Ball Bearings - What Are They?

A ball bearing is a type of rolling element that uses balls to separate the moving parts of the bearing. The balls are usually made from steel or ceramic and are to provide frictionless movement between the different parts of the bearing. The usage of magnetic ball bearings go back to Roman times where they found them on Roman ships which were built in 40 A.D.

It was Leonardo da Vinci who first discovered the idea and the mechanics of using balls within the bearing but it was only until 1791 where Phillip Vaughn, an English carriage maker, patented the first axle to use the ball bearing.

What are ball bearings used for?

Ball bearings are more commonly used in machinery and in appliances. There are many interesting and different uses for motors and bearings for example Earthquake Proof Buildings. The San Francisco International Airport uses giant magnetic bearings to help it withstand the effects of an earth quake. Within the airport there are over 200 columns, and each column is placed over a ball bearing with a diameter of 5 feet so in the case of an earthquake it separates the ground from the building. Once the earthquake is over the columns are centered over the balls from the force of gravity.

The different types of ball bearings

There are many different types of ball bearings including Magnetic Bearings, which are used in high speed devices like high speed motors. These devices can go as fast as 50,000 revolutions per minute, a normal bearing would melt or explode at this speed but the magnetic bearing can handle this. Another is the Giant Roller Bearings which are used to move very large and very heavy objects. The Egyptians first used this concept when building the pyramids and is still used today.

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