In this case, IKO’s crossed roller bearings (CRB) might be the right choice. This specialised design consists of V-shaped raceway rings holding cylindrical rolling elements with crossed orientations at right angles to each other. Due to the crossed arrangement of the cylindrical rollers, these bearings can support both axial forces and radial forces as well as tilting moment loads and any complex loads by means of a single bearing. As a result, designs involving two ball bearing positions can be reduced to a single bearing.
Crossed roller bearings are ideal for control of motion of complex instruments such as microscopes or articulated robotic arms, since, in the latter case, the combination of joints and infinite slewing rotation adds up to many degrees of freedom. In one surgical robot application, IKO UK specified CRBs of varying sizes and shapes in all of the joints of each arm – which in that case were individually constructed overseas and then shipped to the UK for final assembly.
A number of types are offered, such as slim, super-slim, high rigidity models to be pressed on to a shaft or into a housing, as well as a model with mounting bolts, which facilitates easier mounting.
Cylindrical rolling elements, combined with the design of the bearing structure, improve rigidity compared to using ball bearings. According to IKO, its CRB is three to four times more rigid than a double-row angular-contact ball bearing, as well as offering a more compact cross-sectional dimension.
And these bearings are available in many sizes. The highest load rating in the catalogue is 2,640kN. IKO has helped with larger applications, such as radar towers on ships, which use the bearings in setting azimuth accuracy.
FLEXIBLE
More than £3.5m of product stock is kept centrally in Milton Keynes, a significant portion of which is freely available for general sale.
“We’re flexible; we get product in and monitor that so it’s always here, or at worst on its way from the factory, so customers can maintain their manufacturing requirements,” says an applications engineer. All the company asks for is regular communication, so that variations in supply, for example, can be adjusted for.
And if an urgent stocking need arises unexpectedly, IKO can draw on global stocks. That is just another way in which IKO is helping customers satisfy their production commitments, even for specialised items such as crossed roller bearings.
Contact IKO UK today at enquiries@iko.co.uk to discuss your motion control needs.
Tel: 01908 566144
