Roller Bearings

Roller bearings are bearings with cylindrical rolling elements (rollers) placed between inner and outer rings (called races). They are used in a variety of applications such as general machinery, machine tools, motors and reduction drives. The rolling elements used in roller bearings are cylindrical rollers instead of the balls used in ball bearings. Since roller bearings provide more linear support for the load, they are usually used on shafts receiving higher loads. The types of roller bearings available include cylindrical roller bearings and several others. For example, needle roller bearings are more suited to space-saving applications than cylindrical roller bearings. Conical roller bearings can support a radial load and unidirectional axial load at the same time. Self-aligning roller bearings enable the inner race, rolling elements and retainer to rotate in a tilted posture relative to the outer race, making them suited to use in applications such as machinery with highly flexible shafts.