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Two basically different types of bearings

The bearings are tribological components that carry a load while they are in mutual contact with another body and have a relative movement with each other. The movement can be sliding or rotating.

There are basically two different types of bearings: sliding bearings and rolling element bearings. Other types include hydrodynamic bearings, which support their loads on a thin layer of liquid or gas; magnetic bearings, which use magnetic fields to transport their charges; bending bearings, in which the load is supported by a folded element; and high precision bearings, used in watch making.
flange mount bearings
Sliding Bearings

Sliding bearings, also known as bushings, bushes, plain bearings or friction bearings, are generally cylindrical in shape and contain no moving parts.

The standard configurations of sliding bearings include cylindrical bushings, flange bearings for radial loads and light axial loads, pressure washers and cylindrical bushings for radial loads, pressure washers with flange for heavy axial loads and sliding plates of various shapes. You can also make custom designs, including shapes, sizes and special features (slots, cavities, notches, tabs, etc.).


The offer of sliding bearings is diverse. They are mainly different in terms of: size (diameter of the spigot from a fraction of a millimeter to several thousand millimeters), load (in terms of direction, value and variability in time), rotational speed, more generally speaking — movement (rotary or shuttle), and above all — the type of friction.

The principle of thermoplastic bearings is based on the cooperation of the working surfaces of the bearing shell and shaft and their mutual slip, called sliding friction. The friction depends on such factors as: cooperating materials, roughness of cooperating surfaces, type of lubrication and pressure force.

In sliding bearings, liquid friction is most desirable. However, as practice shows, mixed friction is most often achieved. How to achieve and maintain fluid friction in the bearing system? When the lubricant pressure in the gap is greater than the unit pressure of the pin on the bush, it is possible to achieve liquid friction. The creation of a grease or gas carrier layer contributes to reducing the resistance of movement between the bearing and the journal. Sliding bearings usually use liquid lubricants, in particular mineral oils. High viscosity oils increase pressure in the lubricant layer and are therefore ideal for bearings with higher loads.




Plain Bearings

The plain bearings are used for sliding, rotary, oscillating or reciprocating movements. In displacement applications they serve as sliding bearings, displacement rails and wear plates. In these applications the sliding surfaces are generally flat, but they can also be cylindrical, and the movement is always linear instead of rotary. Rotary applications consist of cylindrical surfaces and the movement may consist of a unidirectional or bidirectional displacement. In applications with oscillating and alternative movement, the surfaces are flat or cylindrical, but the displacement is bidirectional.