In the fields of modern industrial automation, precision machine tools, semiconductor equipment, medical equipment, etc., ball screws play a vital role as key transmission elements that convert rotary motion into precise linear motion. Their excellent performance and reliability are the core guarantee for improving equipment accuracy, efficiency and life.
Ball screw: working principle and core structure
The working principle of ball screws cleverly combines the traditional concept of screw nuts with the rolling friction principle of bearings:
Core composition: It is mainly composed of precision screws, nuts, balls and return devices (returners).
Motion conversion: When one of the screws or nuts rotates, the balls roll cyclically between the spiral raceway of the screw and the corresponding raceway in the nut.
Rolling friction: Unlike traditional sliding screws, ball screws transmit power and motion through rolling friction. The balls circulate continuously in the raceway, converting the rotary motion of the screw into the linear motion of the nut (or screw) efficiently and with low friction, and vice versa.
Circulation path: After the ball rolls out from one end of the nut, it is guided by a well-designed reflux device (returner) and returns to the other end of the nut, forming a closed, continuous circulation path.
Simple metaphor: Imagine a thread (screw) and a matching nut, but the thread groove is filled with small steel balls (balls). When the thread is turned, the steel balls roll in the groove and push the nut to move in a straight line, just like using bearings instead of sliding friction, greatly reducing resistance and wear.
