The range of applications and the importance of miniature bearings in industrial and domestic equipment is difficult to overestimate. You can find them in the common equipment such as fishing reels, power tools, fans and ATMs.
Also, without them, we would never have known the advantages of the modern semiconductor computers, humanity would not have taken the first step towards space exploration.
In the recent years, technology has witnessed rapid advancements, and with it has come a line of new products in various fields including household electrical appliances, medical equipment, automotive, machine tools and many others.
The product innovations present a challenge to bearing manufacturers since there are ever increasing demands to offer bearings with accuracy, high performance, and reliability.
Equipment manufacturers have a multitude of bearing requirements including higher speeds, less torque, zero maintenance, less noise and vibration, withstanding harsh environments, integration into units, and many more.
Miniature ball bearings provide an ideal solution for a wide variety of light duty instrument and precision applications.
Miniature ball bearings can be divided into two basic types, deep groove and angular contact. The former can be further divided into the folowing five classes depending on their design details:
• Standard type
• Flanged outer ring
• Extended inner ring
• With one ring that has a radial thickness larger than normal
• With both rings that are extra thin in the radial direction.
Deep grove ball bearings can also be classified as "Open" "Shielded", or "Sealed" depending on the existence and type of seal or shield. Many selections also are available in both inch and metric dimensions.