Spherical bearing and method for manufacturing the same

Abstract

There are provided a spherical bearing and a method for manufacturing the same, in which both of a ball bearing section and a ball section made of metal can make light and smooth swinging and rotary motions for a long period of time without biased wear and seize-up of those members even if the solid bodies of them can contact with each other due to a discontinuous oil film under a heavy load. A resin liner that contacts the ball section of the inner member in a sliding relationship is embedded in the ball bearing section, and a resin sliding contact surface provided by the resin liner and the metal sliding surface are adjacent to each other without any gap to form a sliding contact surface at the bearing section.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A spherical bearing having an inner member with a ball section and an outer member with a ball bearing section for enclosing and holding the ball section of the inner member to be coupled with the inner member such that it can be swung or rotated relative to the inner member, the ball bearing section of the outer member having a metal sliding contact surface in a concave spherical configuration that is in contact with the ball section of the inner member in a sliding relationship and that undetachably encloses and holds the ball section, which comprises: 
 a resin liner embedded in the ball bearing section that is in contact with the ball section of the inner member in a sliding relationship, a resin sliding contact surface provided by the resin liner and the metal sliding contact surface being adjacent to each other without any gap to form a sliding contact surface at the bearing section.    
     
     
         2 . A spherical bearing according to    claim 1   , wherein the resin liner is provided in association with a region where the pressure at the contact surface between the ball section of the inner member and the ball bearing section of the outer member is high.  
     
     
         3 . A spherical bearing according to    claim 2   , wherein the resin sliding contact surface is surrounded by the metal sliding contact surface.  
     
     
         4 . A spherical bearing according to    claim 1   , wherein the ball bearing section of the outer member is integrally molded through casting with the ball section of the inner member used as a core.  
     
     
         5 . A method for manufacturing a spherical bearing having an inner member with a ball section and an outer member with a ball bearing section for enclosing and holding the ball section of the inner member to be coupled with the inner member such that it can be swung or rotated relative to the inner member, which comprises the steps of: 
 attaching a resin liner to the ball section of the outer member in tight contact with the ball member;    performing die casting of the ball bearing section that covers the resin liner with the ball section having the resin liner inserted in the casting dies; and    applying an external force to the ball section or ball bearing section to form a gap between the ball section and ball bearing section, thereby allowing the ball section and ball bearing section to rotate relative to each other.    
     
     
         6 . A method for manufacturing a spherical bearing according to    claim 5   , wherein the resin liner is formed in a ring-like configuration and formed with a rotation stopper on an outer circumferential surface thereof.  
     
     
         7 . A method for manufacturing a spherical bearing according to    claim 6   , wherein the resin liner is provided with a leg that contacts the casting dies during die casting to keep the state of attachment of the resin liner relative to the ball.  
     
     
         8 . A method for manufacturing a spherical bearing according to    claim 5   , wherein the resin liner is attached to the ball section using injection molding with the ball section inserted as a core.