ISO 15242-1:2015

Overview

ISO 15242-1:2015 - "Rolling bearings - Measuring methods for vibration - Part 1: Fundamentals" defines the fundamental principles for measuring vibration of rotating rolling bearings and the calibration of related measuring systems. The standard establishes measurement quantities, required measuring conditions and environment, and general procedures to ensure repeatable, comparable bearing vibration data. It is the foundational part of the ISO 15242 series that supports later parts specifying methods for particular bearing types.

Key topics and technical requirements

• Scope and intent: Measurement methods for vibration of rotating rolling bearings under established measuring conditions and calibration of measuring systems.
• Terminology: Definitions for key terms such as error motion, vibration, transducer, rms velocity, spike, and pulse (references: ISO 2041, ISO 5593).
• Fundamental concepts: Characteristics of an axis of rotation, bearing error motion and how it contributes to bearing vibration and structure‑borne noise.
• Measurement process:
  • Basic principles of vibration measurement and rotational frequency considerations.
  • Importance of orientation of the bearing rotational axis, bearing load and transducer placement.
• Measurement and evaluation methods:
  • Measurement in the frequency domain and time domain.
  • Physical quantities measured (displacement, velocity, acceleration) and conversions between them.
  • Transducer response, filter characteristics (e.g., band‑pass filters) and time‑averaging methods.
• Measurement conditions:
  • Requirements for bearing state (pre‑lubricated vs non‑prelubricated), environment and measuring device (stiffness of spindle/mandrel, loading mechanism, mandrel run‑out).
  • Notes on transducer axial location and alignment.
• Calibration and system evaluation:
  • Calibration of components and system performance evaluation procedures.
  • Informative annexes on contact resonance for spring‑loaded transducers, correlation of displacement/velocity/acceleration amplitudes, and mandrel run‑out measurement.

Practical applications and who uses ISO 15242-1:2015

• Bearing manufacturers: set acceptance inspection criteria and production quality control using standardized vibration measurements.
• Test laboratories and OEMs: perform comparative vibration testing for product development and validation.
• Condition monitoring and reliability engineers: interpret bearing vibration data for diagnostics and predictive maintenance.
• Acoustics and noise control engineers: relate structure‑borne bearing vibration to airborne noise issues.
• R&D and tribology specialists: use standardized methods to compare design variants and lubricants.

Related standards

• ISO 15242 Parts 2–4 (methods for specific bearing types)
• ISO 2041 (vibration vocabulary)
• ISO 5593 (rolling bearings vocabulary)
• ISO 286‑2 (geometrical product specifications - tolerances)

Keywords: ISO 15242-1:2015, rolling bearings, vibration measurement, transducer, rms velocity, calibration, bearing error motion, band-pass filter, condition monitoring.