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Linear Motion Tips

Covering Linear Motion Systems, Components and Linear Motion Resources

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Linear bearings

How do miniature profiled rail guides compare to their full-size counterparts?

January 14, 2021 By Danielle Collins Leave a Comment

The basic distinction between “standard” and “miniature” profiled rail guides is the width of the guide rail: profiled rails with a width of 15 mm or less — and the carriages that fit on them — are generally considered “miniature” by bearing manufacturers. (However, some manufacturers also produce 15 mm rail guides in standard versions, as we’ll […]

Filed Under: Ball + roller guides, FAQs + basics, Featured, Linear bearings

How to size a spline shaft: Shaft strength in bending and torsion

November 18, 2020 By Danielle Collins Leave a Comment

Choosing a shaft for a traditional linear ball bushing is relatively easy — choose the appropriate diameter, material, and hardness, check the dimensional accuracies and tolerances, and if the shaft is unsupported, perform a beam deflection calculation. But because spline shafts can withstand both radial and torque loads, it’s important to ensure the shaft strength […]

Filed Under: Applications, Ball + roller guides, FAQs + basics, Featured, Linear bearings

How to calculate linear ball bushing life (and how it differs from other life calculations)

October 23, 2020 By Danielle Collins Leave a Comment

The standard life calculation for linear ball bearings is widely known as: L = bearing life (m) C = rated dynamic load (N) F = applied dynamic load (N) But linear ball bushings often experience operating conditions that aren’t accounted for in the general bearing life equation. To account for these adverse conditions, the life calculation […]

Filed Under: Applications, Ball + roller guides, FAQs + basics, Featured, Linear bearings

Round-rail linear guide or profile-rail linear guide?

October 20, 2020 By Lisa Eitel Leave a Comment

In this article, we outline how to choose a linear guide for your application and environment. By Lindsey Brimage and Eric Schultz | Thomson Industries Ian Miller | Motion Industries Canada Designers of linear motion systems often find themselves weighing the pros and cons of round versus profile (also known as square) linear guides. Many […]

Filed Under: Applications, Featured, Linear bearings, Slides + guides (all) Tagged With: MotionIndustries, thomsonindustries

How does shaft hardness affect the life of a linear ball bushing?

October 15, 2020 By Danielle Collins Leave a Comment

shaft hardness

A linear ball bushing riding on a round shaft is often compared to a radial ball bearing, with the bushing acting as the outer race of the bearing and the shaft acting as the inner race. But in linear bushing assemblies, the surfaces of both the ball and the shaft are spherical, so contact between […]

Filed Under: Ball + roller guides, FAQs + basics, Featured, Linear bearings

How to make sure you get the right linear bushing interchange

September 22, 2020 By Danielle Collins Leave a Comment

Linear ball bushings are one of the few interchangeable product types in linear motion, with industry-standard sizes and styles, so that a product from one manufacturer can often be substituted with a product from another manufacturer that has very similar dimensions and technical specifications. And most linear bushing manufacturers offer several product lines that are […]

Filed Under: Applications, Ball + roller guides, FAQs + basics, Featured, Linear bearings

Tips for mounting linear ball bearings: Pillow block housings

September 11, 2020 By Danielle Collins Leave a Comment

Linear ball bearings and round shafts are often used in applications that call for ease of use and simple mounting requirements. For example, where profiled rail guides require full support along their length, linear ball bearings, or bushings, can be used in many applications with shafts that are supported only at their ends. However, unlike […]

Filed Under: Ball + roller guides, FAQs + basics, Featured, Linear bearings

What to consider when specifying a linear slide

August 11, 2020 By Lisa Eitel 1 Comment

Here are some considerations when specifying a linear slide for a new or existing application. By Mike Quinn • LM76 When a design engineer has fully defined a linear-motion application’s requirements regarding travel length, speed, force, and accuracy as well as repeatability, the next question to answer is this: Does an off-the-shelf linear slide (or […]

Filed Under: Applications, Featured, Integrated Linear Systems, Linear bearings, Slides + guides (all), Track roller (cam + wheel) guides Tagged With: LM76

What are fixed and floating bearings in the context of linear motion?

August 7, 2020 By Danielle Collins Leave a Comment

fixed and floating bearings

There are two instances when the terms “fixed bearing” and “floating bearing” are used in linear motion: to describe the support bearings used on ball and lead screws, and to describe linear guides mounted in parallel. And while the meanings of the terms are the same in both situations, their applications are different in each […]

Filed Under: Applications, Ball + lead + roller screws, Ball + roller guides, FAQs + basics, Featured, Linear bearings, Plastic + composite guides, Track roller (cam + wheel) guides

FDA-compliant off-the-shelf linear motion components for urgently needed medical products

March 26, 2020 By Miles Budimir Leave a Comment

bearings

In dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic many companies have volunteered or been requested to produce urgently needed medical products such as masks, gowns, and ventilators. Tooling up quickly to produce medical grade products for some companies can bring challenges. In addition to needing FDA-compliant materials that will be used in the actual masks, gowns, and […]

Filed Under: Featured, Linear bearings Tagged With: linear bearing

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