NKE Austria GmbH presents its bearings for railway applications. The bearings are used in traction motors and locomotive gearboxes as well as in railcars, trams and underground trains. NKE will present these technologies at Rail Live 2023, November 29 to December 1, IFEMA Madrid, Spain in Booth #B071.

When designing a rail vehicle, it is essential to consider factors such as loads, speeds, torques and installation space. These factors must be considered also when selecting the power transmission components. Bearings for gearboxes operate at high speeds and under high loads. They must be able to withstand shocks, vibration, and extreme temperatures. Bearings for traction motors are required to have long service life. The most used bearing types in rail vehicle gearboxes are cylindrical roller bearings, tapered roller bearings, angular contact ball bearings, four-point contact ball bearings and deep groove ball bearings. In traction motors, the most typical are cylindrical roller bearings and deep groove ball bearings. Often these bearing types are electrically insulated, with a corresponding coating on the outer or inner ring. For particularly demanding applications, hybrid variants are available. The rolling elements of hybrid bearings are made from heavy duty silicon nitride (Si3N4), an extremely hard-wearing ceramic. Bearings for gearboxes and traction motors can also be customized and produced to special specifications, for example higher thermal resistance or more stringent tolerance ranges.

“Our design of electrically insulated cylindrical roller bearings and deep groove ball bearings includes an oxide ceramic coating,” said Klaus Grissenberger, application engineer with NKE in Steyr, Austria. “This offers simple, effective protection against bearing damage from current passing through the bearing." 

The insulation significantly reduces the risk of damaged raceways and premature ageing of the lubricant and has a dielectric strength of 1,000 V and 3,000 V with DC or AC voltage respectively. Electrically insulated bearings have the same dimensions and technical properties as conventional bearings, so they are easily replaceable. Versions available are bearings with insulation on the outer ring (SQ77) or on the inner ring (SQ77E).

Hybrid deep groove ball bearings from NKE are noted for the extremely high degree of protection they offer against damaging bearing currents, prolonged service life - also of the lubricant -, exceptionally quiet running, and low friction and associated losses. 

“Our hybrid deep groove ball and cylindrical bearings represent the premium solution for the prevention of current-induced bearing damage,” said Grissenberger. "This is achieved due to the excellent material properties of the ceramic balls, for example outstanding compressive strength and rigidity, low density, and of course the highest possible electrical resistance.”

When developing bearing solutions for railway applications, NKE’s Applications Engineering department works closely with customers, which include well-known OEM manufacturers, railway operators and service providers. All bearings undergo rigorous, documented quality control procedures. Apart from product development, NKE also offers technical support in the selection of bearings, dimensioning, and condition assessment, and conducts training courses. Since 2005, the Austrian bearing manufacturer has delivered over 40,000 bearings for rail vehicles.

(https://www.powertransmission.com)

More about VAFEM:

VAFEM is devoted to providing high quality ball & roller bearings and related transmission parts for domestic and foreign customers in the Vehicle industry and Industries. Our products used in automotive and truck industry mainly include : wheel bearings, wheel bearing kits, wheel hub bearings, alternator bearings, tensioner bearings, clutch bearings, and gear box bearings etc. Our industrial bearings are mainly used in these fields such as Industrial Automation, Home Appliances, Reducers, Agricultural Machines, Precision Machine Spindles, and Transmission Systems etc. As a high-tech company specializing in bearings, we can not only provide stable and trustworthy quality products for OEM customers, but also provide non-standard bearings based on customers’ special requirements. At the same time, we can provide a series of complete product lines and have our own brand VAFEM, it stands for the abbreviation of value added for every movement, which has been recognized by more and more customers and end users.

2023 New Week VAFEM product Recommendation:

Agricultural bearings：

Agricultural machinery requires better seals for contaminated conditions, provisions for misalignment, and economical mountings for shafts and housings. VAFEM offers bearings for disc harrows, planters, mowers, rakes, all types of balers, tillage, seeding and forage harvester equipment, combines, cotton pickers/stripers, and other agricultural equipment like silo unloaders and grain elevators.

We also offer a complete line of insert ball bearings, shaft mounted with either tapered adapters or locking collar or set screws. Our proven seal designs include low torque shields to heavy-duty triple lip seals. Disc harrow bearings are also available with either round, square, or hexagonal bores. All bearings are available with or without re-lubrication holes.

https://www.vafem.com/products/Agricultural-Bearings/775.html