7.

2 Loading and Failure Styles

1. Load distribution of rolling contact bearing
(1) Axial load Fa
Well-distributed on all rolling
elements (such as ball, or roller).
(2) Radial load Fr
No load on the upper semi,
uneven distributed load on the
lower semi.
F05Fr/Z if Point contact
F04.6Fr/Z if Line contact
Z Number of rolling elements

2. Load calculation of rolling contact bearing

(1) Briefness of radial load
Generally, the acting point of the radial load Fr can be
regarded as the middle point of width of bearing. =0
But for the angular contact ball bearing, and tapered roller
bearing, this rule is not valid. 0
If the span of the shaft is very small, the modeling error
could be significant.
(2) Calculation of axial load
For the deep groove ball bearing
If the resultant force on the shaft is FA,
Fa=FA (the axial load of bearing withstanding FA);
Fa=0 (the axial load of bearing not withstanding FA).

But for the angular contact bearing, the radial load will
generate additional axial load Fs.
FS1.25Fr tan

Table 7-5 Formulas of calculating the additional axial load

Type of
bearing

Fs

Angular contact ball bearing

Tapered roller
bearing

70000C(=15) 70000AC(=25) 70000B(=40)

30000

eFr

0.68Fr

1.14Fr

Fr/(2Y)

The factor e can be found in a bearing dictionary.

The factor Y is the factor of axial dynamic load. See Table 7-7.

The additional axial load path is from the outer race, to the balls,
to the inner race and shaft.
So we need to use the angular contact ball bearing in pair.

Face to face

Before calculating the axial load Fa1 and Fa2, we need to consider
Fs1, Fs2 and working axial load FA. There are two cases:
(1) If Fs1+FA>Fs2,
The shaft has an inclination of moving rightwards. We assume
the right bearing is already fixed, so the shaft can not move. The
right bearing has been pressed. Based on the force equilibrium,
we have
Fa2=Fs1+FA

And the left bearing is relaxed,

where it is only applied by
additional axial force. So, we
have
F =F
a1

s1

(2) If Fs1+FA<Fs2,
The shaft has an inclination of moving leftwards. We assume the
left bearing is already fixed, so the shaft can not move. That is the
left bearing has been pressed. Based on the force equilibrium, we
have
Fa1=Fs2-FA

And the right bearing is relaxed,

where it is only applied by
additional axial force, so
Fa2=Fs2

3. Failure types and calculation principles

The main failure types of rolling contact bearing include:
Fatigue pitting on the surfaces of raceway and rolling element;
Plastic deformation of bearing;
Abrasive wear.

(1) Fatigue pitting

The surfaces of race and rolling element are applied by
fluctuating load.
After a large number of cycles of loading, fatigue pitting may
occur.
If fatigue pitting happens, the vibration, noise and heat loss will
increase very significantly.

(2) Plastic deformation

Overloaded static force or impact will cause plastic
deformation. The failure is sometimes referred to as brinelling.
If plastic deformation happens, the starting torque, vibration
and noise will increase very rapidly, and the positioning
precision of bearing will decrease.

(3) Abrasive wear

Poor sealing and lubrication may cause abrasive wear, which
may produce noise and vibration.
The positioning error of bearing will decreases.

(4) Calculation principles

1) Common situation -- Fatigue life (pitting)

2) Low speed situation -- Checking the static strength
3) High speed -- Calculating the fatigue life, and checking the
limiting speed
(5) Performance parameters of bearing
1) Basic static load rating C0 (C0r, C0a)
The load that bearing can withstand without permanent
deformation of any component.

2) Basic dynamic rating C (Cr, Ca)

The load to which the bearings can be subjected while achieving a
rated life (L10) of 106 revolutions.
3) Limiting speed (nlim)
For an instance, 6317, nlim =5000r/min.

7.3 Strength Features and Life Design

1. Life of bearings
Fatigue pitting is a statistical phenomenon with considerable
spread of the actual life of a group of bearings of a given design.
The rated life is the standard means of reporting the results of
many tests of bearings of a given design.
It represents the life that 90% of the bearings would achieve
successfully at a rated load.
It also represents the life that 10% of the bearings would not
achieve.
The rated life is thus typically referred to as the L10 life at the
rated load.
2. Basic dynamic load rating
If load increase, the life of bearings decreases. See Fig. 7-10.
Basic dynamic load rating C: The constant load that bearings
can endure under the 106 revolutions.

Basic dynamic load rating

For the radial bearings, it refers to the radial basic load rating Cr;
For the thrust bearings, it refers to the axial basic load rating Ca;
Cr, and Ca can be found in a bearing dictionary.
3. Life calculation of bearing
The basic dynamic load rating indicates the performance of
resisting fatigue pitting.

By experimentswe have
10

P L constant C

Ball bearing 3
10
Roller bearing
3
Equivalent dynamic load, P

Fig. 7-10 Life and equivalent dynamic load of rolling bearings

P L10 C

If the equivalent dynamic load of bearings is given

we can have the rated life of bearings, L10. That is

C 6
L10 10 rev
P
If the rotational speed of bearings is given
we can have the rated life of bearings, L10h. That is

L10 h

L10 C 10
16670 C

h
60n P 60n
n P
6

If the equivalent dynamic load P and the design life Lh is given

we can calculated the allowable dynamic load rating C. That is

Lh n we can specify the number of bearing based on C.

C P
16670 C C.

Table 7-6 Recommended design life of bearings

4. Equivalent dynamic load

Basic dynamic load rating C includes radial basic dynamic
load rating Cr and axial basic dynamic load rating Ca.
If the radial load Fr and axial load Fa are applied on the
rolling bearings, they have to be transferred into equivalent
dynamic load P.
Equivalent dynamic load P can be calculated by

P f d ( XFr YFa )
X Factor of radial dynamic load, see Table 7-7;
Y Factor of axial dynamic load, see Table 7-7;
fd Factor of impact load, including the vibration and shock,
see Table 7-8.

Table 7-7 X and Y for calculating the equivalent dynamic load

of rolling contact bearing
Single row bearing
Types

Fa/C0r

Fa/Fre
X

Deep
groove
ball
bearing
60000

Double row bearing

Fa/Fr>e
X

Fa/Fre
X

Fa/Fr>e
X

0.014

0.19

2.30

2.30

0.028

0.22

1.99

1.99

0.056

0.26

1.71

1.71

0.085

0.28

1.55

1.55

0.11

0.30

0.17

0.34

1.31

1.31

0.28

0.38

1.15

1.15

0.42

0.42

1.04

1.04

0.56

0.44

1.00

1.00

0.56

1.45

0.56

1.45

In the relative axial load Fa/Cor, Cor is the radial static load rating,
which can be found in a bearing dictionary; If the value of Fa/Cor is an
arbitrary value, an linear interpolation is needed.

Single row bearing

Types

Fa/C0r

Double row bearing

Fa/Fre

Fa/Fr>e

Fa/Fre

Fa/Fr>e

0.015

0.38

1.47

1.65

2.39

0.029

0.40

1.40

1.57

2.28

0.058

0.43

1.30

1.46

2.11

0.087

0.46

1.23

1.38

2.00

0.12

0.47

0.17

0.50

1.12

1.26

1.82

0.29

0.55

1.02

1.14

1.66

0.44

0.56

1.00

1.12

1.63

0.58

0.56

1.00

1.12

1.63

=25, 70000

--

0.68

0.41

0.87

0.92

0.67

1.41

=45

--

1.14

0.36

0.57

0.55

0.67

0.93

Angular contact
ball bearing
=15
70000

0.44

1.19

1.34

0.72

1.93

Single row bearing

Types

Fa/C0r

Fa/Fre

Fa/Fr>e

Double row bearing

Fa/Fre

Fa/Fr>e

Double row
angular contact
ball bearing
=30

0.80

--

--

--

--

0.78

0.63

1.24

4-point contact
bearing =30

--

0.95

0.66

0.60

1.07

--

--

--

--

Tapered roller
bearing 3000

--

1.5 tan

0.40

0.4cot

0.45
cot

0.67

0.67
cot

Self-aligning
bearing

--

1.5 tan

--

--

--

--

0.42
cot

0.65

0.65
cot

Thrust self
aligning roller
bearing

--

1/0.55

--

--

1.20

1.00

--

--

--

--

The values of e and Y are decided by the contact angle , also can be
found in a bearing dictionary.

Table 7-8 Factor of impact load

Load pattern
Examples
Uniform load or Electrical motor, water pumping,
slight impact
ventilator and steam turbine

Vehicles, machine tool, crane,

Medium impact metallurgical machinery, and
internal combustion engine
Crusher, rolling machine, vibrating
Great impact screen, construction machinery, and
Oil drilling machine

fd
1.0-1.2
1.2-1.8

1.8-3.0

5. Instructions on calculating equivalent load

If Fa/Fre or Fa/Fr>e, X and Y have different values.
For the single row radial bearing or angular contact bearing,
if Fa/Fre , Y=0, P=fdFr. That means the axial loads
contribution to the equivalent dynamic load can be ignored.
For the deep groove and angular contact ball bearings, e
keeps positively proportional to the ratio of Fa/Cor.
The ratio of Fa/Cor indicates the relative magnitude of axial
load, and effects the values of e by the value of contact angle.
For cylindrical roller bearing and needle bearing, Pr=fdFr.
For thrust bearing, Pa=fdFa.

6. Bearing life under varying speed and varying load

If the load and speed are variable, we calculate the bearing life by

16670 C
16670C
Lh
( )
nm Pm
n1a1P1 n2 a2 P2 ... nk ak Pk
nm Mean rotational speed;

nm n1a1 n2 a2 ..... nk ak

Pm Mean equivalent dynamic load;

n1a1 P1 n2 a2 P2 ... nk ak Pk
Pm
nm

P1, P2, , Pk
Equivalent dynamic loads at different working situation;
n1, n2, , nk
Rotational speeds at different equivalent dynamic load;
a1, a2, , ak
Percentages of time among different working situation.

7. Adjustment of life rating for reliability

L10 life indicates 90% probability that selected bearing would
carry its rated dynamic load for the specified number of design
hours.
That leaves a 10% probability that any given bearing would
have a lower life.
Certain applications call for greater reliability, such as
aerospace, military, instrumentation, and medical fields.
It is desirable to be able to adjust the expected life of a
bearing for higher reliability.

Lna a1a2 a3 L10

a1 Adjustment factor for reliability, see Table 7-10;
a2 Adjustment factor for life;
a3 Adjustment factor for working situation;
a2, and a3 are proposed by the bearing producer.

Table 7-10 Adjustment factor for reliability

Reliability,
%

a1

ball

40

50

60

70

80

7.01 5.45 4.14 2.00 1.96

roller 6.84 5.34 4.07 2.98 1.95

90

95

96

97

98

99

0.62 0.53 0.44 0.33 0.21

8. Static strength of rolling contact bearings

To avoid the plastic deformation, we need to check the static
strength of rolling contact bearings. We have C S P
0

0 0

C0 (radial C0r, axial C0a) Basic static load rating, which can
be found in the bearing dictionary.
S0 Safety factor; if requiring high precision and smooth
rotation or great impact, S0=1.2-2.5; if the opposite condition,
S0=0.5-0.8; commonly, S0=0.8-1.2.
P0 Equivalent static load.
For the bearings with 0 , P0r=max(X0Fr+Y0Fa, Fr)
X0 Radial static load factor;
Y0 Axial static load factor;
X0, Y0 can be found in the bearing dictionary.
For the radial bearings with =0, P0r=Fr;
For the thrust bearings with =90, P0a=Fa;
For the thrust self-aligning roller bearings, if Fr0.55Fa,
P0a=Fr+2.7Fa.

9. Limiting speed of bearing

Exceeding speed limits may result in excessively high operating
temperature due to friction between the cages supporting the
rolling elements.
Most catalogs list limiting speed for each bearing.
A given bearing will have a lower limiting speed as loads
increase.
The allowable speed n can be estimated by

n f1 f 2 nlim
nlim Limiting speed of bearing;
f1 Factor of load varying, see Table 7-11;
f2 Factor of load distribution, see Table 7-12.

Factor for load varying f1

Table 7-11 Factor of load varying, f1

Value of P/C

Table 7-12 Factor of load distribution, f2

1 Self-aligning ball bearing;
2 Self-aligning roller bearing;
3 Tapered roller bearing;
6 Deep groove ball bearing;
7 Angular contact ball bearing;

N Cylindrical roller bearing.

Contact angle

10. Calculations of angular contact bearings used in pair

We mount a pair of single-row angular contact bearing or
cylindrical bearing in the way of face-to-face or back-to-back.
In the calculating process, we regard the pair of bearing as a whole
bearing, satisfying that,
For angular contact ball bearing
For tapered roller bearing

Cr 20.7 Cr 1.62Cr
7/9
Cr 2 Cr 1.71Cr

Their basic static load ratings are C0 r 2C0 r

Their limiting speeds are

nlim 0.6 0.8 nlim

Cr Basic dynamic load rating of single bearing;

C0r Basic static load rating of single bearing;
nlim Limiting speed of one bearing.

11. Examples of bearing life design

Example 1
A pair of bearings 30308 are mounted as shown below. The applied
radial force Fr1=6000N, and Fr2=4000N, and the axial working
load FA=2500N. Try to find the axial load of each bearing.
1 F
S1

FS2 2
FA

Fr1

Fr2

Solutions:

See Table 7-5

1 F
S1

FS2 2
FA

(1) Additional axial load Fs

For the left bearing: F Fr1
s1

2Y

Fr1
6000
1724 N
2 1.74

For the right bearing: Fs 2 Fr 2

2Y

4000
1149 N
2 1.74

Fr2

Pointing rightward
Pointing leftward

From a bearing dictionary, we have =125710.

See Table 7-7

So we have Y=0.4cot =0.4cot 125710=1.74.

(2) Axial load Fa
Because Fs1+FA-Fs2=1724+2500-1149=3075N>0, the shaft has an
inclination of moving rightward. The right bearing is pressed,
and the left bearing is relaxed.

Fa1 Fs1 1724 N

Fa 2 Fs1 FA 4224 N

Example 2
Analysis the feasibility of mounting a pair of bearings 30309 onto a
worm shaft. If it is not correct, please propose your improvement.
Question: Given that radial supporting forces Fr1=1800N,
Fr2=520N, the axial load on worm shaft FA=4100, shown below.
The rotational speed of worm n=1440r/min. Oil lubrication is
required. The design life of bearings L=11000h. It is under a
sizeable impact (Factor of impact load fd=1.3.)

2 F
S2
Fr2

FS1 1
FA

Fr1

Solutions:
(1) Calculation of bearing life
1) Additional axial load Fs
From a bearing dictionary, the basic dynamic load rating
C=64800N, basic static load rating C0=61200N. Under oil
lubrication, the limiting speed nlim=5000r/min. the contact angle
=125710. e=1.5tan =1.5 tan 125710=0.34.

Y 0.4cot 0.4cot125710
Fr1
1800
Fs1

517 N
2Y 2 1.74
Fr 2
520
Fs 2

149 N
2Y 2 1.74

2 F
S2
Fr2

FS1 1
FA

Fr1

2) Axial load Fa
Fs2+FA-Fs1=149+4100-517=3732>0, so the shaft has an inclination
of moving rightward. That is the right bearing is pressed, and the
left bearing is relaxed. So we have
Fa1=Fs1+FA=4249N
Fa2=Fs2=149N

3) Equivalent dynamic load

Using the formula P=fd(XFr+YFa)

2 F
S2

FS1 1

For the right bearing,

Fa1 4249

2.36 e
As
Fr1 1800

Fr2

FA

Fr1

From Table 7-7, we have X1=0.4, Y1=0.4 cot =1.74, then

P1=fd(X1Fr1+Y1Fa1)=1.3(0.41800+1.744249)=10547N
For the left bearing,

Fa 2 149

0.29 e
As
Fr 2 520
From Table 7-7, we have X2=1.0, Y2=0, then
P2=fd(X2Fr2+Y2Fa2)=1.3(1520+0)=676N

P=max(P1, P2)=P1=10547N

4) The bearing life is

Lh

10
3

10 C
10
64800

4913h<11000h
60n P
60 1440 10547
6

Based on the calculations above, the life of bearing 30309 can

not meet the requirements. So this choice of bearing fails.
Keeping the bore size of bearing, we can choose another
width series, for example 32309.
For this bearings, its basic dynamic load rating C=87800N, basic
dynamic loading rating C0=91600N. Under oil lubrication, the
limiting speed nlim=5000r/min, contact angle =125710, then
e=1.5 tan =1.5tan 125710=0.34
As bearing 32309 has the same contact angle with bearing 30309,
the supporting radial force and axial force keep invariable.

Factor of axial dynamic loading Y=0.4cot =1.74, so the

equivalent dynamic loads on both kind of bearings are the same.