Bearing Selection Guide | How to Choose a Bearing

 There are many different types of bearings available today with very little information on the differences between them. Maybe you've asked yourself 'which bearing will be best for your application?' Or 'how do I choose a bearing?' This bearing selection guide will help you answer those questions.

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First off, you need to know that most bearings with a rolling element fall into two broad groups:

1. Ball bearings
2. Roller bearings

Within these groups, there are sub-categories of bearings that have unique features or optimized designs to enhance performance.

In this bearing selection guide, we'll cover the four things you need to know about your application in order to choose the right type of bearing.

Find the Bearing Load & Load Capacity

Bearing loads are generally defined as the reaction force a component places on a bearing when in use.

When choosing the right bearing for your application, first you should find the bearing's load capacity. The load capacity is the amount of load a bearing can handle and is one of the most important factors when choosing a bearing.

Bearing loads can either be axial (thrust), radial or a combination.

An axial (or thrust) bearing load is when force is parallel to the axis of the shaft.

A radial bearing load is when force is perpendicular to the shaft. Then a combination bearing load is when parallel and perpendicular forces produce an angular force relative to the shaft.

To learn more about axial and radial ball bearings, contact our team of engineers!

For more information, please visit Beijing SKF.

How Ball Bearings Distribute Loads

Ball bearings are designed with spherical balls and can distribute loads over a medium-sized surface area. They tend to work better for small-to-medium-sized loads, spreading loads via a single point of contact.

Below is a quick reference for the type of bearing load and the best ball bearing for the job:

• Radial (perpendicular to the shaft) and light loads: Choose radial ball bearings (also known as deep groove ball bearings). Radial bearings are some of the most common types of bearings on the market.
• Axial (thrust) (parallel to the shaft) loads: Choose thrust ball bearings
• Combined, both radial and axial, loads: Choose an angular contact bearing. The balls contact the raceway at an angle which better supports combination loads.

Roller Bearings & Bearing Load

Roller bearings are designed with cylindrical rollers that can distribute loads over a larger surface area than ball bearings. They tend to work better for heavy load applications.

Below is a quick reference for the type of bearing load and the best roller bearing for the job:

• Radial (perpendicular to the shaft) loads: Choose standard cylindrical roller bearings
• Axial (thrust) (parallel to the shaft) loads: Choose cylindrical thrust bearings
• Combined, both radial and axial, loads: Choose a taper roller bearing

Bidirectional Thrust Ball Bearings
Bidirectional thrust ball bearings consist of two seat rings, an intermediate shaft ring, two sets of balls and cages, and can withstand thrust in both directions. It is designed to withstand axial loads in both directions, but equally cannot withstand radial loads.

Specific Applications

Aircraft engines: Bidirectional thrust ball bearings are able to withstand the axial forces that vary during takeoff and landing in aircraft engines to ensure the stability of the engine.

Industrial machinery: in machinery that needs to withstand axial loads in both directions, such as certain types of gearboxes and steering systems, bidirectional thrust ball bearings provide the necessary support.

Machine tools: In the spindles of high-precision machine tools, bi-directional thrust ball bearings can withstand the bi-directional thrust caused by the cutting force and maintain the accuracy and stability of the spindle.

For more One-Way Thrust Ball Bearingsinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.