Lockheed Martin has filed a patent for a gear box that includes a housing, actuator, and bearing assembly. The bearing assembly has an outer raceway, cylindrical housing, and annular bearing. A sensor is used to monitor the operating condition of the bearing, and a linkage connects the actuator to the housing. An output shaft is also included. GlobalData’s report on Lockheed Martin gives a 360-degree view of the company including its patenting strategy. Buy the report here.
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A gear box with a sensor to monitor bearing condition
A recently filed patent (Publication Number: US20230192278A1) describes a gear box with various components and features. The gear box includes a housing, an actuator, and a bearing assembly. The bearing assembly consists of an outer raceway, a cylindrical housing, an annular bearing, and a sensor. The sensor is positioned at one end of the cylindrical housing and is used to monitor the operating condition of the annular bearing. The gear box also includes a linkage that connects the actuator to the cylindrical housing of the bearing assembly. Additionally, an output shaft is rotatably coupled to the bearing assembly.
The patent also mentions that this gear box can be specifically used as a tail rotor gear box in an aircraft. In this application, the actuator is connected to an adjustment shaft that adjusts the blade pitch of the tail rotor blades. The gear box also includes a wire passage that allows for a wired connection between the sensor and a controller. This wire passage runs parallel to the longitudinal axis of the housing.
The linkage in the gear box has a first end pivotably coupled to the shaft and a second end pivotably coupled to the cylindrical housing of the bearing assembly. The second end of the linkage fits into an aperture formed in the cylindrical housing, which acts as an integral clevis. The gear box also includes bearings and a washer positioned between the second bearing and the aperture.
The patent also describes a bearing assembly for the gear box, which includes an outer raceway, a housing, an annular bearing, and a sensor. Similar to the gear box, the housing of the bearing assembly has a wire passage for the wired connection between the sensor and a controller. The bearing assembly also includes a bracket that secures the wire within the wire passage. Additionally, the housing has an aperture that acts as an integral clevis for receiving the end of a linkage.
In summary, the patent describes a gear box and a bearing assembly with various components and features. The gear box can be used as a tail rotor gear box in an aircraft and includes a sensor for monitoring the operating condition of the annular bearing. The gear box also includes a linkage and an output shaft. The bearing assembly includes a sensor, a wire passage, and an aperture for receiving a linkage.
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GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.
GlobalData Patent Analytics tracks bibliographic data, legal events data, point in time patent ownerships, and backward and forward citations from global patenting offices. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.
