Benefits of High-Performance Automotive Bearings
Featured Product from Hartford Technologies, Inc.
Bearings enable smooth, low-friction motion. In a perfect world, they'd all be super light, extremely compact, maintenance-free, quiet, and durable. In other words, perfectly optimized for automotive applications. Unfortunately, the world isn't perfect, but high-performance bearings can come close. Here's some guidance on their use for those in automotive manufacturing.
Rolling or Sliding Bearings for Automotive Applications
Sliding element bearings are those with a smooth, low-friction surface. They're used around the crankshaft, camshaft, and connecting rods because they'll absorb very high loads. Elsewhere in the automobile friction reduction is handled by rolling element bearings.
These use balls or rollers that separate an outer and inner race. A cage holds them in place while leaving them free to roll as the inner of outer race turns. It's this rolling motion that minimizes friction.
High-Performance Bearings in Automotive Manufacturing
Rolling element bearings can be designed for radial loads, axial loads, or both. Load carrying capacity is proportional to the number of balls or rollers and their diameter. High-performance bearings pack high capacity into a small volume. They can be designed for a wide range of rotational speeds, including applications where speed varies quickly. In addition, bearing designers can incorporate self-aligning capabilities, which simplifies assembly into mechanisms and reduces costs.
Other features of high-performance bearings are their quiet, smooth motion and long life. This results from the materials used and the precision with which they're manufactured. They can also be engineered to be effectively maintenance-free.
Benefits of Using High-Performance Automotive Bearings
- Packaging/space/envelope. High-performance bearings can be designed to take up very little room.
- Perception of quality. The motion will be quiet and smooth, helping make the driver feel he's in a high-end vehicle.
- Durability. Careful selection of materials along with painstaking design and engineering analysis ensures bearings can exceed vehicle life.
- Assembly simplification. The self-aligning capability can allow design simplification elsewhere and make it easier to build up the complete mechanism.
- Lightweight. Careful design and rigorous material evaluation and selection result in bearings that deliver high performance for their size and mass.
Example Automotive Applications
High-performance automotive bearings are used throughout the modern automobile. Seat track rails are one example. This application calls for high load-carrying capacity along with exceptionally smooth and quiet motion. And as with everything automotive, weight must be minimized.
A second example is steering column bearings. Drivers take for granted that the wheel will turn smoothly but space for the bearing is often severely limited. Again, a high-performance bearing that provides a good feel and high load-carrying capacity in a small package is the answer.
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Hartford Technologies
Leading precision ball, pin, and custom bearing manufacturer. Specialized in rolling element and assembly solutions.
For more than 8 decades, Hartford has provided cost-effective solutions for every ball-bearing rolling element requirement.
We manufacture the following products:
- Custom Bearings, Bearing Components and Bearing Assemblies
- Precision Balls
- Bearing Parts
- Precision Pins, Shafts, and Rollers
We are unique in ways that make Hartford the ideal supplier for mission-critical components.
For the greatest logistics advantage, we manufacture on two continents. Our manufacturing is configured for the highest repeatability and fastest delivery.
Additionally, US and offshore manufacturing is also identical in that it is supported by:
- Exceptional prototype development
- An expert 3D modeling team
- US technical support that is the most experienced in the world with rolling element components and assemblies
- US-based inventory management
- US-based quality control systems
Furthermore, all Hartford products pass rigorous quality processes, including APQP, PFMEA, PPAP, and SPC. Hartford Technologies is ISO 9001 and ISO/TS 16949 certified. We are an approved automotive Tier I/II supplier. Also, as a woman-owned company, Hartford Technologies is certified by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council.
