NSK high speed, low noise ball screw now even quieter

However this was only the first step. Noise caused by the raceway has also now been reduced in the new Generation II series. In combination with increased speed of at least 40 percent, NSK expects strong demand for Ball Screw Generation II. Indeed, the company anticipates that global sales will hit circa €29 million by 2016.

During routine machinery operation, noise emanates from two principal sources: balls rolling inside the recirculation component; and balls rolling along the surfaces of the shaft/nut raceways.

Although NSK has manufactured high speed ball screws with reduced ball recirculation noise since 2003, recent years have witnessed the emergence of a new trend led by the growing uptake of more compact, lighter machines. Unfortunately, the inherent design of lighter machines introduces greater potential for resonance and, subsequently, noise. 

In conventional ball screws, microscopic waviness is generated on the raceway at a constant pitch. This results in resonance that is delivered into the machine base, structure and covers as unwanted vibration. 

NSK’s Ball Screw II has been developed to efficiently and effectively subdue machinery reverberation and raceway noise across the entire range of operating conditions. This welcome effect is achieved largely using innovation in the production process. 

In short, Ball Screw Generation II helps set a new standard in lowering the decibel levels emitted by all manner of industrial machines, particularly compact and/or lightweight models. This applies not just to machine tools, but carrier devices, LCD and semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and medical inspection and measurement devices.