Non-destructive sizing method for ball bearing flaking

Abstract

This paper proposes a new non-destructive method for evaluating the size of the flaking in ball bearing with an electromagnetic sensor. This method focuses on the variation of the magnitude of the characteristic frequency of a defect on the outer race. Through the presence of local maximums and minimums, the length of the flaking is evaluated while the bearing is in operation. The applicability and accuracy of this method is confirmed through several accelerated aging tests. It is shown that the growth of the length of the flaking in ball bearings is linear.