Axial thrust washer made of plastic in imaging diagnostics

Patrick Czaja | 7. October 2021

Germany has been one of the largest industrial nations and technology leaders for many decades. To ensure that this remains the case for many generations to come, universities and colleges are important institutions where thousands of students and researchers rack their brains over new technologies every day.

We are very happy to support students through our YES programme (young engineers support) for scientific work and projects and see it as an investment in our common future.

In this example, a new scanner was developed in the field of Magnetic Particle Imaging (imaging techniques in the medical field), where our xiros axial thrust washers are used for force relief on helical gears. The angled teeth are on an outer ring with 12 matching inner gears. The rotation of the outer ring finally causes the gears to rotate perpendicular to it. The axial forces, created by the crossed helical gears, have caused problems. The solution: 24 non-magnetic axial thrust washers made of plastic. The axial forces acting on the gears decreased and a very easy turning of the ring is now possible thanks to our solution.

Do you want to know more about our plastic ball bearings? Then take a look at our information page: www.igus.eu/info/ball-bearings-technology. If you are interested in our YES programme, you can find more information here: www.igus.eu/info/company-young-engineers-support.

Link to department: https://www.physik.uni-wuerzburg.de/ep5/magnetic-particle-imaging/