There are various types of bearings that are used for various purposes today. The most important among these are the linear and ball bearings that are used in many machines.
(prHWY.com) October 4, 2012 - london, United Kingdom -- The ball bearing is a bearing with a rolling element which makes use of balls in order to maintain a separation between the races. Ball bearings help in reducing rotational friction and offer support for axial and radial loads. There are several construction types that are available in these bearings and a few of them are explained below. An understanding of different types of construction will help to determine which kind of load the bearing could withstand. Learn the differences properly in order to make the best of ball bearings.
Named after its inventor Robert Conrad, the Conrad style bearings were invented in 1903. The inner race has to be placed in an eccentric position in relation to the outer space. This makes the races come in contact at one point, leading to a huge gap in the point of contact on the opposite side. This gap is used to insert the balls which are then equally distributed surrounding the assembly of the bearing. This allows the races to take a concentric shape. A cage is fitted to the balls so that their position in relation to other balls is controlled. This construction type is helpful in withstanding axial and radial loads. The only disadvantage with these ball bearings is that they are only suitable with a low load capacity.
Slot fill radial bearings are also known as full complement ball bearings. In this case, the outer and inner races are notched through a single face. This way, when the notches are aligned, it's possible to slip the balls. As the entire groove (hence the name full complement) is arranged with balls, higher radial load capacity could be obtained in comparison to the Conrad bearing. However, there is a disadvantage with its inability to withstand considerable axial loads. The slots result in discontinuity in the races, which has an adverse effect on the strength.
Typically, cages refer to the structures that secure the balls in the first type of bearings construction as explained above. However, in another kind of caged construction, the number of balls may be reduced depending on the shape of the cage, thus reducing the load capacity of these types of ball bearings. The cage is used to maintain the tangential position through sliding of a surface that is convex, on a surface that is concave. This helps to avoid dents in the balls and to keep friction lower. This type of construction was useful, especially when there was a shortage of steel.
Depending on the size and material used, ceramic ball bearings weigh only half as much as the steel bearings. This helps in reducing the centrifugal skidding and loading. This is why hybrid ceramic bearings could be 20 to 40 percent more efficient than that of conventional ones. This means that the outer race exerts very less pressure on the ball as the bearing rotates. This in turn leads to low rolling resistance and friction. Lesser energy is used in maintaining the speed as the balls are light. While the inner and outer rings are made through steel, the balls are made of ceramic, hence giving it the name hybrid ceramic bearing.
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