iglide® G300 was chosen as the polymer bearing material. These cost-effective all-round bearings cover a very wide range of applications. They work in dry operations at temperatures of –40 °F to +266 °F. At the same time they are insensitive to dust and dirt, suitable for simple rotational and pivoting movements. The robust bearings also cope with peak and edge loads without problems.
Altogether, 15 iglide® G300 bearings are currently installed in the five steel struts for the north-south axis on the “s:track”. In total there is an available installation space of approx. 100 mm. Due to the high tolerances, three bushings are installed on each strut. “The third bushing basically has no function. It is only installed as a precaution,” says Gerhard Dirscherl. Hence there is the option of inserting a special bearing assembly with a length of 47 mm from left and right as a flange bushing. In this way one bearing can be saved, which further minimizes sources of faults and makes assembly even easier. Dirscherl appears to be very happy with the technical advice, moreover: “The collaboration is good, as can already be seen on the igus® proposal for the special bearing assembly. Although the numbers on new developments can often not be foreseen to start with, we always feel very well looked after."