Ball Screw Precautions on Use

Handling

1. Please use at least two people to move any product weighing 20 kg or more, or use a dolly or another conveyance. Doing so may cause injury or damage.
2. Do not disassemble the parts. This will result in loss of functionality.
3. Tilting the Ball Screw shaft and the Ball Screw nut may cause them to fall by their own weight.
4. Take care not to drop or strike the Ball Screw. Failure to do so could cause injury or product damage. Giving an impact to it could also cause damage to its function even if the product looks intact.
5. When assembling, do not remove the Ball Screw nut from the Ball Screw shaft.
6. When handling the product, wear protective gloves, safety shoes, etc., as necessary to ensure safety.

Precautions on Use

1. Prevent foreign material, such as cutting chips or coolant, from entering the product. Failure to do so may cause damage.
2. If the product is used in an environment where cutting chips, coolant, corrosive solvents, water, etc., may enter the product, use bellows, covers, etc., to prevent them from entering the product.
3. Do not use the product at temperature of 80℃ or higher. Except for the heat-resistant models, exposure to higher temperatures may cause the resin/rubber parts to deform/be damaged.
4. If foreign material such as cutting chips adheres to the product, replenish the lubricant after cleaning the product.
5. Micro-oscillation makes it difficult for oil film to form on the raceway in contact with the rolling element, and may lead to fretting. Accordingly, use grease offering excellent fretting toughness. It is also recommended that the Ball Screw nut be turned once or so on a regular basis to make sure oil film is formed between the raceway and rolling element.
6. Do not use undue force when fitting parts (pin, key, etc.) to the product. This may generate pressure marks on the raceway, leading to loss of functionality.
7. If an offset or skewing occurs with the Ball Screw shaft support and the Ball Screw nut, it may substantially shorten the service life. Pay much attention to components to be mounted and to the mounting accuracy.
8. If any of the rolling elements falls from the Ball Screw nut, contact THK instead of using the product.
9. When using this product with a vertical orientation, take preventive measures such as adding a safety mechanism to prevent falls. The own weight of the Ball Screw nut may cause it to fall.
10. Do not use this product beyond its permissible rotational speed. Doing so may cause accidents or component damage. Be sure to use the product within the specification range designated by THK.
11. Do not cause the Ball Screw nut to overshoot. The ball may drop, circulating parts may be damaged, raceway in contact with the ball may develop pressure marks, etc., resulting in malfunction. Continuing to use the product in this condition may lead to premature wear or damage to circulating parts.
12. Use the Ball Screw by providing a LM Guide, Ball Spline or other guide element. Otherwise, the Ball Screw may be damaged.
13. Insufficient rigidity or accuracy of mounting members causes the bearing load to concentrate on one point and the bearing performance will drop significantly. Accordingly, give sufficient consideration to the rigidity/accuracy of the housing and base and strength of the fixing bolts.

Lubrication

1. Thoroughly wipe off anti-rust oil and feed lubricant before using the product.
2. Do not mix different lubricants. Mixing greases using the same type of thickening agent may still cause adverse interaction between the two greases if they use different additives, etc.
3. When using the product in locations exposed to constant vibrations or in special environments such as clean rooms, vacuum and low/high temperature, use the grease appropriate for the specification/environment.
4. When lubricating the product having no grease nipple or oil hole, apply grease directly on the raceway and stroke the product several times to let the grease spread inside.
5. The consistency of grease changes according to the temperature. Take note that the torque of the Ball Screw also changes as the consistency of grease changes.
6. After lubrication, the rotational torque of the Ball Screw may increase due to the agitation resistance of grease. Be sure to perform a break-in to let the grease spread fully, before operating the machine.
7. Excess grease may scatter immediately after lubrication, so wipe off scattered grease as necessary.
8. The properties of grease deteriorate and its lubrication performance drops over time, so grease must be checked and added properly according to the use frequency of the machine.
9. Although the lubrication interval may vary according to operating conditions and the service environment, lubrication should be performed approximately every 100 km in travel distance (three to six months). Set the final lubrication interval/amount based on the actual machine.
10. Depending on the mounting orientation and access position, lubricant may not spread fully and poor lubrication may occur. Give full consideration to these factors in the design stage.
11. When using a Ball Screw, it is necessary to provide effective lubrication. Using the product without lubrication may increase wear of the rolling elements or shorten the service life.
    Table1 ( Amount of Lubricant ) shows a guideline for the feed amount of oil.

Storage

When storing the Ball Screw, enclose it in a package designated by THK and store it in a room in a horizontal orientation while avoiding high temperature, low temperature and high humidity.
After the product has been in storage for an extended period of time, lubricant inside may have deteriorated, so add new lubricant before use.

Disposal

Dispose of the product properly as industrial waste.

Handling

1. Please use at least two people to move any product weighing 20 kg or more, or use a cart or another method of conveyance. Otherwise, it may cause injury or damage the unit.
2. Do not disassemble the parts. This will result in loss of functionality.
3. Tilting the screw shaft and nut may cause them to fall under their own weight.
4. Take care not to drop or strike this product. Otherwise, it may cause injury or damage the unit. Even if there is no outward indication of damage, a sudden impact could prevent the unit from functioning properly.
5. When assembling, be sure not to remove the nut from the screw shaft.
6. Wear appropriate safety gear, such as protective gloves and safety shoes, when handling the product.

Precautions on Use

1. Prevent foreign materials, such as cutting chips or coolant, from entering the product. Failure to do so could damage the product.
2. Prevent foreign materials, such as cutting chips, coolant, corrosive solvents, or water from getting in the product by using a bellows or cover when the product is used in an environment where such a thing is likely.
3. The operating temperature range for this product is between -15℃ to 80℃ (no freezing or condensation).
4. If foreign material such as cutting chips adheres to the product, replenish the lubricant after cleaning the product.
5. Slight oscillations can inhibit the formation of an oil film between the raceways and the area of contact for the balls, resulting in fretting. Therefore, be sure to use a type of grease with high fretting resistance.We recommend periodically rotating the nut once to help ensure that a film forms between the raceways and balls.
6. Do not forcibly drive a pin, key, or other positioning device into the product. This could create indentations in the raceways and impair the product's function.
7. Skewing or misalignment of the nut and the element that supports the shaft can drastically reduce service life. Inspect the components carefully and make sure they are mounted correctly.
8. If any balls fall out of the nut, contact THK. Do not use the product in that condition.
9. If the unit will be mounted vertically, install safety equipment or take other measures to prevent it from falling. The nut may fall under its own weight.
10. Do not exceed the permissible rotation speed when using the product. This could damage the product or otherwise cause it to malfunction.
    Please use the product within the range of speeds we have specified.
11. Do not allow the nut to overshoot. The product may malfunction if any of the balls fall out, the circulation components become damaged, or any indentations form in the ball raceways.
    Continuing to use the product under these circumstances may lead to premature wear or damage to the circulation components.
12. Insufficient rigidity or accuracy of the mounting surface could cause an unexpected load to act on the ball screw, which could lead to premature failure of the product.
    Therefore, give sufficient consideration to the rigidity and accuracy of the housing and base.
13. Do not touch any moving parts while the product is in operation or in an operable state.
14. If performing a task involving multiple people, confirm how to perform the work, what signals will be used, and how to handle problems before beginning, and assign another person to monitor the work.
15. A stopper is installed inside the product. It is intended to limit the stroke, and may become damaged in the event of a strong impact.

Lubrication

1. Thoroughly wipe off anti-rust oil and feed lubricant before using the product.
2. Do not mix different lubricants. Even grease containing the same type of thickening agent may, if mixed, interact negatively due to disparate additives or other ingredients.
3. When using the product in locations exposed to constant vibrations or in special environments such as in clean rooms, vacuums, and low/high temperatures, use a lubricant suitable for its use/environment.
4. When lubricating products that do not feature a grease nipple or oil hole, directly coat the raceways with lubricant and perform several warm-up strokes to ensure that the grease permeates the interior.
5. Grease viscosity can vary depending on the temperature. Please keep in mind that the torque may be affected by changes in viscosity.
6. After lubrication, the rotational torque of the DSP may increase due to the stirring resistance of the grease. Be sure to perform a warming-up operation and allow the grease to break in sufficiently before operating the machinery.
7. Excess grease may spatter after lubrication. Wipe offspattered grease as necessary.
8. Grease deteriorates over time, which decreases the lubricity. Perform regular grease inspections and replenish grease based on frequency of use.
9. The greasing interval varies depending on the usage conditions and environment. Grease the system approximately every 500 km of travel distance (6 months). The final greasing interval/amount should be set at the actual machine.
10. There is a risk that lubrication may not work sufficiently if the lubricating oil does not circulate due to the mounting orientation or the oiling port of the nut, so be sure to give these factors adequate consideration during design.
11. It is necessary to provide adequate lubrication when using the DSP. Using the product without lubrication may increase wear on the rolling elements and shorten the service life.

Storage

1. When storing the DSP, pack it as designated by THK and store it indoors in a horizontal position away from high or low temperatures and high humidity.
2. Please note that if the product has been kept in storage for an extended period, the lubricant inside may have deteriorated. Please ensure that you replenish the lubricant before using.

Disposal

1. The product should be treated as industrial waste and disposed of appropriately.