Bearing Life (Rolling Element Bearing)

The rolling element bearings have a given useful life. Actual lifetime depends on the shaft speed, load, and the type of bearing.

Actual lifetime can be calculated using the equation:

L10h = (16,667/rpm) × (C/P)^r

• where L10h is the 90th percentile of life in hours (the point at which only 10% of bearings in identical applications fail) (Note: Average Life = 5 × L10h)
• rpm is the rotational speed of the bearing
• C is the published catalog load rating
• P is the effective load (actual force applied to the bearing)
• r is 3 for ball bearings, or 3 1/3 for other types of rolling element bearings