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I was invited by Tom Astrene of TLT to write a response to the July 2010 TLT article (Ref. 1). My rebuttal — “In Search of a Fatigue Limit: A Critique of ISO Standard 281:2007” — was published in Tribology and Lubrication Engineering, TLT, August 2010 edition (Ref. 10). While this article is also available online, I will attempt to summarize the essence of my response.

When the need arises for linear motion or positioning, there are many choices. One can use an Acme screw, ball screw, rack & pinion, or belts. The cost of a linear motor solution is generally greater than a mechanical linear product, but when one needs highly accurate, repeatable, high-speed motion, then the answer may be a linear motor.

Equipment downtime and reduced component life are a few of the consequences — and potential costs — of using the wrong seals on many types of industrial equipment including pump bearing frames, electric motors, fans, pillow blocks, gearboxes and more. However, if correctly specified and installed, seals provide effective barriers that both retain lubricants as well as protect against water, corrosion, debris and other contaminants.

Eddy Swiben, branch manager at BDI Canada, explains how to problem solve on an automatic cutter for tissue rolls. “This is a very major paper tissue manufacturer that sells paper tissue rolls all over America.” They roll paper tissue just like newsprint paper mills do. When the product is finally done and dried, they need to roll it on a light carton core 20-ft. long.

Bearings are an essential component in the majority of mechanical designs and equipment. It is important to consider the most effective materials when designing industrial machinery, especially in applications where water or other liquids are present. Many materials will be unable to overcome the challenges associated with operating in a wet or corrosive environment.

It's no secret that conveyor systems are the primary market for gearmotors, and so it shouldn't be much of a surprise that gearmotor manufacturers are looking for ways to cater to that market's needs. From Brother's new VFDs to Siemens' Simotics S-1FG1, a lot of the new solutions in the industry have their own unique quirks, but all fall into a few common veins.

News on the latest products from around the industry.

Here’s what we know about Tremont, Illinois: It’s a small village in Tazewell County, (population 2,400+), holds an annual summer turkey festival (quite popular) and the courthouse is a famous historic site where politician James Shields challenged an “up-and-coming” lawyer named Abraham Lincoln to a duel with cavalry broad swords (they showed up, but the duel never materialized). In 2016, you can add FIRST Robotics Competition World Champion to the village’s rather eccentric list of accomplishments.

Until now the estimation of rolling bearing life has been based on engineering models that consider an equivalent stress, originated beneath the contact surface, that is applied to the stressed volume of the rolling contact. Through the years, fatigue surface–originated failures, resulting from reduced lubrication or contamination, have been incorporated into the estimation of the bearing life by applying a penalty to the overall equivalent stress of the rolling contact. Due to this simplification, the accounting of some specific failure modes originated directly at the surface of the rolling contact can be challenging. In the present article, this issue is addressed by developing a general approach for rolling contact life in which the surfaceoriginated damage is explicitly formulated into the basic fatigue equations of the rolling contact. This is achieved by introducing a function to describe surface-originated failures and coupling it with the traditional, subsurface-originated fatigue risk of the rolling contact. The article presents the fundamental theory of the new model and its general behavior. The ability of the present general method to provide an account for the surface–subsurface competing fatigue mechanisms taking place in rolling bearings is discussed with reference to endurance testing data.