Comparative performance analysis of conical hydrostatic bearings compensated by variable slot and fixed slot

Conical hydrostatic bearings with two different compensating devices have been proposed in this paper, which are classified as variable slot compensated hydrostatic bearing (VSHB) and fixed slot compensated hydrostatic bearing (FSHB), respectively. The mathematical models for them have been built with perturbation theory and solved by finite element method (FEM). Static loading experiment has been carried out to validate the research methodology. Then the static and dynamic characteristics of the proposed bearings have been comparatively studied. Results show that the VSHB exhibits a better radial performance of load carrying capacity and stiffness, but a worse radial damping performance, compared with FSHB under the same geometric and operational conditions.