Simulation Study on Contact Force and Centroid Offset of Steel Ball Unfolding Wheel
Chengyi Pan, Ruixu Li, Yukun LiuIntroduction:
The steel ball unfolding wheel is a critical component of surface quality inspection equipment for bearing balls, where its contact force with the steel ball and centroid motion stability directly influence inspection accuracy and equipment service life. Variations in contact force and centroid offset may induce system vibrations and degrade the accuracy of the ball surface unfolding process. Owing to the high manufacturing precision of the steel ball unfolding wheel, producing a large number of test specimens is impractical. Therefore, this study conducted numerical simulations of the contact force and centroid offset of steel ball unfolding wheels with different eccentric conical angles, rotational speeds, and materials. By combining theoretical analysis, numerical simulation, and orthogonal experimental design, the study aims to investigate the effects of eccentric conical angle, rotational speed, and material on the contact force and centroid offset of the steel ball unfolding wheel. The appropriate parameter combination of the steel ball unfolding wheel is obtained. Therefore, the contact force variation and the centroid stability of the steel ball unfolding wheel are improved.
Methods:
Initially, the current research status of the steel ball unfolding wheel was introduced, including relevant papers and recent patents. Subsequently, the contact deformation between the steel ball unfolding wheel and the steel balls was theoretically analyzed. Then, numerical simulations were conducted to investigate the contact force and centroid offset of steel ball unfolding wheels with different eccentric conical angles, rotational speeds, and materials. Finally, an orthogonal experimental design was employed to analyze the variation amplitudes of the contact force and centroid offset to determine the appropriate parameters and materials for the steel ball unfolding wheel.
Results and Discussion:
Through comprehensive analysis of simulation curves, multi-factor grouped box plots, and orthogonal experimental results, the effects of different eccentric conical angles, rotational speeds, and materials on the fluctuation in contact force and the centroid offset of the steel ball unfolding wheel were determined.
Conclusion:
The eccentric conical angle is the primary factor affecting the motion stability of the steel ball unfolding wheel. The secondary influencing factors are the rotational speed and the material, in that order. For the steel ball unfolding wheel used to inspect steel balls with a radius of 8.3344 mm, the appropriate parameters were determined to be an eccentric conical angle of 0.5°–1°, a rotational speed of around 2000 r/min, and the material 30CrMnSi (HRC 49).