THK by Motion Type
Linear
Every day we are surrounded by things that move in a linear fashion. At THK, our roots lie in our initial development of a Linear Motion (LM) Guide that can guide a device accurately along a straight line. This manufacturing know-how has let us keep expanding the range of linear guidance products we produce to the present day.
Caged Ball LM Guide Model SHSApplied linear motion
Large automatic glass doors
Our LM guides are used for guidance of large automatic glass doors in many new intelligent office buildings. Conventional plastic resin rollers could not be used because of the increased weight of such doors and the windblast. Our LM guides solved these problems. They also make the door mechanism more compact and allow more freedom in door design.
Products
LM Guide (Linear Motion Guide)
The LM Guide (Linear Motion Guide) is our main product, incorporating a part with a linear rolling motion into practical usage for the first time in the world.
Ball Spline
The Ball Spline is a rolling guide spline bearing.
LM Guide Actuator
The LM Guide Actuator is a compact actuator with high rigidity and high precision that has an integrated LM Guide with a ball screw.
Slide Pack
The Slide Pack is an inexpensive linear guide configured with the press-formed slider and roll-formed rails.
Slide Rail
The Slide Rail is a low-priced limited-type linear guide made of steel plate precision-formed by rolling.
Oscillating
Oscillation is a movement similar to joints of the human body. Various parts are joined together and gaps that would otherwise be created by complex movements are smoothly brought together. "Joints" or "couplers" between machine parts are also well known. THK products exhibiting oscillating movements include "Link Balls," "Rod Ends" and "spherical plain bearings". In particular, our high-performance link balls have been manufactured based on our unique technologies since the formation of THK.
Link Ball Model BLApplied oscillatory motion
Motor vehicles
THK's link balls are used in the stabilizers that are so important for the comfort and safety of automobiles. By controlling and linking the movement of the left and right suspensions, they reduce roll and stabilize the vehicle.
Products
Link Ball
The Link Ball is a spherical slide bearing with a ball stud that provides smooth operation with a minimal clearance.
Rod End
The Rod End is a spherical slide bearing incorporating a spherical inner ring with precision and hardness equivalent to that of steel ball bearings.
Spherical Plain Bearing
The Spherical Bearing is a heavy-duty self-aligning sliding bearing
Curve
Some machines need movement not only along a straight line but also on a smooth curved line. To facilitate this, THK provides the "R Guide" and the "Straight-curved Guide" devices. These devices allow for very accurate guidance that could not have been achieved through a combination of only conventional rotary and linear motions.
Straight-curved Guide Model HMGApplied curved motion
Large-capsule bingo game machines
Our R guides are used in arcade bingo game machines. The large capsule is shaken and rotated to scramble the bingo's number balls. The R guides enable the machine's reliable oscillatory movements.
Crossing
By positioning two linear motions orthogonally at 90-degree angles, freer movement can be achieved. This is an expanded application of linear motion. Free movement on a plane surface is used in various fields.
Caged Ball Cross LM Guide Model SCRApplied orthogonal motion
Seismic isolation technology for buildings
Quake-absorbing" technology to alleviate quake vibrations is a valuable countermeasure against earthquakes. When LM guides are combined orthogonally, they can move in a free motion on a plane surface. Combined with damping rubbers, this is the basis of THK's THK's unique quake-absorbing system. Through the know-how we have accumulated making LM guides, THK is creating new systems that can protect people's lives and property from natural disasters.
Circuit
Machine movement can be fundamentally divided into rotary and linear motions. Ball bearings are among the most famous machine parts exhibiting rotary motion, but among THK's products, the representative rotary motion device would be our "Cross-Roller Rings". These devices offer an efficiency that ball bearings do not.
Cross-Roller Ring Model RUApplied rotary motion
Arc welding robots
Cross-roller rings are used in the rotary motion section of joints of arc welding robots on a production line of factories. Because cross-roller rings alone are rigid in the direction of each load of radial and axial moments, they can be used to develop the compact joints of robots.
Products
Cross-Roller Ring
The Cross-Roller Ring is a roller bearing with high rotation accuracy capable of bearing loads in every direction.
Cam Follower
The Cam Follower is a compact bearing with a high-rigidity shaft and a built-in needle bearing.
Roller Follower
The Roller Follower is a compact bearing with a high-rigidity shaft and a built-in needle bearing.
Spiral
A spiral movement can be facilitated by rotary and linear motions. A combination of these motions allows accurate and sophisticated positioning. THK's "Ball Screw Spline" has Ball Screw nuts and Spline nuts on a single axis to allow both rotary and linear motions from one compact design.
Ball Screw / Spline Model BNSApplied spiral motion
Scalar robots
Scalar robots are used to transport and position workpieces within small areas. LM Guide systems are crucial for their high accuracy in both stroke movement and rotation on the Z axis, where high speed and low runout are essential.