pressure generating grooves 190, 190
formed on the inner peripheral surface thereof. The dynamic
pressure generating grooves 190, 190 are separated from each other
by a predetermined distance. One of the dynamic pressure generating
grooves 190, 190 is located near the gap S, while the other dynamic
pressure generating groove 190 is located at the side of the inner
end section 161. For example, herring bone grooves may be adopted
for the dynamic pressure generating grooves 190, 190. The radial
bearing 130 rotatably and radially supports the shaft 100.
[0109] An anti-shaft-release member 115 is also illustrated in FIG.
8. The anti-shaft-release member 115 may be made of a polymeric
material such as nylon or provided as an E-ring that is made of
metal. The anti-shaft-release member 115 is mechanically fitted
into a fitting recess 169 formed at the side of the inner end
section 161 of the shaft 100. The anti-shaft-release member 115
prevents the shaft 100 from slipping out from the radial bearing
130 in the direction of E shown in FIG. 8 along the central axis CL
of the shaft 100.
[0110] The space-forming member 113 shown in FIG. 8 is a member for
securing a space around the anti-shaft-release member 115. The
space-forming member 113 is arranged in the holding member 120. The
space-forming member 113 has a squirrel cage-shaped member showing
a U-shaped cross sectional view. The space-forming member 113 is
typically made of a polymeric material such as nylon or a metal
material such as brass.
[0111] The holding member 120 show in FIG. 8 is used to contain the
radial bearing 130, the shaft 100, the anti-shaft-release member
115 and the space-forming member 113 in a sealed and seamless
state. The holding member 120 is also referred to as housing and
has a sole gap S arranged vis-a-vis the tapered section 100A. The
holding member 120 is typically made of a polymeric material such
as nylon, LCP (liquid crystal polymer) or Teflon (tradename).
[0112] Lubricating oil is filled into the space among the radial
bearing 130, the shaft outer peripheral section 162 of the shaft
100, the anti-shaft-release member 113 and the space-forming member
113.
[0113] The bearing unit 90 shown in FIG. 8 is provided at a
position near the exposed end 160 of the shaft 100 with a radially
arranged gap S. Since the bearing unit 90 is completely covered by
the holding member 120, which is a seamless member, except the gap
S, lubricating oil would not leak to the outside of the holding
member 120 and hence the bearing unit 90 is highly reliable.
[0114] The bearing unit 90 is provided in the inside with an
anti-shaft-release member 115 that prevents the shaft 100 from
slipping away so that it is easy to handle the motor that is
equipped with the bearing unit 90.
[0115] The shaft 100 is provided with a tapered section 100A at a
position located vis-a-vis the gap S. The tapered section 100A and
the gap S cooperate to form a surface tension seal. A surface
tension seal operates as a lubricating oil holding means that
utilizes the capillary phenomenon. In the case of the bearing unit
90, lubricating oil is drawn toward the side where that gap S is
narrower, or toward the inside of the bearing unit 90 and hence
would not leak to the outside. The principle of such a surface
tension seal lies in the provision of a tapered section 100A to
give rise to a pressure gradient there and draw the lubricating oil
there toward the inside of the bearing unit 90. The tapered section
100A may be arranged either on the shaft 100 or on the holding
member 120.
[0116] Now, the reason why an anti-shaft-release member 115 has to
be provided will be described below.
[0117] In the case of a motor 30 equipped with a bearing unit 90
according to the invention and shown in FIG. 7, the rotor 80 would
slip away when the motor 30 is subjected to impact unless the rotor
80 including the shaft 100 is provided with some anti-release
means. Therefore, it is absolutely necessary to provide the rotor
80 with an anti-release means in view of the anti-impact
performance of the motor 30.
[0118] In the case of a spindle motor to be used as optical disc
drive, it is also necessary to provide some anti-release means in
order to prevent the rotor 80 from slipping away when an optical
disc is mounted or dismounted.
[0119] Conventionally, an anti-release member that is necessary for
the rotor section is arranged outside the bearing unit or, if it is
arranged in the inside of the bearing unit, the holding member of
the bearing unit is made to have a plurality of components so that
it may be assembled after arranging the anti-release member in the
inside of the bearing unit. However, the former arrangement is
accompanied by the drawback that the motor inevitably has large
outer dimensions and the operation of assembling the motor is a
complex one. The latter arrangement, on the other hand, is
accompanied by the drawback that the holding member includes a
binding section and lubricating oil can easily leak through it.
[0120] To the contrary, in a bearing unit 90 according to the
invention, the anti-shaft-release member 115 is arranged in the
inside of the bearing unit 90 and the holding member 120 is a
seamless member. Thus, the bearing unit 90 can be easily mounted in
the motor 30 and there is no risk for lubricating oil to leak out.
Thus, a bearing unit 90 according to the invention is highly
reliable and can enjoy a long service life.
[0121] FIGS. 9A through 9C are schematic cross sectional views of
the bearing unit 90 of FIG. 8, showing assembling steps
thereof.
[0122] Referring, firstly, to FIG. 9A, the shaft 100 to which the
anti-shaft-release member 115 is fitted is inserted into the radial
bearing 130.
[0123] Then, as shown in FIG. 9B, the space-forming member 113 is
fitted to the radial bearing 130. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 9C,
the holding member 120 is formed typically by outsert molding.
[0124] The lubricating oil is filled into the bearing unit 90
typically by vacuum impregnation and the volume of lubricating oil
is regulated to produce a complete bearing unit 90.
[0125] Due to the provision of the space-forming member 113, a gap
is secured around the anti-shaft-release member 115 and the shaft
100 is rotatably supported with the anti-shaft-release member 115
if the holding member 120 is formed from resin by outsert
molding.
[0126] In the instance of FIG. 8, the inner bottom surface of the
space-forming member 113 also operates as thrust bearing for
rotatably supporting the inner end section 161 of the shaft 100 in
the thrusting direction. The space-forming member 113 rotatably
supports the inner end section 161 as pivot.
[0127] A bearing unit according to the invention may alternatively
have a configuration as shown in FIG. 10. The bearing unit 490
shown in FIG. 10 comprises a shaft 400, an anti-shaft-release
member 415, a radial bearing 430, a space-forming member 413 and a
holding member 420.
[0128] Of the bearing unit 490 shown in FIG. 10, the disc-shaped
anti-shaft-release member 415 is integrally formed with the inner
end section 461 of the shaft 400. In other words, the shaft 400 is
formed with the anti-shaft-release member 415 in such a way that
the longitudinal cross section thereof shows a substantially
T-shaped profile.
[0129] Dynamic pressure generating grooves 428 are formed on the
opposite surfaces of the anti-shaft-release member 415. The dynamic
pressure generating grooves 428 generate dynamic pressure when the
anti-shaft-release member 415 is rotatably supported in the space
of the space-forming member 413.
[0130] The space-forming member 413 is typically made of metal such
as brass or stainless steel or resin such as LCP, polyamide or
polyimide for the purpose of accurately producing a gap around the
anti-shaft-release member 415. The holding member 420 is typically
made of resin such as LCP, nylon, polyamide, polyimide or Teflon
(tradename). The holding member 420 is a seamless member except the
gap S.
[0131] The above described anti-shaft-release member 415 operates
to prevent the shaft 400 from slipping away from the radial bearing
430 in the E direction shown in FIG. 10. However, the
anti-shaft-release member 415 takes not only the role of preventing
the shaft 400 from slipping away but also the role of a
hydrodynamic fluid bearing type thrust bearing means that is
provided with dynamic pressure generating groove 428.
[0132] Dynamic pressure generating grooves 480 may be formed on the
inner peripheral surface of the radial bearing 430. However,
dynamic pressure generating grooves 480 may alternatively be formed
on the outer peripheral surface 462 of the shaft 400 instead of the
inner peripheral surface of the radial bearing 430.
[0133] Dynamic pressure generating groove 428 may be formed not
only on the opposite surfaces of the anti-shaft-release member 415
but also on the inner end section 431 of the radial bearing 430 and
on the inner end surface section 414 of the space-forming member
413.
[0134] The anti-shaft-release member 415 is typically made of
stainless steel and may be formed completely integrally with the
shaft 400 or prepared separately from the shaft 400. While the
shaft 400 is typically made of stainless steel, it may
alternatively be formed by outsert molding, using resin such as
LCP, polyamide, polyimide or PC (polycarbonate).
[0135] The bearing unit 490 of FIG. 10 can easily adopt a
hydrodynamic bearing structure both radially and in the thrusting
direction. Therefore, the bearing unit 490 of FIG. 10 can be more
reliable and enjoy a longer service life if compared with the
bearing unit 90 of FIG. 8.
[0136] FIG. 11 is a schematic cross sectional view of still another
embodiment of bearing unit according to the invention.
[0137] The bearing unit 590 of FIG. 11 has a configuration
substantially same as the bearing unit 490 of FIG. 10. Therefore,
the components of the bearing unit 590 of FIG. 11 that are same as
or similar to their counterparts of the bearing unit 490 of FIG. 10
are denoted respectively by the same reference symbols and will not
be described in detail.
[0138] The bearing unit 590 of FIG. 11 differs from the bearing
unit 490 of FIG. 10 in terms of the profile of the holding member
520, the role of the anti-shaft-release member 415 and that of the
space-forming member 413.
[0139] The holding member 520 has a gap S and another opening 530.
The space-forming member 413 is exposed to the outside through the
opening 530.
[0140] The shaft 400 is typically made of an electrically
conductive material such as stainless steel. The space-forming
member 413 is also typically made of an electrically conductive
material such as stainless steel or brass. As pointed out above,
the space-forming member 413 is exposed to the outside through the
opening 530.
[0141] With this arrangement, the static electricity that is
generated when the motor shown in FIG. 11 is driven to operate is
released to outside and then to the ground by way of the shaft 400,
the anti-shaft-release member 415 and the space-forming member 413
as indicated by arrow E in FIG. 11.
[0142] Thus, when a bearing unit according to the invention is
mounted in a hard disc drive, for instance, and static electricity
is generated to show a voltage of 30V, the generated static
electricity is released to the outside and then to the ground by
way of the above described route. Therefore, it is possible to
prevent a phenomenon that the magnetic head arranged in the hard
disc drive is broken down by the static electricity.
[0143] In this case, lubricating oil is filled in the space among
the space-forming member 413, the anti-shaft-release member 415,
the outer peripheral section 462 of the shaft 400 and the radial
bearing 430. If the lubricating oil filled in the space is
electrically conductive, the discharging performance thereof can be
improved by the arrangement of this embodiment.
[0144] Any of the bearing units 90, 490, 590 shown respectively in
FIGS. 8, 10 and 11 can be applied not only to a fan motor 30 as
shown FIG. 5 but also to a mechanism for driving an information
recording medium in an information recording/reproduction device
such as a hard disc drive as described above.
[0145] Since a bearing unit according to the invention is provided
with a space-forming member, the anti-shaft-release member can be
arranged in the inside of the bearing unit, which is compact, then,
it is possible to downsize a motor in which such a bearing unit is
mounted. Additionally, since the shaft would not slip away in the
assembling operation, it is easy to handle the bearing unit. Still
additionally, since the holding member that is a seamless member
contains all the remaining components of the bearing unit except
the part of the shaft projecting to the outside through a small gap
formed in the holding member, the lubricating oil in the inside
would not leak out. Thus, the bearing unit is highly reliable and
can enjoy a long service life.
[0146] Furthermore, a motor or some other rotary drive in which a
bearing unit according to the invention is mounted can be downsized
and is made free from any anti-release member arranged outside the
motor so that the rotary drive can be manufactured at low cost with
a reduced number of manufacturing steps.
[0147] Now, still other embodiments of bearing unit according to
the invention will be described below by referring to FIGS. 12A
through 13D.
[0148] Each of these embodiments, which are described below, is
provided with a radial bearing means and a thrust bearing means as
bearing means for supporting a shaft or a rotary shaft. The thrust
bearing means arranged at an end section of the shaft may be of the
pivot type or the hydrodynamic fluid bearing type.
[0149] FIG. 12A is a schematic cross sectional view of an
embodiment of bearing unit that comprises a radial bearing means
and a thrust bearing means. In this embodiment, the front end
section of the shaft is processed to show a spherical profile and
the thrust bearing means is formed by a member made of a polymeric
material to receive the front end section of the shaft.
[0150] The bearing unit 201 comprises a shaft 202 formed by a metal
material such as stainless steel or a resin material and showing a
round rod-shaped profile and a bearing means 203 for supporting the
shaft 202. In other words, a radial bearing means 204 for receiving
a radial load and a thrust bearing means 205 for receiving a thrust
load are provided as bearing means 203.
[0151] A sintered and oil-impregnated bearing or a hydrodynamic
fluid bearing is used for the radial bearing means 204 that
rotatably and radially support the shaft 202. As an example, the
use of a hydrodynamic fluid bearing will be described below. The
bearing is made of sintered metal, which may be a copper type metal
or a copper/iron type metal and dynamic pressure generating grooves
are formed on it. Lubricating oil is held there by means of the
porous structure that is specific to sintered metal. In this
embodiment, so-called herring bone grooves having a V-shaped cross
section are formed as dynamic pressure generating grooves. Two
groups of dynamic pressure generating grooves 204a, 204a, . . . and
204b, 204b, . . . are formed on the inner periphery of the
cylindrical radial bearing means 204 and running in the sense in
which the shaft revolves to make the radial bearing means 204
operate as hydrodynamic fluid bearing. However, the dynamic
pressure generating grooves may alternatively be formed on the
peripheral surface of the shaft 202. For the purpose of the
invention, not only a hydrodynamic fluid bearing but also a bearing
of any of various different types such as a metal bearing may be
used.
[0152] An annular engaging groove 202a is formed on the shaft 202
at a position close to the front end thereof and engaged with an
annular anti-release member 206. The anti-release member 206 is a
part typically made of a polymeric material such as nylon (normal
chain aliphatic polyamide) or a part made of a metal material and
having a form of an E-ring. It operates as stopper for preventing
the shaft 202 from axially moving and slipping away when axial
external force is applied to the shaft 202 due to vibrations or a
pressure change.
[0153] A member (to be referred to as "space-forming member"
hereinafter) 207 made of a polymeric material such as nylon,
polyimide or liquid crystal polymer (LCP) or a metal material such
as brass is arranged around the anti-release member 206. The
space-forming member 207 is arranged to form a space around the
anti-release member 206 in a predetermined manner by considering
that the anti-release member 206 is rigidly fitted to the shaft 202
and revolves with the latter.
[0154] In this embodiment, the resin made space-forming member 207
is realized in the form of a bottomed hollow cylinder having a
recess 207a, while the corresponding end of the shaft 202 is made
to show a spherical profile so as to contact the flat bottom of the
space-forming member 207 at a point. As for the thrust bearing
means 205 for supporting the shaft 202 in the thrusting direction,
a member for bearing the corresponding end of the shaft can be
eliminated when the end of the shaft is made to show a curved
surface and brought into contact with the space-forming member 207.
In other words, the space-forming member 207 operates as a bearing
member. The profile of the space-forming member is not limited to
the above described one. Alternatively, a projection or a bearing
section may be integrally formed with the space-forming member and
brought into contact with the corresponding end of the shaft.
[0155] The space-forming member 207 of this embodiment is
additionally provided with a stepped section 207b that operates as
receiving recess to be partly engaged with the radial bearing means
204. The reason for providing the space-forming member 207 with a
stepped section 207b will become apparent hereinafter in the
description of a method of manufacturing a bearing unit according
to the invention.
[0156] A member 208 for sealing lubricating oil (to be referred to
as "seal member" hereinafter) is arranged around the shaft so as to
produce a minute radial gap G between the inner peripheral surface
208a thereof and the shaft 202 at a position near the exposed part
of the shaft 202. The seal member 208 has a hollow cylindrical
profile and is typically made of a polymeric material such as nylon
or polytetrafluoroethylene or a metal material. The seal member 208
is provided with a stepped section 208b. The stepped section 208b
operates as receiving recess to be partly engaged with the radial
bearing means 204. The reason for providing the seal member 208
with a stepped section 208b will become apparent hereinafter in the
description of a method of manufacturing a bearing unit according
to the invention. A part 209 of the lubricating oil that is filled
in the bearing unit is found in the gap G as seen from FIG. 12B.
The seal member 208 is provided with recesses 208c that correspond
to the respective projections formed on the corresponding end facet
of the radial bearing means 204 and is adapted to define the axial
direction of the radial bearing means 204.
[0157] The housing member or the holding member 210 is used to hold
the space-forming member 207, the seal member 208 and the radial
bearing means 204 from the outer peripheral side of the bearing
unit. It is typically made of a resin material, or a polymeric
material such as polyimide, polyamide, nylon or LCP. In this
embodiment, the housing member 210 takes the role of binding the
radial bearing means 204, the space-forming member 207 and the seal
member 208 together seamlessly without any gap. Thus, it is
possible to prevent lubricating oil from leaking.
[0158] In this embodiment, a special arrangement is devised to
prevent lubricating oil from leaking from the part of the shaft 202
exposed to the outside.
[0159] More specifically, as shown in FIG. 12B in an enlarged
scale, a part 202c of the shaft 202 that is located close to the
part thereof exposed to the outside and adapted to form the gap G
with the seal member 208 is tapered. The diameter of the tapered
part 202c of the shaft 202 increases as it comes close to the
inside of the bearing unit or the radial bearing means 204 along
the shaft 202.
[0160] Thus, since the gap G is formed between the tapered section
202c whose diameter increases toward the inside of the bearing unit
and the inner peripheral surface 208a of the seal member 208
arranged vis-a-vis the tapered section 202c, the gap is reduced as
it comes close to the inside of the bearing unit. If the drawing
pressure that is generated by the capillary phenomenon is "p", it
is expressed by the formula of "p=2.gamma.cos .theta./c" (where
.gamma.: the surface tension of lubricating oil, .theta.: the
contact angle of lubricating oil, c: gap). In other words, p is
inversely proportional to the gap dimension c (p.quadrature.1/c).
Thus, the smaller the gap dimension c, the larger the drawing
pressure becomes so that the lubricating oil 209 in the gap
dimension c is drawn to the inside of the bearing unit because the
gap dimension c becomes smaller as it comes close to the inside.
Therefore, lubricating oil 209 would not leak out. When the shaft
has a constant diameter, the gap is differentiated when the shaft
becomes eccentric relative to the opening of the holding member and
lubricating oil is urged to move to an area where the gap is small.
However, when the shaft is provided with a tapered section 202c,
the gap is made to vary along the axial direction and an elliptic
cross section of the gap that is inclined relative to the shaft
always shows areas with a same clearance so that lubricating oil
would be biased least if eccentricity takes place. Additionally,
the centrifugal force that is generated as the shaft is driven to
revolve provides a sealing effect that prevents lubricating oil
from dispersing to the outside.
[0161] Lubricating oil will be prevented from leaking further when
a surface active agent is applied to the exposed part of the shaft
202 and the surface of the seal member 208. The contact angle
.theta. of the shaft and lubricating oil is increased when a
surface active agent is applied to the shaft. As a result, the
drawing pressure p is reduced. As the external drawing pressure p
is reduced, the internal drawing pressure p is raised relatively to
prevent lubricating oil from leaking and otherwise moving.
[0162] Now, a method of manufacturing a bearing unit according to
the invention will be described by referring to FIGS. 13A through
13D, which illustrate different steps of the process of assembling
a bearing unit 201 according to the invention. The bearing unit
manufacturing method comprises the following steps: [0163] (1) a
shaft insertion step; [0164] (2) a step of fitting a space-forming
member and a seal member; [0165] (3) a housing member forming step;
and [0166] (4) a step of filling lubricating oil and regulating the
amount of lubricating oil.
[0167] Firstly, in step (1) illustrated in FIG. 13A, a shaft 202 to
which an anti-release member 206 is fitted is inserted into a
radial bearing means 204. Then, in step (2) illustrated in FIG.
13B, a space-forming member 207 and a seal member 208 are fitted to
the radial bearing means 204. More specifically, as the stepped
section 207b of the space-forming member 207 and the stepped
section 208b of the seal member 208 are respectively fitted to the
outer peripheral edges of the corresponding end sections of the
radial bearing means 204, the related parts of the radial bearing
means 204 are received respectively in the corresponding recess of
the space-forming member 207 and that of the seal member 208.
[0168] When the operation of this step is completed, the shaft 202
is already in a state where it is rotatably supported by the
bearing means 203.
[0169] Then, in step (3) illustrated in FIG. 13C, a housing member
210 is formed by outsert molding, using a polymeric material such
as nylon.
[0170] Thereafter, in step (4) illustrated in FIG. 13D, lubricating
oil is filled in the inside of the bearing unit by vacuum
impregnation and the amount of lubricating oil is regulated. For
example, lubricating oil is partly forced out and removed by
thermal expansion below a predetermined temperature level.
[0171] In the bearing unit 201 that is prepared in the above
described manner, the radial bearing means 204, the space-forming
member 207 and the seal member 208 are bound together as the
seamless housing member 210 is formed by outsert molding so that no
gap is left among these members and lubricating oil is completely
prevented from leaking. It is no longer necessary to control the
packing operation that is conventionally required for the binding
section of the related members so that the process management is
simplified.
[0172] While the seal member 208 may be molded in-step (2) shown in
FIG. 13B, it is preferable to prepare the seal member 208 in
advance and fit it to the radial bearing means 204 when the gap
between the seal member and the shaft is small for the purpose of
raising the accuracy of the gap. If, for example, the gap dimension
c is made greater than the specified value beyond a tolerance, the
drawing pressure p generated by the capillary force becomes too
small. In other words, the gap is subjected to an upper limit.
Therefore, when a large amount of lubricating oil is required, the
axial length of the gap G needs to be increased. Then, a
technically difficult process may be required to prepare the metal
mold because the part of the metal mold to be used for forming the
gap G comes to have a thin and axially long profile. If the molding
accuracy is not sufficient, the gap dimension can show large
variances. To the contrary, when the seal member is prepared before
step (2) illustrated in FIG. 13B, it can show a satisfactory level
of accuracy and hence the gap can also be produced accurately.
Since the impact-resistance is inversely proportional to the square
of the gap dimension c, lubricating oil is prevented from
dispersing by reducing the gap dimension and its variance. However,
it should be noted here that, as the gap dimension is reduced, the
level of the surface of lubricating oil can move significantly as
the oil temperature rises and the lubricating oil in the inside
expands.
[0173] The space-forming member of the bearing unit may be made of
a metal material instead of a synthetic resin material as shown in
FIG. 14.
[0174] The bearing unit 201A illustrated in FIG. 14 differs from
the above-described bearing unit 201 in a manner as described
below. Note that, in the following description, the components of
the bearing unit 201 A that are same as or similar to their
counterparts of the bearing unit 201 are denoted respectively by
the same reference symbols and would not be described in
detail.
[0175] In the bearing unit 201A illustrated in FIG. 14, the
space-forming member 207A is typically made of stainless steel,
brass, a pressed material or a sintered material and the thrust
bearing means 205 has a thrust bearing member 211 for receiving the
corresponding shaft end 202b that is processed to show a spherical
profile. The thrust bearing member 211 is arranged in and fitted to
a recess 207a formed in the space-forming member 207A. The thrust
bearing member 211 is made of a resin material such as nylon,
polyimide, polyamide or liquid crystal polymer or a low friction
material such as rubidium and formed separately from the
space-forming member 207A.
[0176] Since the space-forming member 207A of the bearing unit 201
A is made of metal, a thrust bearing member 211 that is made of a
resin material or a low friction material is provided in view of
prolonging the service life of the bearing unit 201A. Thus, the
requirements to be met in the step of outsert molding of the
housing member 210 that follows the step of fitting the
space-forming member 207A including the temperature and the
pressure of injecting resin are alleviated by the arrangement of
raising the rigidity and the resistance to high temperatures of the
space-forming member 207A. Differently stated, while the cost of
this embodiment of bearing unit can be raised due to the provision
of the thrust bearing member 211, it is possible to reduce the
overall cost because no particular requirements are imposed for the
selection of resin material and the molding requirements are
alleviated.
[0177] Now, still another embodiment of bearing unit according to
the invention will be described by referring to FIG. 15. The
bearing unit 201B of this embodiment differs from the bearing unit
201 illustrated in FIG. 12A in that the end section of the shaft
shows a T-shaped profile in a lateral view and the thrust bearing
means, which is a hydrodynamic fluid bearing, is formed by
utilizing the anti-shaft-release member. Therefore, the components
of the bearing unit 201 B that are same as or similar to their
counterparts of the bearing unit 201 are denoted respectively by
the same reference symbols and will not be described in detail.
[0178] Of the bearing unit 201 B illustrated in FIG. 15, the
anti-release member 212 arranged at the front end of the shaft 202
has a disc-shaped profile with a predetermined thickness and is
made of a metal material such as brass or stainless steel or a
polymeric material such as nylon or LCP. The anti-release member
212 is provided on the opposite end facets thereof including the
facet 213 disposed vis-a-vis the radial bearing means 204 and the
facet 214 disposed vis-a-vis the space-forming member 207 with
respective groups of dynamic pressure generating grooves 213a,
213a, . . . and dynamic pressure generating grooves 214a, 214a, . .
.
[0179] The space-forming member 207 is additionally provided with a
recess 207a for receiving the anti-release member 212 so that a
space is formed around the anti-release member 212. Lubricating oil
is filled in the gap formed between the anti-release member 212 and
the space-forming member 207 and the gap formed between the
anti-release member 212 and the radial bearing means 204.
[0180] Thus, the bearing unit 201 B shows the configuration of a
hydrodynamic fluid bearing realized by using the anti-release
member 212 and the space-forming member 207 for the thrust bearing
means 205 and the shaft 202 is rotatably supported relative to the
hydrodynamic fluid bearing. Therefore, the bearing unit 201B is
relatively free from vibrations and hence can suitably find
applications to motors of recording devices such as optical disc
drives and hard disc drives.
[0181] While the manufacturing method comprising steps (1) through
(4) described above by referring to FIGS. 13A through 13D can also
be used basically for manufacturing the bearing unit 201 B, it
should be noted that it is necessary to supply lubricating oil into
the dynamic pressure generating grooves 213a and 214a and the space
between the radial bearing means 204 and the space-forming member
207 in order to generate dynamic pressure to a predetermined level
when the shaft is driven to revolve. How lubricating oil is
supplied is defined by the dimensional accuracy of the anti-release
member 212 and the space-forming member 207.
[0182] While the dynamic pressure generating grooves 213a, 214a are
formed in the anti-release member 212 in this embodiment, the
arrangement of the dynamic pressure generating grooves is not
limited to the above description and they may alternatively be
formed on the surface of the radial bearing means 204 that is
located vis-a-vis the anti-release member 212 or the surfaces of
the space-forming member 207 located vis-a-vis the anti-release
member 212.
[0183] Now, a rotary drive according to the invention will be
described below.
[0184] FIG. 16 is an embodiment of a rotary drive comprising a
bearing unit 201 according to the invention that is applied to a
fan motor. It may be appreciated that the bearing unit 201 may be
replaced by a bearing unit 201 A or bearing unit 201 B.
[0185] Referring to FIG. 16, the rotary drive 215 comprises a rotor
section 216 and a stator section 217 that includes the bearing unit
201.
[0186] The rotor section 216 that operates as rotary body (rotor)
is provided with a rotor yoke 218, a magnet 219, a plurality of
blades 220, 220, . . . and an end of a shaft 202 that operates as a
rotary shaft is rigidly press-fitted and secured to the boss
section 221 arranged at the center of rotation of rotor section
216. The annular magnet (plastic magnet) 219 that is magnetized
along the periphery thereof is bonded and secured to the inner
peripheral surface of the rotor yoke 218 and the plurality of
blades 220, 220 . . . is arranged peripherally on the outer
peripheral surface of the cylindrical section 216a of the rotor
section 216 at predetermined regular angular intervals.
[0187] The bearing unit 201 is arranged in the stator section 217
as a shaft supporting means for rotatably supporting the shaft 202
that revolves with the rotor section 216. More specifically, the
bearing unit 201 is received in a recess 223 of a cylindrical
support section 222a that is formed in a stator yoke 222 of the
stator section 217. It is press-fitted or bonded to the recess 223.
Coil sections 226, each of which includes a core 224 and coil 225,
are arranged at respective positions located vis-a-vis the inner
peripheral surface of the magnet 219 to form a rotary body drive
means 227 along with the magnet 219 and the rotor yoke 218.
[0188] The rotary drive 215 has a case 228, which is provided with
a hole 228a. As the coil sections 226 are electrically energized to
drive the rotor section 216 to revolve, air flows in through the
hole 228a as indicated by arrow A in FIG. 16 and then expelled to
the outside through a blast nozzle (not shown) formed in the case
228.
[0189] As a fan motor as described above mounts the bearing unit
201, lubricating oil would not leak out to improve reliability and
prolong the service life of the bearing unit 201. Additionally,
when a hydrodynamic fluid bearing type radial bearing means 204 is
used, lubricating oil is further prevented from leaking to realize
a motor that is highly reliable and adapted to revolve at a high
rate. Therefore, such a bearing unit can suitably be used in a
device as a cooling fan that is required to show a high cooling
performance. For example, a bearing unit according to the invention
may find applications in cooling systems for cooling a heat
emitting body such as a CPU of a computer, where heat generated
from the heat emitting body is transmitted to a heat sink and the
heat sink is cooled by air blown by a fan.
[0190] The posture of arrangement of the rotary drive 215 does not
give rise to any problem in terms of the direction of the shaft
202. For example, the rotary drive 215 may be arranged upside down
relative to the posture shown in FIG. 16. In short, the rotary
drive 215 is not subjected to significant restrictions in terms of
positional arrangement.
[0191] A rotary drive according to the invention can find
applications including not only fan motors but also motors of
rotary drives of disc-shaped recording mediums and various other
electric devices such as rotary head drums.
[0192] As described above, a bearing unit according to the
invention is so configured that, after fitting a space-forming
member, a seal member and other necessary members to the rotary
shaft support means, which may be a radial bearing, the members are
contained in and surrounded by a housing member, which has a
seamless structure and made of a polymeric material, without
producing any gap in the inside. Therefore, the bearing unit is
free from the problem of leakage of lubricating oil from the
inside. Thus, the present invention provides a bearing unit that is
highly reliable and can enjoy a long service life.
[0193] Additionally, a bearing unit according to the invention is
manufactured by a simple manufacturing method that comprises only a
reduced number of steps and it is not necessary to control the
packing operation, using an adhesive agent, and the operation of
checking the sealed condition of the bearing unit.
[0194] Still additionally, a bearing unit according to the
invention is manufactured highly reliably at low cost and can enjoy
a long service life due to the use of a hydrodynamic fluid bearing
made of sintered metal and a molded housing member made of
resin.
[0195] Furthermore, a bearing unit according to the invention can
provide a necessary level of accuracy even when the gap between the
seal member and the shaft is relatively small and reduce the
deviation of the gap G.
[0196] Now, still other embodiments of bearing unit according to
the invention and those of rotary drive using a bearing unit
according to the invention will be described below by referring to
the related drawings (FIG. 17).
[0197] The following embodiments will be described in terms of
motors to be used for heat-emitting devices of electric apparatus
such as portable computers, or information processing apparatus for
processing various kinds of information. A portable computer is
provided in the inside thereof with a heat-emitting device. The
heat-emitting device comprises a metal made base, a motor 301
fitted to the base, a fan 303 driven to revolve by the motor 301, a
fan case 304 containing the fan 303 in the inside and a heat sink.
The motor 301 for driving the fan 303 of the heat-emitting device
to revolve will be described in detail below.
[0198] The motor 301 that is provided with a bearing unit 330
according to the invention comprises a rotor 311 and a stator 312
as shown in FIG. 17.
[0199] The stator 312 is arranged on and integrally formed with the
upper plate 304a of the fan case 304, which contains the motor 301
and the fan 303 that is driven to revolve by the motor 301. The
stator 312 has a bearing unit 330 according to the invention, coils
314 and cores 315 around which the coils 314 are wound
respectively. The stator yoke 313 may be integrally formed with the
upper surface section 304a of the fan case 304. In other words,
they may be formed as part of the fan case 304 or separately from
the fan case 304. The stator yoke 313 is typically made of iron.
The bearing unit 330 is rigidly secured to the inside of the hollow
cylindrical holder 316 that is formed at the center of the stator
yoke 313 by press-fitting and/or bonding.
[0200] The holder 316 into which the bearing unit 330 is
press-fitted is formed integrally with the stator yoke 313 to show
a hollow cylindrical profile.
[0201] The cores 315, around which the respective coils 314 are
wound, are fitted to the outer periphery of the holder 316 that is
integral with the stator yoke 313. A drive current is supplied to
the coils 314.
[0202] The rotor 311 that forms the motor 301 along with the stator
312 is fitted to the rotary shaft 331 that is rotatably supported
by the bearing unit 330 so that it revolves with the rotary shaft
331. The rotor 311 comprises a rotor yoke 317 and a fan 303 having
a plurality of blades 319 that revolve integrally with the rotor
yoke 317. The blades 319 of the fan 303 is integrally formed with
the rotor yoke 317 on the outer peripheral surface of the rotor
yoke by outsert molding.
[0203] A rotor magnet 320 is arranged on the inner peripheral
surface of the cylindrical section 317a of the rotor yoke 317 so as
to face the coils 314 of the stator 312. The magnet 320 is a
plastic magnet that is so magnetized as to show S poles and N poles
that are alternately and peripherally arranged and rigidly fitted
to the inner peripheral surface of the rotor yoke 317 by means of
an adhesive agent.
[0204] The rotor yoke 317 is made to revolve integrally with the
rotary shaft 331 as the fitting section 332 formed at the front end
of the rotary shaft 331 that is supported by the bearing unit 330
is press-fitted into the boss section 321 of the plate section 317b
that is provided at the center thereof with a through hole
321a.
[0205] As a drive current is supplied to the coils 314 of the
stator 312 with a predetermined energizing pattern from a drive
circuit section arranged outside relative to the motor 301, the
rotor 311 of the motor 301 having the above described configuration
is driven to revolve with the rotary shaft 331 under the effect of
the magnetic fields generated in the respective coils 314 and the
magnetic field produced from the rotor magnet 320 of the rotor 311.
As the rotor 311 revolves, the fan 303 having a plurality of blades
319 and fitted to the rotor 311 also revolves with the rotor 311.
As the fan 303 revolves, air is drawn in from the outside of the
computer device through the opening cut through the cabinet of the
computer and made to flow into the cabinet so as to pass through
the heat sink arranged in the cabinet before it is expelled to the
outside of the cabinet through a through hole also cut through the
cabinet so that the heat generated by the heat emitting element is
discharged to the outside of the computer main body and cool the
computer main body.
[0206] Now, the bearing unit 330 that is used in the motor 301 will
be described in greater detail below.
[0207] As shown in FIGS. 17, 18 and 19, the bearing unit 330 that
rotatably supports the rotary shaft 331 of the above described
motor 301 comprises a radial bearing 333 for peripherally
supporting the rotary shaft 331, a space-forming member 334 formed
outside the radial bearing 333, a housing 337 containing the
space-forming member 334 and a communication passage way 350 formed
between the space-forming member 334 and the radial bearing
333.
[0208] The radial bearing 333 is made of sintered metal and has a
hollow cylindrical profile. The radial bearing 333 forms a
hydrodynamic fluid bearing along with the lubricating oil 342
filled in the housing 337, which lubricating oil 342 is viscous
fluid. Dynamic pressure generating grooves 343, 344 are formed on
the inner peripheral surface of the radial bearing 333 for
receiving the rotary shaft 331.
[0209] As shown in FIG. 20, the dynamic pressure generating grooves
343, 344 include respective pairs of grooves 343a, 344a that are
formed on the inner peripheral surface of the radial bearing 333 so
as to show V-shapes and linked together respectively by link
grooves 343b, 344b that run peripherally. The dynamic pressure
generating grooves 343, 344 are arranged in such a way that the
front ends of the pairs of grooves 343a, 344a that show V-shapes
are directed in the direction of revolution R1 of the rotary shaft
331. In this embodiment, the dynamic pressure generating grooves
343, 344 are arranged in parallel with each other and one above the
other in the axial direction of the cylindrical radial bearing 333,
of which the dynamic pressure generating grooves 343 are located at
the open side of the shaft, or close to the exposed part of the
shaft, while the dynamic pressure generating grooves 344 are
located at the closed side of the shaft or close to thrust bearing,
which will be described hereinafter. The number and the size of the
dynamic pressure generating grooves 343 and those of the dynamic
pressure generating grooves 344 may be selected appropriately
depending on the size and the length of the radial bearing 333. The
radial bearing 333 may be made of brass, stainless steel or a
polymeric material.
[0210] As the rotary shaft 331 inserted into the radial bearing
333, which is formed as hydrodynamic fluid bearing, is driven to
revolve continuously around the central axis CL in the direction of
R1 in FIG. 20, the lubricating oil 342 filled in the housing 337
flows through the dynamic pressure generating grooves 343, 344 to
generate dynamic pressure between the outer peripheral surface of
the rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral surface of the radial
bearing 333 to support the revolving rotary shaft 331. The dynamic
pressure that is generated at this time minimizes the coefficient
of friction between the rotary shaft 331 and the radial bearing 333
to make the rotary shaft 331 revolve very smoothly.
[0211] Meanwhile, in the bearing unit 330, the width of the dynamic
pressure generating grooves 344 as viewed in the thrusting
direction is made greater than the width of the dynamic pressure
generating grooves 343 as viewed in the thrusting direction. With
this arrangement, the dynamic pressure P343 generated in the
dynamic pressure generating grooves 343 at the open end side of the
shaft and the dynamic pressure P344 generated in the dynamic
pressure generating grooves 344 at the closed end side of the shaft
show a relationship of P343<P344.
[0212] The dynamic pressure P344 at the closed end side of the
shaft is made greater than the dynamic pressure P343 at the open
end side of the shaft for the reason as described below. The
generation of the dynamic pressure simultaneously generates change
in static pressure. If the dynamic pressure P343 and the dynamic
pressure P344 are made to show a relationship of P343>P344 that
is inverted from the above relationship, or if the dynamic pressure
at the open end side of the shaft is made greater than the dynamic
pressure at the closed end side of the shaft, the distribution of
static pressure is inverted relative to that of dynamic pressure.
Then, the static pressure becomes higher at the closed and sealed
end side of the shaft than at the open end side of the shaft. Then,
the static pressure that is generated simultaneously with the
revolutions of the shaft gives rise to a phenomenon of pushing up
the shaft, or a floating shaft phenomenon.
[0213] In the bearing unit 330, the width of the dynamic pressure
generating grooves 343 is made greater than the width of the
dynamic pressure generating grooves 344 to establish a relationship
of P343<P344 between the dynamic pressure P343 at the open end
side of the shaft and the dynamic pressure P344 at the closed end
side of the shaft in order to prevent a floating shaft phenomenon
from taking place and make the static pressure at the open end side
of the shaft greater than the static pressure at the closed end
side of the shaft. In other words, the shaft is drawn toward the
closed end side, or toward the side of the thrust bearing, which
will be described hereinafter.
[0214] The space-forming member 334 that is arranged outside the
radial bearing 333 shows a profile adapted to contain and surround
the radial bearing 333, which is formed to show a cylindrical
profile and is typically made of synthetic resin.
[0215] As shown in FIGS. 18 and 21, the space-forming member 334
includes a space-forming member main body 335 formed to surround
the lateral surface and the bottom surface of the radial bearing
and a space-forming member lid section 336 formed to cover the top
surface of the radial bearing. The space-forming member lid section
336 is provided at the center thereof with a shaft receiving
through hole 336a that allows the rotary shaft 331, which is
rotatably supported by the radial bearing 333, to run through
it.
[0216] A thrust bearing 346 is integrally formed with the
space-forming member main body 335 at the center of the inner
surface of the bottom thereof. The thrust bearing 346 is adapted to
rotatably support the bearing support section 331a of the rotary
shaft 331 that is arranged at the closed end of the rotary shaft
331 supported by the radial bearing 333 as viewed in the thrusting
direction. The space-forming member 334 is made of synthetic resin
and hence the thrust bearing 346 that is integral with the
space-forming member 334 is also made of synthetic resin. The
thrust bearing 346 is formed as a pivot bearing that supports the
bearing support section 331a of the rotary shaft 331 that is made
to show a curved or tapered profile at a point.
[0217] Claw-like restricting sections 335a are formed at upper
parts of the space-forming member main body 335. The claw-like
restricting sections 335a are arranged along a circle so as to
rigidly secure the space-forming member lid section 336 and make
the latter cover the top surface of the radial bearing.
Additionally, the space-forming member main body 335 is provided at
the lateral wall thereof with openings 335b that allow the outer
peripheral surface of the radial bearing to be exposed to the
outside when the radial bearing is contained in the space-forming
member 334.
[0218] While the space-forming member 334 is made of synthetic
resin in the above description, it may alternatively be made of
metal or a combination of synthetic resin and metal. It is not
subjected to any particular limitations in terms of material. When
the space-forming member 334 is made of synthetic resin, it is
possible to design it in an ingenious way particularly in terms of
phase index relative to the radial bearing and manufacture it at
low cost. Examples of resin materials that can be used to form the
space-forming member 334 include fluorine type synthetic resin
materials such as polyimide, polyamide and polyacetal,
polytetrafluoroethylene Teflon (tradename), nylon, PC
(polycarbonate), ABS (acrylonitrilbutadienestyrene) and other
synthetic resin materials.
[0219] A communication passage way 350 is formed between the
space-forming member 334 and the radial bearing 333. The
communication passage way 350 makes the end of the shaft projecting
out from the radial bearing 333 in the thrusting direction and the
other end of the shaft communicate with each other. In other words,
the communication passage way 350 allows the end of the shaft where
the thrust bearing 346 is formed and the other end of the shaft
that is located at the side of the shaft receiving through hole
336a of the space-forming member lid section 336 communicate with
each other.
[0220] As shown in FIGS. 21 and 22, the communication passage way
350 includes a first groove 351 formed on the outer peripheral
surface of the radial bearing 333 so as to run in the thrusting
direction, a second groove 352 formed on the end facet of the
radial bearing 333 located close to the thrust bearing 346 and a
third groove 353 formed on the opposite end facet of the radial
bearing 333.
[0221] The communication passage way may alternatively be arranged
at the side of the space-forming member 334 as shown in FIGS. 23
and 24. More specifically, when the communication passage way 360
is arranged at the side of the space-forming member 334, it
comprises a first groove 361 formed on the inner peripheral surface
of the space-forming member main body 335 of the space-forming
member 334 in the thrusting direction, a second groove 362 formed
on the inner surface of the bottom section of the space-forming
member main body 335 and a third groove 363 formed on the inner
surface of the space-forming member lid section 336. Still
alternatively, the first through third grooves 351 through 353
arranged at the radial bearing side and the first through third
grooves 361 through 363 arranged on the space-forming member 334
may be combined.
[0222] As pointed out above, in the bearing unit 330 of this
embodiment, the width of the dynamic pressure generating grooves
344 is greater than that of the dynamic pressure generating grooves
343 and the dynamic pressure P344 at the closed side of the shaft
is greater than the dynamic pressure P343 at the open side of the
shaft. While this arrangement can suppress the floating shaft
phenomenon that is produced by the revolving shaft, the residual
air can be expanded at the closed end of the shaft due to the
reduction of the static pressure at this side to give rise to a
phenomenon that expanded air forces out lubricating oil.
[0223] However, the communication passage way 350 or the
communication passage way 360 prevents lubricating oil from being
forced out by the air remaining in the housing and/or the air
dissolved in the lubricating oil because the open side end of the
rotary shaft 331 that is projecting from the radial bearing 333 and
the closed side end of the shaft 331 communicate with each other so
that the static pressure at the closed side end of the rotary shaft
331 does not fall. In other words, the communication passage ways
350, 360 can short circuit the pressurized air at the opposite ends
of the dynamic pressure generating grooves 343, 344 arranged on the
radial bearing 333 so that no pressure difference occurs and hence
the floating shaft phenomenon does not appear.
[0224] As shown in FIG. 19, the housing 337 that contains the
space-forming member 334 has a profile adapted to surround and
contain the substantially cylindrical space-forming member 334. It
is an integral member formed by molding synthetic resin.
[0225] Referring to FIG. 19, the housing 337 includes a hollow
cylindrical housing main body 338, a bottom closure section 339
formed integrally with the housing main body 338 and adapted to
close one of the opposite ends of the housing main body 338 and a
top closure section 340 formed integrally with the housing main
body 338 and adapted to close the other end of the housing main
body 338. A shaft receiving hole 341 is bored through the center of
the upper closure section 340 so as to allow the rotary shaft 331
that is housed in the housing 337 and rotatably supported by the
radial bearing 333 to pass through it.
[0226] The housing 337 having the above described configuration is
formed by outsert molding of a synthetic resin material to contain
the cylindrical space-forming member 334 therein so that the
space-forming member 334 is formed integrally with and arranged in
the housing main body 338.
[0227] Since the outer peripheral surface of the radial bearing 333
is partly exposed to the outside through the opening 335b of the
space-forming member main body 335, the radial bearing 333 is also
made integral with the housing 337 that is formed by outsert
molding.
[0228] While the synthetic resin material of the housing 337 is not
subjected to particular limitations, a material can provide a large
contact angle relative to the lubricating oil 342 filled in the
housing 337 so that it may repel the lubricating oil 342. Since the
space-forming member 334 is integrally formed with the housing 337,
the housing 337 is preferably made of a synthetic resin material
that shows an excellent lubricating performance. Examples of
synthetic resin materials that can preferably be used for the
housing 337 include fluorine type synthetic resin materials such as
polyimide, polyamide and polyacetal; although
polytetrafluoroethylene Teflon (tradename), nylon, PC
(polycarbonate), ABS (acrylonitrilbutadienestyrene) and other
synthetic resin materials may also be used. Alternatively, the
housing 337 may be formed from a liquid crystal polymer that can be
highly accurately molded. The housing 337 that is molded from a
liquid crystal polymer is highly abrasion-resistant and shows an
excellent lubricating performance.
[0229] Meanwhile, the bearing unit 330 of this embodiment is a
so-called shaft opposite ends open type bearing unit in which the
opposite ends of the shaft 331, one of which is projecting from the
radial bearing 333, communicate with each other by way of the
communication passage way 350. Conventional shaft opposite ends
open type bearing units are accompanied by the problem that
lubricating oil can easily disperse when subjected to impact.
However, in the bearing unit 330 of this embodiment, the housing
337 is made to be a seamless structure that is hermetically sealed
except around the shaft receiving hole 336a and contains the radial
bearing 333 and the space-forming member 334 in the inside so that,
while the open side end of the shaft that projects from the radial
bearing and the closed side end of the shaft are made to
communicate with each other by way of the communication passage way
350, the bearing unit 330 is hermetically sealed and isolated from
the outside except around the shaft receiving hole 336a arranged at
the housing 337. Differently stated, since the communication
passage way 350 is arranged in the housing that is a seamless
structure and hermetically sealed against the outside, lubricating
oil is prevented from dispersing if it is subjected to impact.
[0230] The rotary shaft 331 that is rotatably supported by the
thrust bearing 346, which is integral with the radial bearing 333
arranged in the inside of the housing 337 and the housing 337, has
at an end thereof the bearing support section 331a of the shaft
main body 331b that shows a curved or tapered profile and is
adapted to be supported by the thrust bearing 346 and the fitting
section 332 at the other end thereof, to which typically the rotor
331 of a motor 312, or a rotary body, is fitted. The fitting
section 332 has a diameter the same as that of the shaft main body
331b.
[0231] Referring to FIG. 19, the rotary shaft 331 is supported at
the bearing support section 331a thereof located at an end thereof
by the thrust bearing 346 and at the outer peripheral surface of
the shaft main body 331b by the radial bearing 333, while it is
supported at the fitting section 332 located at the opposite end
thereof by the housing 337 with the shaft projecting through the
shaft receiving hole 341 arranged at the top closure section 340 of
the housing main body 338.
[0232] The rotary shaft 331 is provided with an anti-shaft-release
groove 331 c that is arranged between the bearing support section
331a and the shaft main body 331b. On the other hand, the
space-forming member 334 is provided with a washer 349 that is
arranged at a position corresponding to the anti-shaft-release
groove 331c and adapted to operate as an anti-shaft-release means.
Thus, the operation of assembling the bearing unit can be handled
with ease as the anti-shaft-release groove 331c and the washer 349
are brought into mutual engagement. The washer 349 may typically be
made of a polymeric material such as nylon, polyamide or polyimide
or a metal material such as stainless steel or phosphor bronze.
[0233] Meanwhile, the shaft receiving hole 341 is formed to have an
inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the shaft
main body 331b so that the rotary shaft 331 that is made to run
through the shaft receiving hole 341 revolves without touching the
inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole 341. The shaft
receiving hole 341 is formed so as to provide a gap 345 with a gap
dimension c that is sufficient for preventing the lubricating oil
342 filled in the housing 337 from leaking out of the housing 337
between the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole
341 and the outer peripheral surface of the shaft main body 331b.
Thus, the top closure section 340, through which the shaft
receiving hole 341 is formed to produce a gap 345 between the
rotary shaft 331 and the shaft receiving hole 341 that prevents the
lubricating oil 342 filled in the housing 337 from leaking,
operates as oil seal section.
[0234] Since the top closure section 340 that is integrally formed
with the housing 337 is made of synthetic resin such as polyimide,
polyamide or nylon, it can secure a contact angle of about
60.degree. for the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving
hole 341 relative to lubricating oil 342. The bearing unit 330 of
this embodiment can provide the top closure section 340 with a
large contact angle relative to lubricating oil 342 without
applying a surface active agent to the top closure section 340 that
operates as oil seal section and includes the inner peripheral
surface of the shaft receiving hole 341. Therefore, the bearing
unit 330 can prevent lubricating oil 342 from being driven to the
outside of the housing 337 through the shaft receiving hole 341 by
the centrifugal force generated when the rotary shaft 331 is driven
to revolve.
[0235] Additionally, the part of the outer peripheral surface of
the rotary shaft 331 that is located vis-a-vis the inner peripheral
surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 is provided with a tapered
section 347. The tapered section 347 is so inclined that the gap
345 formed between the outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft
331 and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole
341 expands as it comes close to the outside of the housing 337.
The tapered section 347 produces a pressure gradient in the gap 345
between the outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331 and
the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 to
generate force that tends to draw the lubricating oil 342 filled in
the housing 337 toward the inside of the housing 337. Thus, the
lubricating oil 342 tends to be drawn to the inside of the housing
337 when the rotary shaft 331 is driven to revolve so that
lubricating oil 342 reliably gets into the dynamic pressure
generating grooves 358 of the radial bearing 333 that operates as
hydrodynamic fluid bearing to reliably support the rotary shaft 331
and prevent the lubricating oil 342 filled in the housing 337 from
leaking.
[0236] In the bearing unit 330 of this embodiment, the lubricating
oil 342, which gets into the dynamic pressure generating grooves
358 arranged on the radial bearing 333 that operates as
hydrodynamic fluid bearing to generate dynamic pressure, is filled
in the bearing unit 330 in such a way that that it fills the space
from the inside of the housing 337 to the gap 345 formed between
the tapered section 347 of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner
peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole 341. In other words,
the lubricating oil 342 is filled in all the gaps in the housing
337 and impregnated into the radial bearing 333 that is made of
sintered metal.
[0237] Now the gap 345 formed between the tapered section 347 of
the rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft
receiving hole 341 will be discussed. The minimum dimension of the
gap 345 corresponds to the distance c between the outer peripheral
surface of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral surface of
the shaft receiving hole 341 and the dimension c is preferably
between 20 .mu.m and 200 .mu.m, more preferably about 100 .mu.m. If
the dimension c is smaller than 20 .mu.m, it is difficult to secure
the necessary molding accuracy when integrally molding the housing
337 of the bearing unit 330 from synthetic resin. If, on the other
hand, the dimension c of the gap 345 is larger than 200 .mu.m, the
impact-resistance of the lubricating oil 342 filled in the housing
337 is reduced and lubricating oil can disperse to the outside of
the housing 337 when the bearing unit 330 is subjected to
impact.
[0238] The impact-resistance G of the lubricating oil 342 filled in
the housing 337 that prevents lubricating oil from dispersing to
the outside of the housing 337 when the bearing unit 330 is
subjected to impact is expressed by formula (1) below;
G=(12.gamma.cos .beta./2.rho.c2)/g (1), where .gamma.: surface
tension of lubricating oil,
[0239] .beta.: contact angle of lubricating oil,
[0240] .rho.: density of lubricating oil,
[0241] c: dimension of the gap between the rotary shaft and the
shaft receiving hole, and
[0242] g: free fall acceleration.
[0243] From the formula (1), it will be appreciated that the
impact-resistance G is inversely proportional to a square of the
dimension c of the gap 345.
[0244] The rise h of the oil surface due to thermal expansion is
expressed by formula (2) below; h=V.alpha..DELTA.t/2.pi.Rc (2),
where V: volume of the filled lubricating oil,
[0245] .alpha.: thermal expansion coefficient,
[0246] .DELTA.t: temperature change, and
[0247] R: shaft half diameter.
[0248] From the formula (2), it will be appreciated that the rise h
of the oil surface is inversely proportional to the dimension c so
that the impact-resistance G rises when the dimension c is reduced
but the rise h of surface of the filled lubricating oil 342 due to
a temperature rise is extreme so that the axial length, or the
height, of the shaft receiving hole 341 needs to be increased to
avoid problems.
[0249] As a result of an computing operation, it was found that the
impact-resistance is not smaller than 1,000 G in a bearing unit 330
having a rotary shaft 331 whose shaft diameter is between 2 mm and
3 mm when the dimension c of the gap 345 formed between the rotary
shaft 331 and the shaft receiving hole 341 is about 100 .mu.m,
while the height H1 of the shaft receiving hole 341, or the
thickness of the top closure section 340 of the housing 337, is
about 1 mm. In this case, the lubricating oil 342 can withstand a
high temperature level of 80.degree. C. and the bearing unit 330
can operate reliably so as to prevent the lubricating oil 342
filled in the housing 337 from dispersing.
[0250] Additionally, in the bearing unit 330 of this embodiment,
the rotary shaft 331 is provided with a tapered section 347 that is
adapted to increase the dimension c of the gap 345 formed between
the outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner
peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 toward the
outside of the housing 337 so that a pressure gradient is formed in
the gap 345 with the dimension c formed between the outer
peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral
surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 to draw the lubricating oil
342 filled in the housing 337 toward the inside of the housing 337
by the centrifugal force that is generated when the rotary shaft
331 is driven to revolve.
[0251] Thus, in the bearing unit 330 of this embodiment, the gap
345 formed between the outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft
331 and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole
341 prevents lubricating oil 342 from dispersing by effect of the
surface tension seal produced there.
[0252] Now, the surface tension seal will be described below. A
surface tension seal represents a sealing technique that utilizes
the capillary phenomenon of fluid. In the case of a capillary as
shown in FIG. 26, the rise h of the surface level of the liquid is
determined by formula (3) shown below; 2.pi.r.gamma.cos .theta.=mg
(3), where m is expressed by formula (4) below; m=.pi.r2h.rho. (4),
where m: fluid mass within the range of h in the capillary,
[0253] r: half diameter of the capillary,
[0254] .gamma.: surface tension of viscous fluid,
[0255] .theta.: contact angle of viscous fluid,
[0256] .rho.: density of viscous fluid, and
[0257] g: gravity acceleration.
[0258] Formula (5) below is drawn from the formulas (3) and (4);
h=2.gamma. cos .theta./r.rho.g (5).
[0259] Generally, the relationship between pressure P and the
height of fluid is expressed by formula (6) below; P=.rho.gh
(6).
[0260] Thus, formula (7) below is obtained from the formulas (5)
and (6); P=2.gamma.cos .theta./r (7).
[0261] In the formula (7), pressure P refers to the pressure that
draws fluid. From the formula (7), the drawing pressure is greater
when the diameter of the capillary is smaller.
[0262] While the above description is applied to a situation where
the capillary shows a circular cross sectional view, the
lubricating oil 342 that gets into the gap 345 formed between the
outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner
peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 of the bearing
unit 330 of this embodiment shows an annular cross sectional view
as shown in FIG. 27. In this case, the rise h1 of the surface level
of liquid, which is lubricating oil 342, is determined by formula
(8) below; 2.pi.(R+r).gamma.cos .theta.=mg (8), where m is
expressed by formula (9) below; m=.pi.(R2r2)h.rho. (9)
[0263] Thus, formula (10) below is obtained from the formulas (8)
and (9); h1=(2.gamma.cos .theta.)/((Rr).rho.g) (10).
[0264] If (Rr) is equal to the dimension c of the gap 345 that is
formed between the outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331
and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole 341,
formula (11) is obtained by transcribing the formula (10);
h=(2.gamma.cos .theta.)/(c.rho.g) (11).
[0265] Thus, when the lubricating oil 342 in the gap 345 shows an
annular cross sectional view, the drawing pressure is expressed by
formula (12) below; P=2.gamma.cos .theta./c (12).
[0266] Now, a specific example of computing operation will be shown
below.
[0267] If the dimension c of the gap 345 formed between the outer
peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral
surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 is 0.02 cm (0.2 mm), the
surface tension y of viscous fluid is 30 dyn/cm2 and the contact
angle .theta. of lubricating oil 342 is 15.degree., the drawing
pressure is 2.86.times.103 a tm from the formula (13). P = 2
.times. 30 .times. cos .times. .times. 15 .times. .degree. / 0.02 =
3.00 .times. 103 .times. .times. dyn .times. / .times. cm .times.
.times. 2 = 2.86 .times. 10 3 .times. .times. atm ##EQU1##
[0268] From the formula (12), it will be seen that the drawing
pressure P is greater when the dimension c of the gap 345 is
smaller. Thus, it will be seen that, when the rotary shaft 331 is
provided with a tapered section 347, the lubricating oil 342, which
is viscous fluid, is drawn toward the side where the dimension c of
the gap 345 is smaller and hence toward the inside of the housing
337.
[0269] For example, referring to FIG. 28, the drawing pressure P1
at position t1 and the drawing pressure P2 at position t2 of the
tapered section 347 of the rotary shaft 331, the diameter at
position t1 being different from the diameter at position t2, show
a relationship of P1>P2 from the formula (12) because the
dimension c1 of the gap between the outer peripheral surface of the
rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft
receiving hole 341 and the dimension c2 of the gap between the
outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner
peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 have the
relationship of c1<c2. Thus, it will be seen that the drawing
pressure P trying to draw the lubricating oil 342 into the inside
of the housing 337 is greater when the dimension c of the gap 345
formed between the outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331
and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 is
smaller.
[0270] As the rotary shaft 331 is provided with a tapered section
347 that makes the dimension c of the gap 345 formed between the
outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner
peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 decrease toward
the inside of the housing 337 so as to form a seal section for
preventing the lubricating oil 342 filled in the housing 337 from
leaking to the outside of the housing 337, a pressure gradient is
produced in the lubricating oil 342 that is found in the gap 345
formed between the outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331
and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole 341.
Thus, the pressure gradient of the lubricating oil 342 is such that
the pressure trying to draw the lubricating oil 342 into the inside
of the housing 337 increases as a function of the dimension c of
the gap 345. As a result of producing such a pressure gradient in
the lubricating oil 342, the lubricating oil 342 is constantly
subjected to pressure P trying to draw it into the inside of the
housing 337 so that air is not drawn into the lubricating oil 342
in the gap 345 when the rotary shaft 331 is driven to revolve.
[0271] When the above described tapered section 347 is not
provided, or when the dimension c of the gap 345 between the outer
peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral
surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 has a constant value along
the longitudinal direction of the shaft receiving hole 341 as shown
in FIG. 27, no pressure gradient is produced in the lubricating oil
342 that gets into the gap 345 between the outer peripheral surface
of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral surface of the
shaft receiving hole 341 so that lubricating oil 342 is found
uniformly in the gap 345. Then, when the rotary shaft 331 is driven
to revolve, the lubricating oil 342 that gets into the gap 345,
which operates as seal section if its dimension c between the outer
peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral
surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 is decreased toward the
inside of the housing 337, moves in the gap 345 so that it can draw
air E into itself. As air E is drawn into the lubricating oil 342,
the air E in the lubricating oil 342 expands when the temperature
and/or the pressure change to make lubricating oil 342 disperse
from the gap 345, which operates as seal section, to the outside of
the housing 337.
[0272] To the contrary, in the bearing unit 330 of this embodiment,
the rotary shaft 331 is provided with a tapered section 347 that
decreases the dimension c of the gap 345 between the outer
peripheral surface of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral
surface of the shaft receiving hole 341 toward the inside of the
housing 337 so that a pressure gradient is produced in the
lubricating oil 342 that gets into the gap 345 that makes the
pressure being applied to the lubricating oil 342 increase toward
the inside of the housing 337. Therefore, air E is prevented from
being drawn into the lubricating oil 342 when the rotary shaft 331
is driven to revolve.
[0273] As a result of providing a tapered section 347 in a manner
as described above, the lubricating oil 342 that gets into the gap
345 formed between the outer peripheral surface of the rotary shaft
331 and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole
341 is prevented from dispersing to the outside of the housing 337
when the rotary shaft 331 becomes eccentric relative to the shaft
receiving hole 341 of the housing 337 and additionally, lubricating
oil 342 is allowed to get into the gap 345 around the entire
periphery of the rotary shaft 331 to prevent the rotary shaft 331
from being short of lubricating oil 342 and guarantee that the
rotary shaft 331 revolves stably.
[0274] If the rotary shaft 331 is not provided with a tapered
section 347 in a manner as described above and the rotary shaft 331
becomes eccentric relative to the shaft receiving hole 341 of the
housing 337, lubricating oil 342 is concentrated to an area where
the dimension c of the gap between the outer peripheral surface of
the rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral surface of the shaft
receiving hole 341 is small, while lubricating oil 342 becomes
scarce in the remaining area where the dimension c is large so that
it draws air E into itself as shown in FIG. 30. As air E is drawn
into the lubricating oil 342, the air E in the lubricating oil 342
expands when the temperature and/or the pressure change to make
lubricating oil 342 disperse from the gap 345, which operates as a
seal section, to the outside of the housing 337.
[0275] To the contrary, the rotary shaft 331 of the bearing unit
330 of this embodiment is provided with a tapered section 347 so
that, if the rotary shaft 331 becomes eccentric relative to the
shaft receiving hole 341 of the housing 337, the elliptic
trajectory of the eccentric rotary shaft 331 always shows areas
with a same dimension c of the gap 345 as shown in FIG. 31. Then,
the dimension c of the gap 345 formed between the outer peripheral
surface of the rotary shaft 331 and the inner peripheral surface of
the shaft receiving hole 341 on the elliptic trajectory shows a
constant value along all the circumference of the rotary shaft 331
as shown in FIG. 32 so that lubricating oil 342 would not be
concentrated to an area where the dimension c is small. Thus,
lubricating oil 342 is prevented from dispersing from the gap 345
and hence from the inside of the housing 337.
[0276] While the rotary shaft 331 is provided with a tapered
section 347 in the above described bearing unit 330, alternatively
the shaft receiving hole 341 of the housing 337 may be provided
with a tapered section 348 on the inner peripheral surface thereof
as shown in FIG. 33.
[0277] Now, a process of manufacturing a bearing unit 330 according
to the invention and having the above described configuration will
be described below.
[0278] When manufacturing a bearing unit 330 according to the
invention, it is temporarily assembled by fitting a space-forming
member 334 to the outside of a radial bearing 333. In this step of
temporarily assembling a radial bearing 333 and a space-forming
member 334, a washer 349, which is an anti-shaft-release means to
be inserted into the anti-shaft-release groove 331c formed between
the bearing support section 331a and the shaft main body 331b of
the rotary shaft 331, is fitted to the space-forming member main
body 335 as shown in FIG. 34. Then, the space-forming member main
body 335 and the space-forming member lid section 336 are fitted to
the radial bearing 333, which is a hydrodynamic fluid bearing. Note
that a thrust bearing 346 is integrally formed with the
space-forming member main body 335 in the inside of the latter.
Additionally, a communication passage way 350 is formed between the
space-forming member 334 and the radial bearing 333.
[0279] Then, the radial bearing 333 and the space-forming member
334 that are temporarily assembled are fitted to a metal mold and a
housing 337 is formed around the outer periphery of the temporarily
assembled radial bearing 333 and the space-forming member 334 by
outsert molding of a synthetic resin material selected from the
materials listed earlier as shown in FIG. 35. When the housing 337
is formed by outsert molding, the space-forming member 334 is
integrally arranged in the inside of the housing 337 and pinched
between the top closure section 340 and the bottom closure section
339 that are formed integrally with the cylindrical housing main
body 338 so that its position is secured. Additionally, when the
housing 337 is formed by outsert molding, the radial bearing 333 is
integrally formed with the housing 337 by the opening 335b of the
space-forming member 334 and pinched between the top closure
section 340 and the bottom closure section 339 that are formed
integrally with the cylindrical housing main body 338 so that its
position is secured. Since the communication passage way 350
between the space-forming member 334 and the radial bearing 333 is
closed by the space-forming member 334 when the housing 337 is
formed by outsert molding so that synthetic resin would not flow
into it.
[0280] Then, the rotary shaft 331 is driven into the housing 337
through the shaft receiving hole 341 arranged in the top closure
section 340 as shown in FIG. 36. At this time, the washer 349 that
is an anti-shaft-release means is forcibly inserted into the
anti-shaft-release groove 331c by elastic deformation and the
rotary shaft 331 is driven into the housing 337 through the radial
bearing 333 until the bearing support section 33 la abuts the
thrust bearing 346. Thus, the rotary shaft 331 is rotatably
supported by the thrust bearing 346 and the radial bearing 333 in
the housing 337.
[0281] After the rotary shaft 331 is driven into the housing 337,
the housing 337 is filled with lubricating oil 342. When filling
the housing 337 with lubricating oil 342, the housing 337, in which
the rotary shaft 331 is arranged, is put into a filling tank 355
that contains lubricating oil 356 as shown in FIG. 37. Then, the
filling tank 355 now containing the housing is subjected to vacuum
suctioning, using a vacuum device. The housing 337 is filled with
lubricating oil 342 as the filling tank that is subjected to vacuum
suctioning is taken out into the atmosphere.
[0282] At this time, the housing 337 is filled with lubricating oil
342 in such a way that, lubricating oil 342 is prevented from
leaking to the outside of the housing 337 through the shaft
receiving hole 341 when it is expanded by a temperature change and
the gap 345 formed between the rotary shaft 331 and the shaft
receiving hole 341 is free from an insufficiently filled condition
when the lubricating oil 342 there is contracted by a temperature
change. In short, the surface level of the lubricating oil 342 in
the gap 345 is made to always be found within the shaft receiving
hole 341 regardless of temperature changes.
[0283] Because an operation of vacuum suctioning is carried out by
using a vacuum device for filling the housing 337 with the
lubricating oil 342, the pressure in the inside of the housing 337
is lower than that of the outside of the housing. As a result, the
lubricating oil 342 is prevented from leaking to the outside of the
housing 337.
[0284] In the bearing unit 330 of this embodiment, because the
radial bearing 333 is made of sintered metal, the radial bearing
333 is filled with lubricating oil 342 and the dynamic pressure
generating grooves 358 that is adapted to generate dynamic pressure
when the rotary shaft 331 is driven to revolve is also filled with
lubricating oil 342. In short, all the spaces in the housing 337
are filled with lubricating oil 342.
[0285] While the housing of the above described bearing unit is
formed by molding, using synthetic resin, the material of the
housing is not limited to synthetic resin. For example, the housing
may alternatively be formed by molding a mixture of a moldable
metal material and a synthetic resin material or some other molding
material that can be molded by means of a metal mold. However, it
should be noted that, when the housing is formed by using a
material other than synthetic resin, there may be a risk that the
contact angle of the lubricating oil filled in the housing relative
to the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole becomes
insufficient. The risk that the contact angle of lubricating oil
becomes insufficient can be avoided by applying a surface active
agent to the inner peripheral surface of the shaft receiving hole
or to the entire outer peripheral surface of the top closure
section including the inner peripheral surface of the shaft
receiving hole.
[0286] While the thrust bearing is formed as part of the housing in
the above described bearing unit, a bottom closure section that is
provided with a thrust bearing may be formed separately from the
housing main body and the bottom closure section and the housing
main body may be bonded together by means of an appropriate
technique such as heat seal or ultrasonic seal.
[0287] A bearing unit 330 having the above described configuration
dissolves the problem of a so-called shaft opposite ends open type
bearing unit having a seamless resin-made housing that is very
effective for preventing lubricating oil leakage but accompanied by
a drawback that lubricating oil is apt to be pushed out when the
shaft is driven to revolve and simultaneously the residual air and
the air dissolved in the lubricating oil expand (cavitation
phenomenon).
[0288] While the housing of a conventional bearing unit of the type
under consideration is formed by a plurality of components and the
passage way provided to short circuit the pressurized air at the
opposite ends of the radial bearing follows a route of the closed
side of the shaft--passage way--outside of the housing--the open
side of the shaft, the corresponding passage way of a bearing unit
according to the invention is made to follow a route of the closed
side of the shaft--communication passage way--the open side of the
shaft and the space-forming member 334 in which the communication
passage way is formed is surrounded and covered by a seamless
housing 337.
[0289] Thus, the bearing unit 330 is provided with a space-forming
member 334 and a communication passage way 350 running by the upper
end and the lower end of the radial bearing 333 so as to follow a
route connecting the bearing lower end--passage way--bearing upper
end in order to alleviate any reduction in the static pressure at
the closed side, or the lower end of the closed side. Therefore, it
is possible to prevent leakage of lubricating oil that can be
caused by the residual air trying to push up lubricating oil.
Additionally, since the gap between the rotary shaft and the
housing is the sole path connecting the inside and the outside of
the housing, it is possible to prevent lubricating oil from
dispersing if it is subjected to impact. In other words, it is
possible to prevent the viscous fluid from oozing out. As a result,
the bearing unit 330 can maintain its excellent lubricating
performance for a long period of time.
[0290] The space-forming member of a bearing unit according to the
invention may alternatively have a configuration as shown in FIG.
38. In the following description, the components of the bearing
unit that are same as or similar to their counterparts of the
bearing unit 330 of FIG. 19 are denoted respectively by the same
reference symbols and will not be described in detail.
[0291] The bearing unit 370 of FIG. 38 differs from the bearing
unit 330 of FIG. 19 in terms of the configuration of space-forming
member. In the bearing unit 370, the space-forming member 371
includes a first space-forming member 372 formed to surround an
upper part of the lateral section and the top section of the radial
bearing 333 and a second space-forming member 373 formed to
surround a lower part of the lateral section and the bottom section
of the radial bearing 333. The first space-forming member 372 is
provided at the center thereof with a shaft receiving hole 372a,
through which a rotary shaft 331 is driven into the housing so as
to be rotatably supported by the radial bearing 333.
[0292] The second space-forming member 373 is provided at the
center of the inner surface of the bottom section thereof with a
thrust bearing 346 for rotatably supporting the bearing support
section 331a of the rotary shaft 331, which is arranged at an end
of the rotary shaft 331 in the thrusting direction. The thrust
bearing is integrally formed by molding with the space-forming
member 371, which is made of resin. The thrust bearing 346 is
formed as a pivot bearing that supports the bearing support section
331a having a curved or tapered profile of the rotary shaft 331 at
a single point.
[0293] A communication passage way is formed between the
space-forming member 371 and the radial bearing 333 as in the case
of the bearing unit 330. The communication passage way operates to
make the opposite ends of the thrust bearing of the rotary shaft
331, which projects from the radial bearing 333, communicate with
each other. In other words, the communication passage way 350 makes
one end of the shaft, which is the closed end where the thrust
bearing 346 is formed, and the other end of the shaft, which is the
open end located close to the shaft receiving hole 372a of the
first space-forming member 372, communicate with each other.
[0294] Like the bearing unit 330, the bearing unit 370 is provided
with a space-forming member and a communication passage way running
by the upper end and the lower end of the radial bearing 333 so as
to follow a route connecting the bearing lower end--passage
way--bearing upper end in order to alleviate any reduction in the
static pressure at the closed side, or the lower end of the closed
side. Therefore, it is possible to prevent leakage of lubricating
oil that can be caused by the residual air trying to push up
lubricating oil. Additionally, since the gap between the rotary
shaft and the housing is the sole path connecting the inside and
the outside of the housing, it is possible to prevent lubricating
oil from dispersing if it is subjected to impact. In other words,
it is possible to prevent the viscous fluid from oozing out. As a
result, the bearing unit 370 can maintain its excellent lubricating
performance for a long period of time.
[0295] In a bearing unit according to the invention, the
space-forming member may have any configuration so long as resin
does not flow into the communication passage way that is formed
between the space-forming member and the radial bearing when the
housing member is formed by outerset molding. Otherwise, the
configuration of the space-forming member is not subjected to any
limitations.
[0296] A bearing unit according to the invention as described above
is adapted to use lubricating oil as viscous fluid to be filled in
the housing. However, viscous fluid of any other type may
alternatively be selected and used for the purpose of the invention
so long as it shows viscosity and surface tension to a
predetermined extent.
[0297] The present invention is by no means limited to the
above-described embodiments, which may be modified and altered in
various different ways that are apparent to those who are skilled
in the art without departing from the scope of the invention.
INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY
[0298] As described above, according to the invention, there is
provided a bearing unit that is compact and highly reliable and can
enjoy a long service life because it is free from both the problem
of a slipping out shaft at the time of assembling and the problem
of leakage of lubricating oil.
[0299] While a bearing unit according to the invention is highly
reliable and can enjoy a long service life because it is free from
the problem of leakage of lubricating oil, it is not accompanied by
a drawback of remarkable complexity in terms of device
configuration and manufacturing process.
[0300] Additionally, a bearing unit according to the invention is
made to comprise an anti-shaft-release member and a member for
securing a necessary space around the anti-shaft-release member in
order to prevent the rotary shaft from slipping away due to impact
or a change in the atmospheric pressure and/or the inner
pressure.
[0301] Still additionally, the housing member of a bearing unit
according to the invention is made of a polymeric material so as to
hold the remaining members including a seal member from outside
without any gap in order to prevent lubricating oil from
leaking.
[0302] Still additionally, a hydrodynamic fluid bearing is used as
radial bearing means of a bearing unit according to the invention
so that the rotary shaft can be supported highly accurately and the
bearing unit is free from problems caused by leakage of lubricating
oil, while the thrust bearing means has a simple configuration, to
a great advantage of reducing the number of components, the
manufacturing steps and hence the manufacturing cost.
[0303] Still additionally, in a bearing unit according to the
invention, the drawing pressure is made greater in the inside of
the gap surrounding the rotary shaft so that lubricating oil can
hardly leak out from the gap and the lubricating oil in the gap is
made free from a biased distribution caused when the rotary shaft
becomes eccentric, which consequently improves the reliability of
the bearing unit.
[0304] Furthermore, a bearing unit according to the invention can
effectively reduce vibrations and the configuration of the thrust
bearing means is simplified because of the use of an
anti-shaft-release member and a member for securing a necessary
space around the anti-shaft-release member.
[0305] Finally, a bearing unit according to the invention can find
applications as bearing in the field of motors of heat-emitting
devices, spindle motors of disc drives and other motors. It can be
used in a mechanism for supporting a rotary shaft or a mechanism
for supporting a part that revolves relative to a shaft.
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