Complete List of Aerospace Bearings
Bearings are mechanical devices used to enable linear and/or rotational movement, reduce friction, and support loads in mechanical applications. There are numerous types of bearings, for just as many purposes. The broad categories of bearings are plain, rolling-element bearings, fluid bearings, jewel bearings, flexure bearings, and magnetic bearings. The simple explanation of how a bearing works is that rolling surfaces with a reduced area of contact produce less friction than a sliding surface, allowing an element to move faster and consume less power.
Cogent Sourcing supplies aerospace, marine and avaition bearings and parts from top manufacturers around the world. Some of the manufacturers that produce high-quality bearings include Timken, Barden, McGill, Accurate Bushing Company, and Precision Division.
Aerospace Bearings
Aerospace bearings are utilized on all types of equipment in the aerospace industry, including aircraft, spacecraft, UAVs, and space and satellite equipment. Bearings used in any type of aerospace machinery require strict standards for quality and material control due to the demanding environments they work in. There are material standards, required traceability, and testing requirements on all parts. Bearings are commonly utilized in landing gear struts, engines, aircraft interiors, and numerous other purposes.
Some of the most common bearings in the aerospace industry include roller bearings, ball bearings, roller thrust bearings, ball thrust bearings, baffle bearings, screw bearings, baffle bearings, needle bearings, and actuator bearings. Although there are many shared characteristics in the use of bearings in all applications, there are also unique applications for different vehicles.
- Fixed-wing Aircraft Bearings
Bearings are used in aircraft control systems such as ailerons, trim tabs, elevators, and flaps. They are also used in engines, landing gear, doors, thrust reversers, and stowage bin support. Specific bearings are used for these purposes include spherical plain bearings, ball bearings, airform control bearings, actuator bearings, track rollers, horizontal stabilizer bearings, APU bearings, engine bearings, and landing gear trunnion bearings.
- Rotary-wing Aircraft Bearings
Bearings are used in the main and tail rotor, landing gear, and engines. Specific bearings for these applications include the main rotor bearings, tail rotor bearings, main rotor pitch link bearings, tail rotor pitch link bearings, main rotor swashplate slider bearings, sphericals, engine gearbox and transmission bearings, and landing gear bearings.
- Automotive Bearings
Some of the automotive systems that use bearings include the wheels, transmission, and water pumps. Common bearings used in these applications include the wheel bearings, gearbox bearings, clutch release bearings, suspension bearings, strut bearings, and roller bearings.
Marine Bearings
There are numerous types of marine vessels, including fishing craft, commercial shipping freighters, harbor tugs, civilian recreational craft, and military ships. Every single one of them includes some types of bearings in their construction. One of several requirements for bearings in marine applications is anti-corrosion properties due to the threat that saltwater poses. Main bearings, top end bearings, bottom ending bearings, pedestal bearings, and thrust pad bearings are all common on ships. Three common types of construction used in marine bearings are bronze bearings, and bi- and tri-metal bearings.