Advantages of Air Bearings

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Most motion applications use mechanical bearing guidance. However, there are many cases in which precision, angular repeatability and geometric performance must be optimal, or submicron-bearing rumble is problematic. Air bearings offer distinct advantages in precision positioning, such as lacking backlash and having no static friction.

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Friction is the Enemy

Frictionless drive and bearing technology is a prerequisite for vibration-free precision motion with nano-scale resolution, repeatability and guiding accuracy. There are several ways to achieve frictionless motion. Piezo drives and flexure guidance work well for short travel ranges typically below 1 mm. Another principle is based on magnetic levitation (magnetic bearings). These motion systems are more complex in terms of control, and designed for multi-axis motion applications. The most mature solution for long travel ranges consists of air bearings driven by electromagnetic linear and torque motors.

Air-bearing stages are rotary or linear positioners that float on a cushion of air, using one of several preload mechanisms, thus nearly eliminating mechanical contact, and in turn, wear, friction, and hysteresis effects. They deliver maximized throughput while providing higher precision than conventional bearings, especially for multi-axis motion. That's because an XY stage can be designed with one base rather than by stacking individual stages with accumulative errors.

Benefits of Air Bearings

The most common factors supporting the use of air-bearing stages in motion-control applications are:

Frictionless High-Performance Positioning

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