Industrial Linear Motion Guides

INTRODUCTION TO LINEAR MOTION GUIDES ;

        Linear Motion Guides are those precision machine elements which are designed with friction less, noise less, vibration free and other working characteristics to permit accurate linear relative motion between two machine members. LM Guides are available in two parts, one is LM bearing or carriage and another is LM shaft or rail over which carriage moves. These guides are made in various shapes, sizes and materials depending upon load, length of travel, speed of travel, space availability and working conditions. Linear Motion Guides find applications in almost every industry from General Purpose Machine Tools to Special Purpose Machine, from Medical Equipment to Aerospace and from Transport to Construction. All the LM guides can be classified broadly into three categories depending upon the type of contact in the guide elements during motion i.e., (i) Sliding Contact, (ii) Rolling Contact and (iii) Magnetic field. 

Classification of Linear Motion Guides ;

            Classification based on technology incorporated to achieve motion or the type of contact in LM Guide elements ;

1.  Sliding Contact Linear Motion Guides ;

        In these guides, motion takes place because of sliding action between guide elements i.e., LM block and LM guide rails or rods. These are also known as Plain LM Guides. Sliding Contact LM Guides can be further classified in to two sub-categories, depending upon thickness of lubrication film in between sliding surfaces, as given below ;

a)       Thin Lubrication Film Sliding Contact LM Guides ; A partial contact remains in between guide elements as a thin layer of lubricant sweeps in between them during motion. Low friction coefficient materials are used in construction of this category of Guides. Despite of some advantages like simple in design, low cost, etc., these guides, however, least preferred because of certain disadvantages like  high friction, high heat generation, less efficiency, low life, low load carrying capacity, high maintenance.

b)        Hydrostatic LM Guides ; In these types of bearings a thick layer of pressurized fluid holds the carriage and there is no direct contact between the moving elements. To overcome disadvantages of high friction, high heat, etc. pressurized fluid is supplied in between moving elements forcibly from external source, which makes these guides costly because it requires additional unit to supply fluid, not suitable for applications in clean-rooms as there are always chances of leakage of pressurized fluid, etc.

Examples of Sliding Contact Linear Bearings are i) Spline Shaft & Spline Nut, ii) Slide Rails, iii) Lead Screws, etc.

2.    Rolling Contact Linear Motion Guides ; 

       These LM guides consists of balls or cylindrical rollers or wheels of various shapes or profiles which enable smooth and very low frictional motion at fairly high speeds in between carriages and their guides or rails. Despite of being comparatively costly these LM Guides are most preferred because of certain advantages like trouble free operations even at high speeds, compact design, low maintenance, high load carrying capacity, high efficiency, etc.

Examples of Rolling Contact Linear Motion Guides are ;

i)               LM Guide Blocks and Rails, and ii) Ball Screws, in which hardened spherical steel balls keep on circulating in a continuous end-less grooves of carriages while motion. These spherical balls support the carriage over rail or shaft which is firmly fixed to one of the machine members as well as facilitate smooth movement of loads,

iii)       LM Roller Guide Blocks have cylindrical rollers, which facilitate relative movement in between carriage with greater load and rail, and

iv)         Guide Wheels and Rails, in which wheels with a profile usually Circular groove (semi-circle) or V groove in its outer face along circumference is provided. Also a protrusion of similar profile like Guide Wheel’s groove profile in rail is provided which fits into Wheels and guides them. These are preferred where movements of comparatively greater loads at higher velocities are required.

LM Block

Advantages of Rolling Contact LM Guides ;

a)    High Positional Accuracy,

b)   High Efficiency,

c)    High Speed Motion of loads is possible,

d)   High Loads movement is possible, 

e)   Low Noise,

f)     Less Maintenance,

g)    Fairly good Life.

3.  Magnetic Field Linear Motion Guides ; 

       These guides preferably use electromagnets to provide relative linear movements in between two machine members. Their application is limited to only clean rooms in medical and other such similar clean and tidy places as no contact between parts having relative motion eliminates use of any kind of lubrication. Disadvantages like high cost, space constraints, etc. makes them less popular.

Types of Linear Motion Guides

Different types of LM Guides, which falls in any of the above mentioned categories, available in markets have been explained below ;

1.     Linear Motion Block & Rail ; 

          These blocks are highly precise and compact in design, in which 4 rows of steel balls keep on running in continuous end-less paths. The rolling balls remain in firm touch with 4 corresponding raceways on rail and supports block on rail and enable linear movement along the rail. The re-circulation of balls also permits the motion of load along desired length by introducing additional lengths of rails. These guides come in category of rolling contact LM guides and are available with either spherical hardened steel balls or hardened cylindrical rollers, which also re-circulate or guide wheels to achieve rolling action. These are most commonly used guides because of certain advantages like high accuracy, high efficiency, availability, high speed motion, etc.,

2.     Linear Motion Ball Bearings & Shafts ; 

         These are also a type of LM guides which permits linear relative motion. LM Ball Bearings are made in ring shape which carries continuous end-less raceways along its length to guide hardened spherical steel balls during motion. And as the bearings are in ring shape, they deliver motion through cylindrical shafts.  These bearings are available in various shaft sizes and types like closed-type and open-type, with or without flanges, Pillow blocks, etc. Open-type bearings are made cut open along its length to guide shafts mounting on fulcrums. These guides also come in Rolling Contact LM Guides.

3.    Linear Motion Stroke ; 

         These are also made in ring shape like LM bearings, except it has a drilled ball-cage in which holes are arranged spirally along the surface of cage and so the balls are and steel balls do not re-circulate unlike LM bearings. After inserting balls in holes of cage, holes are mechanically deformed through suitable process usually caulking, which narrows holes and cage retains balls and they do not fall. LM Strokes are also rolling contact type and they are suitable for rotational and reciprocating motions. These are used for small distance and high speed movements. 

4.  Linear Motion Spline Nut & Shaft ; 

         A Spline shaft is a round shaft in which a series of continuous equally spaced grooves are cut along the length of the shaft. Spline shafts, therefore, has teeth along its periphery and gives gear like structure when looking from cross-section area.  Thus, spline nut has similar teeth at its internal surfaces, which fits into corresponding grooves on shaft and hence provide stable sliding motion along shaft length. These are Sliding Contact type LM Guides. These are less efficient, they have high friction, low positioning accuracy. Advantages are ; Low Cost, Good Life, Less Maintenance, etc.

5.   Lead Screw ; 

      These screws normally have square threads instead of V threads as they are more efficient. Lead Screws are used to convert rotational motion of screw into linear motion of Nut. Backlash, low efficiency, high wear are the disadvantages of these screws.

6.   Ball Screw ; 

       These guides like Lead Screws convert rotational motion of screw into linear motion of Nut. Unlike lead screws, these are highly efficient because rolling motion of steel balls in between grooves cut in the nut and screw shaft. Steel balls re-circulate in the groove. Wear rate in these guides are much less.

Other LM Guides available in market are ; Ball Spline, Slide Rail, Guide Wheels and some LM Tables with or without drive.

Applications of Linear Motion Guides ;

Some common applications are ;

LM Block

• Machine Tools like Horizontal Machining Centres (HMC), Vertical Machining Centres (VMC), CNC machine tools, etc.,
• Industrial Robots,
• Medical Equipments,
• Electronic Equipments,
• Special Purpose Machineries.

Selection of Linear Motion Guides ;

 LM Guides are selected on the basis of following points ;

• Load to be moved,
• Moving Speed of Load,
• Space Availability,
• Accuracy,
• Length of Movement,
• Efficiency,
• Working Conditions, &
• Inter-changeability & Easy Availability

A thought from personal experience ; An LM Block was broken during my service to a Diaper Manufacturing Company. The constraint was that the machine manufacturer was Chinese and spare was not available with us or anywhere in Indian market. It was also not possible to get it delivered from China as it would have taken long time. So, I checked model number of LM Block engraved on it and searched it over internet. I found company's catalog and after comparing all the specifications of LM block with Indian manufacturer, I got part number of local brand Block. I ordered block and in that case rail also had to purchase. Just because of that I had put a point of Easy Availability in Points of Selection.

Guides also need to be protected from dust for which manufacturers provide some accessories like bellows to cover rail and open parts of carriage.

Few other posts seeking your attention are ;

1. Hooke's Law