A Numerical Study on Plane Contact Problem Involving Inclusions

Abstract Hertz’s contact theory is widely used in elastic solid contact problems. In this paper, the applicability of Hertz’s contact theory in conformal contact problems was examined. Taking deep groove ball bearing and the outer raceway model as an example, both the FEM analyses and the theoretical studies were conducted. It is found that when the radius coefficient of groove curvature is greater than 0.55, Hertz’s theory can be practically applied for conformal contact. Contact problems of rolling bearings are generally solved by Hertz’s contact theory without considering inclusions and inhomogeneities in the material. In this paper, inclusions are presented in the contact analyses, and the corresponding elastic field distribution of the contact-inclusion model is investigated by using the finite element method.