Stainless steel guides have medical applications

A THK product story

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Oct 4, 2006

New generation linear motion products have the potential to change the face of practices within the surgical, dental, ophthalmic and healthcare industries.

THK has introduced a new generation of linear motion products that have the potential to change the face of practices within the surgical, dental, ophthalmic and healthcare industries.

Developed for use in a wide range of medical and healthcare machinery, from operating tables to servo electric hands for artificial limbs to eye treatment centres, the latest products have been designed to offer exceptionally high levels of positional accuracy and reliability, combined with a long, maintenance-free working life.

One particularly innovative application is the use of a THK linear motion guide in a machine that produces glass pipettes for medical purposes, such as genetic engineering.

The use of the LM guides enables the fully automatic production and polishing of pipettes with openings down to 0.8mm in diameter.

Another application of this latest technology is the use of THK LM guides in a therapeutic training unit for the leg muscles.

The training weight can be adjusted between 2.5 and 150kg, while the linear motion systems allow the back of the foot rest to be adjusted in small increments, as well as the longitudal movement and headrest adjustment.

The high load capacity yet small dimensions of the linear motion system allow for a compact machine that also provides ultra smooth and gentle movements without sticking.

Compact and lightweight, the latest linear motion products offer outstanding levels of performance, functionality and reliability.

As a result, the use of these latest devices allows manufacturers to make considerable savings in both construction and maintenance costs, while improving the ease of use as well as operating efficiencies.

Furthermore, these innovative products are capable of providing ultra smooth and quiet movement, while being capable of transporting exceptionally high average dynamic loads with an exceptional degree of accuracy and precision.

To improve functionality and reliability still further, many of these latest products feature THK's ground breaking Caged Ball technology, which eliminates the problems of noise, friction, particle emission and wear associated with conventional ball race configurations, by enclosing high precision steel balls within a separator cage, with controlled density grease pockets surrounding each ball.

This effectively prevents contact between the balls during operation, leading to significant improvements in both overall performance and operating life, and to quieter, cleaner, smoother and higher precision movement, with a far longer service life than traditional ball raceways.

Perhaps most importantly, THK's Caged Ball technology enables linear motion systems both to be used in a far wider range of applications, and to become fit and forget products, enabling machine builders and end users to benefit from considerable cost savings, in terms of both labour and materials.

Furthermore, THK's latest models have been constructed using stainless steel, further protecting the rugged units from any potential damage caused by moisture, as well as ensuring excellent wear resistance still further.

Additionally, the new devices are available with contact scrapers for applications where an additional level of contamination control and protection is required.

A range of accessories are available to enhance the performance of these latest linear motion devices still further, including the QZ lubrication system, that gives significantly extended maintenance intervals with reduced usage of lubricants.