ALEXANDRIA, Va., Dec. 23 -- United States Patent no. 12,504,040, issued on Dec. 23.
"Journal foil air bearing preventing separation of bump foil" was invented by Kyeong Su Kim (Daejeon, South Korea).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A journal foil air bearing supports a load along the radial direction of a rotating shaft. The bearing includes a top foil, a bump foil, and a base foil. The top foil faces the shaft, while the bump foil acts as an elastic member surrounding the top foil. The base foil, a circular pipe member, houses the bump foil. A separation preventer, protruding from the base foil without touching the shaft, restrains the bump foil from moving along the shaft's longitudinal direct...