Hybrid combined hydrostatic and hydrodynamic bearing with enhanced stability and reduced flow rate

摘要

A rotary hybrid bearing that utilizes both hydrostatic and hydrodynamic principles to support a rotatable shaft in which lubricating fluid is fed through orifices or other flow restriction devices to a plurality of recesses, and finally across lands and out of the bearing. The shaft is rotated in such a direction as to pump the fluid back through grooves from lands to recesses, thereby reducing the flow rate of lubricant through the bearing. The recesses are located at an angular position from lands such that a force is generated by hydrostatic action that substantially cancels the destabilizing force generated by hydrodynamic action, thereby greatly enhancing the stability of the bearing and enabling higher rotational speeds.