**Rolling Bearing Production - Ferrule Grinding and Super (Fine) Finishing**
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**Rolling Bearing Manufacturing: Ferrule Grinding and Precision Finishing**
Bearing production involves several critical stages, one of which is the grinding and finishing of bearing rings. This process ensures that the bearing components meet high standards of precision and performance, essential for their long-term reliability in various mechanical systems.
**1. Equipment Used in Ferrule Grinding**
The equipment used for grinding bearing rings is highly specialized, designed for high productivity and precision. Common types include:
- **End Grinding Machines**: Such as through-type double-face grinders, reciprocating double-face grinders, vertical single-head surface grinders, and vertical double-head surface grinders.
- **Outer Diameter Grinders**: Including through-type cylindrical grinders and centerless cylindrical grinders (reciprocating or cutting type).
- **Specialized Grinders**: Such as inner diameter grinders, inner groove grinders, outer groove grinders, raceway grinders, rib grinders, and composite grinders for both raceways and surfaces.
For ultra-precision finishing, machines like outer raceway super-precision grinders, inner raceway super-precision grinders, and others are used. These can be either mechanical or CNC-controlled, with some models combining coarse and fine grinding in a single station or across multiple stations.
**2. Common Grinding Methods**
There are two main methods based on workpiece positioning:
- **Centerless Jig Grinding**: Suitable for larger outer rings (over 400mm), where the workpiece is supported without centers.
- **Centered Jig Grinding**: Used for smaller components, where the workpiece is clamped between centers.
Grinding techniques also vary, including Fan Cheng grinding, swing head grinding, and manual grinding. Swing head grinding has largely replaced traditional methods due to its efficiency and accuracy.
**3. Finishing and Polishing Techniques**
After initial grinding, finishing processes such as abrasive belt grinding, super-finishing, and polishing are applied to achieve the required surface quality.
- **Abrasive Belt Grinding**: Uses a rigid block to press an abrasive belt against the workpiece, providing a smooth finish.
- **Super-Finishing**: A precise method that reduces roundness errors and corrects shape deviations. The workpiece rotates while a stone is pressed against it, improving surface integrity and fatigue resistance.
- **Polishing**: While still used, it has been largely replaced by super-finishing due to its superior ability to enhance surface quality and reduce labor intensity.
**4. Tools and Materials Used**
- **Grinding Wheels**: Available in different bonding agents—ceramic, resin, rubber, metal, and diamond. Abrasives include corundum, silicon carbide, cubic boron nitride, and diamond.
- **Oil Stones**: Used for super-precision finishing, commonly made from silicon carbide or cubic boron nitride.
**5. Evolution of Ferrule Grinding Technology**
Ferrule grinding has evolved over more than a century, starting from simple end-face grinding to advanced channel and rib grinding. Although older methods are still used, modern technology continues to push the industry forward.
Future trends in bearing manufacturing will focus on high-speed grinding (with wheel speeds exceeding 50 m/s), high-precision CNC machining, online measurement, and full automation controlled by computers.
**Surface Grinding Process**
**Related Bearing Knowledge**
Understanding bearings, the basics of rolling bearings, the advantages of general-purpose bearing heaters, and how bearing quality affects precision.
This article was originally published on China Bearing Network. For more information, visit [http://www.chinabearing.net](http://www.chinabearing.net).
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