Modeling of a compliant force distribution mechanism: For a deforming hydrostatic bearing

Hydrostatic bearings are well known for having low friction and low wear in combination with high loading capacity.Traditionally, the running surfaces for a hydrostatic bearing are plane, rigid and smooth, ensuring a parallel lubricating film in the full range of movement. In this paper, we consider a new type of compliant, hydrostatic bearing where the running surfaces have a surface waviness with a large amplitude resulting in a varying curvature for the hydrostatic bearing to follow in its range of movement. Design choices and subsequent modeling of these types of bearings are presented in this work. The introduced bearing concept is based on a compliant whiffletree mechanism able to distribute load over multiple hydro-static slippers. This increases deformability of the complete bearing system. In a case study the limitations of a large deforming hydrostatic bearing are modeled to understand the impacts on performance and implications