Deep groove ball bearings are a common bearing type used in several industries from heavy machinery to high-precision equipment. This type of bearing consists of four elements, including an inner ring, an outer ring, a cage to hold the balls, and a ball bearing. Due to the flat surfaces of the outer and inner rings, deep groove ball bearings provide a larger contact area, thus providing high performance and high load capacity. While deep groove ball bearings come in hundreds of models and sizes, with varying designs and even materials used for the inner and outer rings and cages, they can be broken down into 4 main parts.
There are mainly 4 types of deep groove ball bearings depending on the design, construction, and end application. Let us see what these deep groove ball bearings do and what are the core differences between them.
ㆍSuper small bearings and miniature ball bearings
As the name suggests, this type of bearing uses small balls as rolling elements and can be divided into two categories: deep groove and angular contact. Deep groove miniature ball bearings are divided into five subcategories: standard type, flanged outer ring, enlarged diameter one ring, thin-walled type, and enlarged diameter inner ring.
ㆍThe largest ball bearing
This type of ball bearing has a higher number of ball bearings as compared to other types of deep groove ball bearings, and due to the large number of ball bearings used in it, this particular type of deep groove ball bearing has high precision and high performance. Depending on the application and requirements, this type of bearing can be open or shielded. The cage in this type of deep groove ball bearing is made of pressed steel which provides high performance and load-carrying capacity.
ㆍMagneto Deep Groove Ball Bearing
The inner ring of this bearing is slightly deeper than other types of bearings, and since the outer ring has only one shoulder, it can be removed for maintenance or installation. This type of deep groove ball bearings is known for providing high precision and they are available in smaller sizes compared to other types. Some major applications of this type of ball bearings are gyroscopes.
ㆍSingle row deep groove ball bearing
In this special type of deep groove ball bearing, the cage is made of pressed steel, which combines high load capacity and flexibility. This is one of the most widely used deep groove ball-bearing types. Bearings of this type are either made with open bearings or may have steel or rubber shrouds, depending on the requirements of the equipment. Instead of pressed steel other materials are also used to make the cage.
Angular contact ball bearings
The term angular contact ball bearing is the term used for special ball bearings. Similar to radial deep groove ball bearings, the balls are guided through deep grooves in the inner and outer rings with narrow slopes. Also, the relatively small contact area between the balls and the raceways (point contact) results in very little rolling resistance. So-called cages prevent ball contact and thus allow low-friction load transmission of moving machine parts.
These differ from deep groove ball bearings by the asymmetrical design of the bearing cross-section. Angular contact ball bearings are designed to support loads whose line of action is not perpendicular to the bearing axis but at an angle (contact angle) to the vertical axis. To this end, the shoulder is designed to be more pronounced around the ball (contact area) near the application line (contact angle) so that loads applied at an angle can be better supported. If the angular load is decomposed into radial load and axial load, the angular contact ball bearing can only bear axial load in one direction due to its design.
Opposing bearing shoulders are less pronounced, making installation easier. Care must be taken to mount the bearings correctly.
Common contact angles are 15°, 25°, and 40°. The larger the contact angle, the higher the axial load capacity. At the same time, the maximum speed limit decreases with increasing contact angle.
In practice, angular contact ball bearings are often used in pairs. This allows axial loads to be supported in both directions. Depending on the pattern of load application lines, experts talk about O or X layouts. If two bearings are mounted behind each other with the same contact angle alignment, the term tandem arrangement is used.
Modern angular contact ball bearings are usually filled with suitable roller bearing grease and are therefore maintenance-free in many applications. Sealing and oiling costs are no longer required. However, when grease is used as a lubricant, no heat is dissipated inside the bearing.
According to the number of ball rows used, it can be divided into single-row angular contact ball bearings and multi-row angular contact ball bearings.
In addition, angular contact ball bearings are divided into angular contact ball bearings (common type) and spindle bearings (high precision type) according to raceway quality and manufacturing tolerances.
Four-point contact ball bearings have been developed to support axial loads in both directions.
In these cases, the outer ring (Q series) or inner ring (QJ series) is separated.
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