Compact gauge and process for adjusting bearings

摘要

A gauge for setting.a pair of tapered roller bearings that are mounted in opposition has a base to which one of the races for one of the bearings is fitted remote from the location that it normally assumes. In addition, the gauge has male and female elements which slide on the base independently of each other and a spring for urging the elements apart. The spring urges one of the elements against a conical envelope on the detached race and the other element against a conical envelope formed by the tapered rollers around the other race that is in its normal operating position. Sensors measure the strain in the spring, and from the strain one can calculate the distance between like diameters on the conical envelopes. The measurement derived from the gauge together with the desired setting for the bearing enables one to calculate the thickness of a spacer which will provide the desired setting for the bearings.