Compact Rail Plus: linear motion freedom

How much precision do I really need? Here’s an interesting question for an industrial designer of linear motion systems. Why? Because greater precision doesn’t always result in better performance.In fact precision requires a surplus of complexity that affects the total cost of the application. A few examples: recirculating ball bearing guides provide greater accuracy than bearing guides, but very few applications require that kind of precision.

The vast majority obtain greater benefits (in terms of efficiency, productivity, as well as cost) from linear guides that meet other criteria. Which ones?

• Ability to handle misalignment (axial, radial)
• Ability to operate in dirty or corrosive environments
• Ability to operate with minimal maintenance

Guides that offer greater precision, in fact, require just as much precision in the installation phase, making it necessary to prepare and grind the support surfaces, which have a significant impact on the cost of the application.

The search for precision at all costs risks overshadowing other criteria that can generate an even greater advantage for the designer and their application.

A new design space

It is in this design space that the Compact Rail Plus is inserted, the new linear guide proposed by Rollon, which offers an increase in performance in terms of load capacity.

The new linear guide:

• mounts double ball bearings,
• uses a “C” profile with convex raceways (induction tempered), ground and available in 18, 28 and 43 mm sizes)
• is capable of withstanding
• at the equivalent size
• up to 170% additional load in the axial direction and up to 65% in the radial directioncompared to its predecessor models.

This data is at its best when combined with the other specific feature of all Compact Rail linear guides, namely the misalignment management, the intrinsic ability of the guide to reduce the complexity of the installation and thus offer more freedom to the designer.

Compact Rail Plus can compensate for up to 3.5 mm axial misalignment and up to 1.3 degrees radial misalignment.

To give an idea of the greater capacity of Compact Rail Plus to manage inaccuracies without losing efficiency, let’s compare it with the tolerances guaranteed by the recirculating ball bearings, which are in the order of hundredths of a millimeter, infinitely lower than those granted by Compact Rail Plus.

As mentioned, this type of precision requires just as much during assembly and preparation of the work area (and this affects the total cost of the application).

Versatile and performs in any environment

Another key feature that makes the Compact Rail Plus a versatile and high-performance guide in any environment (from intralogistics to medical, from rail to industrial automation) is its ability to operate even in heavily contaminated environments.

Linear guides with roller bearings are considerably more efficient than other ball rails in managing impurities thanks to the diameter of the rolling elements.

To this, the Compact Rail Plus adds the ability to provide devices to protect and remove impurities from the raceways, such as wipers and slow-release pads.

Think of the advantage of such a combination of better sized rolling elements and tools for lubrication and removal of impurities in environments rich in dust, residual chippings from machining and contaminants in general.

Maintenance, and related expenses, are greatly reduced.

Furthermore the possibility of applying additional surface treatments such as:

• passivated electro-galvanization suitable for corrosive environments in the presence of moisture
• chemical nickel-plating for use in corrosive acid and basic environments
• ISO 2081 galvanizing for protection in indoor applications

helps to broaden the scope of use in virtually every production and application environment.

The sum of all these factors, namely:

• ability to handle misalignment (resulting in less expense and less time required for surface preparation and installation)
• ability to work in challenging and dirty environments
• no maintenance
• additional surface treatments

results in a linear motion solution that simplifies the life of the industrial designer by guaranteeing high and continuous performance over time.

Are you interested in learning more about the advantages offered by Compact Rail Plus or in upgrading your Rollon linear guide system with the new CR Plus (in fact, absolute interchangeability with the other versions of the product is guaranteed, ensuring operational continuity and maximum integrability)?

Fill out the form and request a consultation with our technicians to design your new linear motion system.