Rolamite

Rolamite is a technology for very low friction bearings developed by Sandia National Laboratories in the 1960s.[1] It is the only elementary machine discovered in the twentieth century and can be used in various ways such as a component in switches, thermostats, valves, pumps, and clutches, among others.[2]

The Rolamite bearing has very little friction

Development

The Rolamite was invented by Sandia engineer Donald F. Wilkes and was patented on June 24, 1969.[3] It was discovered while Wilkes was working on a miniature device to detect small changes in the inertia of a small mass. After testing an S-shaped metail foil, which he found to be unstable to support surfaces, the engineer inserted rollers into the S-shaped bends of the band, producing a mechanical assembly that has very low friction in one direction and high stiffness transversely.[1] It became known as Rolamite.

The Rolamite uses a stressed metal band and counter-rotating rollers within an enclosure to create a linear bearing device that loses very little energy to friction. One source claims it is the only basic mechanical invention of the 20th century.[4] Tests by Sandia indicated that Rolamite mechanisms demonstrated friction coefficients as low as 0.0005, an order of magnitude better than ball bearings at the time. There are known Rolamite versions that contain two bands that work in reciprocate parallel for more accurate kinematic transmission at the reverse motion.[5]

A video of a Rolamite in operation, to serve as a warhead safety-switch accelerometer, is available.[6]

gollark: It will need to be capable of mathematics.
gollark: Which obviously you should have anyway.
gollark: I don't think you waste any electricity beyond the regular cost of having a server on.
gollark: Yes, why did it get implemented this way?
gollark: It overlaps with my avatar! I resent this.

See also

References

Linear
  1. Blau, Peter J. (2008). Friction Science and Technology: From Concepts to Applications, Second Edition. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. pp. 367. ISBN 978-1-4200-5404-0.
  2. Corporation, Bonnier (1968). Popular Science. Bonnier Corporation. pp. 96. rolamite friction bearing.
  3. Wilkes, Donald F. (June 24, 1969). "US Patent #3,452,175: Roller-Band Devices". Rex Research. Retrieved 2007-12-11.
  4. Norman, Carlisle (February 1968). "The Amazing Rolamite – It Opens the Door for 1000 Inventions". Popular Mechanics.
  5. Tseytlin, Yakov M. (2007-03-20). Structural Synthesis in Precision Elasticity. New York: Springer Science+Business Media. p. 249. ISBN 978-0-387-25156-1.
  6. Youtube. Declassified NUCLEAR WEAPONs Safety Control & Survivability Pt 2. 1h23m20s. Alternatively, Always/Never: The Quest for Safety, Control, and Survivability - Part 2 19.30, released by Sandia Labs.]
  • Nelson, Robert A. "Rolamite". Rex Research. Retrieved 2007-12-11. External link in |publisher= (help)
  • Bishop,James E., (11/27/1973). "Remember the Rolamite? World's 27th-and Newest-'Elementary Mechanism' Still Works, but It Hasn't Revolutionized Technology" The Wall Street Journal Page 46.

Rotary

Linear

Rotary
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