Nonlinear response of rolling element bearings with local defects

Rolling element bearings have been studied for decades, but more research is required into their dynamics, especially failure due to different kinds of damage in the context of condition monitoring. The appearance of a failure in an element of a bearing, as well as its degradation, can entail not only a malfunction in the system in which it is located, but also a catastrophic failure. This work presents a multi-body model of a rolling element bearing with the objective of analysing the dynamics of the bearing and emphasising the effect of defects in any of its element. The study models the metal-metal contacts between the bearing's elements using the Hertz contact and the elastohydrodynamic lubrication theories, both of which are theories of nonlinearity. It also considers the non-stationary regime of bearings and local geometric damage. Its results are compared with results in the literature. Finally, it includes a set of additional results showing different aspects of the response of the bearing.