Linear-motion bearing
A rolling-element bearing is generally composed of a sleeve-like outer ring and several rows of balls retained by cages.
It features smooth motion, low friction, high rigidity and long life.
Ball bearing slide applications include delicate instrumentation, robotic assembly, cabinetry, high-end appliances and clean room environments, which primarily serve the manufacturing industry but also the furniture, electronics and construction industries.
In addition, ball bearing slides are limited by the need to fit into housing or drive systems.
However, the travelling distance of linear non-recirculating ball bearings is limited by the length of the bracket.
Serving industries such as manufacturing, photonics, medical and telecommunications, roller slides are versatile and can be adjusted to meet numerous applications which typically include clean rooms, vacuum environments, material handling and automation machinery.
Although roller slides are not self-cleaning, they are suitable for environments with low levels of airborne contaminants such as dirt and dust.
Like any bearing, a dovetail slide is composed of a stationary linear base and a moving carriage.
a Dovetail carriage has a v-shaped, or dovetail-shaped protruding channel which locks into the linear base's correspondingly shaped groove.
Capable of long travel, dovetail slides are more resistant to shock than other bearings, and they are mostly immune to chemical, dust and dirt contamination.
Mainly used in the manufacturing and laboratory science industries, dovetail slides are ideal for high-precision applications.
Ball splines (ball spline bearings) are a special type of linear motion bearing that are used to provide nearly frictionless linear motion while allowing the member to transmit torque simultaneously.
There are grooves ground along the length of the shaft (thus forming splines) for the ball bearings to run inside.
Each nut can be individually preloaded at the factory to decrease the available radial play to ensure rigidity.
