Use of ring slides — The solution for rotational and indexing applications

Ring slides are a cost effective solution which can provide low-friction stability and smooth rotation to rotary and indexing applications. Such applications include rotary tables, medical scanning machines, and pick-and-place. Ring slides provide quiet operation and the ability to segment the rotation into specific angles. Although they work at most any diameter, ring slides work particularly well for diameters above 200 mm. When the diameter is over 200 mm, it allows services to be routed through the center of the ring. Lubrication is only necessary between mating vee surfaces. Installation of ring slides is simple as it only requires bolting to a flat surface. Load capacity is determined by the size and number of bearings part of the ring slide. Generally, four guidance bearings are sufficient for most loads relative to the size of the ring. Rings can be used for either precision positioning or simply in cases where rotation with a low-cost is required. This article includes many examples and illustrations of different ring slide applications.  Read the full article at Machine Design.

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