Permanent magnet shaft bearing - has separate magnet rings with non-magnetic spacer collars in concentric races

摘要

The bearing comprises two co-axial cylindrical magnets (1,2). The inner magnetic cylinder (1) is fixed to the machine frame (4) whilst the outer is fixed by an end cap (6) to the rotating machine shaft (5). The two magnetic cylinders repel each other radially. Each cylinder is constructed of magnetic rings with non-magnetic spacers (3) between them. This extends the length of the bearing and improves the stability. The magnet fields of each element in each cylinder act in alternate directions but the magnetic rings adjacent to one another in the internal and external cylinders are in the same sense, producing a radially repelling force.