A Critical Point Method of Predicting the Occurrence of Contact Loss in Linkages with Clearances

A new method of predicting the occurrence of contact loss between pairing elements in planar linkages with clearances is obtained by theoretic analysis on nonlinear motion differential equations of a system. Two predictive numbers are derived on the condition that the force in the clearance bearing is negative or equal to zero when the pairing elements separate. The contact loss occurs when the two numbers are equal to zero at the same time. This method has high predictive precision.