Statistical investigation into the effects of distributed roller diameter error on the fatigue life of tapered roller bearings

This study examined the effect of distributed roller diameter error on the fatigue life of a Tapered roller bearing (TRB). To this end, a comprehensive analysis procedure to perform a statistical analysis of the fatigue life with respect to dimensional error was presented. The roller diameter error was assumed as normally distributed, with a designated mean value and a varying standard deviation. Simulations were conducted to investigate the effects of roller diameter deviation on the fatigue life of the TRB. The numerical results showed that the normally distributed roller diameter error did not necessarily result in a normally distributed bearing fatigue life. The adequate distribution function for the bearing fatigue life with respect to the roller diameter error was explored and found to be dependent on the amount of standard deviation of roller diameter error. The Weibull distribution is appropriate for a small standard deviation, while the gamma distribution and normal distributions are appropriate for large and in-between standard deviations, respectively.