TURBOCHARGER WITH THRUST BEARING PROVIDING COMBINED JOURNAL AND THRUST BEARING FUNCTIONS

摘要

Turbochargers typically have separate hydrodynamic journal and thrust bearings. A turbocharger thrust bear ing for a turbocharger is provided that merges the function of a journal bearing into a thrust bearing while maintaining the thrust bearing function to produce a tur bocharger with a reduced axial space envel ope. Such a thrust bearing includes a bore contoured to have a plurality of taper-land pairs distributed circumferentially about the bore. As a result, the axial length of the tur bocharger bearing housing and shaft can be reduced.