The crankshaft bearing is the key component of a rotate vector (RV) reducer. However, owing to the harsh working load and restricted available space, the bearing often suffers from fatigue failure. Therefore, this study proposes a novel optimization method for RV reducer crankshaft bearings. A nonlinear constraint optimization model for the design of the bearing considering the crowned roller profile is formulated and is solved by using a crow search algorithm. The goal of the optimization is to maximize the fatigue life of the bearing. The design variables corresponding to the bearing geometry and crowned roller profile are considered. The load working conditions of the bearing and structure of the RV reducer are analyzed. Various constraints, including geometry, lubrication, strength of the bearing, and structure of the RV reducer, are established. Through the optimization design, the optimum crowned roller profile suitable for the working load of the bearing is obtained, and the stress concentration between the roller and raceway is eliminated. Taking the crankshaft bearing of RV-20E and RV-110E type reducers as examples, the bearings were optimized by the proposed method. After optimization, the bearing life of the RV-20E type reducer is increased by 196%, and the bearing life of the RV-110E type reducer is increased by 168%.

For systems of measurement, geometric errors such as manufacturing and assembly errors could have a significant impact on the accuracy of the angle encoders of the system. In this study, an error model of angular measurement with geometric errors of a torsional characteristic measurement system was developed based on multibody system theory, the aim of which was to reveal the impact of geometric errors on angular measurement and to compensate the measurement error. According to the principle of spatial error transfer, the decomposition of geometric errors is illustrated and the error matrix of geometric errors is constructed by the Denavit–Hartenberg (DH) method. Subsequently, an error compensation function can be obtained and the impact of geometric error on angular measurement is discussed. Finally, we demonstrate by the experimental results of an ultra-autocollimator that the proposed error compensation method reduced the angular measurement error from 3.7% to 0.7%, which shows that the proposed error model can effectively predict the angular measurement error. In addition, it can be seen from the measurement results of the RV reducer that the error of the torsional characteristic measurement system decreased significantly.

A facile pulse arc discharge deposition method was developed to prepare AlPO₄ oxidation resistant outer coating on SiC pre-coated carbon/carbon composites (SiC-C/C). The deposition dynamics and the influence of pulse frequency on composition, microstructure and oxidation resistance of the as-prepared coating were investigated. Results show that pulse arc discharge deposition is an effective route to achieve dense and crack-free AlPO₄ coatings. The deposition activation energy of the AlPO₄ coating is calculated to be 3.07 kJ·mol^-1. The AlPO₄ coating prepared at a pulse frequency of 2000 Hz exhibits good oxidation resistance, which can effectively protect C/C composites from oxidation in air at 1773 K for 262 h with a weight loss of 1.58%.