General
Design advantages inherent to spherical plain bearings include the ability to:
- accommodate misalignment (fig. 1)
- virtually eliminate edge stresses and stressing of adjacent components (fig. 2)
- accommodate deformation of surrounding components in operation (fig. 3)
- accommodate wide manufacturing tolerances and the use of cost-effective, welded assemblies (fig. 4)
fig. 1
fig. 2
fig. 3
fig. 4
Spherical plain bearings are standardized, ready-to-mount, mechanical components that enable multi-directional, self-aligning movements. The inner ring has a spherical convex outside diameter, while the outer ring has a correspondingly concave inside diameter. The forces acting on the bearing may be static or may occur when the bearing makes oscillating or recurrent tilting and slewing movements at relatively low speeds.
To select a certain bearing type and to establish the requisite bearing size, the main factors which have to be considered are the loads, the load carrying capacity of the bearing and the expected service life. The same is true when selecting a rod end.
Table 1 provides an overview of spherical plain bearing designs.
Table 2 provides an overview of rod end designs.
Mounting and dismounting
Skill and cleanliness when mounting are necessary if spherical plain bearings and rod ends are to perform correctly and not fail prematurely.
The bearings and rod ends should only be taken from their packages immediately before mounting so that they do not become contaminated. The sliding contact surfaces of the bearings are matched to provide favourable friction and wear characteristics. Any alteration of the sliding surfaces would shorten the service life so that the bearings must not be washed or come into contact with solvents, cleaners, oils or similar media. Any components which have possibly become dirty as a result of improper handling (damaged packaging etc.) should be wiped using a clean cloth.
The components associated with the bearing (housings, shafts etc.) should be cleaned and any burrs removed. They should also be checked with regard to accuracy of dimensions and form before mounting is started.
The recommendations in the following apply both to mounting and dismounting spherical plain bearings as well as rod ends.
Product features
· Robust steel/steel bearings
· LS heavy-duty triple-lip seals
·High degree of corrosion and wear resistance
·Optimized tribological system
·Pre-filled with high-performance, non toxic grease
·Dimensionally interchangeable with standard steel/steel bearings
User benefits
·Increases uptime and productivity
·Virtually eliminates premature failures due to poor lubrication conditions
· Reduces total cost of ownership
·Increases corrosion resistance
·Eliminates grease purging into the environment
