Porous media air bearingsfor the best performances

The Dutch are famous as entrepreneurs. A long time ago, Amsterdam was the home port of the Dutch East India Company; nowadays the Netherlands is the “main port to Europe”.

Entrepreneurs from both the Old and New Worlds find their way to IBS Precision Engineering – and vice versa – because IBS can provide solutions for every problem in precision engineering. Our expertise is not limited by any boundaries

or borders, and it’s against that international background that we match supply and demand.

We can provide tailor-made precision engineering solutions, but we also have a standard line of measurement products – from leading brands like Lion Precision and New Way – that we sell under licence. The future is implicit in the past. With IBS, your precision engineering has a great future.

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Entrepreneurship

The Dutch East India Company

(vereenigde Oost-Indische

Compagnie) was the first

international trade association

to operate on a global scale.

In 1602, the Dutch parliament

(the “States General”) granted

the Company a monopoly on

trade in an area stretching

from the Cape of Good Hope

to the Strait of Magellan.

It became extremely

prosperous by trading in such

commodities as spices, exotic

textiles, and coffee.

Operations were financed

with public capital, subscribed

for the sum of 6 million

Dutch guilders.

The “Seventeen Gentlemen”

formed what we would

nowadays call the

“management board”

of the Company.

Dutch East InDIa company

First International trade association

When it comes to air bearings, IBS Precision Engineering offers the best solution for your application: the porous New Way Air Bearings. This Air Bearing is very reliable and has unique qualities. The porous material, for instance, ensures equal air distribution under the bearing. And porous air bearings are considerably better than conventional orifice bearings as far as bearing capacity, rigidity and air consumption go. In addition, the damping and crash resistance increase. The porous material makes the bearings less sensitive to damage.

Air Bearings provide new options for designers to push the envelope on precision, high speed,and high acceleration applications, while avoiding the traditional bearing-related problems of friction, wear and lubricants.

Air bearings basicsIBS Precision Engineering and New Way Air Bearings

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Benefits• Zero friction• Zero wear• Straighter motion• Silent and smooth operation• High damping• Eliminates oil• High speeds & acceleration• Low air consumption

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New Way flat round porous media air bearings allow anyone to design and build their own custom air bearing assemblies. The round configuration makes the most efficient use of standard raw materials and ultra-precision manufacturing techniques, ensuring low-cost standard product availability.

Available off-the-shelf, these standard bearings compare favorably with conventional rolling element bearings across virtually every performance characteristic. They are appropriate for highly-loaded applications, and are the easiest type of bearings to integrate into prototype designs as they can be readily replaced or changed.

They are also easy to apply. The gimbled mount allows for great flexibility in tolerance and the threaded ball studs make alignment simple. In addition to the standard product line (shown), custom flat round bearings are also available, including replacement bearings for many CMM's.

Flat round and rectangular air bearings

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Flat round air bearings

Flat rectangular air bearings

Note: All performance data is at 4.1 bar input pressure.

Product line comparison: Flat round air bearings Part #

S102501S104001S105001S106501S108001

S1010001S1012501S1015001S1020001

Size (mm)

ø25ø40ø50ø65ø80

ø100ø125ø150ø200

Ideal loadN

80222355666

11101776277544447770

StiffnessN/micron

18285887

114175254350700

Air consumptionnl/min

0.50.71.11.42.32.62.62.93.8

Ball socketSize(mm)

131313131320202525

Bearing height(mm)

131313202025355070

Weight(grams)

143562

151235440

103320924773

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Mounting componentsNew Way standard mounting components are well-thought-out and precision-engineered to make the integration of our standard product line easy.

BallsMade from Grade 25 stainless steel, New Way balls act as a self-leveling interface between our flat air bearing pucks and your application. These balls may be the simplest way of all to mount an air bearing.

Ball mounting screwsIn round or flat end configurations, these 416 stainless steel ball mounting screws enable easy air bearing mounting. Their gimballed design helps to ensure that the bearing face remains parallel with your guide surface.

Nut housingsThese common nut housings are an optional subcomponent used with New Way flat end ball mounting screws. For certain applications they can simplify installation.

Ball retaining clipsWhen mounting your flat round or flat rectangular air bearing using a round-end mounting screw or stainless steel ball, you can use this (optional) ball retaining clip to ensure a more secure application.

Note: All performance data is at 4.1 bar input pressure.

Product line comparison: Flat rectangular air bearings Part #

S121201S121501S122001S122501S124001S124002S125001S127501

S1210001S1212501S1215001

Size (mm)

12 x 2415 x 3020 x 4025 x 5040 x 5040 x 80

50 x 10075 x 150

100 x 200125 x 250150 x 300

Ideal loadN

3662

111187356623

1112258048937784

11121

StiffnessN/micron

57

14223558

110150665

10091645

Air consumptionnl/min

0.10.40.70.91.31.82.11.61.83.04.2

Ball socketSize (mm)

6666

13131325252525

Bearing height(mm)

10101317132025507085

100

Weight(grams)

68

264856

145295

1411362845976693

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The New Way air bushing is designed to make air bearing technology readily available to engineers with pre-existing designs based on round shaft guides. These components run on standard precision steel shafting and are available in Metric or English sizes.

These air bushings consist of a porous carbon sleeve encased in an aluminum housing. They typically mount inside a bore. Standard metric mounting housings (pillow blocks) are available for easy assembly of custom slides. In applications where higher stiffness is required, the bearing may be set in-place by a precision potting procedure.

Two o-rings, mounted on the outside of the housing, position and support the bushing, allowing it to self-align. Once the bushing is mounted, these O-rings also create the sealed chamber by which pressurized air is introduced through the outer housing to the porous carbon liner, which evenly distributes a thin film of air between the inside diameter of the bushing and the guide shaft.

Load-carrying capability is greatly dependent on the size of the air film (or the diametrical difference between the guide O.D. and the bushing I.D.). Other critical factors impacting bushing performance include: input air pressure, surface finish of the guide, bushing-guide alignment, and geometry of the guide itself.

Air bushings

Note: All performance data is at 4.1 bar input pressure.

Product line specifications: Air bushings - metric Part #

S301301S302001S302502S304002S305002S307502

Bushing I.D.Diameter (mm)

132025405075

Ideal loadN

44133187645934

1245

StiffnessN/micron

11233472

110159

Max.momentNm

0.81.11.93.15.27.1

Pitch stiffnessNm/mil rad

2.12.85.3112331

Air consumptionrange (nl/min)

2.2 - 3.13.5 - 4.84.5 - 5.97.1 - 9.3

9.0 - 11.913.2 - 17.5

Shaft (mm)

(+0.000/-0.0076)

132025405075

Weight(grams)

335483

223480623

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Mounting componentsNew Way standard mounting components are well-thought-out and precision-engineered to make the integration of our standard product line easy.

End mountsSold in pairs for easy parallel installation of New Way air bushing shafts, these clear anodized aluminum end mounts are manufactured to seat industry standard shaft sizing.

Mounting blocksAvailable in standard sizes, these black anodized aluminum mounting blocks enable the easy assembly of custom slides using New Way air bushings, which are mounted inside on o-rings to allow self-alignment.

O-ringsNew Way offers replacement O-rings. These simple copolymer rings mount on the outside of the air bushing housing, creating a sealed air pressure chamber, while also positioning and aligning the bushing.

ShaftsNew Way air bushings use solid steel cylindrical shaft guide ways. These shafts are manufactured to industry standard sizes with surface finishes of 0.4 rA or better for optimal performance.

Note: All performance data is at 4.1 bar input pressure.

Product line specifications: Air bushings - english Part #

S300601S301201S301901S302501S303801S305001S307501

Bushing I.D. Diameter (inch)

0.250.500.751.001.502.003.00

Ideal load(lbs)

2.75103042

145210280

Stiffness(lbs-in)

10.00060.000

130.000190.000410.000630.000910.000

Max.Moment(lbs-in)

0.1257.5

10.017.028.046.063.0

Pitch stiffness(lbs-in/rad)

19518.75025.00047.400

100.875201.750275.110

Air consumptionrange (scfh)

2.25-3.304.75-6.607.00-9.60

9.50-12.6014.00-19.2019.00-25.2028.00-37.80

Shaft (inch)

(+0.000/-0.0003)

0.24950.50000.75001.00001.50002.00003.0000

Weight(oz)

0.31.12.03.07.2

17.022.0

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Radial air bearings concave & convexThe ideal components for building frictionless rotary motion, New Way radial air bearings provide a fast, made-to-order solution. In either concave or convex configurations, this new product line gives you all the differential advantages of New Way standard air bearings.

Radial air bearings - concaveIdeal for rotary motion, New Way concave porous media radial air bearings are designed to maximize open-ID aperture by enabling you to engineer a supporting structure outside the rotating body.

Radial air bearings - convexLike its concave counterpart, New Way convex porous media radial air bearings are ideal for rotary applications, designed to minimize the OD circumference, enabling a support structure inside the rotating body.

W-ProfileThe New Way concave/convex W-Profile radial air bearing profile features a radius cut across the width of the bearing.

L-ProfileThe L-Profile concave/convex radial air bearing profile features a radius cut across the length of the bearing to meet the needs ofyour application and the bearing-to-shaft ratio of your specific configuration.

Note: All performance data is at 4.1 bar input pressure.

W-Series concave

L-Series concave

W-Series convex

L-Series convex

Productline specifications: Radial air bearings - concave configuration "W" and "L" series

L-Profile

S3212L xx01S3215L xx01S3220L xx01S3225L xx01S3240L xx01S3250L xx01S3275L xx01

S32100L xx01S32125L xx01S32150L xx01

Size(mm)

12 x 24 mm15 x 30 mm20 x 40 mm25 x 50 mm40 x 80 mm

50 x 100 mm75 x 150 mm

100 x 200 mm125 x 250 mm150 x 300 mm

Height(mm) 101013172025507085

100

Ideal LoadN

224489

156445756

186837816672

10453

StiffnessN/micron

61017264688

120528801

1306

Air consumptionnl/min

0.240.941.181.183.073.543.074.254.965.19

Ball Socket(mm)

6666

131325252525

Weight(grs)

68

2648

145295

1411362845976693

W-Profile

S3212W xx01S3215W xx01S3220W xx01S3225W xx01S3240W xx01S3250W xx01S3275W xx01

S32100W xx01S32125W xx01S32150W xx01

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Note: All performance data is at 4.1 bar input pressure.

Productline specifications: Radial air bearings - convex configuration "W" and "L" series

L-Profile

S3312L xx01S3315L xx01S3320L xx01S3325L xx01S3340L xx01S3350L xx01S3375L xx01

S33100L xx01S33125L xx01S33150L xx01

Size(mm)

12 x 24 mm15 x 30 mm20 x 40 mm25 x 50 mm40 x 80 mm

50 x 100 mm75 x 150 mm

100 x 200 mm125 x 250 mm150 x 300 mm

Height(mm) 101013172025507085

100

Ideal LoadN

224489

156445756

186837816672

10453

StiffnessN/micron

61017264688

120528801

1306

Air consumptionnl/min

0.240.941.181.183.073.543.074.254.965.19

Ball Socket(mm)

6666

131325252525

Weight(grs)

68

2648

145295

1411362845976693

W-Profile

S3312W xx01S3315W xx01S3320W xx01S3325W xx01S3340W xx01S3350W xx01S3375W xx01

S33100W xx01S33125W xx01S33150W xx01

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Air bearing stagesDovetail air slidesNew Way dovetail air slides combine an accurate guide with an air slide ready-fit for installation. The dovetail guidebar can be end-supported, or continuously-supported. A continuously-supported dovetail will prevent the guidebar sag that can occur with a long span end-supported configuration. The dovetail air slide features New Way's lowest profile linear track, and a slightly longer stage length than other assemblies. The dovetail also contains a space between the guidebar and stage where a linear motor or other driver can be mounted.

End supported air slidesThe simplest of the linear motion assemblies, end-supported air slides provide a precise, integrated linear motion solution ready-fit forinstallation. Designed specifically for situations wherecontinuous support is impossible or impractical, theend supported air slide is engineered to minimize guidebar sag and provide straightness of motion and dynamic response often an order-of-magnitude better than conventional rolling-element bearings.

Boxway air slidesBoxway air slides are original integrated slide-and-guide assembly. The guidebar for the boxway can be end-supported, or continuously-supported (preventing the sag inherent in long span endsupported configurations). Featuring a low profile lineartrack, and a slightly wider stage than the New Waydovetail, the boxway also provides the largest load carrying capacity and the longest travel length.the options in the New Way line of assemblies.

Boxway Air Slide

Dovetail Air Slide short

Dovetail Air Slide long

End-Supported Air Slide

New Way air slides provide a local straightness (in X and Z) of250 nanometers (0.25 microns) per 25mm travel and a maximum error(global) of 2 microns per 1000mm travel.

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Note: All performance data is at 4.1 bar input pressure.

Dovetail air bearing slides performance data

Part #

S40-06150-xxxS40-06300-xxx

StageArea(inch)6" x 6"

12" x 8"

Max.Load"Z"N

6101275

Max.Load"y"N

330660

Stiffness"Z"

N/micron250485

Stiffness"y"

N/micron120240

Max. Pitchmoment

Nm2380

Max.rollmoment

Nm2580

Max.yawmoment

Nm1038

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FPD (Flat Panel Display) conveyor air bearingsNew Way offers a line of modular air bearing components specifically designed to meet the non-contact glass-handling requirements, of for example, the Flat Panel Display (FPD) manufacturing process, including FPD conveyor air bearings for high speed or low airflow applications.

H-Series conveyor (High speed)New Way developed the high speed FPD conveyor air bearing to provide manufacturers with improved non-contact control of Flat Panel Display glass at high manufacturing process speeds, with lower initial set-up costs and reduced operating expenditures. A large vacuum area results in a smaller air gap, providing higher stiffness and improved damping. The large, attractive forces give excellent flattening ability for more reliable glass control. This, combined with the constant low pressure at the leading edge of the glass, prevents it from lifting off the conveyor and ‘sailing’ at high speeds.

L-Series conveyor (Low airflow)New Way low flow FPD conveyor air bearing provides manufacturers with non-contact control of Flat Panel Display glass, optimized for applications with low airflow requirements. The difficulty with high fly-heights of greater than 50 microns is that they typically result in low air film stiffness (less control) unless they also have correspondingly high pressures and flows. By plumbing most of the porous media face with low pressure air, and with high pressure air only around the vacuum holes, the flow requirements are greatly reduced. This is how low flow conveyor air bearings are designed. The periodic high pressure areas, preloaded by the vacuum, create high stiffness points which stabilize the glass dynamics even at high air gaps and low air consumption. And because the pressurized air bleeds out of the entire bearing face it provides a high margin of safety against glass touch-down.

Non-contact glass-handlingC-Series conveyor (Hybrid)The New Way C-Series conveyor air bearing combines the best performance characteristics of the H-Series (high speed) and L-Series (low airflow) conveyors into a single hybrid design. This new profile is also engineered to significantly reduce both the system and the operating cost.

The single vacuum groove provides necessary control of the leading edge of the glass, while also enabling a greater fly height range of 20 to 120 microns. These fly heights have a stability of ±5 microns, well within the focal range of most inspection cameras, for example. This makes the C-Series ideal for FPD manufacturers looking for non-contact control of Flat Panel Display glass at 30 microns, and also for Solar Module manufacturers requiring 80 microns of fly height.

The combination of air pressure evenly distributed through the entire surface of the conveyor, and vacuum pulling the glass down, and flattening it, provides a high margin of safety against glass touch-down.

Further, the C-Series design enables conveyors to be placed further apart in the array, and can even enable the glass to 'jump' 100mm spaces (over inspection or production zones), further reducing costs and offering fabs or machine builders additional design flexibility.Finally, because these conveyors are manufactured using New Way Porous Media Technology, which restricts the flow of air through the bearing surface, the compressed air required is significantly less than that for competitive products; even the compressor size can be reduced for many applications.

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Precision chucksNew Way Porous Media Precision Chucks are engineered for use under or near precision FPD glass manufacturing processes or Automated Optical Inspection (AOI) stations, inline or off-line. They provide a much higher level of precision, stiffness, and damping than traditional air conveyors. The vacuum holes are designed so that, with air pressure on, the flow through a vacuum hole is the same whether there is glass over it or not. Simple and smart! This also means that as the glass comes on and off the chuck, the vacuum pressures and air gaps remain the same.

These FPD precision chucks provide ±5µm control, well within the focal range of most optical inspection systems. This is a significant advantage over conventional contact bearings or orifice-based air bearings, especially for coating or AOI applications in Gen-10 or higher manufacturing lines. Superior stiffness provides for faster settling time and higher yield, without the scratching or breakage typical of competitive systems. And the larger the glass size, the bigger your advantage.

Conveyor mounting feet kitThese anodized aluminum mounting feet are designed for use with New Way conveyor air bearings. Packaged in sets of two, they allow for easy installation, with o-ring seals and adjustable jack screws for leveling.

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Vacuum preloaded air bearingsFor applications where pre-loading is difficult or impossible, vacuum preloaded air bearings add vacuum to New Way porous media technology. Simply then, these bearings hold themselves down while simultaneously lifting themselves from the guide surface.

Using a combination of air pressure and vacuum, New Way vPL air bearings hold themselves down while simultaneously lifting themselves from a guide surface. By adjusting the vacuum and the pressure separately, the fly height and stiffness of these vacuum preloaded air bearings can be optimized.

This arrangement is ideal for applications where preloading is difficult or impossible. Obviously, there is a cost advantage because only one flat guide surface is necessary. (Opposed bearing preloading requires two flat guide surfaces that are parallel.

There is also a significant technical advantage. Both "x" and "y" axes can be supported by a single bearing plane. Further, the adjustability of film thickness can be used for focusing, squaring and sub-micrometer vertical positioning over a range of several microns.

The combination of air pressure and vacuum necessitates a different mounting methodology from New Way flat air bearings. The typical socket would not provide for bi-directional stiffness because the ball would pull out. New Way has engineered a flexure mount to provide equal stiffness in both directions, while providing a low pivot point. Because there is no stick-slip type friction in the flexture mount, even the smallest amount of angular adjustment is possible.

Note: All performance data is at 4.1 bar input pressure.

Product line comparison: Vacuum preloaded air bearings Part #

S205001S207501S209001

Size (mm)

ø50ø75ø90

Ideal loadN

45110150

StiffnessN/micron

132943

Max.hold downforce@ 680 mbar/N

73180260

Air consumptionnl/min

1.061.41.5

Bearing height(mm)

222222

Weight(grams)

73203306

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Mounting componentsNew Way standard mounting components are well-thought-out and precision-engineered to make the integration of our standard product line easy.

Flexure mountsDesigned specifically for the mounting of New Way vacuum preloaded air bearings, these two-piece, aluminum flexure mounts provide bi-directional stiffness, a low pivot point, and infinitesimal angular adjustment.

France | Evry

Netherlands | Eindhoven

Germany | Stuttgart

European centre of excellence in metrology

At the cutting edge of accuracy

Porous media air bearingsfor the best performances

HEADOFFICE | IBS Precision Engineering bvEsp 201, 5633 AD Eindhoven, The Netherlands Telephone: +31 (0)40 290 12 70Fax: +31 (0)40 290 12 79E-mail: info@ibspe.com, Internet: www.ibspe.com

IBS Precision Engineering sarl Le Magellan, 7 rue Montespan, 91024 Evry CEDEx, FranceTelephone: +33 (0)1 69 47 60 53Fax: +33 (0)1 69 47 60 70E-mail: info@ibspe.fr, Internet: www.ibspe.fr

IBS Precision Engineering Deutschland GmbHLeitzstraße 45, 70469 Stuttgart, GermanyTelephone: +49 (0)711 490 66 230Fax: +49 (0)711 490 66 232E-mail: info@ibspe.de, Internet: www.ibspe.de

08-09