I think I spend more time talking about ball bearings today than at any other time in my career. Ball bearings have always had a large place in automotive, but not typically in high demand positions—other than a few niche areas. High demand positions, such as axles and planetaries, were typically reserved for tapers, needles and cylindricals. The landscape is changing quickly.

Priorities in the construction, off-highway and agriculture sectors seem to focus on longevity, energy efficiency and maximizing speed and torque. Every press conference and booth visit so far at IFPE and ConExpo support this claim. Components need to meet strict environmental guidelines while maximizing power. Success in these markets depends on condition monitoring technologies, quick-change components and the ability to meet power density requirements. 

What started as a small workshop in Antwerp in 1923 has developed into a world-leading industrial gear unit manufacturer. For 100 years, Hansen Industrial Transmissions NV (HIT) has operated at the forefront of power transmission technology and shaped the industry with its industrial gearbox solutions. Since 2011, the company, headquartered at a state-of-the-art facility in Edegem with 260 employees, has been part of Sumitomo Drive Technologies. HIT supplies industrial gearboxes to a wide range of industries such as extraction material handling, energy, environment, and specialist applications in key industries.

Velo3D, Inc. has been named to Fast Company’s prestigious annual list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies for 2023. The company received the award because of how its technology is being used by innovative companies in key industries like new space, semiconductor and energy, which rely on advanced manufacturing technologies to build next-generation products. 

Join Gleason's special online event to learn about design, manufacturing and inspection of e-Drive gears. The three day event features one topic per day addressing the specific requirements and challenges of e-Drive transmission manufacture, with particular attention to minimizing gear noise.

The latest version offers a wide range of powerful new features, from a new gear design module, to the influence of the wheel body during a complete rollover, to new display options for 3D images and animation of the gearbox kinematics in reports.

KISSsoft offers the calculation of geometry and contact stresses of Hirth couplings. Hirth couplings allow for the transmission of high torque between shafts. In KISSsoft, users can select a standard Hirth coupling offered by Voith GmbH & Co. KGaA or enter their own custom geometry for the calculation.

Siemens Digital Industries Software announced that the latest release of Simcenter software for mechanical simulation helps streamline electrification engineering projects, assists new aircraft meet margins of safety, simplifies durability testing across many industries and much more.

Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division recently introduced Elements, new simulation software that helps engineering teams understand the behavior of systems that are becoming increasingly complex in modern products. Using the software, teams can evaluate the performance and feasibility of new design concepts quickly to inform more efficient product development and reduce risk and cost.

This article is Part III in a series of articles on speed rating of bearings. Part I appeared in the September 2022 issue ("Ball Bearing Limiting Speeds"), and Part II appeared in the October 2022 issue ("Ball Bearing Thermal Speed Rating"). Bearings with Norm examines the latest in bearing technology and design.