Detecting damage of rolling bearings using EMD

Empirical mode decomposition (EMD) method is introduced, and a new EMD based approach for damage detection of rolling bearings is presented. In this approach, the characteristic high-frequency signal with amplitude modulation of rolling bearings with local damage is separated from the mechanical vibration signal as an intrinsic mode function (IMF) by using EMD, and an envelope signal can be obtained by using Hubert transform. Then, the characteristic frequency of damage of rolling bearings is extracted by applying Fourier transform to the envelope signal. The presented approach is used to analyse experimental signals collected from rolling bearings with outer race damage or inner race damage, and the results indicate that the EMD based approach can detect damage of rolling bearings more effectively comparing with traditional envelope analysis method.