Linear guides offer rigidity and long life

IKO Nippon Thompson has launched a range of miniature, stainless steel linear guides that offer high rigidity and whose slide units are fitted with a capillary sleeve lubricating component.

The MUL series guides are instantly recognisable by their aqua blue end plates. The lubricant contained in the C-sleeve end plates is made from a porous resin impregnated with a large amount of lubricant held in its open pore structure. The lubricant slowly releases itself enabling the company to offer customers a five-year or 20,000km maintenance-free operational life. The MUL has a ?-shaped track which increases rigidity for both moment and torsion, allowing it to be used as a structural member in clear span and cantilever situations. The low sectional height and compact shape of the guide also provides engineers and machine designers with greater flexibility in positioning drive mechanisms and other critical machine features. In each side of the rail, a row of large diameter steel balls make two-point contact with a V-shaped groove. The two grooves and two rows of steel balls therefore give a total of four points of contact on which all moment and torsional loads are equally distributed, ensuring smooth travel under all load and working conditions. The track on the MUL 30 series comes in lengths up to 960mm or 840mm on the MUL 25 series. DP Pointers * The guides offer machine designers high rigidity against moment and torsional loads and a maintenance-free operating life of five years or 20,000km * The miniature linear guides have capillary sleeve end plates impregnated with a lubricant made from a porous resin * The units, other than the C-sleeves, are manufactured from high grade stainless steel